Week 75 - Packin' Up

Total Exposures Filmed 452,444   THIS IS OUR FINAL.

Names Grandma has indexed 143,855  and still going.




FAMILY MATTERS
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Happy Birthday Brodie

February 11th
Age 6

Happy Birthday Brylie

February 21st

Age 3

Happy Birthday Owen

February 25th
Age 8

CJ headed for his Priesthood Preview.  
Way to go CJ!










Rescue Trip to Indiana



We had a successful trip to Indiana.  There were 4 books to be refilmed. We actually photographed the books twice at different settings to ensure that they will be acceptable.  This trip was expensive for the Church.  Someone questioned Grandpa about We drove more than 1200 miles.  We watched the weather forecasts to schedule our travel between storms.  On Saturday, Jan. 19th, we traveled to Muncie Indiana.  We had arrange with the Wells County Clerk to start our filming on Monday.  She said that Monday would be fine.  We left on Saturday to avoid traveling on Sunday.  We also hoped to connect with an old army buddy who lives near where we would be filming.   

The Wells County Courthouse where
filmed records for a half day.  We 
spent another day setting up and
packing equipment.  

My old Vietnam buddy, Dave Beatson, lives about twenty miles from Muncie.  We contacted them and had a great evening renew old friendships.  It was great to see them doing well and enjoying life.  They are faithful Christians and are highly involved with their church.  



Dave Beatson and Grandpa enjoyed our time 
together reminiscing about old times from Vietnam
46 years ago.  He is as good a man now, as he was 
then.  I love this guy.

We could not resist this.  A white
pachyderm outside a liquor store next
to Dave and  Sharon Beatson's Donut
Shop.

Dave and Sharon Beatson in front of their home
in Fortville, Indiana.  Next door in their Donut
Shop which they own.  Dave gets up at 3:00 am
to make all the 60 dozen donuts. Then he goes to
work for the Veterans Administration during the
day.  Sharon comes at 6:30 am to frost and glaze
Then she goes to the work for a medical company.
The employee high school students to run
the shop for a couple of hours in the morning.
People stand in line to buy their donuts.

Lincoln Land

With all of the renewed interest in Abraham Lincoln,  we had to stop at his home in Springfield, Mo. on our way back from Indiana.  We are so glad we did.  The Lincoln Library and Museum are near the home where he lived with his wife and children during his political and professional career.  The Museum had all of the latest technology used in museums.  It was truly a stunning experience.

This is the train station that the President 
Lincoln used for most of his travels between
Washington and his beloved home.

It was particularly nice to be personally 
greeted at the White House by President
Lincoln and his family. 

Abe as a teen.

Abe studying by fire light.

We also stopped at the John Deere
Museum in Moline Illinois.

This is one of John Deere's newest harvesters ran
by GPS with an gigantic 40 foot cutter bar.  This
thing is huge.

Final Visit To The Nauvoo Temple With Departing Missionaries and the Loffredos
All of the departing missionaries were able to attend the Nauvoo Temple together with President and Sister Jergensen.  We were fortunate to take the Loffredos with us. It was the first time they had been back to the temple since they were original sealed together in the Idaho Falls Temple more than 25 years ago.  There are stories behind this experience that we will have to share with you in person.  We had a wonderful time in the temple that day.  

Mission Office Work
Our time in the Mission Office has been a wonderful experience for both of us.  We are able to help in ways that they have not had help before.  Grandma has complete to mission news letter.  She has been maintaining the Mission Calendar, contacting families  of returning missionaries to inform them of travel plans.  She has been Sister Gardner's right hand.  Sister Gardner thanks Grandma several times a day for the help that she is receiving from her.  It is surprising to us that we are the oldest couple in the Mission Office but we have significantly great experience with computers.  We feel fortunate to be able to help and we can see clearly how much we are helping.  It has been very rewarding to us.  

