Elder Nunes's Recovery

 Elder Nunes without his glasses.  He is healing quickly>

 Preston Temple grounds.

 As Elder Nunes was recovery from eye surgery we took him with us to visit the Preston Temple grounds and to Institute.

We also took him with us to a street display in Preston.  He gave out five Books of Mormon! 

Elder Nunes Eye Surgery Recovery

Elder Nunes was so brave.  Completely trusting us to guide him and to take care of him.  He coud not see anything for four days.  We love this young man!

Elder Nunes

 We were able to take care of Elder Nunes before during and after the surgery on his eyes.  Dad and I took him to the doctor many times.  Here is waiting to go in for his surgery.

After the surgery he stayed with us a few days until he was well enough to return to work as a missionary.  Mom helped him send an email to his mom and dad so he could let them know that he was doing okay.

Preston Pets

 Brother and Sister Bentley came by for a visit and brought this cute little hedgehog with them that they found on the street.  We put him out in our back yard but unfortunately he disappeared during the night.  Isn't he cute!

 These two wood doves came to our bird feeder every day.  We could watch them from our kitchen window.  Love them!

Chicken Man in Preston

This is a way that businesses raise money for charity.  He has a little bucket on the back of his scooter and people hand him money as he travels around the city.

Laurel and Hardy and Boats

 Laurel and Hardy stand guard outside of a concert Hall in a little town just outside of Workington.

Preston Elders Flat and Gypsys

 We had to drop something off to the Elders in Preston and this is what we found when we arrived.  They were all so crazy.  There were four extra Elders staying in the flat and they had just ordered 8 pizzas.  By the look on my face you know it was a little concerning.

 In England there are real gypsy's that travel around. We were driving down the road and dad looked in the mirror and this is what he saw.  We had to take a double look to be sure of what we were seeing.

Workington Street Display

We love these missionaries!  We love to see their example of faithfulness and courage in talking with everyone on the street.  Sometime people are rude and not very kind but these missionaries are not discouraged from their work as representatives of Jesus Christ.  Sister Leiter, Sister Cardosa, Elder Hoillingsworth, Elder Knight, Elder Hammond and Elder ? (from Germany).

Workington District

We love these Elders and Sisters who serve in Workington.  Sister Cardoso, Sister Leiter, Elder Hollingsworth, Elder Werner, Elder Hammond, Elder Tuivia, Elder Knight, Elder Young

Walks

 We love our walks to the pooh forest.

Love these beautiful poppies!

Failed Missionary Fireside

 The elders planned a ward activity and no one came.  It was a fun game night.  We all had a great time even though there was very little support.  Jason Holden and Siti came as well as all the missionaries.  We ate and played games together.

Trafford Center

 This is a beautiful mall located just outside of Manchester.  It reminds us of Las Vegas.

Specialized Training

 After a wonderful four hour training and teaching from Elder Lemur and Elder Alan we were spiritually filled and blessed by the spirit.  Then we were fed a wonderful lunch breaking a 24 hour fast,  This is truly one of the spiritually strengthening and uplifting times of our mission.  Not the food but the teachings, although the food was greatly needed and appreciated.

 Elder Newman

 Elder Webb

 Then more training later in the afternoon.  It is a full day but so inspiring and full of the love of for the Savior and His gospel.

July 2015 Letter

Hi Family,                                                                                                                             July 26, 2015

We want you to know how much we love you and appreciate the effort you all put into getting together this past week.  We know that you all love each other and treasure the time you can spend together.  Our hearts and minds were with you this past month.  It was hard not to be there with you. 

Serving a mission has been full of wonderful experiences as well as difficult times but we know we are doing the right thing by being here.  On difficult days we wonder what the purpose is for our sacrifices to be here and then we find someone to teach the gospel to, someone who is struggling that needs our help, someone who is looking for God and has been prepared to hear about His love for them.  We have witnessed many miracles and blessings through the power of the priesthood and through the power of prayer.  We do not doubt that Heavenly Father loves us all and is helping us to prepare for the second coming.

