Journey Joy-Journey Sadness-December 18, 2015

I thought I would share with you what we have been doing yesterday and today.  Thursday night we were in bed and about midnight we got a phone call from a base chaplain telling us that Whitney Thompson asked him to call and have us come to the ER. Craig and I dressed and headed out.  

Whitney is a member, her husband is not.  We have been visiting Whitney often.  She is such a sweet girl and we have had some special experiences and visits.  She made it clear in the very beginning that she wasn't interested in coming to church but we could come back and visit anytime.  Jake also made it clear he doesn't do religious things.  When we got to the ER we found her son Thor was the patient.  Whitney and Jake had been out and the kids (Thor-18 mo. and Mila 3) were at a babysitter.  When they got to the babysitters home, they called her to let her know they were there.  They pulled in the driveway and the sitter came out screaming and carrying Thor saying he wasn't breathing.  Walking in and seeing Little Thor hooked up to everything was very emotional.  Whitney melted into our arms and asked Craig to give him a blessing.  Whitney had been sitting with him for quite awhile and needed the restroom.  She asked me if I would sit with Thor so he wouldn't be alone.  I was happy to do so.  I held his foot and rubbed it and quietly talked to him.  I got to sit there for about 30 minutes.  He felt so cold to my touch.  The respiratory therapists worked on him.  Blood was coming out his nose and mouth.  Luckily it didn't affect me because I'm not very tough when it comes to medical things.  The doctors decided that Thor should be transported to university of California at Davis Medical Center.  When the medical team got there to transport him, I knew it was not good.  I just had that feeling.  We said our goodbyes with the plan that we would drive to Sacramento in the morning.  We got home Friday morning about 2:30 am.  About 8:00 am we got the phone call that Thor had passed away while in transport.  

This afternoon, Friday, about noon we went to the house to see them.  Whitney's dad and stepmom were there from southern  California, her mom and sister were there from SLC, and his parents were there from SLC, plus many military friends.  Her family members are active but Jake's parents are not members.  We visited, met the family, arranged to bring in dinner and then left.  We picked up the bishop about 4:30 at the front gate and took him to the house.  It was then that Whitney received a blessing for comfort from her dad.  It was a very tender moment.  We met up with another family and took dinner in about 6:00.  

Thor had been sick a week or so before.  He spent a couple days in the hospital but had been released the previous week.  Whitney said they had a good week.  Thor was happy, playful and didn't show any signs of being sick.  As of tonight they don't know what he died from.  The autopsy will determine when they can leave for Utah where they will bury him.  

I have thought all day wondering what I could do to help.  As you can imagine they are devastated.  I decided that I would write to all of you and ask you to pray for their family.  As we all know the situation can go both ways.  They can be even more bitter and angry with God or they can seek for peace through the understanding of the plan of salvation and our Heavenly Father's love.  Will you please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.  Jake and Whitney Thompson plus the extended Thompson family.  We love you all and are grateful for our family.  Give you kids a love tonight.  Grandmas play with those kids and loves every moment.  Life can be pretty fragile.

Journey Joy -December 2015

We are so behind this Christmas season.  By the time I get home, fix dinner and do dishes, then catch up on emails, I'm ready for bed.  Our Christmas card greetings will be pretty scarce.  Craig helps with everything but we both run out of steam.  I'll try to hit some of the highlights

