Lennart John Holmquist

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He then attended Westmont College in the hills above Santa Barbara. By this time he was going by the name of Len because he thought that 'Lennie' sounded too young.

He first majored in history, but changed his major to social science. He wanted to go on a study abroad program to Europe, which meant he could not take some of the classes he need to graduate on time with history as a major.

Biology Lab

Besides his classes Len worked on campus to help with his tuition and school fees, supplementing his federal student loan. He and a fellow student, Mark Mulholland, a missionary kid from Brazil, raised cockroaches in the biology lab for Dr. Ensigm who was doing experiments in protein synthesis. Dr. Ensigm needed a lot of female cockroaches to carry out his experiments. Len heard the female cockroaches were ground up, placed into a centrifuge, and the protein separated though Len did not take part in this part of the process.

Mark and Len raised the cockroaches. The cockroaches lived in glass Erlenmeyer flasks with cotton swaps stuffed into the neck of the flask to keep the cockroaches from making their escape. The cockroaches grew up in the flasks, males and females together. The females eventually became impregnated. Mark and Len then separated the males from the females. The females were distinguished by their pointed butts, from which an egg case sometime protruded. They brought in males, now in a separate flask, to the old biology lab, in an old wood frame building about 40 seconds walk from the new lab.

The biology lab in which Len and Mark worked was in the bottom floor of the Westmont library, which you entered from the outside of the building, walking down to the left as you faced the library, and rounding the corner of the building. In an adjacent room Len had has History of England class. In the eves of the building three stories above swallows built their rounded mud nests. Dark winged and head and light underbelly swallows swooped to and from their nests bringing in their beaks mud for construction or insects for their noisy young.

Directly outside the biolog lab were seedlings grew all about 10 inches in height, sprung from seeds of pine cones from a nearby tree. Not knowing if Westmont’s Buildings and Grounds department would mind him digging up one of these small trees, Len clandestinely dug one up, being sure to include a ball of dirt around the roots. One weekend he took it home and planted it in the front yard. From then on the family called it the ‘Westmont tree’. It now stand at maybe 30 feet in height (2020).

Sometimes Len stood or sat on the large boulder in front of the library, watching the sun set into the Pacific. Beneath him the original native American inhabitants of the Santa Barbara hills, the Chumash, had painted their artwork in the nook of the boulder.

Westmont Study Abroad

Len, 48 other students, an English literature professor, another professor by the name of Hironimus and his wife, flew to Europe. They traveled to England, France, Greece, Italy and Israel. Thanks to Mrs. Bercaw from his Buena High School days, Len knew a fair amount about some of the art and architecture they were seeing including Romanesque and Gothic cathedral architecture, ancient Greek sculpture, Italian sculpture from the Renaissance period and painting from the Renaissance period and later. In fact it was seemed that he knew more about these subjects than the two professors who relied on paid guides to explain the art, artifacts and architecture of the places they visited.

In England they visited London and Bath (or was it Stratford-on-Avon?). Here the English literature professor (who was German) taught on the Canterbury Tales and Chaucer. In Bath they visited Shakespeare’s home. London sites included Westminster Abbey and the British Museum where the saw the Rosetta Stone. In London Len and five other students rented motor scooters and took country roads down to Hastings on England’s southern coast. They were hoping to see signs directing them to the site of the Battle of Hasting where the Normans were successful in 1066 which changed the course of English history, but never saw any signs directing their way. They did make it down to the coast, where the beaches were not made of sand but rounded rocks.

In Paris they saw Notre Dame, a small portion of the Louvre Museum, the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triumph. They made side trips to the see cathedral at Chartres and the palace of Louis the XIV at Versailles. In Italy they visited Rome, Naples and Florence, the latter in which they saw Michelangelo’s David and other sculptures. At the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan they saw Michelangelo's faded Last Supper. In Rome they saw the Colosseum, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Forum and the Pantheon.

Villa Torlonia

A few blocks from the pensione in which the Westmont group stayed was the estate of dictator’s Mussolini. One student suggested they clandestinely hop over the wall of the estate and do some exploring.

Len and two other students agreed. Early one slightly chilly morning before the sun was up they walked the few blocks to the high wall surrounding the estate. Strands of old, rusty barbed wire stretched loosely on top the wall. Each jumped, grabbing the ledge of the wall, pulled themselves high enough to lift a foot to the ledge and haul themselves up. The barbed wire was an obstacle but not a problem. Having rusted over many years, probably since WWII the barbs were no longer sharp. They rolled over the barbed wire and lowered themselves or jumped into the estate. Len had brought with him his Pentax SLR camera, which he gingerly carried on his ascent and descent of the wall.

