Our day was spent baling hay for the horses and hauling it home a older fellow down the road stopped in and said he had a bit of hay that he would bale and if we came and gave him a bit of a hand he would give them to us. We seen this as an incredible opportunity to share the love of Jesus with this 80 year old fella from down the road. James stuck with him and his old baler all day and learned a lot about haying and the art of timing when putting up hay. James and I loaded the trailer and got really itchy.
On the way over to get the hay bales this morning I mentioned that this will be like when I grew up and we always did fall haying and putting up the square bales. James S. said half way through the day that he hopes I don't want to experience to many old times like this.
.......... my sister tapped me on the shoulder as she. and some of her friends were out and about town. I've never forgotten that night on main street and I began my search for the motorcycle that I could ride down that highway of freedom and power. A guy who lived a few houses down from us used to ride a motor cycle. I hadn't seen him riding it for a while. I wondered what became of the motorcycle that he rode past our back-alley once in awhile. After some checking and asking some friends I learned that that motorcycle was still around and sitting in his garage down the alley from us. Getting up enough nerve I snuck down the street and took a look through the window of his garage and there in the corner on it's center stand sat the motorcycle of my dreams. I'm not sure how it all came about but eventually the guy took the time to let me come into his garage and take a look at the bike. Man it was a beauty it was a 85cc
Bridgstone bike and he said that he would sell it to me for $50.00. That was a lot of money back then, but I was working for my uncle sometimes and walking the ditches along the highway to collect bottles in
gunny sacks and getting money for them. It didn't take too long to get the fifty dollars together.
Once I paid the guy for the bike I pushed it home. It took
a bit to get it home as the rear wheel was
seized up and wouldn't turn. We loaded it onto my Dad's truck and hauled it out to my uncles farm where he helped me to tear the rear wheel off and remove the old bearings. Well where do you go find bearings for a British motorcycle in a small town. So we started by checking at a hardware store and they sent us to the local garage where the owner took time as he usually did for everyone who needed parts. And what do you know the bearing out of a Ford generator worked just perfect. My uncle paid him, and we were off, back to the farm and out to the Quonset where we had set the bike on a sheet of ply wood as the floor was all gravel. We started to clean up all the good parts and than my uncle helped me and showed me how to put the new bearings into their right spots. It wasn't long before we had it all together and it rolled out of that Quonset real nice. We then emptied the gas tank and flushed the old gas and some rusty stuff out, we then put it all back together and put in new gas. We also drained t
he oil from the motor and filled it with new oil that my uncle had in big barrels in his tractor shop. I watched as he grabbed a shiny metal container from off the counter and then with a clean rag he wiped out the container of any dust that may have gotten in it because he said, "we don't want any dirt in the clean oil as it could get into the motor. He then took the big barrel that was on a wooden stand on it's side, opened the little bung to let air into it and then removed the big bung. As he turned that barrel with that shiny container under the large hole, the clean yellow gold oil poured out into the container until it was full. Then he rolled the barrel back to where it would not pour out and put the bungs back into place and tightened them up. He then took an old block of wood and put it under the barrel to keep it from rolling away. We grabbed a funnel and filled the bike motor with new oil. He also helped me to clean the points and plugs. We took the battery that had been hooked up to his little blue battery charger and set it back into the bike, hooked it up and tried the
horn to see if we had power and yeper we had power. We rolled it outside and turned on the key
and the first few kicks nothing, but then as the fuel worked it's way through the carburetor it started to fire a bit then it started, WOW what a feeling, my first bike, and it runs too. With a bit of fear and looking forward to that incredible feeling of being on a motorcycle on the open road, I put on the old helmet and pulled in the clutch. My foot engaged it into first gear and as I let the clutch out I was away, a bit jerky at first but I remember that first ride. It doesn't take long to catch on and then the freedom hits as the wind blows in your face and the road zooms by under your feet. It felt so good you didn't want to ever stop. I had to ride the mile or so to my cousins house to show them my new bike. After getting back to my uncles farm I thanked him and said goodbye to him and my aunt and I headed off back to town. I rode the bike on all the back roads to town, past a few friends farms hoping that someone would see me so I could show off my new bike. Once I got near town I got off and proudly pushed my bike through town and parked it in our yard.......
