The Dartts: DARTT NEWS

Bus repairs were completed this evening. Grand total of $640, in addition to our tire expenditures of $1,970 yesterday. YIKES! We had to drain the bank, but we were able to pay the bill. Tomorrow we head back to the Fort Worth area for our Friday night concert. 440 miles... 65 gallons of diesel.

Greetings from the road!

While we (Stone & BJ) are touring in Missouri, we took the bus in today to have 6 of our 8 tires replaced to the tune of $1970.00. In the midst of the replacement, we were informed that one of our axle seals was leaking badly & needs to be fixed. We had to take the bus across town to another shop that could do the job here in Springfield & long story short, we've had to order in brake parts & such that will not be in until tomorrow afternoon, which has made it necessary for us to cancel tomorrow night's concert in Wichita, Kansas. Please pray for us as we are now in a bit of financial challenge with the unexpected additional repair expense (which we won't know the total of until tomorrow evening at the earliest), in addition to the loss of income from tomorrow nights concert.

We appreciate your prayers & support.
Stone Dartt
The Dartts

Cruise to New England and Canada on a Fall Foliage Cruise September 24 - October 1, 2011 with the Dartts!
Sailing from Boston, MA to Portland Maine, Bar Harbor, ME, Halifax, Nova Scotia, St John, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. With Prices for this 7 night cruise starting at just $1,099 you don't wanna miss out!!
If the beautiful sights of New England/Canada aren't what you are looking for, then we have something exciting for you....We will be sailing on a 12 nights HOLY LAND cruise October 28th!
For more information on Both of these exciting new cruises call PAM at 207-546-7651
Deposits start at $500 per cabin

     Just a brief update. Stone & BJ have kicked off the new year with their first tour beginning in Florida, where they will be doing several concerts between now & late March. We are praying for 1,000 salvation decisions this year in our concerts, & we've seen a dozen or more already. Financially, it is very tight right now, as our schedule has been rather light through January in spite of our efforts to fill the calendar & we are not seeing enough income yet to keep up with our weekly expenses & obligations. We are praying for an increase & hoping for the best as we hold on tight & look forward to a busier schedule starting in February, & as we anticipate the release of our documentary film, "The God On The Mountain Legacy", now due to come out in March, 2010.

 

     With the news that Sharon is not a good match to donate a kidney to Tracy, two of the Dartt boys, Forrest & Don, have stepped up to be tested. Please be in prayer as Forrest goes in for testing this coming Friday, January 29th. Forrest lives in the Nashville, TN, area & is married with 4 kids ranging in age from 20 yrs. to 1 yr. with the oldest child currently serving in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army. Forrest himself is a U.S. Army veteran, having served in Desert Storm in the early 90's before joining with Tracy, Sharon, & Stone to form The Dartts in 1995. 

 

Please be in prayer with us concerning all of these matters. Thanks for your love & support.

 

by Stone

 

The Dartts

TheDartts@DarttMusic.com

www.DarttMusic.com

www.GodOnTheMountainLegacy.com

 

Click HERE to be taken to our online music store where you can support our ministry by purchasing CD's & downloadable MP3's of our music and soundtracks for yourself & others. Now through February 7th, CDBaby (the folks who sell our CD's) will donate $1 of THEIR cut to the American Red Cross & Mercy Corps for every CD & every full digital album sold through CDBaby. This donation is to help the Haitian Relief Effort & is done by CDBaby independently of DarttMusic. Read More…

Click HERE to be taken to our iTunes page for The Dartts. On iTunes you can find ALL of the recordings currently available by The Dartts, Tracy Dartt, BJ Speer, & Don Dartt. You can even "Gift" any of our music on iTunes to others by clicking the arrow next to the price of any album or individual song. You must be viewing the music through the iTunes program in order to do this. Read More...

