La Lumière: November 2023

May is taking on a new role for Cru - Global Systems Architect. Recognizing May's skill for bringing clarity to complex problems and her years of experience, May is the first person to step into this much needed position. Directing the French technical team and leading the global Make Giving Easy project has prepared her well. What does it entail? A Systems Architect divides large and complex systems into manageable subsystems that can then be handled by a team of engineers. So this is high level conceptual work. It might be hard to imagine a missions organization having such complexity but since each country has their own specific needs for systems that they all share, the chaos can be overwhelming. May meets with people around the world, trying to understand their underlying problems and needs. She then endeavors to find high level solutions that can meet the needs from Latin America to Eastern Europe to Asia and North Africa. Not many people could face this challenge!
As the pioneer and technical lead for the Make Giving Easy project, May carried a ton of responsibility. As she transitions to her new role she must let go of this. The project continues, but honestly it will probably take multiple people to do all that she did. Five years in, we can see the fruits of the team's efforts. In the countries who benefit, the number of ministry partners and the amount of donations are increasing every year. The impact will undoubtedly continue. May will also no longer direct the French technical team, passing that off to our colleague Darrin, who we introduced you to September of last year. May has been working together with him for a year now, and she will be regularly available for consulting and help.

May with another global colleague.

Only 30% of the participants were women so no lines in the bathrooms!

The pyramid in Tirana today.

The pyramid in Tirana in 1995 with Dan on the right.
Please pray
- that May is able to establish clarity and structure in her new role as global systems architect.
- for our search for a more reliable car, we would like to upgrade from our 20 year old golf.
In 1995 before we were married, May and I both joined a Cru project in Tirana Albania, the last country in the soviet block to shed communism. We were there for a week paired with locals to share Christ on campus. Once declared an atheistic state, Albania went from having just sixteen known believers to more than 100 full time Cru staff today. Last month May was able to go back, attending a global operations leadership conference. There were staff from over 80 countries attending. It was a rare chance for May to see people she has worked with face to face. Here is a message she received right after the conference from a teammate from Mexico she has worked with for three years, "You are amazing. I am very excited to talk about tech/solution opportunities for me. Please guide me in your tech wisdom." We appreciate that encouragement!
