Wilsons of the Northwoods

Christmas Letter

2010-12-04T12:26:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Wilson's! We wish you and your family a very special holiday season.

As 2010 draws to a close, we pause to thank God for his loving guidance and keeping grace.

Here are a few significant events from our household in recent months:

Our home sustained some storm damage from tornado-like winds this summer, and we lost many beautiful trees from our lawn. All of old pines in front of the church were also destroyed.

Driver's License!

Luke and Wes, along with their friend, Trevor, formed a band called Found Broken. They were privileged to be the opening act for the Break the Grey Concert with Bill Ballenger. It was an awesome event! Luke plays guitar and leads worship often. Wes plays bass, and provides lead vocals for the band. They both have been composing original songs. This year, Wes obtained his driver's license, and Luke landed a job at Pizza Hut.

Hannah has become a babysitter in high demand. She loves working in the church nursery, and visiting the elderly in the nursing homes. She plays violin with Northwoods Strings, and loves going to Youth Group.

Ryan, a senior at Indiana Wesleyan University in Christian Ministries, is prayerfully considering the next chapter of his life.

Adam and Allegra live in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where they are students at UNI (University of Northern Iowa.) Adam also works at John Deere in the engineering department, and Allegra has recently started a new job at Bathworks.

Cathy continues to homeschool, play viola, and lead the Bible Quizzing program at the church. This year was a milestone for her, as she achieved her weight loss goal, and has really committed herself to physical fitness.

Mark is in his 20th year as Senior Pastor of Hayward Wesleyan Church. He is currently writing a book with Wesleyan Publishing House, which will likely be available sometime in 2011.

Adam and Allegra

Ryan

Found Broken Concert

Luke

2009-01-29T16:50:00.000-08:00

Hike to St. Peter's Dome

2008-10-27T13:20:00.000-07:00

Mission Trip to Mexico

2008-07-30T13:25:00.000-07:00

Ryan's Concert

2008-07-27T13:24:00.000-07:00

Star Wars Exhibit

2008-07-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

4th of July Eve Party

2008-07-03T20:22:00.000-07:00

Adam and Allegra's Apartment

2008-06-27T13:21:00.000-07:00

2007 Christmas Letter

2007-12-10T11:42:00.000-08:00

2007 was quite an eventful year for the Wilson Home.

Adam and his beautiful sweetheart, Allegra, were married on Friday, December 7 in a small, intimate ceremony in Waterloo, Iowa. He is working at Bertch Manufacturing, and preparing to go back to school at the University of Northern Iowa.

Ryan graduated from High School, and is now attending Indiana Wesleyan University, majoring in Youth Ministry. He has been doing quite a bit with music lately -- and has some very fascinating summer job offers which will put his musical gifts to use. His girlfriend, Ashley, is attending University of Wisconsin (Eau Claire.)

Luke and Wes are teenagers. Luke is a freshman in High School, and Wes is in 8th Grade. Luke had the opportunity to go on his first missions trip this summer -- a week on the LCO Reservation. Luke and Wes have a lot of fun together -- and they help us to laugh a lot! They both qualified for Nationals in Bible Quizzing this past year. Luke is learning to play the guitar, and Wes is picking up the bass!

Hannah (11) is a rookie Bible Quizzer this year, and she also plays the violin. She helps babysit for the church mentoring program every Tuesday evening.

Cathy continues to homeschool the children. She was the head coach for our area's top Bible Quiz team this year at the National Competition in Missouri. Her health is much improved after last year's scare -- and she's back to normal -- full steam ahead. She also teaches piano lessons.

Mark is in his seventeenth year as Senior Pastor of Hayward Wesleyan Church, which continues to thrive. He had the privilege of teaching/speaking in Nicaragua, Minnesota, Maryland, and Indiana this year. He has also done some writing for Wesleyan Publishing House and Rev Magazine, along with his blog, Revitalize Your Church.

Cathy and Mark celebrated 25 years of marriage on August 28. They are honoring their Silver Aniversary by going on 25 Special Aniversary Dates throughout the year.

