Here is a little bit about Joey:

• Joey is very happy to be back in Ukarumpa, mainly because of his gang of good friends. They have a LOT of fun together but also go a bit deeper with their weekly Bible Study and prayer partners. We’re thankful he has a group of friends like he does and that he is choosing to follow God.
• He doesn’t have a big load of studies since he’s in grade 12 (which he’s happy about). And speaking of studies, please pray that God would lead Joey as he makes a decision about his future after graduation in June 2015.
• In his spare time he’s been riding motorbikes and painting his locker door, which all the seniors can do. We weren’t a bit surprised with his design. :)
• To make a little money Joey works at Teen Center. About four times per school term, the teens put on a Hamburger Night for the community. They run the whole shebang by themselves, with the oversight of two adults. It’s a great ministry for the community since there are no restaurants around and it gives the moms a break from cooking. Not only does Joey works at the Hamburger Nights but he also brings the towels and rags home and washes and hangs them to earn a little extra money.
• He and Kairu are starting a rain tank cleaning business.

*the front of his locker door

*the back of it

*lining up to order our burgers and fries!

To Be In Touch:

PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

john_bruner@sil.org

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

In the next few posts, I thought I’d give you a glimpse into the life of each one of us, now that we’re back in Ukarumpa. First off, Luke!

• Luke started 9^th grade on July 22nd. There are only six boys in his class!
• He and the other five boys are in a community group that meets Wednesday nights, led by two of the dads. The dads want the boys over the course of the year to learn how to study the Bible and to discover how great it is to love Christ. Yes!
• Luke has learned to ride our motorbike. He and John have gone off center several times now for long rides – through mud AND beautiful scenery. Thankfully no major mishaps yet.
• Luke is playing on the school’s volleyball team with his two brothers, Joey and Kairu. We think the tennis he plays has helped him with the skill of serving and spiking a volleyball.

Please pray for Luke to continue to follow God, to deepen his friendships, and know how much he is loved. Thanks!

To Be In Touch:

PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

john_bruner@sil.org

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

THANKS FOR YOUR PRAYERS as we made the journey back to Papua New Guinea. After several flights (about 20 hours total), sitting in airports and a two night layover in Australia, we arrived back July 10th. Besides seeing friends and reuniting with Joey, the adjustment to being back here has not been easy. Cleaning, getting personal things out of storage, figuring out the house’s unique pipe system for clean and unclean water, starting the process of cooking three meals a day, hanging laundry, etc. are some of the things we’ve been experiencing.

Please PRAY for us as we continue to settle and get into a routine. John has started back to the translation desk getting ready for his trip to Solomon Islands at the end of August. The boys start school on Wednesday. Luke is starting grade 9, Joey grade 12, and Kairu grade 12. Yes, you read that right. Kairu is living with us for the upcoming year while his parents live in another town. We’re glad he’s part of our family again!

*The owners of our house just went on furlough so we can live here for a year. We have the use of a little beater of a car which is nice when it rains! The boys have named it the Zucchini Mobile :).

*the side view of our house – you can see our rain tanks which we use for drinking. The toilets, shower, hot water, and washing machine all run off the not-so-clean river water.

To Be In Touch:

PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

john_bruner@sil.org

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

 

TONIGHT WE LEAVE on our journey back to Papua New Guinea. We would appreciate your prayers:

• for safety as we fly
• and as we get set up again in another rental house, unpack, stock up the kitchen, and then get into a routine of work and school. The first couple of weeks back are not ones I (Brena) look forward to, so please pray for me especially that I would take one day/minute at a time.

We’ve had a great two weeks here in California catching up with supporters, friends, and family members. We’ve met the newest member of the family, my step-niece, Audrey Donley. We’ve also been able to share in three group settings about our work in Papua Guinea. I wish I could post every single picture of every single person we saw, but of course that would be a little bit over the top :). Here are just a few.

(our good friends, the Burtons)

(a surprise visit to my teacher from junior high days, Yolanda and Chris Osborne)

(John and Luke catching a wave. Luke has been a good sport with all the visiting we’ve been doing. A fun day for him was boogie boarding with our friends, Keith and Lois Anderson, and his cousin, Kenzie)

(Cousin time – Luke and Kenzie Peters, both 14 years old)

(Catching up with three high school friends, John and Sheri (Smith) Valadez and Heather Holt)

(An afternoon with my dear Aunt Judi (my mom’s sister), cousin Kimberly and family, my brother and family, and my parents)

(My step-mom, Jane, and baby Audrey)

We appreciate you all!!

To Be In Touch:

PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

john_bruner@sil.org

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

 

THANKS FOR YOUR PRAYERS as we’ve finished up our time here in Texas. Tomorrow we leave for our two week stay in California enroute to Papua New Guinea on July 6.

Thanks for praying for Joey. He made it safely to PNG and is having a great time with his friends. We’re thankful he had smooth flights and made all his connections, and also for our friends, the Nachtigals, who are hosting him until we arrive.

