Airport pictures 1

Just coming out of security.

Mom gets the first hug.


Then Dad gets a hug.


Followed by my sister Christi


And then Grandma Donna.

Airport pictures 2

Grandpa Milt gets a hug

Niece Grace has grown since I left.

Christi and Westin.


My family.


The whole crowd that welcomed me.

Not much to say... (12/07/2010)

I don't have much to say. Edgar and Lilian got baptized on Saturday and confirmed on Sunday. I had the privilege to baptize Lilian while Elder Tom baptized Edgar. It was a very beautiful service. They then were confirmed at church on Sunday. They both seem really content and happy. We now, are teaching Lillian’s sister, Karen, who came to church on Sunday. She is really cool. She has a couple of kids and husband but I guess she and the husband are having a lot of problems. We are trying to help her out. She really wants to get baptized but she is scared. We are trying to get her baptized on the 14th (that just happens to be the day before I go home). We will see though.

We are also working with 2 boys named Christian and Xavian, they are cool kids. Their mother has been inactive for a number of years. She is trying to make her way back at the moment. They too will hopefully be baptized on the 14th. We will see though.

Things are still happening here.....even without a car. Life is good though. I can't complain.

Thank you for all you do.

I love you all

Well Hello! (11/30/2010)

Things are cold here in Pasco. It has continued to snow and has only been above 32° a couple of times. It mainly has hovered in the high teens with a wind, which makes it cold. It really isn't that bad except the fact that someone slid on the ice and rear-ended us so we are without a car for a little bit and we have to walk everywhere. There have been times where there will be a gust of wind and I just have to stop and close my eyes and hope it stops. It is soooo cold. But, I would not change it for the world. The Lord has extremely blessed us. He is aware of us and at times, I feel like we were supposed to loose our car so we could go out and walk and talk to people. By the way, no one was hurt in the accident.

Things are going well here in Pasco. Edgar and Lilian were able to purchase their wedding license yesterday and are all set to get married on Thursday, then baptized on Saturday. They are an awesome family. They want Lillian’s sister, Edgar’s sister-in-law to be baptized as well. We have an appointment to meet them on Wednesday. It should be good. They are a really good family.

Thanksgiving was fun. We had a couple of dinners, one day we ate tamales, which is what the Hispanics usually eat for their special meals, and then we had the usual turkey and mashed potatoes. It was really good and a fun Thanksgiving. I have, though, never been so cold on Thanksgiving before. (It has been cold if you haven’t noticed!)

Francisco and Maribel are members that live here in Pasco. Maribel is Joel’s twin sister. They have also helped us with Erika and Edgar and Lilian. Well they are going to get sealed in the temple on the 11th of December and they asked me if I would be a witness. I was honored but I didn't really think President Greer would let me go. Well I called him up this morning and he said I could go. I am really excited. I have never been to a live sealing before. And it may be one of the few times I get to witness a sealing where a child is sealed as well.

Anyways. I better get going. Thank you for all you do.

Have a great week!

It is COLD!! (11/23/2010)

It has progressively gotten colder this week. It has been kind of fun to walk around in the cold weather surprisingly. I have definitely put my big heavy jacket to good use this week. And it seems as though I will be needing it for a while. It snowed last night and it is supposed to snow again soon. The forecast for the low on Wednesday morning is -1° F not C. I couldn't believe it. That is just down right chilly. It has been kind of fun though.

Well we have some very exciting news. Edgar and Lilian are going to get baptized on the 4th of December. They came to church again yesterday and stayed for the whole three hours. Which is awesome. They have always wanted to but with their son Justin being autistic they were always worried. He did pretty well for about one and a half meetings and then his dad had to take him outside. The other day we went over there and Lilian asked if the church married people and we said yes and we found out that they are not married and they said they want to get married and what not. So we told them to get their license and everything and the branch president will marry them. They got excited and said they would. We then asked them after they got married if they would follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized and before we could finish, he said, "Yeah, I mean no body has told me this is true, like God didn't come down and tell me but I just know that it is. I just have this feeling that it is the right thing to do". It was awesome. He said well for me at least I don't know about Lilian. And she said Yeah I want to do it too. It was awesome.

