Mini Reunion Joy

One of the joys of returning to the Philippines, is the ability to see our returned missionaries.  We took advantage of a holiday to gather a few returned missionaries that could attend.  We thought we might get a few.  We were delighted to receive 25 wonderful guests.  Some brought families and others brought friends.  We had such a great time together.  One of the highlights was singing the mission song.  Their voices blended and sang with conviction as we each remembered being together in the mission field.  It was a great afternoon.  We look forward to our large reunion in June.

Happy Valentines Day

We have about 36 hours between each departing batch and new arrivals.  We received permission to take our senior couples for an outing for a few hours.  We went to a couple of tourist areas at the edge of our past mission.  It was fun for us to share some of our wonderful memories of days gone by with them.  

We ended up at one of our favorite restaurants.  Since it was Valentines Day, they had a special buffet for us to enjoy.  We had a lovely time.  It was just what we all needed!

Our First Batch #677

Three weeks after arriving in the Philippines, we said goodbye to our first batch.  The emotion of it all was quite unexpected.  Although we have only known these missionaries for 19 days, we have an incredible love and respect for them.  They are valiant souls who wish to serve the Lord 24/7 for this season of life.  They are bright, funny and social (sometimes to a fault).  They love being missionaries and have matured beyond description.  Every day we see growth.  

The makeup of this group is amazing.  There are 133 Filipinos, 8 Indians, 1 Malaysian, 10 Mongolians, 6 from Taiwan, 4 United States, 1 Australian, 2 America Samoans, 1 from New Zealand.  The missionaries from Mongolia and Taiwan brought a translator along to assist them in their training.  It was amazing to see the translators in their booths in the back of the room, keeping up so well with what was being taught.   

These missionaries train for 7 weeks in Provo and join us for the last week.  They try to acclimate themselves to the new time and are given some cultural lessons.  They will have much to learn as they enter their new missions and a new environment.

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The day of transfers always begins early in the morning.  Our first group of departures left at 1 a.m.  President and I chose to be up to tell them good-bye but also insure there are no last minute problems, lost documents, etc.  Our final goodbyes came at 8:30 a.m.  It is a short night and an interesting experience as we try to play catch-up on sleep the following few days.

Farewell batch 677 and Provo P093.  You have taught us much.  You will be in our hearts always!

Mission District Leaders

President Clark has a group of wonderful leaders from the Manila area assisting him with the missionaries.  We have two branches in the MTC.  The priesthood leaders and their companions love the missionaries and serve them vigorously!

RM's

There's nothing better than to see our Returned Missionaries since coming back to the Philippines.  We can see 'real growth' in them!  We were even able to see a group of members from our mission.  Seeing Sister Connie was a real treat!

Family-Missionary Communication!

We really are getting some posts ready!  It has been a busy few weeks.  For now you can see some smiling faces of our missionaries.

Our Prophet has made the missionaries very happy!  This is our first preparation day since having the news that missionaries can communicate with their families every week.  In the Philippines it can be tricky because not all families have landline phones or cellphones to communicate with.  Even though we only had four days to prepare for this communication, the following means were set up for them:  

• Landline calling PH mobile numbers for local missionaries.
• Google hangout - Where the missionaries were able to do video and live chatting.
• Some missionaries only used email because some parents don’t have any google account. 

As you can see, our missionaries were delighted!

Senior Couples Rock!

We would be lost without our senior couples!  They enable us to to do the things necessary here at the Missionary Training Center.  

Elder and Sister Muir

The Muir's have been here for about 4 months now.  They make sure our schedules are created, certificates signed, electronic building passes provided, and a million other things to ensure our missionaries know what is expected of them every minute.  They also provide musical schooling to our missionaries.  Sister Muir is also the MTC seamstress.  This comes in handy for any and all slacks mishaps.  Elder Muir is also a patriarch.  As a seasoned Priesthood leader, Elder Muir keeps us aware of opportunities to minister and needs for improvement.  He is keenly attuned to the spirit of senior couple service.  He has been authorized to give some of our missionaries patriarchal blessings that would be difficult to obtain any other way.

Elder and Sister Warner

This powerhouse couple has done it all.  They have been in Asia and the South Pacific.  They provide great love and support to our missionaries.  Sister Warner is our full-time MTC nurse.  You would never know by her high energy level Sister Warner is octogenarian.  Her faithful companion, Elder Warner, is no less hard-working or dedicated to serving our missionaries.  He is very resourceful.  He has picked up extra assignments and is always ready with a wise thought to brighten our day.  

We are so grateful they're here!