• We have been volunteering at the Airman's Attic for several months now.  One of the ladies that is in charge and trained us told me today that her mother was LDS and she was raised as a Mormon until about seven or so.  At that time her mother got MS and was pretty much bed ridden.  She told us that she remembers ward members taking care of she and her sister.  Her memory is she went from house to house.  Her mother decided to give her two daughters up for adoption because she couldn't take care of them.  A nice family adopted them and she moved to Oregon. Her adoptive parents would bring the girls down to California to visit their mother every now and then.  When they did make the trip, they always stayed in member homes.  She was not raised as LDS but remembers well the people who helped her family.  We had a nice visit about the church and what we do as Military Relations missionaries.
• We also volunteer at the David Grant Medical Center.  We have been an on-call couple.  On Friday, Barbara asked us to come in.  We cancelled our trip to the temple in order to fill in.  We stayed from 7:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  It was a long day and we served lots of coffee.  About half way through the day, a man asked us about Mormon missions.  He asked how they work, how are you called, how do you pay for it, etc.  It was a nice conversation but we didn't do any proselytizing.  After he left, the manager of the hospitality group talked to Craig in private and asked him to remove his name tag.  She said it was unfair advertising of our faith.  We did as asked, but my heart felt so sad.  We didn't do anything wrong.  The man asked us questions about the church and we answered them, of which we were told that would be OK.  I immediately felt like saying that if the name tag goes, we go.  Craig and I talked about it and decided to carry on for now.  We didn't want to do anything rash.
• We went to our first mission Christmas Devotional.  The mission president divided the mission up and belt several devotional a.  Our devotional was for four zones.  The best part of the morning was watching the elders and sisters greet each other.  They were so excited to re-connect with past companions.  I realized how close those young men and women get to each other. I too was excited to see some who were previously here but have moved on.  The other thing the mission president did was ask all the missionaries to memorize a scripture and be prepared to share it with everyone.  Even the senior couples shared one.  Yes I shared one!  I know you are surprised because I done do well at memorizing anymore.  It was a pretty special day.  When I posted a picture, Mindi responded that she remembers her mission Christmas devotionals.  It was a sweet moment as I thought about how my missionary children have experienced all the sweet things I am experiencing.  The tender mercies come to us all the time and I am grateful to be able to recognize them.
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Joy Journeys-November 14, 2015

It's been such a crazy week, where shall I begin.  We spent a lot of time looking for apartments of singles.  Our problem today was we had apartment addresses but no apartment numbers.  We'll just keep trying.

We followed up on some active members.  Bro. Pratt is deployed and she is here with three daughters.  They are older and they seem to be doing pretty well.  Bro. Fox is now home for the Middle East.  We have not met him yet but we have contacted Bethany and all is well.  The Millers are an active family living on base.  They have 3 year old twins, turning 4 in December.  Alexis and Austin are so cute.  Alexis is very friendly and talks all the time.  Austin is quiet and doesn't say much.  The reason I mention them is because they had their Christmas tree and inside decorations all out up.  Around the tree are two trains which chug along a track.  The interesting thing is that everything about the train, track, people, buildings, etc. are all out of Lego's.  I want to go back next week and take a picture.  It is really fascinating to watch.  I know Crew would love seeing what they have done.

On Friday we met the Vacaville Zone Leaders to visit the Hansen's.  We have met with them several times and the elders have been meeting with them for a long time.  The goal was to prepare them for temple marriage.  They are a delightful couple about in their late 70's and have been married 36 years.  They have had a lot of challenges but we thought they were doing well.  When we arrived at their home we found out that Bro. Hansen's son was in the hospital where he had two stints put in.  Sis. Hansen's father is 93 years old and in the hospital in Brazil.  When we found out that so much was going on, we offered to come back another time.  Bro. Hansen began visiting with us. Sis. Hansen joined us to say hello but then excused herself to try to reach her family in Brazil.  We were fine with that and then the meeting took a totally different turn.  Sis. Hansen came back, sat down and proceeded to tell us that Bro. Hansen doesn't believe in Joseph Smith and doesn't have a testimony.  He has a hard time reading and so he has not read the Book of Mormon.  The elders engaged them in some gospel questions but the conversation continued to take different turns.  Next Sis. Hansen told us how Bro. Hansen has hit her before.  Of course, Bro. Hansen had his side of the story.  He has been in jail twice for domestic violence.  They began telling us about events going back to when they first met,  how they treat each other's children (second marriage), the language he uses when he gets mad, etc.  Elder Nordfelt and I looked at each other and knew we needed to end this visit.  These missionaries were in way over their heads.  Elder Nordfelt asked Sis. Hansen if she loved Bro. Hansen and she said yes.  He then asked Bro. Hansen if he loved Sis. Hansen and it was a little bit more labored yes.  The next question was 'do you want help to put this back together?' Sis. Hansen said yes and Bro. Hansen said he didn't think he had a problem.  There was so much blame and hurt going on.  Elder Achal told them that a way he puts his temper in check is to think about blessings in his life.  When he starts thinking about his blessings, his temper calms down.  I really don't thing Elder Achal has aa temper problems but I think he made a very good point.  The elders will follow up by calling the bishop and giving it to him.  He is the person that needs to take over and see where this will be going.  As we left , Sister Hansen kept saying, 'pray for me.'  They are certainly in our prayers as we left to go to our next visit.