The world is moving farther away from belief in God as well as the divine power and ability of God to bless their lives.  There is less trust and belief in God’s power to help us here on earth.  We see many people who do not want to be bothered with God and rely only on themselves.  But there is great comfort in knowing that the priesthood will never again be taken from the earth. That doesn’t mean that our faith will not be tested.  Apostasy is a great stumbling block for many here in the church.  We have seen many members turn to their own strength and knowledge, or others deceptions.  It breaks our hearts.

We know that when you as a family and individually read your scriptures daily, pray and hold family home evening you will be strengthened and supported against the evils of this world.  There are many members who joke about being too churchy or preachy, but where else can we turn for peace?  Where else are you going to find the security and safety of the gospel?  Nothing else in this world or within yourself can bring you true happiness and peace. We are not ashamed to say that we love the Savior!  We are grateful for his atonement and we know that through Him we can all be made clean which makes it possible for us to be together as a family forever and live with our Heavenly Father.

Dad and I spend 24/7 together.  It has been a difficult adjustment.  It was hard for me at first to not have my own phone and car keys and to be so dependent on Dad, and he is dependent on me.  We have had to learn to trust each other, to work together and to be patient with one another.  We are happy to say that we are getting there.  It is getting easier.  We have both been very independent and have managed our lives together but separately as we raised our family.  On a mission we do EVERYTHING together!  Don’t worry!  It is all working out great!  We love each other even more because of our mission.  Thanks for supporting us!  Thanks for trusting Heavenly Father enough to let us come to England and to be missionaries.  It was not easy for you either to see us go and to have us so far away.  Our hearts are never far from you!  You are our children and we love you with all our hearts!  We are proud of you!  You make us so happy!  We can’t wait to be home again and to see you and hug you and to spend time with you.

The mission office recently called and asked us to go to the prison here and meet with 11 members of the church who are incarcerated.  If it works out that we can do this, unfortunately dad will be going by himself.  I will not be able to go with him because the prisoners are sex offenders and the security clearance is tight.  Women are not allowed there.  We purchased triple combinations for dad to give them.  We will let you know how this turns out.  Not sure yet.

We are looking into teaching a Book of Mormon class at the university here.  We hope it works out.  We are also going to start teaching English to a man who speaks Arabic.  His name is Hommad.  I think he is from Jordan?  That should be interesting.  Heavenly Father must think we can do things that we ourselves are not sure of.  We will trust in him and see how it goes.  If Heavenly Father is helping us we know it will all work out okay.

We are going to another castle tomorrow and are looking forward to learning about the local history.  We hear that there are dungeons there that are pretty dark and scary.  Don’t worry, I will hold tight to dad and we will be okay.

We love you all!  Miss you!

Love, Mom and dad

June 2015 Letter

Dear Family and Friends,                                                                              June 10, 2015

Serving a mission full of love, sacrifice, hard work, happiness, friendships, disappointment, tiredness and spiritual experiences that uplift us as no other opportunity could and it is worth every minute of it.  When we left home we had no idea what we would be doing or really where we were going.  We just knew that we were going to the England Manchester Mission.  We have been teaching classes, discussion with the Elders and Sisters, institute, and investigators.  We have spoken in many sacrament meetings and helped with firesides.  We have cooked hundreds of meals, cookies, cakes and bread etc.  We have driven our poor little car thousands of miles.  We have spent every dime we have and then some but we love it all and are so grateful we decided to go on a mission.  It is blessing our lives so much!  We could not have grown in the gospel any other way as we have on a mission.  We recognize the many miracles that have taken place and we will continue to watch the Lord’s hand as He hastens His work here on the earth.  We are teaching and helping others to prepare for the second coming of our Savior Jesus Christ.  We pray more people will listen to our message of the restoration and the plan of salvation.  The love of our family and all of our brothers and sisters motivate us to work harder.  There is so much work to do and not enough time to do it in.  But we know that our Savior can and will accomplish this work on a one by one basis.  Each and every one of us matter.  We are His children and He loves us with a perfect love.