Grandpa has prepare the 2012 Mission History containing 450 pages of historical information. He has also done multiple spreadsheets in Microsoft Excel that help the office run smoother.  He has help Elder Gardner to prepare for 40 new apartments for the additional 80 new missionaries that are coming to the Iowa Des Moines Mission.  Our work in the Mission Office has been icing on the cake for us in ending our mission. We have made more great friends and have loved our association with President and Sister Jergensen, the APs, all of the other Elders and Sister, and particularly the Office Staff, the Gardners and Scovilles.   We have seen much of what it takes to keep a mission running, but have been amazed at what is required of the Mission President and his wife.  We have been awe struck by that unending and enduring work that they are capable of doing because they are being directed by the Lord.

Most Mondays we have a 3 or 4 hour staff meeting with the President.  President Jergensen is sitting at the desk with Sister Jergensen across the desk.  The APs (Assistance to the President) Elder Moser (Preston,ID) and Elder Moore (Utah Valley).  These Elders are amazing.  With all of their administrative responsibilities they also teach regularly.  They average about 10 new investigator a month and 3 or 4 baptisms a month.  They are an inspiration to the remainder of the mission.  Elder Scoville is siting with his back to the camera.  He is responsible to the 60 or more vehicles of the mission.  He will be getting 22 new vehicles shortly to prepare the way for the influx of new missionaries.

Grandma and Grandpa at our work stations in the 
Mission Office.

Grandma helping Sister Gardner with some of her work.

Elder Gardner is responsible for the Mission
Finances and the housing.  He truly has an 
overwhelming job.  Grandpa has been able 
help him organize for furniture purchases and
apartment finding.

Sister Scoville is the Receptionist at the Office.  She
is the voice at the end of the phone whenever calls
come from missionaries, parents, investigators, etc.
We have learned to love her.  She is so positive on
the phone and  she makes sure that the needs of everyone
are properly fulfilled.

Elder Scoville is the most organized person in the office
as you can tell be his work area.  This is probably his only
shortcoming.  What he lacks in tidiness he makes up
for in kindness.

Welcome New Missionaries

This is what the front entrance to
the Mission Home looks like 
when the new missionaries

We were able to help at the Mission Home to welcome 26 new missionaries to the Iowa Des Moines Mission.  For years there would be about 12 new missionaries a month.  The new missionaries stay at the Mission Home the first night they arrive.  They have a good meal, receive some training, each is interviewed by the President, a testimony meeting follows, then they are put to bed late and very tired from a very long day.  They leave the MTC that same day at 3:00 am.  This is the second set of missionaries that we have been able to welcome.  We help with the food, setup of chairs, and cleanup.  It is so good to be involved with these young Elders and Sister.

This large mission trailer was filled to the top with 
luggage of the 26 missionaries.  We had to rent an-
other van to pick them up from the airport.

Sister Jergensen is welcoming the new Missionaries.
Most of the new Sister Missionaries are to the left, out 
of the picture.  

Last Trip to the Winter Quarters with Loffredos

Last Saturday we made a trip, with the Loffredos to the Winter Quarters Temple.  The Temple is 2 hours away.  It took most of the day, but we enjoyed our time together.  Robert and Betty where happy to attend this temple also.  Afterward we wanted to visit a cemetery near the Temple to find the grave of Robert's Uncle, Henry Alexander Titus. He wanted a picture of the grave marker for his family history record.  It took some time to find the Cemetery because Robert was not sure where it was, nor did he know the name of the cemetery.  

We were in a bit of hurry to get back for a thank you dinner with Chuck Titus our supervisor in microfilming.  Chuck was traveling two hours to meet with us for dinner.   Of Course, we did not want to be late.  So as we looked for this unknown grave, in an unknown cemetery it began to look like an impossible quest.  

Robert said that he thought there was an office at the cemetery that would be able to direct us to the grave site.  As we departed the Temple we headed west in search of the cemetery.  After a mile of so we saw a cemetery on the left side of the road.  We followed the road for about another mile watching for an entrance, but found none.  So Grandma and Grandpa pull out their trusty IPads and went to work trying determine how to get into this cemetery.  The terrain was very hilly and this cemetery appeared to be huge.  

At this point, the tension between Grandma and Grandpa had risen to uncomfortable levels since we were pushing the time required for us to head back to Des Moines.  Yet, we still were not able to even enter the cemetery.  We persevered and finally found the entrance to the Forest Lawn Cemetery.  It certainly was a huge cemetery about a mile long and 3/4 of mile wide.  We drove through the entrance gate and approached the office building.  Of course, it had closed just a few minutes before we arrived.  