We then visited Sis. Henderson and her son Edward.  Bro. Henderson is in the Middle East and won't be back till the end of December. Sis. Henderson and Edward will be leaving on Monday to go to Utah and get some things ready for her daughter's wedding.  She has four sisters that she will be with and I really do think it will be a blessing for her.  She has some very strong feelings about U-Tube, Amazon and different websites and how they are so bad.  She worries about her husband and pornography.  She does everything she can to protect her son.  I don't blame her, it is a very challenging world around us.  We offered to help with the wedding reception.  I hope she lets us help and be there for her.  Her depression and her tears seem to be a little more under control.

Journey Joy-November 5, 2015

The middle of October we visited with the Henderson Family.  They have a 12 year old son, Edward, and a daughter living in Utah, getting married in January.  They were a sweet family but she was very emotional because he was going to deploy on October 26. We kept in contact and offered to help in any way possible.  On Tuesday, October 27 we got a phone call from Cecily and she wanted to have a blessing.  When we got to their home, she was an emotional wreck.  She began telling us their story. It seems that he has had some problems with pornography.  They had met with the bishop and she feels like he is trying but unable to get it under control.  She has also had multiple health issues, he has been passed up for promotion, they had a failed business adventure which caused a bankruptcy, plus dealing with the healing of a spouse feeling not good enough because of pornography.  She told us that she has even thought about suicide but would never do that because she knew her children needed her.

Craig and I felt a little overwhelmed with the information.  Craig gave her a wonderful blessing and we left for the night.  On Friday night we saw her at the Halloween party.  She said she was doing much better and felt like she was going to be OK.  Then on Saturday she text and said she wanted us to come by and give Edward a blessing.  On Sunday, November 1, we went over to visit.  Craig gave a message kind of like a home teaching message.  Edward then had a blessing.  We had a nice visit  and were invited to come back anytime.  I told her I didn't want to bug her too much by texting or calling but she said, "bug me all you want."

The next text came on Wednesday she texted and said she wasn't doing very good.  She expressed her concern again about him gone and that she feels she has no self esteem.  On Wednesday evening I called Erika (my daughter-in-law) to get some advise from a 'real' counselor.  I am truly grateful for her help and advice.  So today is Thursday, November 5, and we are meeting with her again tonight.   I have been looking for a talk or a thought to take to her.

She is such a sweet sister.  I feel like we are good friends even though we have only known her her a little over a month.  This will be an ongoing situation until he comes back in December.  It won't really be cured when he gets back but the situation will change.  I'm not sure what our role will be then.  The wedding is in January and so that will be another stressor on their family situation.

Craig and I have spent some special time with her and Edward.  We know that the Lord is aware of her and blessing her.  We have had to go in prayer to determine what we should do or say.  I listened to the Osmond Brothers sing "I Believe".  I have felt an overwhelming feeling that our Heavenly Father is truly aware of Cecily.  However, its time for her to trust in him and let some of the pain go and let Him carry it.  I'm just not sure how to explain this to her and what to say.  I guess I'll have to depend on the Lord also.

Journey Joys-October 30, 2016

On October 26 we had an active duty Military Family FHE.  We have been planning this for about six weeks.  We made arrangements to use the chapel on base.  We were assisted by Col. (Brother) Wonnacott and his wife Holly.  Holly did the refreshments because I really don't have the resources nor the extra money to fund such an event.  We gathered the information as to names and email addresses of active duty military.  Wards were our source and we really appreciated their help.  We then organized the information and Col. Wonnacott sent out an email to the active duty inviting them to FHE.  We approached the Chaplain about sending out an email to all those that indicate the LDS preference.   He said he would and he did.  We put it in the base paper.  We contacted all the wards and put it in their bulletins for three weeks.  Craig and I personally delivered an invitation to every military home that we had an address for.  Members were told that if any of them wanted to bring a snack to help with the evening, that would be great.  Holly make 125 cinnamon rolls, did the table coverings, plates and cups and gave the place an autumn feel.  Her family made a large pumpkin bean bag toss along with coloring and search pages for the children.  We were hoping to have 100 or so but really had no idea.  Our RSVP's were about 85 so we knew we were going to have some and we were thrilled with the RSVP numbers. However in the end our head count was 227.  WOW!  We were absolutely thrilled.

