Saturday, December 26, 2015

Christmas with the Winston Missionaries

We were excited to have the missionaries come to our home for Christmas dinner. Their youth and enthusiasm brought an excitement that we appreciated. We enjoyed a ham dinner with all the trimmings. We also gave each of them a Santa stocking with several small gifts. They seemed to enjoy the time they spent with us. Sisters Wood,Hokanson and Elders Borden and Finlinson left with light hearts and full tummies!

Monday, November 30, 2015

Bitter Sweet

We said goodbye to Elder Watson today. He is being transferred to the Springfield area. We watched him transform from an inexperienced, scared new missionary a couple of months ago to a capable, knowledgeable, confident yet humble missionary. It has been a pleasure to serve in the same ward with Elder Watson and his companion. We enjoy our association with these great young people. They enrich our lives.

Back to the Work!

After taking a month off to recuperate from cervical spine surgery Elder Zollinger is healing well. He is making great progress in his recovery. We are happy to get back to our missionary assignments.

Friday, October 23, 2015

Side Lined

Our missionary work has been interrupted for a necessary surgery. Elder Zollinger had a cervical fusion on October 23rd. He is doing well but will need to wear a collar for stability for a month or so. We appreciate the many prayers offered on his behalf. We hope to get back to missionary work soon. So grateful for doctors and nurses who do their jobs well. God is good.

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Excellent Elders

These young Elders became very dear to us. Elder Thurgood (on the right), was our District Leader. He was a great example to us as well as his companion Elder Watson. We enjoyed working with both of them. It was fun for us to take them to lunch on Saturdays after our correlation meetings. We will miss Elder Thurgood as he transfers to Klammath Falls. What fine young men we have the pleasure of working with and learning from.

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Our First Zone Conference

We drove to Grants Pass bright and early on. Tuesday morning for our first zone conference. We didn't know what to expect, but enjoyed it immensely. We were taught by President and Sister Russel as well as the zone leaders. We were so impressed at the quality of these young elders and sisters. We came away spiritually fed, lifted, and encouraged. It was a great day!

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Home made Bread

As missionaries we have discovered that it never hurts to bring a loaf of fresh, home made bread with us when visiting less active members. Who wouldn't want that? We were told at the MTC that bread, or cookies always help warm people up. It's true! We've tried it and it works. We need to start buying giant bags of flour at Costco. I have a feeling we're going to be using a lot of it!

Sunday, September 6, 2015

Getting together

Our mission President and his wife invited us along with three other couples who serve in the Oregon Eugene mission office over for a barbeque. It was nice to meet them and spend time in a casual setting. All great people.

Scheduled

Our calendar is filling up fast with district meetings, visits with members, and classes. We made sure to schedule a Friday night date for ourselves. Busy missionaries are happy missionaries.

Liege waffle treat :-)

On our way home from the mission office we stopped at a favorite place called "Off the Waffle". Rob had a strawberry and chocolate waffle and mine was pear, Brie, and caramelized onions with a balsamic glaze reduction. Whoa! Such an indulgent treat!

Our Assignment

We reported to the Oregon Eugene mission office and met with President and Sister Russel. After President Russel reviewed policies and procedures of the mission with us he asked us to serve in the Winston Ward! We were happy about that assignment. That ward is about 12 miles from us. We know several people there already and look forward to meeting lots of new friends. Can't wait to get started!

Friday, September 4, 2015

Bonus

While in Utah we got to visit these guys! One afternoon we attended Max's first baseball game. It was about 98 degrees in the shade. Fun to watch Max and hang out with Hank, Ben, Joey, and Rocky. (Courtney and Aaron too!)  It's always good for this Nana's heart to spend time with precious grandkids.

Thursday, September 3, 2015

The MTC Experience

It's difficult to put into words our week at the MTC. It was a week in our lives that we will never forget. From the moment we arrived on Monday morning August 24th we were in awe of the Spirit of the MTC that we felt and basked in. We were greeted, and escorted to our room by several polite, clean-cut, well spoken young Elders. We then spent the rest of the day in an orientation process. The rest of the week we were taught by some of the sharpest, brightest, finest young people who were returned from their missions. We were stretched beyond our abilities but helped all along the way. We grew close as a group of senior missionaries as the week progressed. We felt the strength, power, and goodness of all these outstanding people. Some couples were going to far away places while others (like us) were serving from home. That didn't seem to matter. We were made to feel valued and needed. At week's end after many classes, role plays, studying, and cafeteria meals, we felt changed for the better and grateful for the opportunity to be taught by the Spirit at the MTC.

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Called to Serve!

Once in awhile as life goes along we find ourselves at a crossroads. Rob and I were serving as YSA advisors in our ward but felt like we could do more. We heard about MLS missions that allowed missionaries to serve from home. This seemed like a great fit for us! We looked into the possibility and contacted the President of the Oregon Eugene Mission. He seemed excited to add us to the ranks of his band of missionaries. After filling out paper online  in an expedited process we received our call! Off to the MTC! We look forward to serving from home for the next 18 months. Our calling as missionaries is to invite others to come unto Christ. We intend to give it everything we've got and to do our very best.