So we are working on getting them married for this week so they can be baptized on the 4th of December. It should be awesome. Last night we went over the second lesson which is the plan of salvation. The Plan of Salvation is absolutely beautiful and when understood is amazing. But at times, can be very hard to understand. So we were going through the second lesson and Edgar just kept saying it makes sense. It makes sense that we lived with God before this life. It makes sense that we don't remember it because then there would be no test in this life. It makes sense we want to return with God and live with him. It was amazing. She is just happy and giddy all the time. She understands a lot as well, but more importantly she knows this will bless her family. She told us that they have gone through a lot of missionaries but they haven't felt anything until now. They always liked them coming over, they just didn't feel it. We told her that God has timing for everything and this just must have been their time. I also told her that ever since I have met them, when I knew they had an autistic son, I was very interested. To me, it is a very interesting disability. Plus, Alex has it and I just knew a little bit about it. Not a lot but I understand it. So Sometimes, God just puts us in places that will benefit everyone involved.

Well that’s about it. We have been doing a lot of tracting of late trying to find new people to teach. Please remember Edgar and Lilian in your prayers. Keep doing what your doing because your doing really swell. I love you all, Happy Thanksgiving!

From the windy city (11/16/2010)

It has been very windy here in Pasco the past couple of days. I mean extremely windy. This morning, driving to the library, there were a few signs and trees that had fallen down yesterday. It was pretty exciting.

So we actually had an extra baptism that we weren't expecting this week. Gerardo decided to get baptized on Sunday rather than wait for next Saturday. So he was baptized on Saturday and he will be confirmed next Sunday. He really is a good guy. He understands a lot and has really opened up lately. He has gone through a lot of trials in his life that have been difficult but he has really changed. He will be confirmed on Sunday and will probably receive the priesthood on the same day.

The baptism of Karen and Daniela went really well. I got the privilege of baptizing Karen and Elder Tom baptized Daniela. It was really neat. There weren’t very many people there but it was still very spiritual. Then on Sunday Elder Tom and I switched. I confirmed Daniel and Elder Tom confirmed Karen. They are doing really well

Erika's baptism went awesome as well. I was also privileged to baptize Erika. It was really cool. Once she walked out of the font, she just stopped and started crying. It was really neat. She was confirmed by a member in the branch at her baptism because she had to work on Sunday. Well then she showed up to work on Sunday. They gave her the day off because it wasn't very busy and they knew that she wanted to go to church so she was very happy. She is really progressing well and has been reading and praying every day which is awesome.

Edgar and Lillian came to church again on Sunday. They are doing awesome. We are working with them still. Lilian wants to get baptized but Edgar wants to know 100% so he is really searching. We will be patient with him. There is no need to rush. But they are still doing really well.

Anyway, that’s about all I have. Thanks again for everything.

(11/09/2010)

So Karen and Daniela are getting baptized tomorrow. (Karen is Edubijes I suppose that Edubijes is just a nickname....don't ask me). Then Erika is going to get baptized on Saturday. It should be awesome.

We also have a new family that is starting to progress. Their name is Edgar and Lilian. They have two kids, Justin (8) and Ashley (5). Justin is severely autistic. They are an awesome family. They have been taught off and on for about a year and half now. They are a family that seems that they would always let the Elders in and always wanted to be taught, but, at the same time, had never been to church and never really wanted to act. Well they came to church on Sunday. They said that one of their biggest fears has always been their son. He isn't very good at sitting still. Well on Sunday, it was testimony meeting as you know and so sacrament meeting ran for about an hour and a half and he stayed still the whole time. They just kept saying how surprised they were. They said it just seemed like something was holding him back. We then talked about baptism. They said if they found out these things were true then they would get baptized. They said they are going to earnestly pray tonight to find out if these things are true. They are a great family.

Gerardo is doing really well. Gerardo is a really really quiet guy and he is really starting to open up. He stayed for all three hours this week. He is making a lot of friends and you can just tell that he is changing. He is a great guy and is set for baptism on the 19th.

I don't know if you remember Carolina or not but she is back on date. She is on date for December 4th. She is a cool girl. I can tell the adversary really doesn't want her to get baptized (just like he didn't want any of us to get baptized) because it seems like every Sunday there is something new. Like this week her daughter was sick. It is frustrating but it is so comforting to know that the adversary will NEVER win.

Well the leaves are really starting to change here. It is really pretty but it sure makes for a big miss, but they are fun to walk on. I am really excited for these baptisms to come up this week. They should be awesome and a really spiritual experience. Erika is a really cool girl. She fasted on Sunday, which is amazing. She also said she wants to go to General Conference in April so she can see a living prophet. She is cool. I ask that you keep her in your prayers this week that she will be able to find a new job. She just started working at Taco Bell but they won’t give her Sundays off, she can come to church but she has to work the rest of the day. So she is looking for a new job.