 

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church; 

Napa Valley Baptist Church 

2303 Trower Ave. Napa, CA 94558 (Phone-(707)252-2100) 

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to; 

The Dartts 

P.O. Box 422 Greenbrier, TN 37073 (Phone-(707)688-9762)

Beloved Friends and Fans - Time for some news from "The Dartts"

Christmas Tour: Stoney and BJ are on the road with Billy and Paula Speer, (BJ's folks) doing a series of Christmas Concerts. They will be performing in 17 locations along the East Coast, from New York to Florida.  

2010: So far, we have already scheduled more than 120 concerts for next year, in 16 states. We do an average of 200 concerts each year. You can check our Tour Schedule to see if we will be in your area. We plan to be in Florida January through March, then heading west. Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona are scheduled for April, then May in California, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska (Jubilee At Sea Gospel Cruise). June includes Washington, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Missouri, and Alabama. After scattered dates in the south, we will be heading for New England in the fall, the National Quartet Convention in Louisville, KY, and Switzerland.We hope to visit with our daughter and her family in Stavanger, Norway, while we are in Europe. Our son-in-law is a Major in the US Army, working there with NATO. There's a new little grandson, seven weeks old, that we'd love to see and hold. Not to mention, our granddaughter (14), and two grandsons (3 & 12).
   
Tracy's Health: Tracy is still having dialysis, 3 days a week. He's feeling good most of the time, but can't travel far. Our first 6 possible kidney donors were all denied for various health reasons. Tracy's wife, Sharon, and son, Forrest, have begun the process of testing to see if one of them may qualify. So far, Sharon’s results do not look good for her being a match for Tracy. Other family members are also willing to be tested. Although Tracy's insurance would cover surgery costs, a younger donor, working full-time, would need to have his or her income replaced for the 4 to 6 weeks of recovery time. We are very thankful that Tracy is healthy enough to be approved for a transplant, but we are hoping that he won't have to wait 3 or 4 years on the transplant list, before receiving a kidney. We are praying for the Lord's perfect provision and perfect timing for this need. 

New Releases: Our documentary film - "The God On The Mountain Legacy" is in the final edit stage. A two minute video trailer can be viewed on You Tube. Just type in "God On The Mountain Legacy" to see it, or go to www.GodOnTheMountainLegacy.com. We are hoping for a New Year's Eve showing on the NRB network, then on a number of other networks early in the year. The film will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray, and will be available for purchase on iTunes. A new CD featuring artists and songs on the DVD will also be due for release early in the year. Watch our website to see when these items are available for purchase on-line. 

Thank you: We appreciate so very much all the prayers and encouragement and even love gifts from our faithful friends. Several benefit concerts have taken place to help us. It has been a difficult year for us financially, as it has for many others, but we still have more blessings than we can count. Our heartfelt gratitude to Stoney and BJ, for their willingness to continue touring and singing as a duet in order to minister through music and also to continue to provide an income for Tracy & Sharon as the combined expenses of the road and back at home are a challenge to keep up with. Scores of souls have made salvation decisions, and we have received so many reports of the blessing that they have been to folks that have attended their concerts. Tracy and Sharon have enjoyed the rest and wonderful family times at home in Tennessee, but are hoping and praying that they can be back out singing with the rest of "The Dartts" as soon as possible. Please pray for us, that God will open new doors of opportunity for our ministry , and that we will be found faithful in the ministry that He has given us to do.      

By Sharon

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

After weeks & weeks of waiting, the approval committee brought Tracy's case back up for review & decision today (Monday). They have approved him as being eligible for surgery! This is wonderful news, since just 6 months ago, Tracy's doctors feared that he couldn't withstand such a surgery. Additionally, Tracy's cardiologist has cut his blood pressure medication in half within the last week. And just within the last couple of days, the doctor stated that Tracy's heart function has improved to a level of 48% (50% would be normal for a man his age).

Tracy has been placed on a 3-year waiting list. In the meantime, we have a very short list of individuals who have expressed their willingness to donate a kidney to Tracy. We will be contacting them to find out if they are still willing. Stay tuned for more updates, & please continue to pray for a perfect match for Tracy, that he would be able to have the transplant soon & recover quickly, & that our ministry schedule will fill as Stone & BJ continue touring full time.