We discussed the possibility of finding the grave without a map in such a large cemetery. The prospects were near impossible. Robert admitted that we would not be able to find it.  Grandpa drove past the office building and up the long hill to a high spot in the cemetery where we could see the expansiveness of the place.  As we looked out upon the thousands of grave markers and the hundreds of acres of land, the possibility of finding the grave of Henry Alexander Titus was certainly daunting, if not, impossible.  Grandpa was convinced of that, but did not say so because of Robert.  

Grandpa noticed that Grandma was busy with her IPad.  So Grandpa started to cruise the roads of the cemetery in a feeble attempt to just run into the grave.  Then Grandma said "Henry A. Titus. Here he is".  Grandpa looked at Grandmas screen to find that Henry was on an index that she had found.  After his name were multiple columns of confusing numbers and letters.  They were codes that somehow led to the grave site.  However, the list was so extensive that we could not even find what the numbers meant.  At this point Grandpa looked at the time and exclaimed that we did not have the time to follow this complex trail to this grave site that was obscurred by multiple thousands of other graves.  

Opposing Grandpa's skepticism was Grandmas new hope that we could find this place.  She now had on her screen a map of Section 4 which seemed to match up  with  one of the sets of numbers behind Henry A. Titus' name.  We looked up to see Section 16 in front of us.  Grandpa reluctantly turned around and went in the opposite direction.  Every few hundred yards we saw section markers displaying decreasing numbers .  We traveled down the road and followed a sweeping curve that eventually lead to Section 4.  As we looked up the hill to see hundreds or even thousands of more graves Grandpa was now completely convinced that without further guidance we could not find the grave in the very short time that now remained before we had to depart for Des Moines.  

Grandpa started to drive away.  Grandma said, "stop. Parker."  She was looking at a grave marker with the name Parker on it.  She quickly looked again at the long list and compared it to the map.  Showing me the map she said here is the Parker grave, the Titus grave must be nearby.  Grandpa was now a believer.  I jumped from the car and anxiously walked directly to the site of Henry Alexander Titus.  Robert was right behind me to confirm that this was his uncle Henry and his aunt Fern.  Together to we took photographs and enjoyed a few moments of reflection.

Grandma would have been completely justified to celebrated her great success by saying something like, "Oh ye of little faith'.  She was wise not to do so.  Fortunately, Grandpa was wise enough to recognize and say that Grandma had been a very effective tool in the hands of the Lord in finding the burial site of Roberts favorite uncle, Henry Alexander Titus.

In retrospect, the Loffredos must have been completely stunned by the drama between Grandma and Grandpa that day.  They said nothing the entire time.  I believe they must not have dared.  Gratefully the outcome was very meaningful to all four of us.  Lessons were learned. To find this grave site in such a short amount of time, under impossible circumstances was truly a miracle that the four of us were able to witness together.

Kak Family 
This is KAK family.  They are living in the boundaries of our the Easter Lake Ward.  We have been in there home several times.  They are from Sudan.  Their husband and father is an attorney in Sudan.  He is living their alone for years until his children receive a good education, which they cannot get in the Sudan.  She works two jobs.  They have set a date for baptism after we return home.  We love this family.  They trust us and care for us also.

Apal, Nyla (mother), Cariall, Ayak, and Nonkya

Dinner at the McPhersons

Sister McPherson and their daughter.  She is 16, and 
has the gospel maturity of a 30 year old return missionary.
She will go far in her church, her family and in the world.

A couple of weeks ago we were invited to Sunday dinner at the home of Brother and Sister McPherson.  They are originally from Jamaica.  They have been members for 10 years.  He is the Ward Mission Leader and she is the Relief Society President in the East Lake Ward.  These are folks are solid converts and they make a real difference in our Ward.   Bro. McPherson teaches the Gospel Principles Class in Sunday School.  New members and investigators attend his class.  We also attend the class.  He is by far the best ward mission leader we have served with while on our mission.  We have mutual love for one another.  They also make great Jamaican food.