We have successfully packed up and moved out of 2515 Blue Quail Drive! Whew. The house we were renting from my (Brena’s) parents is now completely empty with boxes stored in my sister’s shed. Thanks for your prayers for strength. Another move accomplished!

Grant seems to be doing well in South Carolina. He’s getting lots of hours at Chick-fil-A, spending time with his cousins, attending a great church, and working out to stay fit . We are so thankful for how God is taking care of him.

Prayers Needed:

• Although we weren’t able to see everyone we would have liked, we are thankful for the people who have been a part of our lives this year. God has been good and we trust Him now as we begin our transition back to PNG and settle back into life there. Please pray for us.
• We are looking forward to seeing those that we can in CA. Look back to our previous post if you’re interested in coming to our Open House. Pray for our time in CA that it would be special as we spend time with friends and family. Pray too for Luke who is having to hang around exclusively with his boring parents. :)
• And finally, please pray for the loved ones we are leaving behind.

To Be In Touch:

PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

john_bruner@sil.org

cell # 817-300-5601 (until July 6)

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

IT’S ALMOST TIME for us four (below) to leave Texas. Joey heads to Papua New Guinea on Tuesday, June 9th, on his own and we follow soon after – June 22 from Texas and July 6 from California. Grant is staying with his Uncle Dave and Aunt Ceil in South Carolina and working at Chick-fil-A. He will return to John Brown University in Arkansas in the fall.

We would appreciate your prayers for Joey as this is his first time to travel solo and also for us as we finish up packing and cleaning and then have some last visits with people.

For those of you who live in Southern California, we would love to see or talk to you while we’re in the area!

You are Invited to an Open House

on Sunday, June 28

at the home of Betsy Creswell

1521 Sierra Vista Dr.

La Habra, CA 90631

From 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

(*We will give a short presentation at 3:00 and 5:00)

Please RSVP to Betsy if you can make it:

562-697-9590 (home)

562-217-4205 (cell)

jbcreswell@verizon.net

If you can’t come to the Open House, you can give us a call at 817-300-5601 (our cell #) to chat or maybe we can squeeze in a time to get together with you. We will be staying with my parents, Warner and Jane Peters, in Riverside.

To Be In Touch:

john_bruner@sil.org

(until June 22) 2515 Blue Quail Dr., Arlington, TX 76017

(after June 22) PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

(until July 6) cell # 817-300-5601

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

Click on the link just below this paragraph to see our latest newsletter about our year in the States and what’s coming up next. It’s 4 pages long but has mostly pictures. :)  Thanks for your prayers as we finish out these last 4 weeks in Texas before heading to Papua New Guinea via California.

Bruner May 2015 Newsletter

 

To Be In Touch:

(until June 22) 2515 Blue Quail Dr., Arlington, TX 76017

(after June 22) PO Box 1 (134), Ukarumpa EHP 444, Papua New Guinea

john_bruner@sil.org

cell # 817-300-5601

To Give:

https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

We had the AWESOME privilege of witnessing the wedding of Don and Anna Bruner in South Carolina this past weekend. Since we miss so many big family events because we live overseas, this was one of the highlights of the year. Not only was it wonderful to witness two young people in love with the Lord but also great fun to hang out with family. We also appreciated the southern hospitality of our friends, Jim and Helen Schroer. Their home was a peaceful oasis for me (Brena).

My sister (in photo below) and I were able to get away for a couple of nights to a fancy hotel to have some concentrated sister time. It was very fun. Watching movies, eating out, and seeing the Dallas Blooms were a few of the things we did. I’m so thankful for my wonderful sister and for the special time we had together. These times don’t happen very often!

Thank you for praying for John and me when we went to Colorado to visit friends, supporters, and a supporting church. It was SO nice to catch up with people we hadn’t seen in years and get to know people we had never met. Unfortunately we weren’t able to see more people that we know in Colorado, but time was short.

The church, Grace Church of South Park, is small but what generous, loving people they are. We felt honored and blessed to share about Bible translation with them. The beauty of the landscape and seeing wildlife were added bonuses!

(Sue, Greg, and Dave Linton shared their mountain home with us for several nights)

Prayer:

• We are thankful God kept us safe while we were in Colorado and that we were able to see some supporters and share about Bible translation.
• This coming month is our last full month left in Texas. Please pray for us as we continue to prepare for our return to Papua New Guinea.
• We will have one week in May with Grant before he heads off to his Uncle Dave’s house in SC for the summer. We’re thankful God brought him through his first year of college and that he has a place to stay this summer.

To Be In Touch: 2515 Blue Quail Dr., Arlington, TX 76017– john_bruner@sil.org — (817) 376-9783

To Give: https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/Bruners

It was great fun to be able to see Grant play Ultimate Frisbee with his JBU team, Ironfist, this past weekend! They were playing in a tournament relatively near us so we were able to drive down and watch. What a FUN sport! Lots of running – kind of a mix between basketball and soccer. AND they won the tournament! Way to go, Ironfist!!

So grateful Grant can be involved with this great bunch of guys. So thankful for the school God has placed him in this year. This weekend was good for this mom’s heart. :) Now I can picture him playing when we’re overseas this coming year.