Some big news in the Dartt family; Tracy & Sharon's daughter, Florence (better known as Peachy), and her husband, US Army Major Stephen McLain, are being stationed in Norway for 2 to 3 years, along with their 3 children (& 1 on the way). Steve got back just before Christmas '08 from his 2nd tour in Iraq. They are currently in transition between posts & the plan is to stop in & visit the Dartts in Tennessee for a couple of weeks in late June before heading off to Norway.
It has been our plan for some time now to fly Stoney & BJ home from Seattle, Washington, to Nashville for about 10 days before Peachy & the family head overseas. The time has been left open on our calendar, but due to finances, we have been forced to wait on purchasing plane tickets. Now that it's less than 3 weeks away, & due to the fact that the boys' return trip falls a few days before the 4th of July, we priced the 2 round trip tickets at $800-$1000 total. With our ongoing expenses & obligations, both on the road & at home, that kind of money is a lot for us to come up with right now. We are waiting on the Lord for now & praying for Him to provide the need, and/or provide us some lower airfares. Please pray for the Dartts, & that Stoney & BJ will be able to get home for a visit before Peachy & the family fly away. Thanks & God bless!

By Stone Dartt

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

Our continued thanks to our faithful prayer warriors out there. We did get some news about Tracy on Monday. The transplant "approval committee's" position on the whole issue is, "SO FAR, SO GOOD". Furthermore, they said for the next step, they wanted Tracy to go through 3 more tests, 1 of which is a blood test, which was performed on Monday. The 2nd of the 3 tests is a stress test on Tracy's heart to check for leaky valves. Hopefully the 2nd & 3rd tests will be taken care of very quickly. We will keep updating you right here in our "Dartt News" section.
BUS UPDATE!; Stoney & BJ spent Sunday night broken down at a truck stop atop the "Grapevine" in southern California. After a few attempts to get immediate care from a mobile mechanic, we had to come to terms with the fact that nothing could be done until Monday morning at about 8am. The mechanic came, spent a little more than an hour, was able to bypass the problem valve & get us back on the road for $132 in repair costs. From that point we had barely enough time to drive the remaining 584 miles to our concert, which was scheduled at 7pm. Our good friends, The Hockleys, offered to fill in for us, but they had a bus breakdown of their own & were not able to make it. Praise the Lord, Stoney & BJ made it with not a moment to spare, got everything set up, & had a great time singing to the folks in a beautiful outdoor setting up in the mountains of northern California. Jennifer Hockley was able to come up in the Hockleys' tow vehicle & arrived about half-way through the concert to share a song with the folks. Thanks to all of you who prayed for us & to those who sent some encouraging e-mails as well.

By Stone Dartt

We are back on the road today after a temporary fix to our bus's air system by a mobile mechanic, costing $132. We are attempting to make our date tonight by 8pm. Please pray for safety as we travel.

Greetings! Stoney & BJ had a great day today (Sunday), singing in Covina, CA, & Redondo Beach, CA. 2 people accepted Christ in the morning service! The boys left Redondo Beach immediately after their 6pm concert & headed north toward Adin, CA, where they were scheduled to sing Monday night (June 1st). They pulled off the freeway in Lebec (Frasier Park) to fuel at a truck stop, & as they did, the bus lost its air pressure. Stoney was able to get the bus parked at the truck stop for the night. When the bus loses air pressure, the brakes begin to seize up as a safety precaution, so by the time the bus pulled to a stop in the parking lot, the breaks were smoking a little. The problem seems to be with a leaky air release valve, or leveler valve.
There's nothing that can be done until Monday morning when we will call a mobile mechanic in the area & try to get the problem fixed. Praise the Lord, He always takes care of us. If this problem had happened as we started down the long, steep downgrade off the mountain, we could have very easily had a bus fire on our hands. We are going to have to cancel our Monday evening performance in Adin, & hopefully we will be able to get repaired Monday morning, in time to make it to our Tuesday concert in Elkton, OR. Please be in prayer that we can get repaired, that the bill won't be too high, & that the Lord will provide the finances to make up for the repair costs & for the loss of income from our cancelled concert. The Hockleys will most likely be taking our place to sing the scheduled 7pm concert in Adin.
In the meantime, Tracy's testing went smoothly on Thursday, May 21st, but we still haven't received any of the results. We did get a call from Tracy's heart doctor, who said that after looking at the MRI of Tracy's heart, he didn't see any reason, as far as he's concerned, that would keep Tracy from having a transplant surgery. That is encouraging.
We need your prayers, as Tracy's case comes up for review by a medical committee, either tomorrow (Monday, June 1st), or next Monday, June 8th. We don't know which it will be, but either way, please pray that we will hear more good news.

