In November of 2000, I (Mike) moved to Russia to help establish a Russian Charity named MIR. A little over a year later I married Olga. Over the years, God has led us and blessed us in many ways.
We now live in Russia and spend time in the US, Finland, Montenegro, and Estonia. I’m the Executive Director of Stoneworks International, a Christian mission organization that works in Russia, Belarus and Montenegro.
We hope you’ll wander around here, learn more about us and see evidence of the goodness of God.
Another note from Stoneworks missionary Liz Hulley –
This week, Russia celebrates 20 years of….McDonald’s!
I would like to leave the fast-food (health) debate for the moment and comment on the culture implications. This kind of anniversary is interesting when looked at in the light of what was going on the world at the time.
1990: I was almost 8 years old and probably didn’t know that the USSR existed. And I barely knew what McDonald’s was, as I wasn’t raised on fast-food.
Meanwhile, in Russia, an interesting “cultural” exchange was taking place. I enjoyed reading the accounts in Monday’s local paper (Metro) about people’s memories of the first McDonald’s opening in Moscow.
They speak of the lines, the intrigue, the scent of a new kind of food. People who had worked as servers describe the pressure they felt, then the relief as the idea took on.
I don’t know exactly which characteristics of American culture are represented by McDonald’s cuisine: Convenience? Mass-marketing? Consumerism? At any rate, in some ways this was a little crack in the cultural barrier. Something that could be “shared”?
An interesting excerpt from Metro (Feb.1, 2010).
How many hours do you have to work, to buy a Big Mac?
-in 1990: 2 hours, 10 minutes
-in 2010: 30 minutes
-in 1990: average salary was 297 rubles a month, a Big Mac cost 3 rubles, 75 kopecks
I asked a friend recently what her favorite restaurant was, and she said “McDonald’s.”
I suppose it is cheaper than other establishments in St. Petersburg, but it is still considered “eating out,” not something most people can afford to do regularly.
Tags: Culture, Liz, McDonald's, Russia
A friend just sent this to me –
This video shows the winner of ‘Ukraine’s Got Talent,’ Kseniya Simonova, 24, drawing a series of pictures on an illuminated sand table showing how ordinary people were affected by the German invasion during World War II.Her talent, which admittedly is a strange one, is mesmeric to watch.
The images, projected onto a large screen, moved many in the audience to tears, and she won the top prize of about $125,000.
She begins by creating a scene showing a couple, sitting holding hands on a bench under a starry sky, but then warplanes appear, and the happy scene is obliterated.
This is best watched in full-screen mode. (Read more of the story below the video.)
It is replaced by a woman’s face crying, but then a baby arrives, and the woman smiles again. Once again, war returns, and Miss Simonova throws the sand into chaos from which a young woman’s face appears; she is holding a letter.
She quickly becomes an old widow, her face wrinkled and sad, before the image turns into a monument to an Unknown Soldier.
This outdoor scene becomes framed by a window as if the viewer is looking out on the monument from within a house.
In the final scene, a mother and child appear inside, and a man standing outside, with his hands pressed against the glass. The final words are ‘You are always near’.
The Great Patriotic War, as it is called in Ukraine, resulted in one in four of the population being killed, with eight to eleven million deaths out of a population of 42 million.
Kseniya Simonova says: ‘I find it difficult enough to create art using paper and pencils or paintbrushes, but using sand and fingers is beyond me. The art, especially when the war is used as the subject matter, even brings some audience members to tears. And, there’s surely no bigger compliment.’
Tags: Patriotic War, Russia, Ukraine, Video
As you can see, this is Olga writing here.
Well, I had to be patient and wait five days for the pictures! But today they have finally arrived! I called my sister and heard a great news, that she is already at home with her baby!
She did say that she thinks him to be the most beautiful baby! And to that she holds! It is so much fun to talk to her and to hear her speaking of those little delightful things of daily care!
He is really so cute and sweet!!!!!
I am so tickled to just get into the car and go to her! I envy those around her now who can be with her and enjoy these moments.
I should not complain though. Mike and I are going to be the first out of our St. Pete crew who will see him and get to hold him and help Alla with her tasks. She already promised to use me to the fullest! 
It is a very new feeling to me, and when I first saw my mom after we got the news, the two of us just held each other close and could not stop smiling!
The Lord is so good.
I know I am not saying anything new, and (using the Russian phrase) ‘I have not discovered America’ by saying that babies are the wonder and the gift from the Lord.
But I think it is the first time in my life that I truly feel this.
And I am so happy!!!
Good news! Olga’s sister Alla gave birth to a boy — Andrej. The baby has some jaundice, but everyone is doing well. We’re very happy to be Aunt and Uncle. We’ll post pictures soon.
Alla is married to Zhelyan, a Montenegrin, and they live in Podgorica. And we will soon be in Montenegro.
(Click here for a quick guide to our Montenegrin connections.)
We’ll drive from St. Petersburg to visit the Stoneworks ministry in Minsk, then we’ll drive to visit friends in Hungary and Serbia, looking for ministry opportunities as well.
