Mission Possible

General Conference in the Philippines is watched the week after the live conference broadcast.  Every Sunday we are exclusively responsible for the full day's acitivity at the MTC.  There are no teachers or administrative staff on the campus.  On conference weekend, we are responsible for the activities on both days.

The missionaries were great as they watched 6 hours of General Conference on Saturday.  We devised a plan to help them learn and have fun that evening.  With the help of 8 other senior couples serving in the area, we carried out a Mission Possible event.  The MTC senior couples and we came up with a skit at the beginning to introduce the event.  There was a little Mission Possible and little "Safety Zone" and a few Count Dracula capes involved.

The missionaries attended four different classes where they learned, performed some tasks and earned MTC Bucks.  The classes were:
             1.  Laundry, ironing and sewing tips
             2.  Vegetable washing and healthy diet
             3.  Exercise and Fitness
             4.  Oral Hygiene

The missionaries loved the diversion and ended up with ice cream sundaes and many toppings after the event.  It was a lot of work but a great time was had by all!

Thankful Tuesday...

Our teachers are a beloved group at the MTC.  They work tirelessly to educate and train young missionaries.  Teachers are on sight 6 days a week.  There are 40+ teachers.  President Clark and I chose to host a monthly luncheon to show our appreciation.  Thankful Tuesday was created.  This is just a fraction of our teachers, but I think they like the idea.

Lane & Timena

The Director of all International Missionary Training Centers came to visit for a week.  The Manager of the New Zealand MTC also joined us.  They did much teacher training, inspection of facilities and encouragement of missionaries.  There were many highlights to their visit including a dinner at Vikings and a day trip to Corrigador.

 

Corregidor Island is an island located at the entrance of Manila Bay in southwestern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines. Due to this location, Corregidor has historically been fortified with coastal artillery to defend the entrance of Manila Bay and Manila from attacks by enemy warships. Located 48 kilometres (30 mi) inland, Manila has been the largest city and the most important seaport in the Philippines for centuries, from the colonial rule of Spain, Japan and the United States, to the establishment of the Philippines in 1946.

Corregidor is the largest of the islands that formed the harbor defenses of Manila Bay. The island was also the site of a small military airfield, as part of the defense.

During World War II, Corregidor played an important role during the invasion and liberation of the Philippines from Japanese forces. The island was heavily bombarded during the latter part of the war, and the ruins serve as a military memorial to American, Filipino and Japanese soldiers who served or lost their lives on the battlefield. Corregidor is one of the important historic and tourist sites in the country.

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17 countries were represented during this Batch.  It continues to amaze us how International The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is.  Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Chile, Tonga, Singapore, Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, Vanuatu and Fiji are just some of the countries that contribute to our missionary force.  The picture of Class P095 are the Provo Missionaries.  They join us for one week to get acclimated to the time and initiation to the weather and culture.

A text Sister Clark sent to our family said, "...This is the last Sunday for most of our missionaries. They are ‘becoming’ and prepared to begin their own missions. I sat in a Relief Society meeting with 13 sisters from 8 countries - Indonesia Jakarta, Tahiti, Kiribati, Mongolia, India, New Zealand, Singapore and Philippines. What an incredible lesson to speak of Christ-like attributes with these beautiful sisters. Although we miss being with all of you, we sometimes pinch ourselves to have been asked to serve alongside these valiant and brave Sisters and Elders! Have a Happy Sabbath! Thank you for your love and prayers!" ️

A Look inside the MTC

This is a picture of a well experienced and well loved Mission President's wife.  We visited her in the hospital after an unexpected surgery.  Although she was in a lot of pain, she popped right up with her effervescent smile.  Missionaries (and especially Mission President's wives) do hard things.

Unavoidably, some missionaries have an early release because of medical issues.  While we don't enjoy them going home, we are grateful that they can receive treatment and return later.  Hopefully while we are here.  

We wrap our hearts around our valiant missionaries.  They arrive as bundles of missionary (raw material).  In only 19 days they are miraculously transformed to polished representatives of Jesus Christ.  The Lord is hastening his work.

We love them.

6 a.m. every morning is "Rise and Shine".  Quickly followed at 6:15 a.m. by a brisk and brutal 7 minute workout in our Activity Center.  

This was a joyful celebration!  Bro. and Sis. James arrived from India during the period their son was in training at the MTC.  Each family member received their  endowment at the temple on the same day.  We honored their family that evening with dinner at our home.  The next day, they returned to the temple and were sealed together for time and all eternity.  

Their eyes gleamed with light and their joy overflowed.  Miracles happen daily at the Philippines Manila MTC!