If you’ve been stationed in Europe, you probably have heard of “Polish pottery” and you may have gotten to go to Boleslawiec in Poland to hunt down your favorite patterned dishes in the city where they are made for yourself. 🙂
I got to go three times so far. The first two times, it was all about the pottery baby – oh yeah!!
(Note: This blog post is an update from my original Facebook note about what it is like to be a coordinator and how I came about to help this ministry. I am so thankful for the #Festaburg, Brad and Debbie Ellgen who coordinated these trips to #Elim in #Poland from our time stationed in #Baumholder #Germany. You probably never knew your trips would open up doors that impact others even years later. God bless you all! Merry Christmas!)
If you are looking to obtain your own handmade Nativity set, please reach out to Elim through email here at elimcenter@jg.home.plletting them know what you would like to order and where you are located (perhaps there is a coordinator near you that has what you need and can help you get your items sooner or with less shipping cost). As of 2019, I no longer have any more Nativity sets to distribute but I can answer questions if I can or put you into contact with their ministry. Thank you for your support of this ministry and the families they serve there in Poland!
Elim’s Website is here- you can also sign up for their newsletters! http://elimcenter.pl/ A lot has happened since I have last visited several years ago!
But, the last time I went, after coordinating to stay at the Elim Center with a friend, I found out the Elim Christian Center, Lwowek Slaski, Poland could use some things since in Poland, at least the part where they were, was very run down and people there are very poor. I asked friends assigned in Baumholder, Germany for donations and they responded with Euro, electronics, toys and clothes- so much so that it packed my SUV full to drive the 9 hours to get there. (That was the first time I had ever done anything like that. That was pretty cool since I think I’m a pretty regular person but people trusted me with all their stuff to do with it what I said. I was honored.)
As I was preparing to leave my last time in Poland, I was asked if I would like to take some Nativity sets back to Germany and ship them with my things in my move to the United States. I would wait until someone contacted me with an order and I would simply package their order and collect their donation, forwarding it to Elim when requested, or when the sets were all sold. It’s been almost three years since that move and we’ve packaged and shipped sets from the West Coast and now I hope to continue that here from the East Coast. (In fact I currently have 13 large sets on hand and some other smaller sets as well.)
We opened a shipment in order to put together the sets to ship a requested box out. The sets come like this from Poland via a pottery shop in the U.S. to the coordinator who stores them until an order is made. This helps the receiver not have to wait for weeks and weeks to receive their set directly from Poland and it shaves a little bit off the shipping cost as well when they are packaged together like this.
The sets are typically sent to coordinators from Poland and shipped with the pottery orders to America with whatever space is left in the cargo. We then split the costs of shipment from the shop to the coordinator amongst the orders. The nativity sets that customers receive ARE handmade in Poland and shipped from Poland (via the pottery shop, to the coordinator) to you!! What’s interesting and unique about this ministry is that in purchasing a set, you are supporting the families in Poland who have learned how to craft their particular piece (ie. a donkey, baby Jesus etc.). That’s a huge bonus for us that in purchasing a set we are helping families there in Poland at the same time! What the kids look forward to, however, is our tradition of bringing out and setting up the display every year in our home. They are touchable, huggable, cute pieces that we have enjoyed playing with, talking about, and moving around over the years.
Do you see what I see? I had to get a picture of that. 😉
If you, your office, your church, or your business wants to obtain a set (or two) for yourself or friends, please contact Elim and let them know! They will put you in contact with a coordinator nearest you (so you can save a bit on shipping costs) and we can get it to you right away. Thank you for your support in purchasing a set or sharing this information with others! Let us know if you have any questions! Here is detailed information about the ministry and contact email: http://elimcenter.pl/nativity-proje… and http://www.elimnativityproject.com/… .
For those of you who already knew all of this, did you know Elim also has a XXL Nativity set option perfect for display in larger spaces? There are also some newer additional pieces available too- like the “pregnant cow” which came out last year- that you might want to add to your set if you haven’t already. Lastly, maybe you might want to be a coordinator? If you have the space to house these sets and are willing to package and send orders when contacted (by email) from Elim… then you can easily help support this ministry in that way. Thank you again for sharing this with those who might be interested in obtaining a set and supporting the families of Poland through this ministry.
cuties all around here 😀
Remember to go here for more information. In fact the Elim Center has uploaded documents about the families that they support, detailed information (and photos) of the sets available, and more. Thanks for sharing! http://elimcenter.pl/nativity-proje… and http://www.elimnativityproject.com/…
2016 … kids a bit bigger. They help to put together and sort the large shipment from Poland into individual sets to prepare for you!
…and our set is still getting good use. It’s a part of our tradition to bring it out each year.
Our 2017 set-up! Merry Christmas!
(This was originally posted via Facebook with videos- found here.)
If you use Facebook, there is a group page “Hearts of Elim” where current information by some of the staff of Elim, volunteer coordinators (like me!) and those who have a heart for this ministry will share news for obtaining sets. You can find this group here.
***********If you would like to have your own set or gift one to a friend, please reach out to Elim through email here at elimcenter@jg.home.pl letting them know what you would like to order and where you are located (perhaps there is a coordinator near you that has what you need and can help you get your items sooner or with less shipping cost). As of 2019, I no longer have any more Nativity sets to distribute but I can answer questions if I can or put you into contact with their ministry. Thank you for your support!************
Elim’s Website is here- you can also sign up for their newsletters! http://elimcenter.pl/ A lot has happened since I have last visited several years ago!
Sejana Shines 