The Battle River Ranch Camp is a one of a kind entry level trades and life skills opportunity facility. Offering an option to anyone that has been searching for an opportunity to find out their area of strength and work place career possibilities.
Our hope and prayer is to let as many of you know about the ranch as possible so that the hope it will bring and the lives it will change and the encouragement it will provide can start as soon as possible. The ranch will be a one of a kind facility and will offer an option to many like no other.
When God has a plan and like our friend Mike and Pastor Lyle wisely told us just keep your focus and don't let the distractions pull you away from God's purpose. Thank you once again for taking the time to view our blog. The Battle River Ranch Camp is a non profit organization that is focused on developing trades, life skills and training opportunities for men and women that are searching and find it difficult to get the opportunities needed to develop a productive life skill. Many men and women today have no idea about their future or what they could be good at and to find out their possible skill area or level. We are a faith based and mentor based training facility and our hope is with the help of anyone that has a heart for helping so many to give each person that comes to the ranch an opportunity to find the skills they were created for.
Harold and Diane Stephan left a life filled with addictions and bad choices. Their journey has taken them through different twelve step programs and life recovery through a relationship and healing process with Jesus Christ. If it were not for caring people in their lives that never gave up on them or thought they were a hopeless cause they too would still be lost.
We would love to hear from you and if you feel this is a program and facility that would help you or someone that you know, or you would like to be more involved with a ministry like this or support it financially we would we would be very appreciative, and would love to talk to you and would very much appreciate your help in what ever way you can. Even if you could help with a small one time donation or a larger one it would help so much to bring this life changing facility and place of hope to be opened by this fall.
This is a ministry for those that have a heart and desire to make a difference in the lives of others with the skills and gifts they have been blessed with and have a desire to pass on what they know to the next generation.
You are always welcome to visit and we look forward to your input. This ministry is prayer based, and we pray daily for the needs of others, if you have a need for prayer and not sure where to start give us a call and we will confidentially support and help you in this area. You may not know a lot about God but God knows everything about you and He loves you more than anyone can or ever will.
TO DONATE :
If you are able to and would like to make a very needed and appreciated donation to this worthy project that is changing lives now and forever PLEASE consider making a donation to:CROSSMAN MINISTRIES / BRRC
Box 11403
Lloydminster, Ab.
T9V 3B7
or visit our web site for direct donating, thank you
As a registered charity your tax deductable receipts will be sent out at the end of the year.
Once again we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for considering The Battle River Ranch Camp a life skills and trades introduction opportunity, as a option to support financially, an option that is making a differance in the lives of our young men and women right here at home in Canada.
God Bless You and Your Family!!!
Harold & diane Stephan and
Board of Directors of the Battle River Ranch Camp
FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL US AT 1-3O6-825-7734 OR
haroldstephan@hotmail.com
head on in to the bar for more fun. When I was sure that they were all inside I got up the nerve to walk across the street and down to where the bikes were parked. The noise from inside the bar was very familiar to me as many times I went to the door marked beverage room asking for my dad to come home for supper or if he had some spare change which quite often he would give me. As I walked by the bikes the smell of burnt oil and hot pipes was everywhere and I didn't mind it a bit. The paint jobs on some of the bikes was great and yet on others there was only scratched up fenders and tanks and different old colors left. I wandered back to my step in front of the old brick office building and as I sat there I knew that 
some day I wanted the same freedom and power that these bikers had and obviously enjoyed to the max but boy each and every one of them put a real fear into a boy. As I continued in my state of dreamland I almost jumped out of my skin when ..........