by Stone

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

An important date to be praying for is May 21st. The medical staff in Nashville will be doing an MRI of Tracy's heart, along with other testing. They tell us that this is when they will begin seriously EVALUATING him for a kidney transplant surgery. We need your prayers. We are hoping & praying to hear some GOOD news from ALL of the tests!
In the mean time, Tracy is still feeling good from the dialysis. A few weeks ago they started using the fistula in Tracy's arm, resulting in some unusual bruising & swelling. This made it necessary to temporarily discontinue the use of the arm fistula, until the bruising & swelling goes down. Occasionally, they draw too much fluid off of Tracy's blood during dialysis, which causes his blood pressure to drop very low, sometimes low enough that they have to give him an IV for a few minutes. This severe blood pressure drop happened one evening after Tracy & Sharon had been at home for a while & it became necessary to call 911 because he was nauseated, & almost to the point of passing out. It's a delicate balance, & we are anticipating an adjustment to Tracy's blood pressure & heart medication doses.
Stone & BJ are touring & ministering in California now, with many dates ahead, as Tracy has been readily working away at the task of filling the calendar. The tour has gone well so far, & is just starting to get busy. This past week, the boys sang at 6 churches, including The Dartts' home church, Napa Valley Baptist Church in Napa, CA. It's been great to see the love & support of people every where we've been, & getting to drop in & sing for our home church was an extra special blessing.
Please continue to pray for The Dartts; for our family & our ministry - for strengthening of Tracy's heart & good news from his May 21st appointment - for driving safety for Tracy & Sharon as they head into Nashville 3 times a week, & travel safety for Stone & BJ as they tour the country in the bus - for scheduling progress as Tracy does the work of filling our ministry's calendar - for good concert attendance & for God to work through Stone & BJ as they minister - for lost souls to be saved & Christians to be encouraged - for health & financial blessings, (health) as there is a lot of sickness going around right now, (financial) as there are many expenses, both at home & on the road.

by Stone

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

Come sail with us to Alaska in May 2010 for a vacation of a lifetime! Rooms are booking fast, so call today with your deposit to hold your cabin! You don't want to miss this cruise! Listen to great Gospel music, Relax in luxury all while enjoying the amazing scenery of the GREAT STATE of ALASKA!
See you on the high seas!

Please be in prayer for BJ & his parents, Billy & Paula Speer, and BJ's uncle, Brent, as they deal with the death of Paula & Brent's father, "Mac" Calder (BJ's Grandfather). Mac passed away on Saturday after his health, which has been poor for some time, recently took a turn for the worse.
Early this morning, BJ flew from Nashville, TN, to Bangor, ME, to join Billy & Paula, who had already flown up from Florida. Mac's funeral service will be held on Tuesday at North Road Baptist Church on Campobello Island, New Brunswick.
BJ, who was looking at having to fly into some wintery weather in Maine, said that his connecting flight, a prop plane from Newark, NJ, was one of the scariest flights he had been on, with quite a bit of "fish-tailing" & several drops. He had to fight back sickness as at least 3 people near him failed at fighting back their own motion sickness.
Please be in prayer for BJ & the family through a very emotionally draining & stressful time, and for safe driving & safe & affordable return flights back home to Tennessee for BJ & back to Florida for Billy & Paula.