Together, the Wilsons wish you a very Merry Christmas, and we pray that God will bless you abundantly in 2008.

Adam and Allegra Wedding

2007-12-09T11:58:00.000-08:00

2007-12-01T12:00:00.000-08:00

Adam and Allegra

2007-10-10T18:04:00.000-07:00

2007-09-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

Ryan in His Dorm Room at Bowman House

2007-09-03T19:21:00.000-07:00

At Castle Rock

2007-09-03T19:20:00.000-07:00

2007-08-24T19:28:00.001-07:00

Cebrating Luke's 15th B-Day

2007-08-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

Luke's Birthday Bash

2007-08-24T19:24:00.000-07:00

2007-07-01T12:12:00.000-07:00

2007-07-01T11:59:00.000-07:00

2007-07-01T11:57:00.000-07:00

2007-06-25T12:14:00.000-07:00

2007-06-01T12:10:00.000-07:00

2007-06-01T12:00:00.000-07:00

Valley Fair

2007-05-31T12:04:00.000-07:00

Girl Scouts

2007-05-21T18:16:00.000-07:00

Regionals

2007-03-24T19:58:00.000-07:00

Where Did These Kids Come From?

2007-03-05T18:40:00.000-08:00

2007-02-25T12:48:00.000-08:00

2007-02-25T12:47:00.000-08:00

Quizzing

2007-02-25T12:40:00.000-08:00

Ryan took first place in our local Bible Quizzing league this year. He is the captain of our top Nationals Team, which Cathy will be coaching.

Luke made the second team, and Wes made the third team!

The National Competition will be in the Ozarks this April.

Adam and Allegra

2007-01-20T12:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas

2006-12-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

Nice Adam!

Christmas Letter

2006-12-04T08:01:00.000-08:00

Season's Greetings from the Wisconsin northwoods to all our loved ones and friends.

Mark continues to serve as Senior Pastor of Hayward Wesleyan Church -- fifteen years and still excited about the possibilities! The church continues to thrive and is making a significant impact on the Hayward area. This year, we "birthed" a baby church in Minong, a village about 20 miles away. We secured a delightful church planting couple -- Ben & Ingrid Kidder -- and they are really doing an outstanding job. The daughter church has grown to 70-80 people and they're still just meeting on Saturday nights!

Besides his duties at the church, Mark enjoys posting on his blog, writing his weekly newspaper column, and encouraging pastors in small communities. He had the opportunity to speak at a couple of conferences this year. He also teaches FLAME courses across the country, and serves on the Wesleyan Native American Ministries Board.

Cathy continues to teach the children at home, providing leadership for our Bible Quizzing Program, and the local homeschool support group. She had a major health challenge this fall, including a couple of surgeries, but is feeling much better, and is now operating at almost 100%. It's been a long autumn for us -- but we are thankful for the Great Physician, as well as our loving friends.

Adam, a sophomore at Bethany Bible College, is majoring in Church Planting. He was selected as the Outreach Director for the campus this year, and is really enjoying school. We've noticed that he's developed a keen interest in a beautiful young lady from Waterloo named Allegra. We certainly look forward to seeing him again this Christmas.

Ryan, in his senior year, is exploring his college options -- and has narrowed it down to a couple of possibilities. He's developed into an outstanding musician/worship leader, and has written several songs. We think he might go into youth/music ministry.

Luke and Wes are best buds. They enjoy Bible Quizzing, youth group, computers, great books, swimming, and using their imaginations! We laugh a lot together!

Luke, Wes and Ryan all qualified for the Bible Quizzing Nationals in Kansas City this past year -- and are looking forward to Missouri this coming Spring (Ozarks!) Ryan, by the way, was on of the top quizzers in the nation last year, and received a scholarship for his efforts.

Hannah is our "spark plug"! She keeps herself busy with violin, choir, gymnastics, girl scouts and Followers (a kid's program at the church.)

Luke, Wes and Hannah have been working with dad on a rock tumbling project -- polishing agates.

Kitty, a stray cat who adopted us, has become the newest member of the family, despite Dad's reluctance.