The evening began with members putting on name tags as they came in.  People didn't really start coming till 6:30 so we were late when we started.  Col. Wonnacott spoke for about 15 minutes.  We had invited Father Cannon to come but we were unsure of his plans because he never said yes or no.  However, as the event got underway, Father Cannon came back and took over greeting at the front door and then he stayed for most of the program.  When he left, he said that he couldn't believe how many came.  He said he could feel the energy and joy in our gathering.  We believe that he was feeling the spirit of all the wonderful members but just doesn't recognize it.  As Father Cannon left he offered to let us use the chapel whenever we would like to use it.

Tuesday morning, Col. Wonnacott received an email from Father Cannon offering to reserve the chapel for us on a quarterly basis.  He had the dates and times and said, would these work for you.  Of course our answer was yes and so we have 2016 dates reserved and ready to plan.

This was a great experience for us.  It was really the boost in the arm that we needed.  We have been slow in some of the work and I have to remind myself that our work is different than a young missionary.  I'm so grateful that we had the support of the members and that they want to do it again.

Journey Joys on the Weekend

We visited with Nicholas Darragh (young airman) and took him to dinner.  We found out he is from Texas and his girlfriend is on a mission.  He goes to the singles ward when he can.  He is a young single guy and we hope to be able to stay in touch with him.  He was at church today and we were thrilled.  He says that he wants to receive the priesthood so we offered our assistance to the bishop, telling him that if there is anything we can do to help, we would be happy to do so. Our visit to the Rockville Singles Ward was interesting.  The ward has some really sharp kids and there are some who are not so sharp.  One of the Relief Society advisors told me that they are struggling in numbers to get the youth to attend Institute.  Some of these kids will never leave home and some have college degrees.  They are truly a high risk group.

After dinner we tried to find some more names on our list.  One of them, Bro. Sanderson, was not at home but his wife was.  He is the member, she is not.  She was very nice and we learned some things about Bro. Sanderson.  She told us that she has a step son who just got home from a mission in Brazil and is attending BYU.  Then there is his sister who attends BYUI.  With this wife, he now has a couple little kids running around.  When we mentioned them to Bsp. Lyons and to Sis. Thuesobn (R.S. president), they know nothing about them.  I have asked myself over and over,  if he has two kids at Church schools, there must have been something in his heart at some time.  It makes me want to go back over and over and help them come back to Church.

The Fairfield 2nd Ward had their Primary Program today.  It was a very sweet program and made me really miss my grandkids.  I know I would have been attending their programs.  There was a little blonde girl, about three years old, who was all over the place.  She was cute as could be but she reminded me of my grandkids and how they would have been leaning on everything and waving to mom and dad.  I'm grateful for the sweet memories I have to reflect on.

Dad's Birthday

October 21was my dad’s birthday.  He would  have been 97 years old.  The day started when Scotty posted a memory of grandpa, the camper, and fishing.  That was the beginning of my thinking about him all day.  I remembered stories or things he use to do.  I remember well when he worked at City Floral and would we would go to the Skyline Drug Store.  He would treat us to a candy bar and drink then say, “don’t tell grandma.”  I don’t think it was like that all the time, just sometimes. 

I think about sitting on the front deck and visiting in the cool Idaho evenings.  He loved to see people walking or driving by.  Many of them would stop and visit with he and mom.

When I was about in 7^th or 8^th grade, my friends and I liked to tease him by saying that we would help him on with his coat.  When he put his arm through the sleeve hole, we would block it and not let his arm come through.  He would laugh and we would do it every time to him.  He was a very good sport.  

A couple of weeks before I was suppose to get married, dad came and picked me up and said, ‘come and deliver with me.’  I was always happy to be invited.  That’s when he sprung the question on me.  “Your mother talked to you about the sex thing, right?”  I said no and he just moved on and asked, “Do you have any questions.”  I didn’t realize till later that I didn’t know enough to ask questions.  I tried to do a better job with my kids but who knows.  Every generation get the sex discussion better and better.

I miss my dad every day and hope to be with him one day.  There are so many things I think he could still teach me.  I especially want to ask him about what it was like to meet his mom.  Since she died when he was two days old, I am sure it was quite a reunion.  I want he and my mom to be there and greet me and get me on my way. 