Tracy's appointment with his surgeon has been postponed until this coming Friday, April 3rd. Please continue to pray that we will get a good report from this meeting so that we can begin progressing toward a kidney transplant.
Tracy continues the work of attempting to fill The Dartts' schedule for 2009 & beyond, while he & Sharon are happy with their current schedule for Tracy's dialysis treatments which gets them home at a decent hour of the evening & doesn't require them to make a super-early morning commute.
We are coming up on a little more than 2 weeks in the first half of April when we have no scheduled concerts whatsoever, which will be challenging financially, but we are trusting the Lord, as always.
In the meantime, a couple of changes in our upcoming calendar have come about. It looks as if we will be rescheduling our April visit on the Jim Bakker show until some later time, which will be announced.
Also, we have made the call to cancel our 2009 participation in the Great Western Fan Festival in Fresno, California. We are hoping to reschedule for 2010.

by Stone

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

Hello Music Lovers and Dartt Fans!

For those of you who have always wanted to travel to the GREAT STATE OF ALASKA, now is your chance!
The dates have been set, the ship has been booked, and the artists have been scheduled! Registration is now open and rooms are booking up!
On May 21-28, 2010 we will be sailing on Royal Caribbean's Rhapsody of the Seas for a 7 Night, 8 Day cruise to experience some of Alaska's most beautiful scenery. Making stops in Juneau, Skagway, Tracy Arm Fjord and Vancouver BC, this cruise is not to be missed! Joining the Dartts in nightly concerts will be Billy and Paula Speer, The Weatherfords, The Puffers, The Hockleys, Robin Noel, and many more. There will be spiritual challenges by Evangelist Wendell Calder as well as great fellowship with several other Christians from all over the world. With prices starting at just $1199, rooms are going to go fast! Be sure not to be left out on this vacation of a lifetime! Prices are per person and are all inclusive! (includes: cabin, meals, taxes, gratuities, port fees and concert tickets)
For booking information, call Pam Farnsworth at (207)546-7651 or email her at pfarn@gwi.net
Tell her the Dartts sent you and we will see you in Alaska!

Deposits are $150 to hold the cabin
Final Deposit - Sept 10th, 2009
Final Payment - March 1, 2010
(75 Day Cancellation policy applies)

Interior Stateroom: $1199
Ocean View Stateroom - $1299
Balcony Suites - $1714/ $1799
Junior Suite - $1899
Family Suites starting at $1999
3rd/4th person - $749

ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED!

Thanks for praying for the Dartts! Check our website for updates on Tracy's health conditions.
The Dartts

Not a lot to report, but a couple of things of interest. Tracy was able to get his dialysis schedule switched to an evening time slot, which is much more comfortable for he & Sharon. Also, Tracy has an appointment with his surgeon on Friday, March 27, so we are hoping & praying for some good news at that point. In the mean time, Stone & BJ have continued their singing engagements in Florida, sharing the Gospel in song & seeing a few people come to the Lord, & Tracy's working harder than ever to fill the calendar for the rest of the year & on into 2010.

by Stone

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

Tracy & Sharon continue their routine of three trips a week for dialysis, in addition to other tests & doctor appointments.

One important milestone is that Tracy's doctors have confirmed that he is NOT a candidate for peritoneal dialysis, and therefore, made an appointment for an outpatient procedure to put a permanent dialysis port into Tracy's arm. That procedure was Thursday, February 19th, & all went well. Also, since last report, Tracy's heart specialist said that his heart was showing some improvement & that with medication treatment & continued heart improvement, he was hopeful about Tracy's prospects of having a kidney transplant. We are still looking at a minimum of several months before Tracy could return to the road.