Brother McPherson and another daughter

Farewell Dinner at the Mission Home
We were back at the mission home last week to attend our farewell  dinner and testimony meeting along with 7 other Elders and Sisters that were completing their missions also.  It was nice to compare the gospel maturity of the new missionaries the week prior with the successful and gospel confident missionaries that were returning home.  





Visit to the Capitol Building
We took a tour of the Iowa State Capitol Building with the Gardners and the Scovilles

This interest painting is said to depict the settlers coming to Iowa.  When I saw this massive wall painting,
it appeared to me that it was more clearly a depiction of the Saints when they crossed Iowa in 1846 and 1847.  Notice the accompanying angels.  

Preparation for Return
We busy packing and are planning to return between snow storms, as if you can actually plan something around the weather.  Hope look forward to seeing you soon.



HAPPY TRAILS TO YOU. UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN. 

IN A FEW DAYS

GRANDMA AND GRANDPA

Week 70 - Waiting to Start Digital Imaging

Total Exposures Filmed 451,144   to date, BUT WHO IS COUNTING?

We are going to post a running total of the number of exposures that we have taken. It will help us and you understand the progress that we are making.

Names Grandma has indexed 143,855 While Grandpa is at the camera, Grandma uses her extra time indexing for Family Search. She also does this while we are traveling, in the evenings, and any other time when she could be pursuing other more self-centered activities.



Salisbury Estate



FAMILY MATTERS
______________________________________________
 

Happy Birthday Jason 

January 9th

Difficult Books Completed

This is the second generation of a 
frame that Grandpa built to film the last
project that was our challenge.

In the first week of January we completed the project that gave us the greatest challenge yet.  We filmed 430 books.  We were glad to get this behind us.  Grandpa spent almost as much time figuring out a system and building equipment than it took for us to do the filming.  The Church has now discontinued all microfilming, world-wide.  They are trying to get new agreements with the State of Iowa to continue record preservation here using digital imaging equipment.  We will need to be trained with the new equipment, but it looks as though it will be weeks away.  Until then, we have been helping the Mission Office staff with the mountain of office work that it takes to keep the mission running.  

The joy of filming the last page of the 
last book

Grandma is preparing the last book by
freeing the glued pages and unfolding
pages.

In the meantime, we are traveling to Indiana to do some filming on a project that was missed by the couple that did the original filming.  The Family History Department is sending us on a 500 mile trip to a county near the eastern border of Indiana.  We are happy to do this, since travel is enjoyable for us.  We are sure that we will take the very last microfilm images of the Church, world-wide.  There is a good article in this weeks Church News on Record Preservation.  It explains what record preservation missionaries are doing across the world.  We will give you some details about our trip in our last blog in two or three weeks.  We will be returning home early in March.   

Our Time In the Mission Office
While we are waiting to get back into digital imaging of historic records, President Jergensen has asked us to help in the Mission Office.  Two weeks ago we attended the first staff meeting with the President and Sister Jergensen, the APs, and the Gardners and Scovilles.  Grandma is now the mission Referral Secretary and Grandpa is the Housing Coordinator.  After the 3 hour staff meeting,  Grandma made correction in the guidelines for Assistants to the President.  Last week, Grandpa and Elder Gardner went to a huge furniture store here in Des Moines. We purchase about $3,000 in furnishing for a new senior couple that will be located in eastern Iowa.  On Tuesday, Grandpa and the other Elders in the office made a 6 hour driving trip to  deliver to deliver the furniture in the mission van and large cargo trailer.  We, also, drove a new missionary and his companion to be finger printed.  One of the Elders has applied for citizenship and needs to  be fingerprinted to allow him to get a drivers license.  The mission office is a very busy and intense place.  We will enjoy this change.  It has be very enlightening to see the inside workings of the Mission.

We were told by Elder Clark of the Seventy, that 7000 new missionary applications were recieved by the Church after the change in age for missionaries.  Our friends in the Oklahoma City Mission said that they are getting 76 additional missionaries.  The Iowa Des Moines Mission will get 62 additional missionaries over the next 4 months. With the change in missionary ages, the initial flow of missionaries will be greatly increased.  That means that arrangements, contracts, and full furnishings must be made for 30 new apartments.  

