August Departing Missionaries

The mission assignments are constantly changing... transfers every six weeks, new office elders, and assistants and recently a new mission president. It is such a testimony builder to see the Lord qualify each one of those called to meet the challenges and fill their calling so valiantly.

The office elders and assistants are a real strength to the function of the mission.
Elders Elix, Neiman, Toleman, and Mayes

Elder Elix was also celebrating his 21st birthday this day. Happy Birthday Elder Elix!

The departing batch. Right after this picture they were on their way to the bus station and then to Manila for the night. The next day they attend the temple and the next day they depart for home and waiting loved ones.

Elder Willie

Elder Shill

Elder Lee

Elder Bacarro

Elder Bermejo, and Elder Shill were sent off by some branch members.

Senior Couples First Gathering

We have four couples serving in the Baguio Mission now and we have started a monthly gathering with President and Sister Monahan for lunch and a meeting at the mission home.

Mortimers, Employment Center / Engels, Office / Monahans Mission President / Lindsay, MLS /Stamps, MLS

Office elders stopped by for a minute and were able to help us with the leftovers.

Around Town and Home

The tree trimmers came by with chain saws one morning about 6 a.m.  When they left the trees had been carefully trimmed back?!?.  The branches and leaves are left to compost under the trees on the street.  I'm not sure if the trees will ever be the same again, but they are starting to fill out with leaves.  It is a jungle here so you need jungle tree trimming skills I guess. 

 

This is behind the wheel training for dogs.  It is needed if you don't have a two year old to drive the motorcycle.  The dog seemed to be doing well and should only need to pass the written test to get his license. 

Here are some cool treats for a hot summer day.  Halo Halo is a favorite.  It contains a scoop of purple ube ice cream, green jello cubes, cherries, a piece of custard, frozen rice and the surprise ingredient is corn and beans.  You stir it all together to eat it and it is refreshing, but too many unusual flavors for me.  I can't get used to beans and corn in my dessert.  Black Jell-O is not too tempting either.

This is a basket store on a motorcycle.  The driver stops on your neighborhood street and you can come out and get baskets to take to the market, baskets to serve dinner, baskets to sell your wares at the tindahan or a basket for the baby to sleep in. 

The bananas in the back yard.  One stalk is ripening and the purple flower is producing another stalk.  You can see how the bananas come out of the flower pod as the petals come off.  The pod is about 15 inches long and is harvested and eaten as a vegetable.

Some one must know what these wires are for and where they go. 

Maybe not.

There are beautiful butterflies here.  They are large and fly together sometimes.  It looks like they are dancing in the air.

This is a clump of bamboo.  It is in a yard with potted plants beneath it.  Bamboo is used to build houses and many other things.  It is light, but extremely strong. 

Bamboo can get very tall.

Dad wearing chicken feathers and carabao horns.  It's a nice look for him I think.

These are street treats.  Dried fish kabobs.  The Elders from regions by the ocean love dried fish and miss it when they are away from home.  I haven't tried it, but this looks like a nice selection.

These are fried bananas in lumpia wrappers.  I was given some of this when I was at one of the members home for a keyboard lesson and it is very good. 

One of the beautiful sunsets over the Philippines.  The clouds here are  gorgeous.  There is beauty all around even when you're not at home!

Another Rainy Day With A Blessing

It is the rainy season, so you have to know it will rain when you go out. It's a tropical jungle out there so it has to get watered. We have been getting 2-6 inches of rain each day and some days it is over 8 inches. The clouds cover the sun and keep the temperature bearable... recently it has been about 84-87 degrees and the low of the day is about 10 degrees cooler.

Today we were visiting some of our branch members that needed a visit to lift their spirits.

As soon as we got to our first home the rains started. We felt the Spirit of the Lord as we visited with this dear sister. The roof is corrugated tin, so the big drops on the roof made a very loud noise. We talked, we read scripture, we prayed and I was asked to give a blessing.

We feel very close to our dear sister and know the Lord will bless her and help her in her needs.

A few minutes of listening, love and compassion and her smile is restored. A blessing was given and hope was restored. What a wonderful blessing to us to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord in a far away land, in a place that only we and the Lord knew who it was and where to find her.