Meanwhile, there is a lot of work to do here at this time.  I am thrilled to be serving a mission with Craig. He is so patient with me.

Journey Joys

District and zone meetings have taken on a new meaning for me.  I know Mindi and Brady use to talk about when they attended them as missionaries, but I don't think I fully understood them.  Now as I attend, I understand them better and ask many more questions.  I have realized what my children did on their missions and truly appreciate it.  I have been able to imagine what it might have been like to see them teach investigators or conduct a zone meeting.  My heart is full of gratitude as I have grown in my knowledge.  The other thing is that I'm grateful they had the opportunity to serve.  I now realize the growth that comes from serving a mission.  I loved seeing it in my children but I also realize that there was much more growth than I realized.  I have asked Brady questions about his service.  I'm sure he thinks I am crazy or weird but it has been an eye opener for me.

Last Sunday we saw Blue ordained an elder.  The sister missionaries and I left Relief Society early and went down to priesthood.  I was grateful and humbled to see the ordination.  Blue has come such a long way and I pray for his continued progress.  He is preparing and is anxious to go to the temple.  I hope we are able to go with him.  

We are preparing for our FHE for Military Families.  It will be next Monday.  We have met several times and planned the event.  We have 65 RSVP's and are hoping for even more.  Colonel Wonnacott is going to send out a reminder before the weekend.  I think back on our time in the military and I think I would have loved a FHE to see who the other military members were.  I'm not sure,however, that we didn't have that knowledge.  For the most part, I always felt connected to the ward through the military and to the military through the ward.  We have also realized how many accommodations are at our fingertips by being close to a military base.  It has especially been nice for Craig to follow up with his colon surgery.  

I love the pictures of our grandchildren that are posted on Instagram and Facebook.  Serving a senior mission is so much easier when I can see how they are changing. I'm now waiting to see Lennon walk.  (Can't believe I'm going to miss it.) While I was talking tonight with Brady he said, "we want to Skype with you this weekend."  What a joy to have them want to Skype and what a blessing to be able to.  Mindi posted new pictures of her family.  They are absolutely wonderful.  The coloring and lighting (sunshine) is beautiful.  It makes me wish that I could get something like it for a combined family picture.  I am so appreciative that my kids try to get together, we just haven't had good luck with a photographer.  

Journey Joys

The last several days we have delivered FHE invitations to all active duty military.  Craig has done a great job navigating the roads.  We are grateful for GPS system but still, Craig has to maneuver traffic.  I am really hoping that we have a good turnout and that people enjoy getting together.

Jen and Steve celebrated their 25th anniversary.  I can't believe it's been 25 years.  Jen should be 25 years old instead of married for 25 years.  There are no words to say how grateful I am for both of them.  Jen was a beautiful, sweet baby.  Throughout her life she helped me learn to be a mother.  I loved taking her places with me and doing things together.  Steve has been a great provider, husband, and father.  I'm grateful for the example they have been for me.

I officially took a golf lesson.  I didn't do very good but I tried.  My goal is to be able to learn enough so that I can go with Craig every now and then.  The things they taught me made me feel like my hands and arms just don't work the way they say they should.  We'll see how things go.

I have had my days when I really miss my grandkids.  I know their life moves along without me but I miss them all they time.  Riley and Mycol seem to be so grown up, and they are.  I'm waiting to see a video when Lennon begins to walk.  I am truly blessed.

Journey Joys

This has been an interesting week.

