Stewart Family Update

Wow, at lot has changed for the Stewarts and our kids in the past few months.  We have had a new birth, 2 sons-in-law have gotten their Masters degrees and found new jobs in churches, plus Camino Global has officially joined Avant Ministries.  So, this blog might be long, but please enjoy the photos with us.

Glenn and Judy

Glenn and I completed our 33 days ministry trip as we served the Neil Tomba Team bicycle from coast to coast.  It was a life-changing experience we will never forget.  Our lives have been changed for the good.  We experienced God in the most unique ways. For more details check out NeilTomba.com

Here are some additional Facts:

Van – named as ChuckWagon16 

Dallas- California – Annapolis – KC – Denver – Dallas roundtrip 8, 936 miles  and 670.8 gallons of gas used

May 27 – June 28 Santa Monica Pier, California- Annapolis, Maryland, oneway 4,186miles

360 gallons of gas used

Total miles on bikes from Santa Monica Pier, California to Annapolis, Maryland - 

somewhere between 2535, 2795 and 2968

116 recorded/video meaningful #ConversationsCoasttoCoast

31 different beds, including 

-       Historic Route 66 Motels

-       Wigwam

-       Shaker Village beds

-       KOA cabins

-       Ranch House

-       Broken Arrow Bible Camp (primitive)

-       Fairmount Hotel

-       Blue Ridge Parkway Fishing and Camping

-       Traditional Best Western, Motel 6, Days Inn

-       Restored old hotel Western Front Hotel, St. Paul, VA

-       Lake House in Kentucky

Places Where We Ate:

McDonald’s----------------------- 9

Mom and Pop’s Diner ---------25

Sonic -------------------------------2 

Hamburgers---------------------13

Mexican Restaurants------------4

Chinese Restaurants –----------2

Pizza--------------------------------2

Picnic------------------------------10

Steak--------------------------------4

IHOP---------------------------------1

On a Yacht--------------------------1

We have been asked several questions:

• Would we do it again?  “Not today!”  We are still recovering from the grueling day-to-day (5:00am sometimes 4:30am - 9:00pm) days with little personal time for ourselves.  Ask us again later.  We’ld do it in a heart-beat. 
• What changes would you make? Maybe more defined roles and possibly route (We followed Route 66 much of the way, but it was also connected to I-40, so we had to do some major rerouting.
• What was a lesson learned? Seeing how God used ‘divine' appointments along the way
• How many miles did you travel? The van drove 8,936 miles from Dallas - California - KC - Denver (made a quick trip to see g’kids) - Dallas
• How many miles did the cyclists ride?  Anywhere between 2535, 2795 and 2968 miles. (Average approximately 100 miles a day with 2 days OFF)  The van went 4,186 miles one-way and used 360 gallons of gas
• What were the accommodations like?  I helped with securing different and unique lodging.  We stayed in Historic Route 66 Motels which included Wigwams, Shaker Village, 2 KOA campgrounds, 2 State Park lodges, Ranch House, Lake House, traditional Best Westerns, Motel 6, Days Inn and Broken Arrow Bible Camp (primitive) and even a restored old hotel Western Front Hotel in St. Paul VA
• What did you eat for 33 days?  Glenn and I shared meals each time.  No way am I eating myself across the USA.  We ate at Mom and Pop’s Diner’s, McDonald's, local Mexican restaurants, Chinese Restaurants and ended up our last night on a Yacht.
• Who did you have conversations with? There were at least 116 recorded/video meaningful #ConversationsCoasttoCoast with mechanics, young families, college students, retired Admiral, Armenian couple, Deputy officer, Ferry boat owner, professional bicyclists, Mormons, truckers, young families, Navajo Indian, and countless other folks we shared with.
• What’s next for Neil Tomba?  I believe he has a contract with a book agent.  Neil plans to create a Netflix quality documentary, which will probably be a series.

Ellen and Luke

Luke graduated from Denver Seminary on May 19.  He and Ellen accepted a job opportunity at East Bend Mennonite Church in Fisher, Illinois.  They're excited about this church in a farming community.  David will be in 3rd grade, Emily starts 1st grade and Lucy (nearly 5) and Elizabeth (2 1/2) will be home with momma. 

Karen and Thomas

Thomas graduated from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary in Boston on May 19, 2019, and he and Karen are assigned to St Catherine Greek Orthodox Church in Aurora, Colorado. Thomas had an ordination service in July and he serves as a Priest there. Our daughters lived in the same state for just 6 weeks.

Gary and Madison

Gary and Madison live in the Kasas City area and on April 7th welcomed Brighton's little sister, Violet Dawn into their family.  We have been blessed to see the growing family while we were in the states.  Madison is a stay-at-home mom whle Gary works as an IT Service Specialist.