March 3, 2022
Vol. 22, No. 42
In This Issue FOUR SEASONS
Praying for safety of Ukrainian orphan
Four Seasons, by Kevin Box, in real life is located in front of the Center for Transformative Learning on the UCO campus, but this week is hidden somewhere in our paper. Email contest@edmondpaper.com with the correct location to be entered in the weekly drawing. For more information, see page 4. PHOTO PROVIDED
Artur, learned about ‘pistols firing,’ earlier this year when his host family, the Gumersons, took him to the Fiesta Bowl in Phoenix to cheer for the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
ND
EDMO
FAVORITES 2022 Edmond Favorites Results See page 9
FRIDAY, March 4 Mostly Cloudy High 74° Low 58°
SATURDAY, March 5 Sunny High 75° Low 40°
SUNDAY, March 6
Isolated Thunderstorms High 60° Low 34°
PHOTO PROVIDED
Over the Christmas season, Cheryl Gumerson and her family fell in love with Artur, a young man from Ukraine. He’s back in his homeland. There’s an effort to have him, and others, moved to Ploland.
Edmond family seeks to adopt boy For one Edmond family, the war in Ukraine is a lot more than a brutal conflict a half a world away. They have a loved one stuck in Ukraine. Ted and Cheryl Gumerson are in the process of adopting a Ukranian boy, Artur, 12. They want him safe and out of the war torn nation. The last few months have been a series of ups and downs for both Artur and the Gumersons, particularly the family’s matriarch, Cheryl Gumerson. A little over two months ago the Edmond residents were part of a hosting operation, through the Force for Christ Orphan Outreach. Cheryl requested a youngster, who didn’t have a family or received visitors. Artur then came to America and Edmond and spent the Christmas season with the Gumersons. Soon Ted and Cheryl Gumerson’s family began to enjoy time with the young man. And Artur had a ball with the three boys of the family, Greiner, Kedon and Jarrell. An older daughter, Leitner and her daughter, Brielle, also met the young Ukranian boy and enjoyed his company. The Gumersons had a full agenda for Artur. They took Artur to a Thunder NBA game and then in early January, joined thousands of other Oklahoma State fans in Phoenix for the Cowboys’ Fiesta Bowl football win over Notre
Dame. “All of us had a great time,” Cheryl recalled. The Gumersons fell in love with the boy, who doesn’t speak English. “Love speaks no language,” Cheryl said. Far too soon, the good times gave way to the sobering reality that Artur would have to return to the far away land of Ukraine. The nation borders Russia to the east in eastern Europe. Cheryl recalled that as soon as they left Artur at the airport, the family knew they wanted to adopt him. Last month they formally asked the young man if he wanted to join them. He answered yes. With the months-long adoption process in place, another threat loomed. The Russian military lingered across the border. Last week they invaded. “This has been hard,” Cheryl said about the emotional stress of having a loved one in harm’s way. For now Artur, and the other orphans, are in the western part of the nation, where fighting has not been as intense as in other parts of the nation. Still there are reminders that the nation is under attack. “He has heard bombs,” Cheryl said. The goal now is to remove the orphans from the nation and place them in Poland.
Donations are needed. There is a link on Cheryl’s Facebook page, which links up to the non-profit Force for Christ Orphan Outreach. It will take $10,000 to get Artur, and the others, out of the nation. Then they’ll have expenses after that. Cheryl has had one chance to talk to Artur directly since the invasion and gets reports on him. “I understand he is safe now,” Cheryl said. Although the violence and tension is thousands of miles away, knowing Artur is there makes it much more personable, she said. “When you know someone over there, it really hits home,” Cheryl said. Also having thoughts on Artur is son, Kedon. Kedon Gumerson for many years has hosted a weekly YouTube broadcast entitled Kid Catholic, which looks into teachings and other issues involving Catholicism. Earlier this week, he released an episode discussing love and prayer. He mentioned Artur’s challenges as well as the violence facing all of Ukraine. He implored all to continue to pray for the troubled land. “Prayer has power,” he said on the podcast. “Prayers are essential to the people of Ukraine.”