The grounds of the estate were unkempt, not maintained for some years it seemed, with trees, and overgrown bushes. The sun not being up, it was difficult to see what was there or not there. Actually, besides hearing that this was Mussolini's estate, and of this they were not even certain, they did not know what buildings the estate might contain. And, they did not know what dog or dogs it may contain, running loose on the grounds. Fortunately, they heard no barking.

They wandered the grounds coming across silhouettes of buildings. One looked to be a very small chapel made perhaps of stone or plastered brick. They walked in. The building was roofless. A small tree, perhaps ten or fifteen foot high grew near the center. Weeds too grew in the building. If the building had a solid floor, it was under a layer of decayed leaves. The seed of a tree had sprouted in the in the middle of the floor, and the tree was much taller than they were. They spent little time in the 'chapel' for little was to be seen.

They walked further and saw a very large structure in the early morning light, like a mansion or palace. They kept their distance. A light was on in one of the rooms. Len thought it may be the light of the caretaker of the estate.

Walking further in the grounds of the estate they noticed an opening that led into darkness. From what Len remembers years later, it was not the opening of a building, but perhaps an opening or a door into a small mound. They entered. One of the students had the presence of mind to bring a flashlight, though it was small and gave out little light. The door they had entered was the entrance to a long tunnel that descended gradually. The air was very cool, the air and floor moist. They descended, noticing doors off to the left and/or right leading into small rooms. They did not enter the rooms. As they got to the bottom of the slopping tunnel the floor was wet with water.

The tunnel continued on, but now sloped upward. At the end of the tunnel they came to a large wood door. This door, unlike the door at the entrance of the tunnel was nicely made though boards were nailed across the door to discourage anyone entering. They guessed, probably correctly, that this door led into the mansion. They spoke in whispers. They did not want anyone who may be in the mansion to hear them.

They retraced their steps and left the tunnel.

Wandering the grounds again they came across a smaller building though still large. The building had an arched portico. In front of them was a wooden paneled door. Some tried turning the door knob it was locked. The lower panel of the door had been knocked out, but boards were nailed across the opening. One of the students pulled at the boards, and was able pull them free from the door. One by one they pulled themselves through the opening. The interior of the building was very dark. The sun was not yet up. Their eyes adjusted to the scant light, but still it was dark. The small flashlight helped, but not by much. The interior of the building was too large to reflect the light. They might have made their way up a flight of stairs, though Len doesn't quite remember.

Wherever he was not wanting to trip on anything, Len shuffled forward and came to what seemed to be a low wall, perhaps less than waist high. He put his hands on top, which was perhaps a railing. The railing was rough like medium grit sandpaper. Later he surmised that it was old, hardened cloth, perhaps felt or rough stone. He gazed into the darkness beyond the railing and made out a large room. He remembered seeing, perhaps, a stage. Apparently he was standing on the balcony level of a theater.

Len made his way down to the main level. He saw toppled broken statues, in Greek or Roman style. Arms, legs and torsos scattered on the floor. Someone, sometime, had toppled them on purpose. They statues seemed to be made of plaster. However, he walked into a small adjacent room and saw a small nice statue of stone, perhaps four feet in height, on a pedestal. This statue had not been damaged it seemed though someone had poured paint on it, perhaps red paint if Len remembers correctly.

At student found a stairway that led up to the roof. The roof at this location was flat. The sun was rising orange and red. Len took a photo.

Leaving the theater they continued until they came to a more utilitarian building, more contemporary not beautiful architecture that perhaps was once an administration building. Entering the building was easy. Perhaps a door was not locked. The rooms were almost empty except for a few cabinets with very wide, deep, narrow drawers. Len guessed they once held maps or architectural drawings. He opened a few drawers. They were empty.

They took a flight of stairs to the roof of the building. Part of the roof was flat, but one section had a slanted roof. This slanted portion had a small entrance as you might find for an attic. He entered. It was a small attic. He could not stand in it. In the middle was a pile of molding papers. The smell of mold was strong. He grabbed a few papers and looked at them in the scant light. The one or two letters he grabbed were torn as if after reading the letters someone had torn them nearly in half and tossed them. The date of the letters were 1946. He guessed they had once belonged to British occupying troops after the war. He also saw a inexpensive cowboy western 'novels' but printed in England. He kept a few letters, and one or two of the books. He still has them (2020) somewhere, possibly with his stamp collection. He could have grabbed more. But they were damp, and smelly, and Len had more countries to visit, and did not want to lug a lot with him in his suitcase.

