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By Very Rev. Archimandrite Nektarios Serfes
President of the Decani Monastery Relief Fund USA
January 2007
Boise, Idaho
USA
A Note from the President : Very Reverend Archimandrite Nektarios Serfes
"Let us visit Christ whenever we may; let us care for Him, feed Him, clothe Him, welcome Him, honor him, not only at a meal, as some have done, or by anointing Him, as Mary did, or only ye lending Him a tomb, like Joseph of Arimathaea, or by arranging for His burial, like Nicodemus, who love Christ half-heartedly, or by giving him gold, frankincense and myrrh, like the Magi before all these others. The Lord of all asks for mercy, not sacrifice, and mercy is greater than myriads of fattened lambs. Let us then show Him mercy in the persons of the poor and those who today are lying on the ground, so that when we come to leave this world they may receive us into everlasting dwelling places, in Christ our Lord Himself, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." From St. Gregory of Nazianzen
Beloved in Christ our Lord,
May our Merciful-Lord God always bless you!
Your loving kindness and your great mercy is needed at this hour to help so many people in the regions of Kosovo/Metohija on behalf of the Decani Monastery Relief Fund.
During the last two weeks of September 2006, I was in Kosovo-Metohija on behalf of the Decani Monastery Relief Fund. During the course of my stay in the area both the Dorbi (Good) Bishop Teodosije, and the Respected Hieromonk Andrej and my self went about in the distribution of the funds of the DMRF to many individual families, children, schools, and churches, as well as local monasteries.
In addition to offering of the donations to those in desperate need, I also had the opportunity to work with the diocesan Soup Kitchen that has the blessings of His Grace, Bishop Artemije within his diocese.While I visited the local soup kitchen I had discovered that more then 300 people arrive for assistance for food and daily offerings of soup and bread. Not only are these individuals helped, but also daily 88 children in a local school are provided with their noon meals, as well as many families in the mountain region of Pristina. What I discovered was the soup kitchen needs a larger oven in order to keep up with the demands and so we are seeking assistance for this oven which in American dollars is $3,000.00 in American dollars. Thanks to a kind donor this oven has been donated.
The second thing I noticed that the soup kitchen needs is a new truck that brings daily to a local school district that provides the noon meal for 88 elementary children, and the abundance of more then 300 families who arrive almost daily for assistance. In addition the soup kitchen also provides many homes and villages with food. The vehicle that the soup kitchen has is not the right one to travel, or it's not to big enough to hold all the necessary food that it delivers throughout the mountain regions. The DMRF would like to assist the soup kitchen to get a second hand truck and in order to purchase this truck is $15,000.00 America dollars. So far we have received $950.00 in donations for the truck, and so we need your help to obtain this truck.
Then again while I was also at the Decani Monastery they where building a new Western Wall to protect the monastery. With the efforts of the Good Bishop Teodosije he has provided local Albanians with employment to finish the wall before the winter months. This particular wall has to be built in order that the monastery has security. The balance of the wall is $30,000.00. Please consider to help with the expenses so that all of the monks at the Decani Monastery will now be safe and sound. As of a few weeks ago the wall has been completed.
The following funds have been set up on behalf of the DMRF, and we are asking that you might consider a donation of your choice in assisting the following:
i). St. Sava Elementary School in village of Jasenovik that has 32 children.
ii). Miladin Popovic Elementary School in the village of Bostane with 27 children.
iii). Branko Radicevic Elementary School in Cernica with 41 children.
iv). Obradovic Elementary School in Prekovce with 88 children.