From there we’ll go to Montenegro to spend a few weeks with family and friends. We’ll follow basically this route, but now we have more personal connections along the way.
It will be great to be with our family in Montenegro, and we’ll be working on some ministry projects.
Christina Melton, Stoneworks missionary in Montenegro, will travel back to Russia with us via Estonia, where we’ll have a conference/retreat of all the Stoneworks workers in Europe.
It should be a fun and fruitful trip.
Our friend John Bull, missionary here in St. Pete, posted this –
When I was in the 6th grade I received 8 spankings (maximum allowed by the state of Arkansas) at school for selling fireworks at school.
This year, Melissa’s second grade teacher gave the kids a gift for the Christmas holidays.
It was . . . FIREWORKS!
You can buy them and shoot them virtually anywhere in the city.
I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. No spankings here.
Click here to read his family’s blog.
Yesterday I had to run some errands down town, and decided to walk part of the way back home. Just before the New Year we had a record snow fall since 1881, so much that the city almost came to a full stop for a few days. Things are a little better now, but it is still hard to get around. Nonetheless the scenery is a delight!
Our past winters have not spoiled us for beautiful views. We occasionally had some cold spells and some snow, but this time we are rea
lly having a winter!!!! For a few days now we had this beautiful snow covered trees, and the city looks like a winter wonderland!
It is truly a joy to walk through streets and parks and enjoy the clean snow, the lovely trees and buildings covered with frost! I forgot how much I love waking in downtown St. Petersburg.
I walked by Moika river. They cleared a little path on the embankment. The access ways to the wa
ter were filled with snow, so I was not able to get down to the ice covered river.
Earlier that day I read from a devotional book about getting to some quiet place where you can see the majesty of the Lord.
Well, I would not call the city a “quiet place”, but I sure did feel His majesty and power even in the midst of stone and granite and power lines and cars. He showed me that He was still in charge, and that He can do whatever He wishes to do.
Men can do great things, they are, after all, made after His image and likeness, but He alone will order the day!
So yesterday I had this wonderful and surprising gift from my Father, and I am so grateful for it!
May the Lord bless you and delight you with small and big wonders!
In the spring of 1947, ann American journalist from Life magazine visited Stalingrad (now Volgagrad). The city was the location of one of the greatest and most destructive battles in WWII. You’ll see pictures of the city four years after that battle, including several of German prisoners of war.
Tags: History, Photos, Russia, Stalingrad
Here’s a good explanation about Russian Christmas and why it is celebrated on January 7 –
Russian Christmas
Thirteen days after Western Christmas, on January 7th, the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates its Christmas, in accordance with the old Julian calendar. It’s a day of both solemn ritual and joyous celebration
After the 1917 Revolution, Christmas was banned throughout Russia, along with other religious celebrations. It wasn’t until 75 years later, in 1992, that the holiday was openly observed. Today, it’s once again celebrated in grand fashion, with the faithful participating in an all-night Mass in incense-filled Cathedrals amidst the company of the painted icons of Saints.
Christmas is one of the most joyous traditions for the celebration of Eve comes from the Russian tradition. On the Eve of Christmas, it is traditional for all family members to gather to share a special meal. The various foods and customs surrounding this meal differed in Holy Russia from village to village and from family to family, but certain aspects remained the same.
An old Russian tradition, whose roots are in the Orthodox faith, is the Christmas Eve fast and meal. The fast, typically, lasts until after the evening worship service or until the first star appears.
The dinner that follows is very much a celebration, although, meat is not permitted. Kutya (kutia), a type of porridge, is the primary dish. It is very symbolic with its ingredients being various grains for hope and honey and poppy seed for happiness and peace.
Once the first star has appeared in the sky, the festivities begin. Although all of the food served is strictly Lenten, it is served in an unusually festive and anticipatory manner and style. The Russians call this meal: “The Holy Supper.” The family gathers around the table to honor the coming Christ Child.
A white table-cloth, symbolic of Christ’s swaddling clothes, covers the Table. Hay is brought forth as a reminder of the poverty of the Cave where Jesus was born. A tall white candle is place in the center of the Table, symbolic of Christ “the Light of the World.” A large round loaf of Lenten bread, “pagach,” symbolic of Christ the Bread of Life, is placed next to the Candle.
The meal begins with the Lord’s Prayer, led by the father of the family. A prayer of thanksgiving for all the blessings of the past year is said and then prayers for the good things in the coming year are offered. The head of the family greets those present with the traditional Christmas greeting: “Christ is Born!” The family members respond: “Glorify Him!”
The Mother of the family blesses each person present with honey in the form of a cross on each forehead, saying: “In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, may you have sweetness and many good things in life and in the new year.” Following this, everyone partakes of the bread, dipping it first in honey and then in chopped garlic.
Honey is symbolic of the sweetness of life, and garlic of the bitterness. The “Holy Supper” is then eaten (see below for details). After dinner, no dishes are washed and the Christmas presents are opened.
Then the family goes to Church, coming home between 2 and 3 am. On the Feast of the Nativity, neighbors and family members visit each other, going from house to house , eating, drinking and singing Christmas Carols all the day long.
Recent Comments