I love you all. I appreciate you. God loves you more importantly. Imagine if everyone truly understood how much God loved them.

Have a great week.

Qustionaire (11/08/2010)

We recently sent Matthew a questionnaire (in bold). His responses are italicized.
1. What do people do for work in Pasco? They work in the fields
2. Is it a very big city? The population is about 55,000
3. Is there anything like a college there? Yes, there is a community college called Columbia Basin Community College
4. Is there an airport there? Yes, Tri-cities airport
5. Do the Spanish speaking people seem to live in a certain area or are they all over the city? They are concentrated in one area but they live all over.
6. Are there areas that the signs are in Spanish and every one seems to be speaking Spanish? Yes, the downtown area is pure Spanish
7. What is the weather like? Cold in the mornings and goes up to the high 50s during the day.
8. How many members are in the ward? There are about 160 active members. I don’t know how many there are in total.
9. Is the ward totally Spanish? Yes
10. What is the family like that you are living with? He is the Branch president. They met on their missions in Guatemala. They have three kids, one married and one on a mission.
11. Do they have children at home? One boy
12. What do they do for work? He is a chemical engineer and she is a teacher.
13. Have they been members for very long? Yes, she is the daughter of the the family I lived with in Connell.
14. What are your living conditions like? Separate area of the house, different level, things like that. We live in the basement. We have our own room and bathroom. We go upstairs for the kitchen.
15. Are high school or college sports big in Pasco? High school sports are pretty big.
16. Which area of your mission has been your favorite so far? Why? Probably Yakima because I was there the longest and so I got to know the people the best there.
17. Do the members feed you every night and what kind of food? Yes, usually they ask and I say tacos. But, if not, we get pazole (soup/stew), mole (sauce), caldo (soup), you know the usual.

I suppose the greatest thing I have learned on my mission is my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know he lives. I know he loves us. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I know it is the most correct book out there. That is what I have learned.

Hey (11/2/2010)

Hey everyone. Things are going well here in Pasco. We are working hard and we are being blessed in many ways.

Joel is still doing well. He received the priesthood on Sunday and was just elated. He has been trying to share the gospel with others and get their addresses so we can go over. He is really a great guy and is going to make a great member.

Edubijes and Daniella are still doing well. Their baptism has been pushed back once again due to work. They are going to get baptized on the 10th which is next Wednesday. They still want to get baptized it is just that their mother has to work at that time.

Erika is doing awesome! She is on date for baptism for the 13th and she is really excited. The date may be changed because the father of her children is coming back sometime at the end of the month from Mexico and she wants him to be there to see it. She is still REALLY excited to get baptized and she is soaking up everything we are teaching her. In this branch they have “Noches de Hogar”, or family home evenings just about every day, actually, Sunday, Monday, Thursday and Friday to be exact. It is more like a Family Home Week but that is beside the point. Erica has been going to all of them and is really making a lot of friends with members of the branch. She is awesome. She will get baptized, we just don't know exactly when, but very soon.

Joel's Mom's name is Consuelo. She is an awesome lady. She really doesn't understand anything; she just wants to get baptized. We don't know when it will happen because Joel's dad is being a little stubborn. But it will be soon.

Gerardo is also on date. He too has been going to the Family Home Weeks. He also came to church for the first time on Sunday. He is awesome. He is on date for the 20th. The only struggle with him is that he works a lot so it is hard to meet with him but work should be slowing down here soon.

That's about all I have. Things are going really well. The weather is cooling off, Thanksgiving is on the horizon. I am grateful for a family that is supporting me on this mission. Many people thank me for the sacrifice but, it is you guys with the greater sacrifice. I get to be out here sharing the gospel. You just have to be home and think about what is going on here. Anyways thanks again.

I love you all. God Bless

Pictures (October 2010)

Joel and his sister, Maribel

Joel and Elder Bair

From left: Elder Tom, Maribel, Mirabel's husband, Joel, Elder Bair

Baptism! (10/26/2010)

The Baptism on Saturday for Joel was a success. Actually more then a success. Not only did he get baptized, but, there were 18 investigators there. They weren't all our investigators of course but spread out through the three companionships. It was a really good service as well. The talks were good and stayed on topic, which is not always the case.