Decani Monastery Relief Fund Treasure report from Gioia Maria Frahm: June 9 -December 31, 2006
In June of 2006, the operation of the Decani Monastery Relief Fund was transferred to Boise, Idaho. At that time we opened an account for the Fund at Key Bank in Boise with a beginning balance of $250. I assumed the duties of treasurer. From June 2006 through the end of 2006, the Fund has received donations from the sources listed below:
Decani Monastery Relief Contributions from June to December Contributor Name 1126 Lois K. Fletcher 1127 Christopher & Lori Michas 1128 Luba Fabrycky 1129 Paul & Phyllis Martinsen 1130 Dino & Sofia Vlahakis 1131 Presvytera Ruth Uhl 1132 Dragan & Marie Stefanovic 1133 Bobby & Evelyn Vucenovic 1134 Kevin & Amy Hoger 1135 Maria Eliades 1136 Diana G. Theodore-Galetsa 1137 George & Stella Jatras 1138 Tammy K. Cremeens 1139 Elizabeth T. Packer 1140 Darlene Gakovich 1141 Mirjana & Rade Petrovic 1142 Dmitris Younes 1143 Kathleen Djordjevich 1144 Ray & Effie Kaufman 1145 Philoptochos Society 1146 Kenneth & Maria Worth 1147 Rev. Bratislav B. Krsic 1148 Rev. Milan Zobenica 1149 Robert A. Rither 1150 Stevan Pirocanac 1151 Serbian Lodge Rodoljub 1152 Branko Dobric & Stoianka Yonkova 1153 Ralph & Charmaine Masterjohn 1154 Nativity of Christ Greek Orthodox Church 1155 Fr. Thomas & Presbytera Debora Tomasi 1156 The Smith Family 1157 Mr. & Mrs. Kurt Sherry 1158 Crystal Phillips 1159 Leo & Angela Bournias 1160 Branko & F. Caroline Nikolich 1161 Spring W. Degrado 1162 Kingsley C. Smith 1163 Charles & Nancy Warren 1164 Slavisa Mededovic 1165 Mary Bouris 1166 Rev. Anthony & Presbytera Tomaras 1167 Phillip & Helen Anast 1168 Mary Kiousis 1169 Ralph & Charmaine Masterjohn 1170 Ivan Knezevic, M.D. 1171 Thomas Kurdonik 1172 Yasmina Spector 1173 Charles & Nancy Warren 1174 Robert & Margita Vunovich 1175 Mark & Angela McGuire 1176 Robert & Christine Yannes 1177 John & Barbara Reeder 1178 John & Elaine Poulos 1179 Natalie O. Strintzis 1180 Pavel & Christine Pirocanac 1181 Walter & Mila Nolan 1182 Stevan Pirocanac 1183 Anthony & Maria Leoveras 1184 Justin & AnnMarie Bosl 1185 Kingsley C. Smith 1186 Donna Moore 1187 Peter & Sarah Raketic 1188 Ltc. Steven & Gisela Oluic 1189 Ivan & Radmila Gorup 1190 Ms. Darlene Gakovich 1191 Mileta & Judith Solujich 1192 Stephan & Kay PappasKatherine 1193 Vaporis Herron 1194 Dmitris Younes 1195 Robert & Elizabeth Fitzgerald 1196 John & Milica Vukasovich 1197 Dragan & Marie Stefanovic 1198 Aaron & Christine Blooding 1199 Sara V. Ingenito 1200 Donna Ingenito 1201 Mark C. Stokrp 1202 George & Stella Jatras 1203 John & Christine Heuer 1204 Justin & AnnMarie Bosl 1205 Vera S. Wasaca 1206 Connie Angelos 1207 George Zarglis 1208 Robert & Margita Vunovich 1209 G. Arnold & Patricia Powell 1210 St. Stephen's Serbian Orthodox Church 1211 Kingsley C. Smith 1212 Carrie & Joan Black 1213 Paul & Angela Papich 1214 Michael J. Redmond 1215 SUTRA, Inc. 1216 Alan B. Haberman 1217 Dmitris Younes
In early September, 2006, $17,040 was transferred into the Boise account from the Fund's former account in Washington, D.C. This transfer ended the duties of the Fund's former treasurer, Veljko Sikirica. This amount ($17,040) was included in the grand total of $363,632.94 stated in the June 18th Report.
Since moving the operation of the Fund to Boise, up to the end of Calendar Year 2006, the DMRF took in an additional $15,683.20, bringing the total received into the Fund as of December 31, 2006 up to $379,316.14. After wiring $28,500 ($18,500 of September 6th, which included the transferred amount of $17,040, and $10,000 on December 27th,) to the DMRF account in Belgrade, paying various bank fees, incorporation expenses, a telephone bill and international transfer charges, and diverting $600 to the Bishop Jovan fund, we ended 2006 with a balance of $2,893.86 in the Key Bank account in Boise.
(Amounts and donors' names for donations received after the start of 2007 will appear in the next report.)
Financial Report respectfully submitted January 29th, 2007 by Gioia Maria Frahm