We spent another busy week trying to reduce the backup of paper work critical to the operation of the mission.  This has been very rewarding to us, because we both have office skills that none of the other staff possess.  We have been able to help in multiple ways to improve computer processing of paper work and the flow of work.  The staff greatly appreciate our skills and willingness to help them.

  

Loffredos

The Loffredos continue to attend church with us.  We have been picking them up each Sunday and have been concerned that they need to start coming on their own.  When we leave they need to come to church for themselves not because of us.  So, last Sunday we decided to not call nor to pick them up.  When we got to Church they were not there.  But shortly after we sat down in the Chapel, they came in to sit by us. 

Bob has a brother, Carl, who has been in the hospital since October.  Bob has been very concerned for him.  Bob asked if he and Grandpa could give Carl a Priesthood Blessing.  I said certainly, then asked Bob what he wanted to do.  He said he would like to give his brother the blessing, but he need some help.  Grandpa reassured him.  I gave Bob some instructions and asked him to prepare himself.  At the appointed time, several days later, we met at the hospital.  Carl is not a member so we took the opportunity to explain to him that he was receiving a blessing from his Father-In-Heaven,

Weeks ago, we asked Bob and Betty to prepare themselves to renew their long lapsed temple recommends.  Two weeks ago we invited them to attended the Nauvoo Temple with us and the other departing missionaries from the mission.  Last Sunday they recieved new recommends from the Bishop.  We will go to the Temple together on January 29th.  How sweet it is.  

Grandma's Face Plant

Notice glass mash and the fat lip

On New Years Day,  President and Sister Jergensen invited us, the Gardners, and the Scovilles to see Les Meserables.  It was great.  Afterward we went to dinner together.  It was very cold out that evening.  Grandma and Grandpa arrived and parked.  We got out of the car and started walking toward, what appeared to Grandpa to be a side entrance.  I hurried up to the door to see if we could get in.  As I got close it was clear that this was a service entrance.  Grandma had reluctantly followed.  As I turned back toward Grandma, I heard a scuffle and found  Grandma face-down on the concrete sidewalk.  She had tripped on the curb near the handicapped ramp.  I rushed to her and helped her roll onto her back.  Her eyes were closed in pain.  She was bleeding above her lip.  At this point, Elder Gardner helped me stand Grandma up.  The other Sisters took Grandma to the restroom inside.  They cleaned her up and made an assessment of the damage.  Grandpa was busy finding a bandage.  When they emerged from the restroom Grandma was holding a tissue over her lip.  She would not wear the bandage.  The others moved to the counter to place their orders.  Grandma and Grandpa were trying to decide what Grandma could eat with her injuries.  Just then the manager, appeared to ask if they could take us to the hospital.  She was sincerely concerned.  Of course, Grandma insisted that she did not need medical care.  The manager gave us her business card, told us to call if we needed anything, then gave us complimentary meals. 

This clearly illustrates the damage.
Grandma is one tuff cookie.   

The manager instructed the waiting staff to seat our group of eight in a separate, unoccupied dinning area.  I am sure this was to try to accommodate us and also to isolate the trama from the other diners in the restaurant.   When seated we all were focused on Grandma's condition.  Sister Gardner said that Grandma's right-front tooth was loose.  Grandpa examined it and could tell that she had landed directly on her lip which was cut on the outside.  The gum behind the tooth was also broken from the impact.  Grandma also scraped her forehead, cheek, and chin.  He  right hand was also hurting.  It was apparent that the greatest damage was the condition of her tooth.  President Jergensen asked us to visit Doctor Hintz who's office is close to where we do our filming.  Doctor Hintz is a young dentist who has a local practice and also serves the dental needs of the missionaries in Iowa.  Sister Jergensen told us that he was LDS and that he would be happy to help us.  She mentioned that he lives about 30 miles away from we were at the time.  Grandpa asked President Jergensen if he had a phone number.  President Jergensen looked for his number when Sister Jergensen said, "I think Dr Hintz should see her tonight".  At that moment I noticed some people  coming into the dining area where we were alone.  President Jergensen looked up and said," Dr. Hintz what are you doing here?"  The Dentist entered with his wife and children. 