Edubijes and Daniella came to the baptism. They also came to church the next day. Their baptism got moved to the 6th. They just had too much going on this weekend. They are ready and really want to get baptized.

There was a girl that came to the baptism named Erica. She is awesome. She came up to me after and asked what time do your church services start? So I told her and then she said who can I talk to to learn more about your church? I probably got a huge smile on my face as I said “ME!” So she came to church the next day and then we set up an appointment for Monday. She is a single mom. She has a 2 year old and a child this is a month old. The dad just left and went to Mexico and she is going through a lot. She is currently living with five older guys that all rent out this little apartment but she is going to move in with a member, the one that took her to the baptism. We are helping her move tonight. She has gone to quite a few churches but she just hasn't felt right. She really opened up to us yesterday which means she is really looking for something. She doesn't feel that God loves her. We talked about that and she began to realize how much he did. How he had blessed her with two absolutely beautiful children. She is really looking for something and I pray that we are able to find out what it is a give it to her.

Diego and Alyda are doing all right. We went by a couple times. They have a desire. They did read a little bit so that is good, although they didn't come to church like they promised.

One more thing about Joel. Sunday he and his brother-in-law worked with us from 4:30 to 9. It was awesome. We got into one door and you could tell that Joel was a little shell shocked. Then we tried probably 5-7 other doors with no luck. So we knock on this one door and they didn't answer. So we go downstairs and are walking to the car and Joel says to me "we need to say a prayer so God will let us get into these peoples’ homes". My jaw about dropped. So we get in the car and Francisco, the brother-in-law offers the prayers. No sooner than we say amen, they open the door and Joel sees in and yells up "were coming!" So we run up there and have an awesome lesson. Joel bore his testimony of the changing power of the gospel. It was awesome. He is such a good guy. He said he is going to ask all of his co-workers and his friends for their address so we can go visit them.

Grandma-Thanks for the package I got it last night. I really appreciate it

Did the Ward Young women get my letter I sent to them? I sent it to Sister Brown. I was just wondering.

Anyway I better get going. I love you all.

Success! (10/19/2010)

Elder Tom and I have been blessed with a lot of success right now. It is certainly nothing Elder Tom or I are doing but that the Lord has been preparing people in this part of his vineyard and we have just been blessed with being able to be here right now.

Here is a run down of who we are teaching....

Joel - He is going to get baptized this Saturday. He is awesome. He has such a desire to change and do what is right. We taught him about fasting last week and then he fasted on Sunday. I don't think I have ever met anyone that has fasted before their baptism. He has been so fun and rewarding to teach. Hopefully, since he is only 22, we can get him to go on a mission.

Edubijes and Daniella are doing really well. They are understanding what we are teaching them and they have a desire to get baptized. They are cool girls. We went by the other day and talked to them about the Word of Wisdom. They understood it and it was pretty fun to teach.

Carolina - Carolina is an 18-year-old girl that has 2 kids. The oldest being 2. She just separated from her husband because he was beating her and her 2 kids. She just wants to change her life. That's what she keeps saying. She is a cool girl. She is scheduled for baptism in November.

Diego and Alyda - They just moved here from the great city of Phoenix because of the Arizona immigration law. They are a cool family. They have 3 kids and one on the way. They are looking for a church. She has talked with missionaries before. They have a lot of questions. I mean A LOT of questions. We taught them the first lesson last night and committed them to be baptized and they said if the were 100% sure that they would. And that they would start praying tonight if they should. It was awesome.

Gerardo - He is a friend of a member. We went by and read the introduction to the Book of Mormon with him to get him to start reading it. It went really well. He wants to have peace in his life like his friend (the member) does.

Angelica - She is a friend of the same member (she is a great member missionary). Her husband got deported and they don't know when he will be back. She has 3 kids and is raising them alone. She also is looking for peace and comfort. We talked to her about reading the Book of Mormon and looking for that peace.

So there are a couple of more but those are the main people we are teaching. I am having a lot of fun. Elder Tom is really progressing. His Spanish has probably doubled.

Well I better get going. I love you all and keep doing what you are doing.

Pasco, WA (10/12/2010)

Hello from Tri-cities, Washington. I am in the heart of the mission now. I am serving in Pasco, in the Pasco 5th Branch which is the biggest branch in the mission. There are about 200 people who attend in non-fruit picking season, and it has three sets of missionaries covering and it is keeping us busy.