The sun was now up, though still fairly low on the horizon. If they continued to wander around the grounds they could be spotted. Dogs were still a concern. They did not want their luck to run out. They walked a distance to the wall and climbed over.

In a matter of minutes they were back at the pensione in time for breakfast.

Len and five other students rented motor scooters in the middle of Rome and traveled out to the countryside to a few villages. This was the first time Len had driven a motor scooter (or motor cycle). His biggest worry was crashing and messing up his fellow rider, a pretty girl, sitting behind him.

Naples

In Naples the only thing Len remembers is a cannon ball embedded in the metal door of the fort/castle on the harbor.

They made a side trip and saw Pompeii.

Israel

Search for Truth

Len continued his search for truth which had started around his high school years. He more about Buddhism, and also Taoism, Hinduism and other philosophies such as existentialism. Len was not impressed with any of them. They all lacked objective credibility as far as he could see.

Len mentioned to a fellow student one day that he was trying to figure out how one could say that Christianity was true besides having 'faith' that it was, faith being an inadequate method of determining truth as Len had come to believe. The fellow student suggested he read 'Mere Christianity' by C.S. Lewis. Len bought a paperback copy, probably from the Westmont student store.

After reading the book Len thought 'finally, here's a guy who gives logical reasons for Christianity.' What is more, Lewis had been an atheist was resisted belief in Christianity, but eventually gave in to believing it was true. Lewis said that he was dragged into heaven 'kicking and screaming'. He was a reluctant convert.

Tolkien had been encouraged by his friend, J.R.R.Tolkien, to look into Christianity. Tolkien was the author who wrote the 'Lord of the Rings' which Len had read in high school.

Afterward Len found out about the books of Francis Schaeffer, another Christian intellectal who also provided logical and objective reasons for belief in Christianity. Schaeffer and his wife Edith had started a Christian community in Switzerland, L'abri, where searchers for truth could go to live, take part in communitiy responsibilities, and enter into discussions about Christianity, world religions and philosophy. This intriged Len. Here again was a Christian that didn't simply say 'have faith' but was prepared to defend Christianity in a logical way.

Graduation

Len received a Bachelor of Arts in Social Science in 1972.

California State Parks

After graduating Westmont he worked again for the California State Parks, again as a Park Aid, but this time in the Visitors department. His duties changed from doing maintenance and cleanup to working in the entrance booth at Emma Wood State Beach and McGrath State Beach, renting out camping spaces, briefly telling visitors the rules of the park, and answering questions. He often spent lunches on the beach, eating his sandwich and whatever else he happened to throw into his brown paper bag.

1972-73 Israel

Landed at Lod Airport. Looking out the window the sun was harshly bright. Stairs were wheeled up to the plane and they disembarked, walking the final steps into the airport. Len waited for his suitcase to be unloaded, grabbed it and headed for the exit.

The Institute had given him instructions on how to get to the Institute. He could either take an Egged bus of a particular number or a sherut, and taxi which took several passengers at a time between point A and point B, point B for Len being somewhere in Jerusalem. Though the sherut was not that expensive, the Egged bus was cheaper. He waited in line outside. About him, Israelis, Palestinians, and a few foreigners, Jews, Muslims, and Christians, speaking Arabic, Hebrew, and a few other languages, came and went to a from the airport terminal focused on their destination. All were dressed informally, in more lose-fitting clothes it seemed, both more appropriated to the sun-baking heat and the earth dust sent skyward by bus, truck, and car tire, and the shuffling of feet. Len went unnoticed. He was one among many.

Len stood in line for a while, a young foreigner in a foreign land. However, Israel was not completely unfamiliar for he had traveled to Israel with about 49 other students, two professors and a professor’s wife the previous year. However, the travel was planned and managed by someone else. Now he was on his own.

Eventually the dented, fatigued, noisy, rattle-trap, diesel-exhaust-spewing bus with the correct number over the front window drove up, and all boarded, stepping up to the driver’s level. Len handed over his ticket or money, whatever the case, asked the driver if he was going to Jerusalem. Yes, he was. Boarding of all passengers was slow. Some, like Len, were hauling one or more suitcases and other possessions, maybe a kid or two. Len settled into a seat by a window in front. He wanted a large window view of Israel. Most the seats were filled. All windows were open. The day was as usual, hot, and the bus had no air conditioning.