• We finished our training to become hospital volunteers. We volunteered for 8 hours in one day.  I was beat when we got home.  Our trainer reminded us over and over that we cannot proselyte.  However during our day, we probably had four different people comment on our missionary badges.  One of them even asked us if he could ask us some questions about our church.  Craig became very efficient making coffee while I tried to tolerate the smell.  
• On Wednesday we visited a nice family. Both are from Virginia.  She is a lifetime member and he is a convert.  They have a daughter in Utah who is engaged and a 12 year old son.  The father will be deploying in two week for about three months.  We had a really nice visit with them. The next day we received a text from the mother telling us that she really was thankful for our visit.  She told us about some health issues she has had and some of his work issues.  She also confided that she has a real unrest about this deployment. She asked us to please come back again.  I'm not sure how we will be able to help but Craig and I both felt that there was a reason why we had gone to meet them.  We seem to find these type of families all the time and it teaches me how all missions are given for a reason and are tailored for your individual growth.
• We went to a baptism Sunday evening.  It was an eight year old girl named Sadie.  She attends the Mong branch.  The baptism and confirmation was done in both English and Mong.  I can't begin to explain the very sweet spirit that was there.  There were 60 people there when I counted. Of those priesthood (I mean by age qualification) every one of the men, had on white shirts and ties except for two brethren.  Children were all over the place. We couldn't tell which children belonged to who because everybody was taking care of everybody's kids.  The branch president told us that he feels they are all family.  They take care of each other and love each other.  We were so glad we went to the baptism to share in their joy and see the support of each other.
•  We have three officers deploying to the Middle East on Thursday, October 15.  Please keep them in your prayers as they leave their families for 6 months.  I think for the most part, the spouses will be fine.  They know what to do and how to prepare for deployment. It is a reminder to us all that there are still many soldiers serving in various places of the world who are protecting our freedoms.

Journey Joy

Today's adventure took us to Martinez, CA for a VA appointment for Craig.  We have had to do several things in order to get Craig into the system so he can have his followup colonoscopy next year.  While in this part of California we went to Mare Island.  We read up on it and looked online and it looked like just the spot for Craig and his history interest.  Mare Island, was the site of the U.S. Navy's first permanent base on the West Coast.  During World War II, the shipyard employed more than 44,000 civilian personnel, a fifth of them women.  Naval operations ceased and the shipyard was decommissioned on April 1, 1996.  We were disappointed in the museum.  It was quite apparent that there is not much interest in keeping the museum up.  I felt bad because it is a piece of history which is fading because of lack of concern and probably dollars.

Journey Joys

This has been another great month. I can't believe that its time to send in another update for the newsletter.  So off we go again telling about some of our joys.

• We began the paperwork to be volunteers at the hospital.  While we were reading a binder and doing an open book test, two different volunteers came up to us and said, "We love the Mormons.  We welcome you and want you to know that we admire and love working with the Mormons."  That puts a little pressure on us to be sure we don't mess anything up or offend anyone.
• Still working with Blue.  He has had some wonderful, spiritual experiences.  I have come to realize how hard it is to put lives back together.  I have also come to realize how our Heavenly Father is totally interested in the details of our every day life.  Craig is so patient with Blue and his theories. 
• We have been teaching a class for military members and others who face similar deployment challenges.  Its title is "Becoming a Self-Reliant and Resilient Family."  We have four couples attending.  Three of the soldiers leave in October for Afghanistan.  The fourth soldier leaves in March to go to Alabama.  He is a lawyer and will be involved in a major case.  He is estimating he will be gone three months or longer.  It has been a good class and has given us the opportunity to get to know some members better.  
• We are in the process of planning a Home Evening gathering for all LDS military members.  We have secured the place and we now need to begin the advertising and planning.  We are excited to see all the LDS military families gathered together.
• We were able to read all about President Gilbert's inauguration at BYUI.  I remember well Elder Bednar and Elder Clark's inauguration.  I am so grateful for the years I served at BYU-Idaho.  I love telling everyone all about the university and its mission.  

We thank you all for watching over our home, especially Kelsie Walker who keeps a very close eye on it.  It is such a good feeling to know that neighbors and friends are close by if we need anything.  Every week we comment on how wonderful FaceTime is because we can literally see our grandkids growing up.  We pray that you will all be involved in missionary work in some way.  We really do understand how hard that is in Rexburg but we hope you will all search your families and hearts for people the missionaries can teach.

Journey Joys

This has been an interesting week.