My new companion is Elder Tom. He is from Marysville, California. His heritage is Native American, Navajo to be more specific and so that throws the Hispanics here for a spin. His Spanish is really good for just coming out to the field. He has progressed a lot in the week that he has been here and I am sure it is due to 1) hearing real people speak it fast, and 2) Not being so nervous and just talking. He is a good Elder and ready to work hard.

The work here is great. We have three baptisms coming up. One is a brother of a member. His name is Joel. He is awesome. He has had some struggles in his life with addictions and other related things but he is so willing and ready to change. Both times we have gone over there he has asked to say the closing prayer and both times he has asked for forgiveness. We challenged him to do it on his own too. Then the next time we asked him how it went and he just got this big smile on his face and just said great. He is awesome. He is scheduled for the 23rd.

The other two are young girls, Edubijes and Daniela. They are daughters of a Recent Convert. They are cool girls. They have been going to primary so they know the answers. They are going to be baptized on the 31st of October

The Pasco stake is awesome. They have set a goal to have 110 baptisms but the end of the year. Well as of right now they have had 68. We had a meeting last Thursday with the stake presidency and all of the ward mission leaders to get things going. We are going to work as hard as we can as a stake to get the 42 baptisms that we need. It should be a lot of fun a really rewarding.

Things are going great. Thank you all for all you do. Have a great week.

Well (10/05/2010)

Well, as I said two weeks ago, the Lord works in mysterious ways. I know that I was sent to Milton-Freewater for a reason and I have found those reasons

First reason is how important members are in the conversion of Our Heavenly Father’s Children. The ward was very good at missionary work. They may not get the baptisms that some wards get but, we did have a baptism on Sunday and it didn't even feel like one because we really didn't do much. They took care of all of the details and planning. It was quite nice.

Sometimes I feel, as the missionary, that I am supposed to do all of the planning and get everything set up. I feel that these ward members are too busy to do anything and since this is my job I can just get it set up. But that's not the case. We need the help of the members.

Another thing I learned is the Lord listens to everyone’s prayers. He understands what you are going through. He realizes your pains and your joys. I felt as though Elder Holland stood up and talked to me as he gave his talk to open General Conference. Speaking of Conference I thought it was amazing. I got the chills as the MTC choir sang "Hark all ye Nations". We always sang that in the MTC and I thought they did an excellent job. Also, who knew that they had glasses of water underneath the pulpit? I wonder if they have several or if they all have to drink out of the same glass?

Anyways, I don't know where I am off to but I do know I am getting a companion that is flying in today from the MTC. I am excited and humbled. Everything will be great.

Well I would like to thank everyone for your prayers. I thank Chad for his letters. Keep up the good work. I know the Lord is watching over us. I testify that we do not walk alone. Never.

I love you all.

Well (08/21/2010)

Sometimes in life the Lord tries us. He doesn't do it to punish us, he doesn't do it because he is mad at us. He does it because he knows it will make us tougher. I have been transferred this week over to Milton Freewater, Oregon. I really am not excited about it. It is going to be tough. It is an English ward which I have nothing against English people it's just that I was called to teach Spanish people. We do Spanish work, we just don’t attend a Spanish branch. We also don't have a car and I don't have a bike so I don’t know what I am going to do there. This is something that is going to be really hard. I was unable to say good-bye to anybody over in Vancouver because I had to go right then. It is one of the hardest things I have done thus far in my mission/life. I know the Lord has a plan for me. I know he loves me and I know I will have a purpose in Milton Freewater, I just need to find it.

I did receive word that Ingrid is on date for baptism the 9th of October so that is really exciting. She is an awesome lady and will do great things in the church. I will really miss her. That’s about all I have to report on from Vancouver. Like I said, it was a sudden change, but I suppose the only constant in life is change.

I love you all. I know that the Lord loves us as well. Have a great week. I will check in next week from Oregon I suppose.

Hey Hey Hey (09/14/2010)

Well things are going well here. The weather is once again cloudy on p-day but sunny the rest of the week.

We had a good Sunday and a good week. We had four people come to church, Ingrid, Domingo, Jorge and Jorge’s brother-in-law Mario

Ingrid was doing really well on Sunday. She came to church and we had to teach the lesson in gospel principles and so I had her be my scribe, since we all know how my handwriting is like. To quote dad, it is atrocious. Well anyway, everything was fine until Monday about lunch time. I got a call from Sonia that Gino had left Saturday night and was supposed to be back on Sunday but as of Monday at about 1 was still not back and that Ingrid had left to go look for an apartment. I don't know what had happened after that but Ingrid and Sonia and Ingrid’s two daughters are planning on moving out. I don't know how they are going to do it because Ingrid works for Gino so I don't know how they will have financial help. But we will see. I hate to see a family separate but then again Ingrid is very smart and is very in tune with the spirit for not being a member so I trust her judgment.