This Week - Missionaries and Some Visits

We have a great time with the missionaries each week and share their joys and disappointments. Today it was Elder Machen's birthday... or at least it was sometime this week. He got a special package from home with birthday greetings. Lots of smiles today!

Elder Machen turns 20 in the mission field, like many young men in the church. His family blessed him with cards, special sentiments and a few treats from home. A letter or a package go along way to sustain your missionary through the ups and downs of their service far away from home and the comforts of the culture where they were raised.

District meeting was held at a branch building in Bauang. Power was out so no fans or A/C for most of the meeting, but they focused on their instruction and did great! Their faces were happier once the power went back on and the A/C was running.

This is President Hiquiana of the San Jacinto branch. He is a returned missionary and has been the branch president for a few months and is doing great! Sacrament meeting attendance has grown from 30 members to 78 members last week. President Hiquiana loves his members and has a great rapport with the youth.

We went visiting some of the less active members with sister Dola, a faithful loving sister from the branch. We visited sister Bebe (first name, nickname). She lifted our hearts to hear the faith, courage and strength she put forth everyday to eat and provide for her family. We talked of her trials, gave her encouragement and had a prayer with her. Her heart was lifted and ours were filled with love and compassion for her and her family.

This is her youngest son, Egbert. He is two years-old. He is standing at the front door to his home looking at those strange looking white people. The family cooks food wrapped in banana leaves and twisted closed on the pot lid over the fire to the left of the door. Additional firewood is stored in a little pile on the other side of the door. LP gas is too expensive so many families cook with firewood that they find nearby.

Christian is 8 and was quick to bring chairs out for us to sit on and then quickly put them away as we were leaving.

A little further up the road we met with JoMar (11), his mother, sister and his friend Mark (13).

We asked the boys if they had their Book of Mormon and they quickly ran to their homes and brought them back to read with us.

JoMar did a great job of reading the scriptures in Tagalog while we read ours in English. We asked the boys if they would come to church and they said yes... if we had the money for the Jeepney ride. They only get an allowance of 50 centavos a day (50 centavos = half a peso is equal to about 1 cent US) and the ride one way is 10 pesos. Sadly, no one in the branch has transportation for them, so the branch members will make visits and stay in touch with them each year. JoMar and Mark expressed gratitude and a little surprise that someone from the church would remember them and come way out of town to see them. We assured them that we loved them and that the Lord knew their names, heard their prayers and loved them too. We asked them to read their scriptures every day and they quickly recommitted to read their scriptures daily. Our little visit strengthened their faith and commitment to the Lord. When it was time to leave, they walked with us from their home, through the mud and tall grass, to the road where the car was parked. We drove away with a sweet love for these two young boys who long to go to church if they only could.

It's so nice to have the hose available at home, so we can rinse the mud off our shoes before we go into the house. I hose the mud off my pant legs and my shoes. Great to have wash and wear wool slacks.

The sweet experiences of the week with the missionaries and the members filled our heart with gratitude for his many tender mercies and blessings to all his children, no matter where they are. I know He knows them, hears their humble prayers and loves them as only a perfect Father can.

Elder and Sister Stamps Arrive

Elder and Sister Stamps traveled across the Wasatch and Sierra Nevada mountains, the Pacific Ocean and the International Date Line to join us in the Philippines Baguio Mission for 18 months. Elder Stamps has been called to serve as the branch president in the Urbastando Branch of the Aguilar District. Sister Stamps was born and raised in Baguio City and moved to the U.S. after she was married to Elder Stamps. She speaks the language and is an instant hit with all Philippinos. She won the hearts of the neighbors and their 30 kids within 5 minutes. She won the hearts of the members almost immediately and she and Elder Stamps won our love and admiration as soon as we met them.

A smile for the camera through jet-lagged eyes. Great missionaries with willing hearts and so much to give to build the faith of the saints and build the Kingdom of God.

 We shared their first day in the mission with them and helped them get familiar with the work and get moved into their new home for the next year-and-a-half.

The mission truck was loaded with their luggage and a few boxes they previously sent from home. Once we loaded the truck we were on our way. We knew the afternoon rains would come and we needed to beat them because we had no cover for the luggage in the bed of the truck.

