On a very beautiful summer morning in the beginning of July, Bishop Vasile invited Floyd and me, along with Christina Semon, Fr. Marcus and Preotasa Barbara Burch (St. John of the Ladder, OCA) , and an OCMC mission team from the United States to attend a special Divine Liturgy in a small village outside of Cluj. The occasion was the ordination of Simion, who had been appointed by the Cluj archdiocese to be the new spiritual advisor for the St. Dimitrie Program.
This small village named "Risca", rests at the very heart of Transilvania set in the Carpathian Mountains. It is a place of unusual beauty where the local Romanian's still respect their traditions, and so many people attended the Liturgy wearing their ancient traditional costumes. We were also joined by more than 10 priests and deacons, and our most blessed Bishop Vasilie.
It was a great surprise that after the ordination of Simion, and the Divine Liturgy, Bishop Vasile announced that he was bestowing the "Cross of Transilvania" on my husband Floyd. This was in recognition of his 10 years of service to the Orthodox Church in Romania and the Republic of Moldova which has focused on helping the Church to provide substance abuse counseling to people who struggle with this debilitating disease. It was quite remarkable that this honor was given to Floyd in the name of Metropolitan Bartalomeu because it is infrequently given.
The following was written on the certificate which accompanied the silver Crucea Transilvania: "This high medal was conferred to Mr. Floyd Frantz, coordinator of the St. Dimitrie Program in appreciation and recognition of sincere love for the Romanian Orthodox Church, and for the remarkable help accorded the Archdiocese of Cluj through charitable missionary and pastoral service."
Floyd was very pleasantly surprised by this honor, and graciously accepted the blessings from Bishop Vasilie to continue his work with strength, love and good health. All of this came as Floyd is completing 10 years of service to the Church here in Romania, and the award was a sign of the gratitude of the hierarchy, and a blessing to continue his work, which they hold in high regard.
Please continue to pray for us here in Romania. Pray that the work we do serves as a witness to the hope, love, and salvation made possible through Christ. Pray that His name will be glorified among all people around the world.
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