Well I better get going we ran out of time since we went to the temple today. Everyone else is doing well. I love you all and have a great day. Remember the Lord’s love for you all.

(09/07/2010)

Elder Randell, me, and Elder Hortin

It is another rainy day in Vancouver. Last night when the sun went down there wasn't a cloud in sight. We wake up this morning and everything is wet and it’s raining. From what I hear, the rainy season is now upon us. I don't know if that means it’s not going to stop until March, but, it has been sunny for the majority of the week with it being breezy and highs in the low 70's to high 60's, I am loving the rainy season. We will see if it gets even more obnoxious later on.

The work here is going really well. Ingrid talked with Gino this last week about church and getting baptized and he said that it is fine. In fact he said if this is something you are really interested in then I want to start going to church with you and see what this is all about. So things are changing. She could get baptized tomorrow, but we just want to teach him as well. We will see how he progresses. To have him even say it is okay is amazing and then for him to say he wants to start attending church is just out of this world. He is a great guy; he just is used to being in control.

Domingo is doing really well as well. He came to church again on Sunday and we stopped by yesterday and he said that he and his wife are planning on attending from now on. He is starting to really change and people in the branch can see it. They say he just has a glow about him now that he didn't used to have. He is an awesome guy that really understands a lot, there is just something that he doesn't understand and we just don't know what it is.

Eddy and Blanca are doing well. They didn't come to church on Sunday but I didn't hear why. They have been reading a little bit which is good. They have a strong desire to change but I think since church starts at 2 on Sunday and they have never been accustom to going to church, it is probably pretty hard to start going.

Jorge and Claudia are doing well. They have been reading a little bit and I can tell that they are happier. As far as I know, he doesn't have a job yet but I can tell that they are happier. They didn't come to church which has been a struggle since we started teaching them, to get them to go consistently. But they are still an awesome family.

Scott- Logan looks just like you as a baby, well from the pictures of him and the pictures of you since I have obviously never seen either of you as a baby in person

Stacy- Does Grace have bars on her bunk bed, or is she going to fall off at night. Is she still collecting ear bugs?

Lady- That is awesome that you are going to give that pamphlet to your friend. Remember to tell the missionaries if you do give it to her. Which one are you going to give her?

Well that's about all I have. Have a great week everyone

I think I am in Chile (08/31/2010)

Things are going well here in Vancouver. Sorry for not getting a letter off last week. I didn't have much written down and I couldn't think of what else to say and then I forgot to send what I had written down. Vancouver is doing well. It has been relatively cool lately. This morning it is in the low 60's overcast and misty. I don't know how it does it, but you know how people have misters in Arizona around their patio, well that's the same type of thing but its rain here, it's weird.

Sunday was a good day. We had three investigators at church, two of which were there for the whole three hours.

Domingo was the first. He is a great guy in a tough situation. He is married to a member but she is not very active. They have a son that is in Juvie right now, Mingo. But there is a twist, when this son was an infant, he was handed to them with a note that said you are now the legal parents, while they were at a carnival. Well obviously that is not a legal way of adopting. Well everything has been fine for the 14 years this kid has been alive, as fine as things can be. Well now that he is in juvie, for some reason, their other daughter is mad at them, so she called the court and told them the story and so now, they are thinking the court is not going to give them Mingo back. It is a sad situation. Domingo has been to church twice now and you can tell that his spirits are getting higher. So that is the story of Domingo. Add that to the list of things I didn't know I would do as a missionary, an adoption counselor.

Next up is Jorge. Jorge is married to Claudia and they have four kids. They also have no money. The other day we went by their apartment and Jorge was digging through the dumpster for cans to take them to Portland for the “cans for cash” thing. So we aren’t really sure what his true motives are but that is beside the point. Anyway, he came to church and now has come four times. Yesterday we went by and for the first time in probably two months, caught him and his wife at home. We talked to them about "seek ye first the kingdom of God then seek ye for riches". We promised them that if they read five minutes a day together that they will find work. So we will see what happens.

