Days Five - Seven, Shawano, WI

Day Five of our excellent adventure began with a visit to Grandy, Robyn's grandfather. We are thankful that he is out of the hospital and slowly but surely gaining strength. After our visit with him, we drove north from Wheaton to Shawano, Wisconsin. The worst part of the trip was getting gas; I paid $3.47 per gallon in Chicago. I never thought I'd be hoping that gas would get "cheaper" than $3.00 a gallon, but what can you do about it?


Shawano is a small town half a hour west of Green Bay. My wife Robyn grew up here. The first thing you should know about the town is that it is not pronounced "Sha-wa-no", but "Shaw-no". It has a silent "wa". And while I'm on the subject of place-name pronunciation in the Dairy State, you should know that it's not "Green Bay", but "Green Bay". True cheese-heads always accent the "Bay", not the "Green". My wife schooled me in these things soon after we met.

After arriving to Shawano, we ate dinner at Luigi's, a local pizza place. Here in America's heartland, there is a seeming abundance of ethnic restaurants. We've had breakfast at a Mexican place, and dinner at Italian and Chinese restaurants. But we didn't miss out on local fare entirely; at a church luncheon on Sunday, a very Wisconsin snack, cheese curds, was served.

We spent the night at the house of Robyn's dad, a.k.a Papa Joe.

On Day Six, Sunday, we went to church with Robyn's mom. There are two OPC churches in the area that are very unique. Both consist primarily of Native Americans. One, Old Stockbridge OPC, has historically been made up of the tribe by that name. The Old Stockbridge people were originally evangelized in part by Jonathan Edwards way back in the 18th century. The other church, Menominee OPC, ministers to the Menominee people nearby. (We worshipped Sunday at Old Stockbridge, but a few years ago I had the privilege to preach at the other church. I understood quickly that I was in a cross-cultural setting when I saw a boy about 12 in the congregation wearing a T-shirt that featured pictures of three famous Indian chiefs and read, "Homeland Security...Fighting Terrorism since 1492"!)

After an edifying worship service and delightful time of fellowship, Robyn's mom hosted us for lunch along with Robyn's brother's future wife and in-laws. This picture was taken right next to her cottage on the Red River.

Today, Day Seven, began with breakfast with Robyn's dad and his girlfriend Pattie. Then, we spent the rest of the day at a local state park with our friends Karl and Allison and their three young children. Karl is the pastor of both the churches above, and is faithful and beloved minister of the two flocks. With seven children and four adults, we found ourselves playing zone defense - keeping the children from falling into the water, prodding along the stragglers, and generally trying to prevent the usual mischief.

Tomorrow begins our serious push west as we set out for Missoula, Montana. We are hoping to get as far as Fergus Falls, Minnesota.