Dear friends:
     Greetings from Lancaster, PA, presently one of the most beautiful corners on the planet. Partial though we are to the tropics, the lush green, flowers and current warmth of a northern spring are enough to make us understand why people choose four-season climes. These last two weeks we've had the pleasure of showing some of Lancaster sights to Jeanette's parents, Bob and Dawn Archer, retired TEAM missionaries to Colombia, who have been here celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
     That is, between travel. Marty has been on the road this last week for both the BCM international boards, followed by the Canadian board meetings as well as a series of mission banquets in Michigan, New York and North Carolina. Last Friday was our local PA banquet with a turnout of about 250. The theme was our camps around the world in 25 countries and specifically raising scholarships for our 3 PA camps . PTL for scholarship donations that will send a good number of inner city children to camp this summer.
      In the morning I (Jeanette) fly to Expolit in Miami, where I will be speaking at the Escuela de Escritores (School of Writers) as well as speaking at the Tyndale Publishers breakfast and doing a booksigning with my Spanish title Zona de Despeje. I will be presenting a workshop for Latin American book distributors on the vision of Christian fiction as a means to touch lives with God's love within the Latin American culture far beyond those who would walk into a church or pick up a theology book. Please pray for my voice and clarity of mind and speech during these next days, as I've been struggling with a cold and sore throat.
      When I return, we are looking forward to a very special event as a family: traveling up to Chicago for Steve's graduation from navy bootcamp May 25th and spending a couple days with him before he leaves for submarine school. If all goes well, Josh is hoping to join us to travel up as well. We are really looking forward to seeing him as it will be 4 months or more after he leaves for submarine school before he will get any further leave.
      After that, I (Jeanette) will be traveling to Wheaton, IL, to teach the fiction track at the 'Write to Publish' conference held on the Wheaton University campus. Then Marty, Ellie, and I leave for Europe for three weeks, during which we will be in five countries, visiting our camps and ministry ceners there (Spain, Italy, France, Netherlands, and Germany). I, Jeanette, will be filming and interviewing for our media department and mission magazine, BCM World, while Marty meets with leadership. We do plan to take a few days along the road for some sightseeing as well. We'll try to send some pictures your way.
      That's about it from our way. We'd love to catch up on your family news as well. Please do continue to pray for us and for BCM's ministries around the world--especially India and Sri Lanka at this time, where our missionaries and leadership are facing serious anti-conversion pressures and persecution.
     
      In the service of the King,
      Marty and Jeanette Windle
      BCM International