Well as you can see by the title, I have met a lot of Chileans. There are currently two families from Chile in the branch. Well another family came for the first time on Sunday and they are going to start coming. We met them yesterday and they are from Santiago and are a great family. The last investigator that came to church was Ingrid. Ingrid is the daughter of a lady that got baptized last October-ish. She is a great lady that would be baptized by now, but her husband won’t let her. She’s not even allowed to go to church. Well little by little, Gino (her husband) is changing. He came to a branch camp-out that they had and stayed the night which is amazing. So she really wants to get baptized. We don't know if Gino is going to allow that quite yet but we will see. We have made it this far so we will find out what happens this week. I would absolutely love to teach a Chilean.

Well that's about it. I hope you have a good week. Sounds like the weather is doing better down there. I hope so. Keep up the good work

Big things are happening (08/18/2010)

BIG things are happening here in Vancouver. First, I will start with the biggest and probably the most exciting. Last week we started teaching this family named Eddy and Blanca. They are an awesome couple. It is just the two of them but they want to have kids soon. Anyway, they have been taught off and on for about a year when some English Elders tracted into them the other day and they passed them onto us. Well we started teaching them and quickly committed them to baptism. The date we set was for the 24th of August; because that's when Elder Arnold will be going home and since his family will be picking him up, his whole family will be there. We don't really have many obstacles to get them accomplished; we just have to get them married which they are willing to do. They should be buying their wedding license today so we should get them married probably the day of their baptism or maybe the night before. It should be quite the affair. We are working and praying really hard that it all works out. We are really excited for them. They are a great couple.

Yesterday we had Zone Conference with Elder Ringwood of the 70. It was a great conference and I learned a lot. He talked about how to show true sacrifice. It was really good and he was a good speaker. He was funny and shared a lot of good stories.

Other things are going well here. I feel liked a lot happened but I can't remember it all. Probably because it was an extended a week. But I am enjoying Vancouver. It is probably not as good Yakima but it still a good area. That is too bad that that elder in your ward has only had 3 people to teach in 8 months. I sure have been blessed in that aspect. Sounds like it has been hot there in Arizona. It has been pretty warm up here. Some households are sweltering without AC and the humidity. We had Zone conference yesterday and they had Mexican food and it was kind of like an enchilada casserole which seemed hard to make but I thought that nachos would be good and easy, just some chips with some ground beef and all of the toppings. That would be something easy to do.

I got a call from President Greer last Wednesday and he said "Elder Bair, we are looking into the future here about you going home and from what other Elders have said I think we are going to send you all home the 15th of December, will that be okay with you, and I said that will be fine". So, I guess that is my release date. At first I had a hard time with it, but after thinking about it a lot, I felt that it will be okay. This will give me a chance to be with just you for a few days before everyone else gets out of school and work and what not.

Well I gotta run

Have a great week

Another week down (08/10/2010)

Well how was San Diego? Sounds like you had a lot of fun with all of the shenanigans there. It sounds like there was quite the crowd of people if it got up to 32 without me and Scott there. I did get all of your post cards and that's too bad that it was cold. It was cold up here all week as well. The lows have been in the low 50's. It is actually nice to me.

Things are going well here. We actually have two people committed to baptism. We don't really have a date set because they haven't been to church and they aren't married. But here is the story. Eddy and Blanca are their names. They were taught about a year ago by some other missionaries and came to church and really enjoyed it but for whatever reason stopped taking the lessons. Well some English elders were tracting and ran into them and they let them in. So then they passed them onto us and we have started teaching them. Well we asked them about baptism and they want to get baptized but they aren't married. So we talked about marriage last night and they have a lot of interest in doing so. Eddy also called Blanca earlier that morning and said if we are going to get closer to God, then I can't drink anymore so he told her to pour all of his beer down the drain which she did. We hadn't even taught him the Word of Wisdom yet so that was awesome.

Things were going well. The training in Tri-cities was for different people and Elder Arnold went and another Elder that was training went and so I was put with another Elder that is brand new to the mission for the week. So I trained for the week I guess, although, I didn't do much since he isn't a Spanish speaking missionary.

Arnold is getting set to go home here in a couple of weeks so I will be getting a new companion so that is coming on the horizon.

Wells that's about all I have. Sounds like everything is going well there in Arizona. Try and keep cool. We have Zone Conference with Elder Ringwood next week so I will be emailing on Wednesday next week so I will talk to you then. Have a great week.