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