As the years added to his experience, NCEM encouraged Bill to accept invitations to help younger missionaries wherever they may be laboring. This led to ministry projects here and there across Canada. At the time of writing, Bill spends about fifty percent of his time away from home in this type of ministry. 

        “Shirley and I helped set up Bible camps like the one Joe was saved at.” Bill pointed to a map. Following the simple model of previous camps, Bill encourages local Christians to organize the program. Food and shelter were the responsibility of the campers. The plan proved as successful in other areas as it was in Twin Lakes and, later, at the camp site Bill helped to develop at Kikino Metis Settlement which is near Whitefish Lake. 

        Winter gave relief from the busy demands of Bible camp, but replaced them with demands for other forms of ministry, some of them involving long trips. 

        “Can we get to the radio station in this storm?” Bill doubted it even as he asked the question. The storm that day in February, 1975, was one of that winter’s worst. Chuck Bloomquist, the missionary who had invited Bill to come up to Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territories, casually shrugged. Bad though it was, storms like this one were commonplace all over the Northwest Territories. Bundled up against the fierce wind and -30⁰ weather, the men stumbled through the snow to the little Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) hut which served as studio and transmission relay station. It was Sunday morning. CBC broadcast Chuck’s regular ninety minute program by activating a certain circuit which fed the signal to the immediate vicinity. Maybe the engineer hadn’t made it through the storm. But, with a Native speaker who also played guitar and sang, Chuck wasn’t going to miss the opportunity of having Bill speak to the people. 

        The hut was empty when they got there. It was also cold! The diesel-fuel heater was not functioning at all. The temperature inside exactly matched the temperature outside.The record turntables wouldn’t turn because of the cold. Bill’s guitar froze right out of tune. 

        “I’ll go get some heaters,” Chuck stammered out the words, his lips blue with the cold. He had just phoned the engineer who instructed him on how to switch on the equipment. Rushing home, he returned with two electric heaters which took away a bit of the chill. 

        As soon as the On Air switch was thrown, Bill and Chuck had to communicate by written note. “Will you

sing?” Chuck wrote. Nodding his reply, Bill tried to discreetly tune his guitar again. Singing a hymn, he read Chuck’s next note. “Speak now.” Then, “I’ll give you a breather. We’ll sing another hymn about halfway through.” 

        Almost dropping his guitar from his half-frozen fingers, Bill opened his Bible at the place he wanted to speak from, then put his mitts back on. His parka hood was down, but he kept his fur cap on. His mukluks did their best to keep his toes warm. 

        “I spoke for almost an hour,” Bill recalled. “I almost froze in that studio”. 

        All of a sudden, the door burst open and the engineer stormed in. 

        “Nothing coming through on T.V.,” the engineer said. “Did you turn on the switch I told you to. The one for local broadcast?” 

        “Yes,” Chuck responded. “First thing we did.” 

        After checking, the engineer grinned. “Your heaters overloaded the T.V. circuit breaker. There’s no picture. You still got through on radio, though.” Quickly fixing the problem, the engineer finally gave the go-ahead. Still wearing his mitts, parka and fur hat, Bill resumed speaking. 

        Of course, most broadcasts were considerably less eventful than the one out of Great Bear Lake. The NCEM Tribal Trails program, like its predecessor, the Indian Gospel Broadcast reached into homes where missionaries could never go. Through Tribal Trails, and the video cassettes, the Word of God also reached into hearts, bringing the light of life to some. Letters of testimony, like those quoted below, give some idea of the impact the programs made. Bill often thanked God for the benefits of new technology which extends the borders of ministry for Christ. 

        “The real reason I am writing is to say how we enjoy your program every Sunday before we go to church. I enjoy the music most of all. Sometime ago I received a couple of video tapes of your programs and we passed them out to our Native friends until they wore out. I’m sure they were well received—in fact, I gave them away... I know they will help spread the wonderful Gospel to both Native and whites alike” (from a businessman). 

        “I listened to your program today, and listening to John tell about his upbringing brought back memories of my childhood. I grew up in a convent for boys and I was away from my family for most of twelve years. I graduated, but became an alcohol and drug user in the process. Peer pressure, loneliness and abuses of all kinds have taken their toll on my life. I am now in prison and using my time here to find myself and, most important, I have come to find God and our Savior, Jesus Christ. I am starting to listen to what He has to say to me and direct me toward a more peaceful and rewarding life. I feel a lot of peace in my life and someday I’ll be set free from my prison and this prison, so I can go home and love my family and hopefully have another chance to raise my daughter. Keep up the good work.

         Another modern development for which Bill thanked God was the whole system of intercontinental travel. Born in Alberta’s Whitefish Lake Reserve, unable to speak English until after age seven, tossed out of school at Grade VIII, Bill never ever dreamed that a day would come when he would have opportunity to visit Israel, the earthly home of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Yet, on January 17, 1993, Bill and Shirley found themselves stepping aboard an El Al Airways jet plane on the first leg of a trip which would land them in Israel for the start of a ten-day tour. An excerpt from their diary of the trip shows the impact of this great event in Bill and Shirley’s life.