• A trip to the Oakland temple is certainly one of our joys.  There were only two brothers and four sisters in our 4:00 session. Once again, Craig and I were blessed to be the witness couple. If you know anything about us, you know we love attending the temple.
• We had two families commit to being at church on Sunday.  It was one of those days that I truly felt like a missionary because neither one of them showed up.  It was disappointing but as missionaries you just pick yourself up and move forward.
• We went with the sister missionaries to teach a lesson and had a wonderful experience. Brother ___ bore a very strong testimony of how the Holy Ghost testified to him of the truthfulness of the gospel.  He also told us of his hopes and dreams as he moves forward.
• We met with the base chaplain, Chaplain Cannon.  We had a very nice visit.  I don't think we'll be getting any information to help us find our missing souls.  He took us to the hospital to check out  the possibility of doing volunteer work.  We have quite a bit of paperwork and red tape to go through in order to give some of our time.  Plus, we have to take our shot records in to make sure everything is current.  I'm sure that in the end, this will also be part of our joy.
• We were blessed to be invited to give a FHE lesson for a family.  Brother _____ is deployed in Afghanistan and won't be home for another month.  We were greeted at the door and welcomed with a lot of enthusiasm.  We did a short lesson and then provided the treat.  We chose to do rootbeer floats.  By the time we left, we were pretty well liked.  We like to think they enjoyed the lesson as well as the floats.  The kids in this family are so sweet and we loved being with them.
• We appreciate everyone's prayers.  We enjoy the elders and sisters here.  They are hard working  missionaries.  We search for missing members, transport missionaries as well as investigators, attend baptisms, teach Sunday lessons, and meet with ecclesiastical leaders.  As a more mature (senior) missionary, we do just about a little of everything. 

Hope you all had a wonderful week and remember that our daily journey needs to be filled with joy.

District Meetings 9-15-2015

Travis Air Force Base Air Museum

We took the sisters to the Air Museum (They wanted to see what the air base was like.)

Mission Update

Things are good here.  We keep busy every day but we do our own scheduling so if I am tired, I take a nap.  We go with the elders a lot to visit inactive members.  We have seen all kinds of living conditions and all kinds of people.  We have met so many people who got their feelings hurt and so they don't come to church again.  We have traveled distances to do service and also tried to help the neighbor next door.  Next to us we have a Hindu family, upstairs from us are two Afghanistan brothers, next to them is, I'm not sure.  She wears a berka outside but in her apartment she does not.  What a big, wonderful world we live in.  It all makes me appreciate Rexburg even more.  It helps me count my blessings every day.

It has now been two weeks since we went by the chapel on base to see the head chaplain.  We left a business card and they told us they would call to schedule an appointment.  Even though we have called and followed up, we still have no meeting with the chaplain.  We have hit a brick wall in trying to find airman. And we really need the chaplain's help. 

Our monthly mission report will probably never be like the young elders and sisters because technically we are not proselyting missionaries.  We work more with military families who need a visit, part-member, inactive or just anything we can do for a bishop.  However with two stakes, we are spread pretty thin.  We have experienced wonderful baptisms and we have lists of people we pray for.  We teach lessons but they are usually in unexpected situations.   For example, we were transporting a semi-active member to a job interview the other day when he asked us about the fall.  Craig proceeded to give the missionary lesson on the Plan of Salvation.  I must say, Craig is good at explaining things and can answer and teach expectantly.

We miss home but are grateful for the opportunity to serve our Heavenly Father in California.

2015 Family Pictures

Bluehawk's story

This is the segment that I send in for the ward monthly newsletter.

This month I want to share with you the story of a young man named Bluehawk.  One of our bishops in Vacaville asked us to go with the elders to see if there was anything we could do to help.  He had served in the military and had been deployed a couple of times.  He was suffering from PTSD and had depression. The bishop received a phone call one evening from Bluehawk asking for help.  He had been living with his sister while looking for a job here in California.   However his sister was killed in an automobile accident and Bluehawk was left on his own.  He lost the apartment because he couldn’t pay the rent, which made him homeless.  The night that he called the bishop, he was on the streets and alone and scared.  He asked for help and the bishop came through.  He put him in a long-stay motel until he could assess the situation.  We visited him a couple of times with the elders to get some background. We learned his parents had passed away several years ago and so now with his sister’s death, he was truly alone.

One young man from the singles ward went to pick him up for church and saw the conditions he was living in.  By that I mean the neighbors he had.  While Bluehawk was in the car with him, a couple of other tenants started banging on their car windows and so they got out of there.  When they got to the young man’s family and home, he told his parents about their encounter. His parents offered to have Bluehawk stay with them until they could figure something out.   Bluehawk went to church with the young singles in the family and has been looking for a job.  We have now met with him several times and this last time he asked Craig for a blessing.   He attended a baptism with us and really felt the spirit. 

