From: Bob (Schutz class of ’65) and Donna Kraft <[email protected]> Date: December 20, 2016 at 5:36:26 PM ESTThis letter includes news of Ruth & Tony Cordahi former Schutz teachers along with Pollock and Kraft news.
Christmas 2016Dear Friends,
Once again it’s that time of year to exchange news of events that have happened in our lives.
In Jan., soon after we sent out our letter last year, Bob learned that Sanaa International School, where he worked in the 90’s, was bombed by the Saudis. The school had been closed due to the war between Yemen and Saudi Arabia so no one was killed. It was a sad shock to learn that three years of Bob’s construction work, which included a large geodesic dome above the auditorium was destroyed in an instant. At least the school got 23 years use out of the building. More seriously, we’ve heard several reports of mass starvation in Yemen, something most of us are not aware of as news of Aleppo and Mosul fill the media.
February, happily, was a time for a short family reunion as we all converged on Florida for the marriage of Bob’s niece, Clara. She is Gordon and Emy’s daughter and is now a doctor practicing in WV. She had an outdoor beach wedding, which was very nice although rather windy. After the wedding, we Krafts stayed around and did a little sightseeing in the area. Bob stayed several more days and did bike and kayak trips with Gordon.
Sadly, mid-August Dave Preston lost his two year battle with pancreatic cancer. Dave and Leah were leaders for many of the mission trips that Bob went on in past years. Leah is the sister of Bill Pollock who is married to Bob’s sister Carolyn. Since they were based in Africa, the Prestons were able to provide the ground support for many construction projects. Mission projects in Africa require a lot of work including fundraising, volunteer recruitment, engineering, and coordinating with the local church or agency. Dave was uniquely qualified with his knowledge of several languages and his connections through Wycliff. He will be sorely missed. We gathered in Charlotte, NC for his wonderful memorial service at Providence Presbyterian Church. The whole Pollock clan was there as well as many volunteers from past mission trips. “Well done thou good and faithful servant.”
In Oct. Bob joined a team from Pittsford Presbyterian Church (near Rochester, NY) to work on homes that were damaged in Columbia, SC during the 2015 floods. This is the home church for several of the Pollocks. We joined St. Bernard’s Parish, an organization that was formed in LA after the Katrina floods. They provided tools and coordinated much of the work, using Americorps volunteers and other church groups. Lake Murray Pres. Ch. provided dorm, cots, and the use of the church kitchen to host the 14 of us. We stayed for a week and did mainly sheet rock work and painting.
Plumbing seems to be the job that keeps us busy here. With the farm rental house, plus our own two houses, Donna’s Dad keeps repairing pipes for ourselves as well as neighbors and friends. At age 88, he still manages very well with Bob doing much of the grunt work. Most recently a right-of -way crew drove a heavy truck over a main sprinkler system control box. It took us two days to dig up and replace all the damaged valves and connections. Donna and her dad continue to cultivate a large garden and grow many of our vegetables, including English peas, zipper cream peas, broccoli, corn, tomatoes, green bell peppers, onions, mustard greens, garlic, and much more. Donna also freezes, cans, and preserves much of the food so that it lasts all winter. In addition to all the chores, we have had a leaky bow window replaced for the third time (let’s hope they got it right this time) and a new roof put on our house.
Aiken is home to two of our former teachers, Ruth and Tony Cordahi. Bob had both of them as high school teachers at Schutz School in Egypt and Donna had both of them as professors at USC Aiken. They are the ones that encouraged Donna to begin her teaching career at Schutz. Ruth suffered a fall and blow to the head in July and spent four days in the hospital. She then spent five weeks in rehab to regain strength. Tony does not drive, so we have been helping them with errands and driving them to doctor appointments. Ruth is slowly improving but still cannot leave the house alone or get around without a walker. We ask that you remember them in your prayers.
We enjoy hearing from all of our friends, near and far and pray that you all have a blessed and meaningful Christmas.
Greetings,
Bob and Donna
Sanaa Int’l School