The driver pulled the bus into busy traffic, drove on a flat landscape for a while and eventually on a two lane ascending highway. Jerusalem was in the hills by California reckoning, but in the 'mountains' in this part of the world. Though aged, the Egged bus had enough power to catch up to a few cars, and trucks. Eager to make his destination and no doubt to keep his schedule, the driver had no thought of not following a slow car or truck all the way to Jerusalem.

The bus driver hugged the car or truck's bumper in front of him, pulled into the oncoming lane, and put his foot to the peddle. This seemed suicidal. A car, bus or another bus was barreling down their own lane on this narrow two lane highway. Passing in time was not possible. Dropping back into his lane was possible, but not attempted. When the driver and all the passengers on the Egged bus and those in the oncoming vehicle seemed headed to too-short-a-life, the vehicle being passed slowly eased his right wheels onto the shoulder, the oncoming vehicle did the same, and the Egged bus straddle the highway’s middle white line, squeezing between the other two vehicles – three fast moving vehicles abreast on a two lane highway. None of the passengers nor the driver batted an eye nor held a breath. Len’s heart hovered high in his throat.

Israel was an adventure. For the first time he really enjoyed going to school. He studied at the Institute a school year - about seven months beginning in the summer.

Letter from Len in Jerusalem to Family in U.S.A.

On December 3, 1972 Len attended the advent evening service at St. Andrew's Church of Scotland across the Hinom Valley within sight of the Institute.

During December of 1973 Len took a field trip along with other students to Israeli-occupied (1967-82) Sinai. A fellow student, Leo Hult, typed up his notes on the adventure entitled Sinai Field Trip Notes. Among their destinations was St. Catherine's monastery of which Len wrote a school report, and Serabit el-Khadem where the Egyptians, beginning circa 1991 B.C.E., mined turquoise and built a temple to the goddess Hathor. Here Len and his fellow students, one at a time, walked into the a small cave where they saw proto-Sinatic inscriptions carved sometime in the late 16th to early 15th centuries B.C.E. (Late Bronze Age) into the cave walls. These inscriptions were first discovered by English explorer and Orientalist E. H. Palmer in 1869.

Monastery of St. Catherine: Historical Geography Field Trip 1973

Other field trips include archaeological and/or biblical sites including Beth-Shan, Shuchem, Jericho, Meggido, Jezreel Valley, Capernaum, Tiberius, Hazor, Nazereth, Caesaria, Ai, Beersheva, Ein Gedi, Dothan, Mt. Carmel, Samaria, and the Negev desert.

He also explored Israel/Palestine on his own or with fellow students. Taking an Egged bus he visited the Cave of the Patriarch in Hebron, and another time the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. On another excursion he took the train from Jerusalem to Haifa and spent the afternoon wandering the city streets. He took one memorable photo of a soda vendor with the sun shining through the vendor's colorful soda bottles.

With other students he hiked the twenty miles and descending 4000 feet down the Kidron Valley from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea. They camped one night, tucked in sleeping bags, in the wilderness before continuing their hike to the sea. Again with two or three other students, Len took a bus to the town of Tsfat and hiked down to the Sea of Galilee. Yet another time he and other students visited Acco (Acre) on the coast, walking through Acco's old city and ascending the high, thick, ancient defensive walls. Waves of the Mediterranean Sea splashed at the foot of the walls. That night they found a dry stretch of sandy beach and rolled out their sleeping bags.

Len often explored of his own the Old City of Jerusalem, a casual ten minute walk from the Institute. He usually entered the Old City from either the Zion Gate or the Jaffa Gate and sometimes exited through the Damascus gate if he wanted to go into the 'new' city - which he didn't do often because the Old City was much more interesting. At Jaffa gate he sometimes bought a falafel from a street vendor whose family stand was operated by their son of about twelve years of age. At other times at the intersection of two narrow, covered streets, he'd buy a slice of lightly toasted chewy sesame seed and honey whose owner's 'shop' consisted of a round aluminum tray resting upon a foldable wood tripod.