A highlight of the year for us was a week in Door County, where we made lots of special memories: swimming, golfing, the beach, cherry picking, visiting tourist shops, special restaurants -- thanks to Curt and Marilyn, our gracious friends who allowed us to use their beautiful condo.

During this Christmas Season, remember that Jesus is why we Celebrate! Blessings to you all!

Gotcha!

2006-09-10T11:57:00.000-07:00

Strange Dinner Guests

2006-09-10T11:51:00.000-07:00

Friday evening we had a couple of strange dinner guests at the Wilson home.

Field Trip

2006-09-09T11:54:00.000-07:00

Field Trip to Odanah -- dad wrote about it here

Mom in the Hospital

2006-09-06T11:44:00.000-07:00

Cathy ended up spending a week in the hospital at Hayward and then St. Mary's in Duluth. Here's a picture from when the kids came up to visit her. They made her smile.

Quizzers Go Kart Outing

2006-08-26T07:48:00.000-07:00

After the Kick-off Quiz Meeting, everybody went to the Go Kart place for a lap around the track

Famous Dave's

2006-08-25T11:39:00.000-07:00

Luke chose Famous Dave's for his birthday dinner -- and we all said, "Excellent Choice!"

Then, when we got there, Famous Dave was there, and picked up our tab!

It's fun to have a Famous Friend!

Luke's Birthday

2006-08-24T11:35:00.000-07:00

Luke and friends celebrated his 14th Birthday with a Lake Superior plunge

Fort Williams

2006-08-18T10:57:00.000-07:00

Luke and Wes holding the Fort

Gooseberry Falls

2006-08-18T10:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a shot of our family (minus two -- Ryan was working, and Hannah took the photo) at Gooseberry Falls, on our way to drop Adam off at the Thunder Bay Airport. He's heading back for his second year at Bethany Bible College.

Bible Quizzing

2006-02-24T15:42:00.000-08:00

Last Friday, the Bible Quizzing Season concluded with an Honors Ceremony.

Ryan took first place in the league! Luke and Wes also had an excellent year and qualified for Nationals (in Omaha.)

Luke and Wes are in the yellow shirts, and Ryan is in the white (with the green stripe.)

Cathy coached them this year, and the team took third place!

Our Christmas Letter

2005-12-25T08:52:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Northwoods of Wisconsin!

The biggest family event of this past year was Adam's departure to Bethany Bible College -- which is 1578 miles from home! Although it was a major adustment for all of us, he is doing great, and we're really proud of him.

Adam, Ryan, Luke and Wes all qualified for the Bible Quizzing Nationals Competition in Huron, Ohio.

Mark received a grant from the Louisville Institute, and this spring he and Cathy took the trip of a lifetime to Great Britian -- England, Scotland, and Wales. A highlight of the trip was visiting Crail, Scotland -- a small coastal fishing village on the Scottish fife. Cathy's maiden name is Crail -- and her ancestors come from there. It was romatic!

We visited the Wesley sites, the British Museum, and Moriah Chapel (the birthplace of the 1904 Welsh Revival.) We also were privileged to spend an afternoon in Edinburgh, and toured St. Giles Cathedral. Another highlight was attending Evensong at Westminster Abbey.

Ryan turned 16 and got his drivers license. He learned to play the guitar this year.

Hannah is taking violin lessons. Luke and Wes have been picking up piano. Looks like we'll have a band! Perhaps, the Musical Von-Wilson Family.

The sabbatical concluded with a family trip to Florida. On the way, we visited Jimmy Carter's Sunday School Class in Plains. Georgia. It was fun to meet Jimmy and Roselyn.

We went to the beach, visited Universal, and explored the fort at St. Augustine. A former Disney executive graciously opened his home to us.

Adam went on a Mission Trip to Jamaica -- helping them to conduct their Bible Quizzing Nationals. (It's a school sport in Jamaica!)

Adam and Ryan also went with on a Mission Trip with our church youth group to New York City.

