Family and Friends

When we applied for our mission, we did not anticipate that we would have the weekends and some evenings off for personal time.  So we had the bonus of being able to visit with family and friends.

Christie was our host for the weekends and our driver.  Thanks for taking time from her busy schedule to support our mission. 

Lauren's Kashden took right to his great grandparents.  He is a very happy, healthy, intelligent little guy. 

Had some good time with the boys.  Preston will be getting his driver's license later this month and was our chauffeur several times.  Landon puts in a lot of hours at Little Ceasars and is scheduled to go to training at Fort Sill in August.   Paxton likes to play most any game and talks.

We had a chance encounter with Chris Clark in the MTC Dining Hall where she came by to visit her brother and sister in law who were members of our class.  We got to visit with her, Jim, Ammon, Kaitlin and her husband and baby.  It was good to revisit the Logansport days and catch up on the Clarks and their 11 children.  Unfortunately, I forgot to get a picture. 

Friday evening, we were able to meet with grand daughter Rachel and Harry's grand kids, Hal and Courtney for a Mexican dinner.  All are doing BYU and doing well. 

Wednesday, we were able to have dinner with Yvonne and David Peterson and his mom Doreen.  We enjoyed their beautiful house and spectacular view while catching up on family news and our early days in Marquette. 

At the MTC, you are constantly meeting folks who are close to people you know well.  This is President and Sister Shumard from Fort Wayne who are good friend of Harry and Linda.  He will be the Mission President in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

Here are the Burkes.  We saw the Michigan tee shirt and struck up a conversation.  They are from Howell, MI and close friends of the Nyfelers' whose son Jacob will be marrying Rachel in August.  Another couple, the Stevensons, were in our class and are the grandparents of Emily Blotter's fiance. 

One memorable conversation in the dining hall was with an older senior couple. I asked where they were from and the old Elder said, "Kolob,"  At first, I thought that was an obscure town in Utah, but it turns our he was just teasing us.  His wife told us that they applied to serve a mission because it was the only way to get out of being den leaders in their ward.

The Missionary Training Center is an unparalleled experience.  The spiritual energy of the young missionaries is astounding.  There is still hope in the world.