In the Old City he explored the narrow market streets, ally ways, the Western Wall, the Temple Mount (Hebrew: ַר הַבַּיִת‎‎, Har HaBáyit, "Mount of the House [of God, i.e. the Temple]"), known to Muslims as the Haram esh-Sharif (Arabic: الحرم الشريف‎‎, al-Ḥaram al-Šarīf, "the Noble Sanctuary", or الحرم القدسي الشريف, al-Ḥaram al-Qudsī al-Šarīf, "the Noble Sanctuary of Jerusalem"), including the Dome of the Rock (Arabic: قبة الصخرة‎‎ Qubbat al-Sakhrah, Hebrew: כיפת הסלע‎‎ Kippat ha-Sela) ,and El Aqsa Mosque (Arabic: ى‎‎المسجد الاقصى‎‎ Al-Masjid al-Aqsa).

The Church of the Holy Sephlechre he visited often to see progress on its renovations, sometimes taking photos. There he became acquainted with Salim Sansour, as stone mason, who invited Len for a meal and to meet his family at his home in the Bethlehem. Len accepted and spent a few hours in Salim's home.

In the 'new' city Len explored the ultra-orthodox Jewish Mea Shearim (Hebrew: מאה שערים, literally 'hundred gates' or 'hundred fold') quarter. So not to offend the inhabitants of the Mea Shearim, Len a few photos covertly, but mostly he just wandered, and visited few shops, one at which he bought a braided loaf of bread (Hebrew: challah - חלה) and another a braided havdalah (הַבְדָּלָה) candle.

While researching a report on the Mea Shearim in a small semi-private library, for which he had to get permission to use, he met an tall thin American orthodox Jew whose nickname was Lang-loksh (לאַנג לאָקש) which translates as long noodle) who lived in the Mea Shearim. Lang-loksh kindly showed Len around the Mea Shearim, answering some of his questions, and on a Mea Shearim street corner introduced him to an ultra-orthodox Jew who answered a few more of Len's questions, one of which was the number of purifying baths in the Mea Shearim. This last fellow seemed a bit mistrustful and seemly reluctant to provide answers, so Len asked him few questions.

Me'ah She'arim and the Philosophy of Hasidism

Len particularly enjoyed the street (alley really) of spice merchants directly down from Jaffa gate with their peaked piles of colorful spice infusing the air with such a pleasant aroma. Another alley was the butcher's street. Raw meats hung in the open air on hooks, and goat and sheep heads lined the shelves, both attracting noisy flies. The chickens of the chicken merchants moved about in small cramped wire cages, clucking their dissatisfaction. When a customer wanted a chicken the merchant grabbed one from a cage, sliced it neck, and put the chicken upside down in a rectangular metal box, a piece of metal securing the alarmed and struggling chicken in place until enough of the chicken's blood drained and the body became limp. The merchant then handed the floppy chicken to the customer by its feet.

One winter's snowy day Len skipped classes and hiked on the Mount of Olives taking photos of the Russian Orthodox church and, across the valley, the Temple Mount and Jerusalem's old city. Falling snow melted on his clothes as did the caked snow on his boots. He returned to the Institute a few hours later, soaked and cold, and happy.

1973 Wheaton Graduate School, Illinois

His dad encouraged Len to attend Wheaton Graduate School, the undergraduate school of which Bud attended in the late 1940s after getting out of the U.S. Marine Corps. Len was still interested in archaeology, Hebrew, and ancient mid-Eastern history. However, the school did not have an archaeology department and little by way of ancient mid-Eastern history. Still Wheaton was considered an excellent school in some circles. Len went after a degree in Biblical Theology (Old Testament) and took as few theology courses he could though some classes where required. The degree would take about two years of classes, plus a Master's thesis and a final examination. Unfortunately, Wheaton Graduate School took a limited number of class units from other institutions, so some of Len's classes at the Institute of Holy Land Studies didn't count.

Regulations Concerning Graduate Work: Official Bulletin Issued by the Graduate School of Wheaton College

A requirement of Len's coursework was the writing of reports. In a few of these Len expressed his challenge to conventional (conservative) Christian beliefs, such as the difficulty or impossibility of Christian scholarship (or non-Christian) scholarship to be objective. Considering Len's professors were conservative Christian scholars, he was a bit worried that Len may experience some backlash, but as far as he knew he did not, which said something about the degree of his professors' scholarship or that they were read by teaching assistants and not by the professors themselves.