Mark had some interesting opportunities to speak this year -- at a Pilgrim Wesleyan in Brooklyn (a beautiful Haitian congregation); the Minnesota Church Ministries Convention; and Wesleyan ministerial training courses in Indiana and Michigan.

Cathy continues to homeschool the kids, and is busy leading Bible Quizzing at our church.

Adam came home for Canadian Thanksgiving!

God has continued to bless Hayward Wesleyan Church. Several people have recently come to faith in Christ. Also, we have deployed individuals and mission teams to Guatemala, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mexico, Jamaica, Nicaragua, New York and Chicago.

We thank you for your love and prayers. God is good.

Christmas Reflection

2005-12-16T08:26:00.000-08:00

To read a Christmas Reflection that Mark wrote, click here.

Manger Scene

2005-11-21T17:48:00.000-08:00

Hannah makes a Yummy Manger Scene

Ryan and Luke

2005-11-21T17:26:00.000-08:00

Best Buds

2005-11-21T17:16:00.000-08:00

Something very strange is happening to Luke, Wes and their good friend, Ben!

2005-11-20T17:24:00.000-08:00

Hannah and Ryan made a BIG cookie together!

Perfect Strangers

2005-11-19T16:03:00.000-08:00

2005-11-19T15:27:00.000-08:00

Wes and Payton

2005-11-19T15:20:00.000-08:00

Wes and his friend, Payton, on the way to Bible Quizzing Competition!

Trick or Treat

2005-10-31T17:00:00.000-08:00

Wes, the Businessman

2005-10-28T17:29:00.000-07:00

Wesley's Video Rental Shop is now in business! His friend, Trevor, was the first customer.

Canadian Thanksgiving!

2005-10-10T17:40:00.000-07:00

The Wilson Kids celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving (and Adam's Birthday) together!

44 Years Young

2005-10-03T15:44:00.000-07:00

Mark's Birthday

Reniassance Faire

2005-09-25T17:56:00.000-07:00

Hike on North Country Trail

2005-09-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

Happy 22nd Aniversary

2005-08-28T21:34:00.000-07:00

Celebrating our 22nd Wedding Aniversary at Olive Garden!

Hannah In the Lutheran VBS Parade

2005-08-19T16:06:00.000-07:00

New York City Mission Trip

2005-08-14T15:38:00.000-07:00

Ryan on the way to a summer mission trip to New York City!

Adam in Jamaica

2005-06-19T15:39:00.000-07:00

Adam went to Jamaica to help conduct their National Bible Quizzing Championships! It was an amazing adventure for him.

St. Augustine

2005-05-08T18:04:00.000-07:00

We went to the Fort at St. Augustine, Florida. There was a lot of interesting history.

Cool House in Orlando!

2005-05-06T14:13:00.000-07:00

Dad's friend, Don, opened up his home in Orlando to our family for a couple of days. Don is a Christian man who has been an executive for Disney and Univseral. His house was really cool -- and we could watch the fireworks from Disneyworld each night!

Univeral Studios

2005-05-05T14:18:00.000-07:00

We had a blast at Universal Studios.

Dessert In Plant City

2005-05-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

We stopped for Dessert in Plant City, Florida, the Strawberry Capitol of the World! Unfortunately, the strawberries were out of season -- but they still had other great desserts!

Hannah and Shrek

2005-05-04T14:08:00.000-07:00

Hannah meets the most interesting people!

Meeting Jimmy Carter

2005-05-02T17:56:00.000-07:00

We travelled to Plains, Georgia on Sunday Morning, May 1 -- and visited Jimmy Carter's Sunday School Class.

After Church, President and Mrs. Carter graciously posed with us for a picture.

After getting through the Secret Service inspection in the foyer, Luke whispered, "Phew! I'm glad they didn't find my pocket knife!"

Let's Roll!

2005-04-27T08:08:00.000-07:00

Heading out for a family trip (as a part of Dad's Sabbatical) -- to Florida!! Sunshine, here we come!

"Burst"

2005-02-19T16:41:00.000-08:00

Our Bible Quizzing team, Burst, took first place in local competition. Cathy was the coach, and Ryan & Luke were on the team.