We have learned so many things through our experience with Bluehawk.  We have realized that we have been blessed in so many ways.  I personally have wondered if I would have the same Christian heart and take someone into my home and help them get back on their feet.  The Lord truly blesses us all and we need to be aware of those blessings and give thanks.  So, to our Cresthaven family, we ask you to pray for the missionaries.  Please ask and seek to see the every day tender mercies that are all around you.  The Lord will bless us all, if we but ask.

We had a meeting with Blue Hawk.  He is still struggling.  However,  our meeting this time took place in a member's home.  We were told that the place he had been staying was kind of a scary place so a member took him in.  I have been thinking lately and asking myself if I would be able to do the same thing.  Would I be able to open my home up to a stranger and give him the nurturing and care that he needs to turn his life around?  I have really done some thinking on this and ask that you ask yourself the same thing.  Would you be able to take the stranger in?

We also got to attend our first zone conference.  We were told that other than couples serving in the mission office, we are the only other senior couple.  It was a bit of a surprise because I thought that every mission had senior couples.  We loved being with the elders and sisters and being taught by them along with our mission president.

We have had some good visits this past week.  We spend a lot of time with part member families and deployed families.  We met a family that the father is gone and won't be back till November.  They have four children ages 12 through 11 months.  She had such a fun personality but we could tell that  there are really stressful times.  She gets the kids back and forth from school, scouts, piano lessons, and after school activities.  Again, I have learned a great lesson and I count my blessings every day.  I hope that each of you will stop for a minute and express your thankfulness for those who are serving our country.  When Craig served his remote (deployment), he served it in Greenland.  There was no war for me to worry about.  Other than freezing to death, I knew he was safe.  The families now days don't know about how safe their family member is and in some cases, don't know where the family member is for sure.

Just Another Day

This has been quite an interesting week.  On Tuesday, the window in our spare bedroom literally shattered inward.  Maintenance came right over, boarded up the window, and today we got a new one.  This event made us late for the Vacaville zone meeting. I had made brownies for their meeting so we were pretty popular even though we interrupted the meeting late.

After the meeting we took two elders to lunch at Chicl-fil A.  We then proceeded to go see Blue Hawk.  He is a single brother in his late 20's.  He is a very smart young man but has really had some down and out luck.  He is covered in tattoos but we couldn't see any sign of any addiction, which we are told to be aware of due to his homelessness and conditions. He says he knows that the tattoos affect his job hunting but can't do anything about them. The Vacaville Third Ward bishop asked us to go see him.  Because of his conditions, the ward is trying to get him back on his feet.  He served nine years in the military, has a bachelor's degree, both parents have passed away and two weeks ago his only sibling (sister) was killed in an automobile accident.  Not only is he struggling financially but he has no job and no family.  He was converted to the church while he was stationed at Hill AFB.  We were there for about two hours along with the missionaries.  We gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon and challenged him to begin reading it again.  He accepted the challenge.  Craig and I are going to try to go tomorrow, Friday, and check up on him.  I'll even try to get some cookies baked.  . The bishop had asked us to be alert to the situation because we don't know anything about him.  All we know is he called the Church and asked for help because he was sleeping in the park.  This is really my first close-up encounter with a homeless man.  I felt so sorry for him as he expressed his fear of being homeless and no family.  I can't even begin to understand what that must be like.  We can only pray that he is being honest with us and that the Lord will direct us in knowing how we can help.  Maybe we all should go to bed tonight counting our blessings!

After a fast dinner we went with two other missionaries to visit with a sister who is going to the temple on Saturday.  There was such a contrast as she shared something new she had learned in the scriptures earlier that day. She says every time she picks them up she feels better and learns something new.  Her children are grown and she is divorced.  She is the nicest lady and there was the sweetest spirit in her home.

On Friday, August 14, Craig is out searching for some single airman with the help of one of our active airman.  I am here writing, baking cookies, getting wash done, and listening to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  My heart is full as I think of all the great blessings I have in my life.  My children and grandchildren are a source of strength and joy.  My testimony brings me peace, hope and love for all of God’s children.  Please look around today and watch for the small miracles that the Lord provides us with.  We are all blessed with the knowledge of God and our elder Brother’s sacrifice.  Make the most of your day.  Serve someone else.  Love you all.