He & Sharon met up with Stone & BJ to perform one Sunday morning service in Alexander City, AL, since it was only about 5 hours away from home. It was a good time together & we were pleased with how good he looks & how well he seems to be feeling & responding to treatment.

Stone & BJ just returned to Florida from a visit back home to Nashville. While in Nashville, they were able to do some recording with Tracy & Sharon for the upcoming "God On The Mountain Legacy" project which is a DVD that is set to be released within the next few months. A "God On The Mountain Legacy" CD is also in the works.

Please continue to pray for The Dartts. Specifically, we need prayer for the Lord to bless Tracy as he books our upcoming schedule. We need prayer for the Lord to provide our needs financially, as we have many needs & expenses through this time of Tracy's health difficulty. We are hoping that Tracy will be able to have a kidney transplant soon, that his recovery will be swift, & that he & Sharon will be able to return to the road by the end of 2009.

by Stone

Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

Registration is now OPEN for Alaska 2010!
We are so excited to be singing on Jubilee at Sea to Alaska! We will be joining several other great Gospel musicians on a 7 night, 8 day cruise to one of the most popular cruising destinations in the world! If you love Gospel music, and lots of R&R, then this is the trip for you! Each evening will be a Gospel concert with a challenge brought by Evangelist Wendell Calder. We will be sailing on the beautiful Rhapsody of the Seas, part of the Royal Caribbean fleet. Prices are ALL INCLUSIVE and start at $1199. Deposits are $150 per person and registration is open. Call Pam Farnsworth at 207-546-7651 and tell her the DARTTS sent you! We know you will enjoy this trip of a Lifetime!

MAY 21 - 28, 2010

PORTS OF CALL:
Seattle
Juneau
Skagway
Tracy Arm Fjord
Victoria, BC
(Cruise is roundtrip from Seattle)
Groups Performing
THE DARTTS, THE SPEERS, THE WEATHERFORDS, THE PUFFERS, THE HOCKLEYS and Evangelist WENDELL CALDER

BJ Speer is featured in an article for the February issue of US Gospel News. If you do not have US Gospel News, the article can be viewed on their website at:
www.gospelmusicnews.org click on online articles
click on Southern Gospel's Next Generation.

At Tuesday's dialysis appointment, Tracy found out that his last lab test showed his creatinine level had dropped to 4.0, down from over 9. That's definitely good news. Also, tests showed that Tracy's thyroid is in perfect condition, which evidently means there is hope that Tracy's heart condition can improve. Please continue to pray.

by Stone

Today was the start of Tracy's 3rd week of dialysis treatments. This week, he is scheduled for early morning treatments, which brings some potential for icy morning driving conditions. Today was a bit cold & snowy. This afternoon was also the first appointment Tracy had with his new heart specialist. He & Sharon are very pleased with the doctor, who listened to Tracy's heartbeat & didn't hear anything too abnormal. At this point, the doctor expressed some hope that a heart surgery might not be necessary, but said that further testing was needed, scheduling an MRI for this coming Monday the 26th. We are, of course, hoping & praying for good test results for this & any other medical tests that will be thrown Tracy's direction. Please continue to pray & check back here for more updates!
In the meantime, Stone & BJ had a good beginning to their tour out in Phoenix, AZ, at Thomas Road Baptist Church with Pastor Ken Adrian. Please be in prayer for Pastor Adrian, as he also has some serious health needs. Also visiting, was Gary Grey, Pastor of Park Crest Baptist Church in Springfield, Missouri, who is currently President of the Baptist Bible Fellowship. This was a good kick off for Stone & BJ as they start their singing tour back toward the east coast. This week, they'll be singing in Benson, AZ, Silver City, NM, & then make their way to Louisiana for the weekend. Please pray for great concerts & journey mercies.