Preconceptions in Interpretation

Shelter Chistian Youth Hostel - Amsterdam

During the summer after his first year, Len applied to go in an evangelistic outreach called Youth Hostel Ministry (YHM), Christian ministry to hopefully get young travelers, of whom there were many in Europe in the 1970s, to become Christians.

YHM created four teams, one was to be stationary at a youth hostel and three were to travel with backpacks on their backs, staying at youth hostels, and evangelizing fellow traverls. An additonal person was not assigned to a particular team, traveled between teams to see how they were each getting along. Len requested to be on a traveling team. However, he was assigned to the stationary team. Becky Zavala, Shirley DeVore and David Orth made up the other membes of his team. All members of all the teams were undergraduates, except Len who was a graduate student.

The teams had to raise money for their air travels to and from Europe and expenses in while in Europe. For several months, they sent out requests for donations from former YHMers, their own home churches, friends and family who may assist with money, and they got together to pray that God would provided. For several months it was iffy that they would have the money, but it came through.

The also met frequently on campus for team building, getting to know each other, establishing a bond.

When school got out at the beginning of the summer all the teams flow to Schipol airport, Amsterdam, and took a traing to the Hague (den Haag) where they stayed for several days at some sort of retreat center where were to have more meetings, and they played a game of soccer (though Len did not, he took photos of the game). After one or two days during the night, a guy in one of the bunked beds struggled got out of bed, went into the adjoining bathroom and vomited in one of toilets.

Soon another got up and did the same. Eventually, more that half were making trips to the bathroom to vomit or deficate. When the bathroom stalls were all occupied, they vomited in the sinks of which there were two. The sinks became clogged with vomit. One guy found a small paper cup and stared scooping out vomit to get sinks operating again. Len wondered when he would sicken and make his way to the bathroom. He never got sick however.

The next day or two most or all meetings were canceled while people recovered their strengh. Len never found out if the girls in their section of the co nference center also were sick. Later Len surmisted that they had suffered food poisoning from something they ate during the previous few days, perhaps food on the plane, and that he had not chosen the particular food option.

After a few days the guys and girls joined their individual teams, boarded the train and took off to their assinged areas of Europe. Len, David, Shirley and Becky took the train to Central Station (Centraal Station) and walked the ten mintues or so to their assignment, the Shelter Christian Youth Hostel on 21 Barndesteeg, in the Red Light district of Amsterdam.

Their assigned jobs were either working the front desk, working at the snack bar and once in a while leading a bible study to which those staying at the youth hostel were invited. When they were not performing a particular duty, they were to mingle among the guests, and evangelize, in low key sort of way, the guests.

The guest were internatioal coming from all over Europe, the middle east, and occasionally Asia, and Austrailia, UK, Canada and the U.S.A. Many spoke English, but not all. However, the staff, who were all Christians, was international too including , Dutch, French Americans, and an Israeli Jew. The European staff members often spoke more than one language.

After the summer Len returned to Wheaton and continued his studies. He finished his classes. By this time he was feeling a bit burned out. He needed a break. He returned to Amsterdam and joined the Ark.

1975-76 The Ark, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

The Ark was two large house boats, converted river barges tied to a pier at Amsterdam's harbor behind Amsterdam's Central Train Station. He started a small one-room bookstore on the Ark, called The Ark Books which also sold craft items made by the craft team on the Ark. When not working in the bookstore he took part in Ark activities, and outreaches into the city.

He also walked into the city on his own, attempting to meet and perhaps build up relationships with teenagers and young adults in the city. Part of his goal was evangelistic. He hoped he could influence others (teenagers and young adults) to become Christians. He also hoped to help those who had gotten trapped in drugs or cults. It was during this time that he met Dietmar, a German teenager and heroin addict. He met Dietmar when he and a few other 'Arkies' were walking through the streets of Amsterdam not far from Dam Square. Len or one of his friends, invited Dietmar to come back with them to the Ark for a meal. Dietmar accepted. He eventually 'kicked heroin' on the Ark, became a Christian, and joined the Ark community.

Len worked on the Ark for less than a year.

1976 California

Feeling more refreshed he returned to California, staying at his parents' home, where he started work on his master's thesis, and spending as much time as possible working on his thesis while sitting or laying on the sands of the Pacific ocean shore in Ventura under the warm California sun.

Most of his thesis notes were on 3x5 inch index cards. He often took with him his box of index cards, a draft of his thesis and blank 8.5x11 inch sheets of paper. This worked for while, but he realized he really needed to get back to Wheaton to work more closely with his professor. Also, no institution in and around Ventura had the books and articles he needed to continue research to fill in needed gaps. He flew from Los Angeles International Airport to Chicago, and made his way out to Wheaton, forty miles west.