President Jergensen stood and introduced the Doctor and his family to us.  Grandma stood while the Good Doctor checked out her tooth.  He said he thought it would be fine, but invited us to pay a visit in the morning if we desired.  He said to come in, particularly, if the tooth was hurting. 

Grandma and I stayed around to talk to the Hintz family to find that his wife, Melissa, lived in Providence.  The more we talked we calculated that she was either Wade's or Amber's age when she attended South Cache Middle School.  We mentioned Wade. She asked if Wade was small with dark hair.  We confirmed.  She said, " I remember dancing with Wade at a school dance."

Grandma also asked Melissa what caused them to come to the restaurant that night to eat, since they were so far from home.  She told us that they were not planning to eat there, but when they saw Fuddruckers they decide they wanted to stop there to feed their family.

Grandma fell with most of her weight on her face. The right lens of her grasses was deeply scratched. It was apparent that her glasses protected her from greater injury. This fall could have been very serious.  She is healing rapidly.  She came home and took a dose of Ibuprofen.  She slept well.  The next morning she did not have residual pain from the tooth or any other bruises or abrasions. 

So what are the chances?  We are both a little concerned about being released as Missionaries.  Grandma now has her new glasses.  This is a risky way to get new glasses.

Trip to the Winter Quarters Temple

Aunt Margaret Ann and her family completed Temple Ordinances for their deceased son, Bradley in the Logan Temple.  Shaun was proxy for his brother.  Grandma and Grandpa wanted to share in that experience so we attended the Winter Quarters Temple during the same time.  The temple is two hours away, so we invited the Gardners to go with us. 

We arrived early at the temple so we went to the
Visitor's Center for some warmth.  We found this
very large gingerbread house display supplied by
Wards and Stakes throughout the Winter Quarters
Temple District.

Grandma and the Gardners. 

Add caption

Matt and Christi Pyne 
During the week between Christmas and New Years,  we received a surprise call from Matt Pyne, the son of our great friends, Ivan and Jackie Pyne.  It was quite a shock when he told us that he was just minutes away from our apartment.  When we went to the lobby to let he and his family in, we were greeted with great hugs, two loaves of warm bread, Jackie's famous honey butter, and two jars of Amish preserves from Tennessee. We enjoyed this wonderful treat that regularly graces the home of Ivan and Jackie.  We have been enjoying her bread for many years. We also have been regularly supplied with these delicious jams from the Pynes since being away from home.  

Matt, Christi, Addison, and Keaton were visiting Christi's sister who lives in Des Moines.  We were blessed by being able to spend a few hours with them.  This family is family to us.   This was as good as a visit by our own.  The bread and the condiments warmed our hearts and our tummies.




The Polier Family
Last week we were called by Becky and Jesse Polier to help with some family history.  The Poliers were baptized in November.  They are preparing for the temple in 9 months.  The Elders, that baptized them, told them to call us for help with Sister Poliers family history. They are going to the Temple on Saturday, with their ward, for the first time.  Sister Polier wanted to clear her deceased father for baptism to allow her husband to be baptized for him. We worked with them, in their home,  for two nights this week.  We were finally successful in printing the necessary documents to allow her father to receive this temple ordinance.  It was a very sweet experience.  They were so very happy.    


Salisbury House
The Gardners, Scovilles, and Grandma and Grandpa visited the Salisbury House in Des Moines.  This is the Estate of Carl and Edith Weeks, built in the 1920s and is a model of the King’s House in England.  Carl Weeks was one of the leading cosmetics  designers and manufactures in the USA.  Many of today's lotions and makeup have roots in Carl Week’s products.  The main house contains 42 magnificent rooms.  It has a huge collection of famous art.  The most valuable painting is a Renoir valued at more than 4 million.  It is home to a magnificent Steinway Piano which has been played by famous pianist guests.   The tour guide played the Steinway for us.  The quality of tone was clear, deep, and beautiful.  This place was amazing. 

The library in this house held more than a 
thousand  rare or first addition books from 
around the world. We had our mission 
badges on, so the the tour guide made 
sure to point out the rare Books of 
Mormon.  Here you can see an original 
first edition and a rare second edition.  

This is the $4m Renoir Painting

A remnant Oklahoma Sunset



HAPPY TRAILS TO YOU. UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN.

GRANDMA AND GRANDPA