The most exciting change to our mission is street displays used in contacting people.  The Elders and Sisters set up posters and tables in a busy area and then they all go out into the street and talk with every person that goes by.  It has been very successful as it helps us in giving out many Books of Mormon (61 the first week) and in finding people who will listen to our message.  The interesting thing is that people come to us and want to know more.  The Lord has prepared them and when they see that we are from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or the “Mormons” they ask if they can have missionaries teach them more about the gospel.  Some have even said “How do I get baptized into your church?”  Elder Blunck is fearless and bold in street contacting.  It is fun to watch him talk and joke with people.  Everyone loves him.  He is a good man and has a strong testimony.  I love to watch him and listen to his message.  I am so proud of him.  It is such a blessing to serve together.

The missionaries taught and baptized a friend of ours.  His name is Arjun, he is 21 and is from India.  His mother was happy when he decided to be baptized because she said that he has always loved Jesus Christ and that it seemed right that he should follow him.  Arjun is on fire in the gospel.  We were able to go to the Preston Temple with him and walk around the outside and sit in the waiting room and teach him.  He said that getting baptized was so important to him and he cannot wait to go further into the Temple, not just in the waiting room.  He does not know much about his family and said that India does not keep good records, but he is excited to find information that he can take to the Temple soon and do baptisms.  He reads the Book of Mormon two hours every day and has begun telling his friends about it.  He comes to our Book of Mormon Class and goes to institute every week.  We are grateful for him and his example.

We taught a Chinese girl last week.  She asked Elder Blunck to baptize her.  Unfortunately she has had some people telling her anti Mormon things and she is confused.  She has returned to China for the summer and said that she will find the church there and go to sacrament meeting.  We pray that she will find the truth for herself.  We love her so much. 

Time is going fast and but also slow, depending on how you look at it.  I know that sounds funny but I think you know what I mean.  Home is never far from our hearts and thoughts.  We look forward to the day when we can be with you again. 

We love you all and miss you! 

Love,

Mom and Dad

May 2015 Letter

Hi Family!

                     This has been such a busy month!  We have driven hundreds of miles and met hundreds of people.  We truly are leaving the ninety and nine and going out to find the one sheep that is missing and bring him back to the fold.  The Branch Presidents or Bishop’s have been giving us ward lists which we divide up by post codes, drive to each individual home to talk with them and invite them back to church.  Out of twenty homes visited in a day we actually talk to maybe three families.  We have seen success and we know that this is Heavenly Father’s work because we have seen many miracles through the small efforts made. 

                    There are so many experiences to share but one of the highlights has been traveling with the other senior missionaries and visiting the church history sites from the early years of missionary work and conversion here in England.  We visited the River Ribble where the first baptisms occurred, went to Downham where the town was converted and followed the missionaries and sang as they walked out of town.  They loved the missionaries and were so grateful to be taught the gospel.  We visited the missionary flat of President Hinckley where his dad told him to “foget himself and get to work”, and also the flat where evil spirits attacked the missionaries and they literally had to defend themselves from their attacks.  The power of the priesthood protected them from evil forces.  It was the poverty and lack of employment that brought the people from England to America.  Their courage and testimony strengthened the church in its early beginnings. 

                                Many people here in England don’t want to be bothered with religion.  Many are atheist.  It is sad to see how many people reject the Savior.  If they only knew how much they need Him and understood that He loves them with a perfect love and was sacrificed for them.  The whole purpose of a Savior is to redeem every one of us.  The earth would be utterly wasted if we did not have a Savior.  “Now is the time for us to prepare to meet God.”

                                We love serving with the Elders and Sisters serving here.  We love going to district meetings, zone meetings, temple sessions, church meetings, FHE, Book of Mormon classes, investigators homes to help teach, activities, transfers and Mission wide Conferences with all of them.  The energy and love among the missionaries is wonderful to experience.  Serving a mission is truly a blessing in our lives and in our family’s lives.  No one ever regrets serving a mission.  

We love you all!

Love Mom and Dad