1976 or 1977 Wheaton, Illinois

Len finished his thesis. Considering these were the days before the personal computer, of which he later played a small part in bringing to the world, he paid for the services of a typist in Wheaton to type up his thesis according to stringent rules. She had typed Wheaton theses before and did a good job.

He handed in his thesis. Some weeks later he defended the thesis before two or three professors in a Wheaton College conference room. He also took his comprehensive exam. Somehow he managed to pass both though he had a feeling he just managed to squeak by. Len graduated in 1977.

Wheaton College [Wheaton Graduate School] Transcript

He returned to California and tried to figure out what to do next.

1978 - 1979 Netherlands, Sweden, Finland

Len had a master's degree in hand. Figuring that a master's degree was not likely to get him a job in his field he decided to return to Jerusalem to earn a doctorate. However, he needed another language besides English. He applied to and was accepted in the Goethe Language Institute in Freiburg, Germany. However, he had some time before needing to be in Germany and decided to work the summer at the Shelter Christian Youth Hostel in Amsterdam.

Before leaving for Amsterdam he ran into a girl, Cheryl Saunders, at Ventura Junior College. He went to visit the college's book store and have lunch in the cafeteria. Len saw Cheryl in the cafeteria line and recognized her. She was from the church he once attended. She also sang in the same large church youth choir as did Len, called the Choralaires. Len did not know her at that time. She was five years younger, a young girl still in junior high, while Len was a senior in high school. She had probably just entered high school when he was finishing up junior college. After junior college Len was off to Westmont College in Santa Barbara for two years, followed by the Institute in Jerusalem for a few semesters, followed by Wheaton Graduate School and the Ark in Amsterdam. So, Len hadn't seen her for quite some time.

Nervously, Len went up and introduced himself. She recognized him. Len suggested they see each other again, which she agreed to.

Cheryl was a musician. She often played at coffee shops or bars in and around Ventura, and Len often went with her which she appreciated. She was a good guitarist.

She wanted to gain more experience playing music. Len suggested she do so in Amsterdam and stay at the Shelter. They decided to get Eurail Passes and travel in Europe for some weeks before starting work. She had never been to Europe. It was a whirlwind tour, visiting The Netherlands, France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany and Sweden, staying nowhere for very long.

After their travels they returned to Amsterdam. Len started work at the Shelter and Cheryl got work playing at various pubs or coffee houses in the city with such names as The Last Watering Hole and the Adam and Eva, mostly in the evening, playing guitar and singing. Len joined her when he was not working and sometimes sang harmony or played the harmonica both of which he was not very good or a little percussion with the cabasa or claves depending upon the song.

Cheryl returned to the States. The relationship was over though Len didn't know if he and Cheryl had much of a relationship. In any case he took it hard.

Sweden and Finland

Len decided not to continue on to Germany and Israel. Instead he traveled to Helsinki, Finland to see a friend, Lillian Cronqvist who he had known on the Ark in Amsterdam, and to Sweden.

In Sweden he was met by his grandfather, Oscar and Oscar's brother Egron. The picked Len up perhaps from a train station or a the ferry docks. Oscar and Egron were in the front seat, Len in the back. Egron or Oscar spoke, saying something like,

"I don't suppose you know. Pamela is dead. She died in a car accident."

Len didn't know who they were talking about.

"Pamela who?"

"Your cousin, Pamela Rinell."

It didn't sink in at first. Len wasn't sure they were talking about the same person though they could be talking about the same Pamela.

"Pamela. Pamela is dead?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. She died in a car accident."

Len leaned back into the car seat.

After some time Len said, "I grew up with Pammy. She's dead."

"Yes."

Len didn't recall the conversation after that or if there was one. It took some time to sink in that Pammy was dead.

He stayed some days at his grandparents' place Göteborg and took the train to Uppsala to see his cousin Lally Rinell. He stayed a few days at her place. She invited him to stay longer. He thanked her, but said he'd continue on traveling.

[Note: Len was not sure of the sequence, weather he saw his family in Sweden before seeing his friend in Helsinki or the reverse or whether he traveled to Göteborg first and then on to Stockholm.]

He joined YWAM at Heidebeek in the countryside of Holland, headed a small research library and team of researchers.

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Footnotes