by Stone

Tracy is at home after being discharged from the hospital on Friday evening. His breathing is much improved, & he’s coughing less. He is on a liquid restricted, renal/heart healthy diet, which sure isn’t any fun to keep track of. He doesn’t seem to be bothered much by any pain from the dialysis port in his neck/chest area, which is good, and he’s able to get some good sleep. It's not all rest though, because today begins the new routine for Tracy & Sharon of driving into downtown Nashville 3 days a week for Tracy’s dialysis treatments as an outpatient. It’s about a 60 mile round trip, plus treatment time of about 4 hours per visit. Next Monday (Jan. 19th) Tracy will have his first visit to a heart specialist to check the progress of his heart function. Please pray with us that the Lord will restore full heart function to Tracy so that he can undergo surgery. It would be beneficial for him to have surgery to install a more optimal dialysis port, allowing for more effective treatment. It would be even MORE beneficial for him to have surgery for a kidney transplant so that dialysis would no longer be necessary. These are very serious needs. We would love to see the Lord give Tracy healing miracles & a quick return to the road, but until that happens, it looks as if Tracy will be off the road for a while. It could be weeks, it could be months.
We are anticipating some very serious challenges ahead for our family & for the ministry of The Dartts, financially & otherwise. Tracy & Sharon will be sending off Stone Dartt & BJ Speer to continue traveling & carrying on the ministry of The Dartts until Tracy is able to return to the road. Until then, Tracy is hoping to continue work at home, scheduling dates to fill our calendar, & working to replace any date cancelations that may come down the road. We’re already getting a few of those. We need your prayers & support. Donations clearly marked for “THE DARTTS” can be given through our home church;

Napa Valley Baptist Church
2303 Trower Ave.
Napa, CA 94558
(Phone-(707)252-2100)

or, if you prefer to give directly, make payment to “The Dartts” & send to;

The Dartts
P.O. Box 422
Greenbrier, TN 37073
(Phone-(707)688-9762)

Tracy had his second dialysis treatment this morning, resulting in the removal of another 2 & a half liters of excess fluid. He was rather weary this evening. Doctors discussed some upcoming heart tests to continue monitoring Tracy's ability to undergo surgery. Tomorrow will be three days in a row of dialysis treatments for Tracy & there is strong talk of sending him home over the weekend. It is unclear whether or not they expect to readmit him next week. Keep us in your prayers & we'll report more tomorrow.

by Stone

Early this morning, Tracy underwent the procedure to put a dialysis port in his neck area. Shortly thereafter, he had his first dialysis treatment. It took about 3 & a half hours & the doctors said the process removed 2 liters of excess fluid from his blood. Tracy had no complaints & his spirits seemed to be up. He didn't seem exhausted & he had a good appetite come dinner time. Later in the evening he began sensing a little pain in the area where his dialysis port procedure was done, so he was given a little pain medication for it. He's definitely ready for a good night's sleep & the doctors say they will give him dialysis treatments for the next two days. Keep praying & we'll keep you up to date. Thanks & God bless you all!

by Stone

Today was a little bit more restful for Tracy, but this morning brought more sobering news. At this point the doctors have concluded that for now, Tracy's heart is not strong enough to take the chance of performing a major surgery on him. This means that unless his heart function improves, he cannot have the type of surgery that might allow him to undergo dialysis while remaining on the road. It also means that unless his heart function improves, he cannot undergo surgery for a kidney transplant.
Tomorrow (Wednesday), Tracy is scheduled to undergo a procedure to install a dialysis port in his neck area, after which, he will most likely undergo his first dialysis treatment. He will most likely remain in the hospital for a few more days. Once he is released from the hospital, it will be necessary for he & Sharon to remain close to home indefinitely in order to allow for a new schedule of going to a local hospital 3 or 4 days a week for dialysis treatments that will each last about 4 hours. The medical staff will continue to monitor Tracy's progress, and it is our hope that he will strengthen enough to allow for surgery, and perhaps even for a return to life on the road.
To deal with these changes, we have decided to cancel our first few dates in Arizona & take a week to put our heads together as a family & as a group & make some decisions. Please continue to pray for the Dartt family & the ministry of The Dartts.

by Stone