No umbrellas! We left ours in our car and drove off in the truck. The Stamps umbrellas were in a shipped box that has not arrived yet. So Elder Stamps improvised. We actually got the truck unloaded before the rains started, but we didn't get away until the rain was pouring down. Elder Stamps will have an umbrella next time and will know how the gate works too.

We drove through small towns, villages, rice fields, and the big town of Bayambang. Notice the wide streets, bus driving in the wrong lane coming at us, the carabao cart in front of us, people on motorcycles, trikes and bikes coming out of nowhere. It was really a very easy drive, but to them it seemed a little overwhelming.We drove Elder and Sister Stamps back to the mission home to get their car. Now that they had seen the way and taken notes we sent them back to their new home on their own to explore the roads and find their way. It is a 2 hour drive and they will want to get there before dark. They made it just fine, with only two missed turns, but all the confidence they need to venture out on their own now.

 We traveled with President and Sister Monahan to the Urbastando Branch to sustain Elder Stamps as the new branch president. It was a big day for the branch. Normally they have 55-60 attend sacrament meeting, but today they had 91. There was great excitement in the members to have such a wonderful leader and his Filipino wife. They will do a wonderful work with the humble people of the branch. This is a picture of the elders quorum that meets outside the building in a patio area.

When church was over and recommend interviews done, we went with President and Sister Monahan to visit the Stamps in their new home.

We knocked on the door several times and there was no answer, so we thought they were exhausted and had taken a nap... no way! They finally heard us and came to the door. They had been in a debriefing meeting with the former acting branch president and sharing a little merianda (lite lunch) together while they talked. They are up and going and the members love them and they love the members. They will join the youth on their temple trip this weekend. After our visit we took a picture of our faithful servants of the Lord.

Elder and Sister Stamps greeted us with the warmth and love they developed as temple workers in the Portland Temple.

 Welcome to the service of the Lord! He loves you and will bless you for your service, love and sacrifice to magnify his calling to you. You will be so blessed in His great work!

Meet the New Mission President

Change is always hard, but just like repentance, growth comes from good changes in our lives. We have been amazed at the relaxed energy and focus of President and Sister Monahan. They came in Sunday, July 1, after 30 hours of travel from Provo, lost luggage - but later recovered, and jet-lagged to the max, they were received by the Jensen's at the mission home in Urdaneta and talked for a couple of hours before the Jensen's got in the van that started their journey home to their family. We know they left a big part of their hearts here with us. They served with dedication, love and honor from their first day through their very last minute here. We are glad to hear they are safely together with their family now. We will miss our dear friends. The Monahans are quickly developing those valuable relationships of love and trust with the missionaries and the members to keep order in the Kingdom and the momentum of the work moving forward.

President and Sister Monahan with President Cabrito of the Baguio Stake. President Monahan is winning hearts with his greetings and scripture quotes in Tagalog. This was a special time for the Monahans... 39 years ago they were married at Clark Air Force Base and spent their honeymoon in Baguio.

The Sisters linger after the conference to take it all in... a new mission president and he's pretty good!

The last of the Elders to get a picture with the new mission president and then leave the conference.

I even got out from behind the camera and into a picture with the presidents.

After the conference we stopped at the Pancake House for a nice lunch and then on to do some errands and get some fresh fruits and vegetables at the roadside stands on the way home.

Once the conference was over and we got the the stands it started the usual afternoon rains, but that didn't dampen the spirits of the first-time adventurers.

Great looking produce and a fun cultural experience.

Sister Lindsay couldn't resist all the healthy foods either.

We stocked up on this fresh produce and drove the Monahans back to the mission home in Urdaneta and then we went on to our home in Manaoag. It was a great day!

President and Sister Monahan

                                                      Intellectual Reserve Inc.

William J. and LuAnn Monahan

William John Monahan, 58, and LuAnn Halversen Monahan, seven children, Seville Ward, Queen Creek Arizona Chandler Heights Stake. Brother Monahan, a high councilor, is a former stake president, stake public affairs director, stake Young Men president, high priest group leader and ward executive secretary. Founder/attorney, William J. Monahan Law Firm. Born in Los Angeles, Calif., to William H. and Blanch Dorothy Fiola Armour Monahan.

Sister Monahan serves as a ward Relief Society teacher and is a former counselor in a ward Primary presidency. Born in Ogden, Utah, to Stanley Reed and Darlene Noma Hipwell Halversen.