Week of 8 January 2018 and HOME

We have been very busy this past week training Elder and Sister Fitch.  They will do awesome!  We met together with all of the Senior Couples.  It was a good time to just talk and reminisce about the last 18 months.  We will truly miss them.

It took us most of 2 days to pack and throw things away.  Especially when you have to cram everything in and have it under 50 lbs.  Somehow we managed and made it through the weighing part of the boarding process.  Here's some pictures of our last couple of days.

Clements and Sorensens.  Great couples that have done good work here in Ghana.

Here we all are, the morning we left.

We got our Kente scarves.  They will hang on our wall in our new place back home.

President and Sister Hillam have been so good to us.  We will miss them dearly.

And finally at the airport.  It was so hard to say goodbye.  Now for our 17 hour flight home!

Here's all our grand-kids and great-grand-kids that were waiting for us at the airport.  Missing two of them.

And here's our children.  All grown-up and still kids at heart!

It was a wonderful mission!  We have grown spiritually and hopefully able to continue to see the needs of others.  Ghana (Cape Coast) was an exciting place to serve.  We will never forget the experiences that we had nor the people we met.

Love you Ghana!

Week of 1 January 2018

Happy New Year!

Our weeks are getting shorter.  We were very saddened to hear the news that President Monson had passed away.  What a tower of strength he was.  And a wonderful example of service and love.

He will be missed.

These are the trainers and missionaries from the December transfers.  Great group of missionaries.

Our new Senior Couple

Elder and Sister Fitch

New Years Eve party and the Cape Coast Stake.  Lots of food.

On Tuesday we held MLC.  All Zone Leaders, STLs and District leaders.  The Assistants had us bear our testimonies.  So both Wayne and I started crying.  It is hard to say goodbye.  

President Hillam telling them that President Monson passed away.

On Thursday, we traveled to Takoradi with Elder and Sister Fitch to get their Non-citizen cards.  We had a very enjoyable luncheon with Elder and Sister Clements.

Just some pictures of the wonderful sisters we have in our mission.

Sisters Williams, Plegnon and Asante.


Sisters Ngekia and Idahosa

Sisters Ajike and Okaiteye

Training is going well.  Hopefully we can leave Elder and Sister Fitch next Wednesday alone and get to packing our things.

Wayne and I have seen things that we never dreamt of seeing.  Especially the poverty and filthy conditions that surround these people each day. We have been frightened by huge spiders, scorpions
and snakes.  We have been in sweltering heat for hours on end in our apartment because the electricity is not working, and bathed in brown water.  We have to drink filtered water and there is NO milk.  But we would not give this up for anything.  We have met some beautiful people - faithful and dedicated to the gospel of Jesus Christ.  We have met hundreds of young men and women that are going through the same things we are and have not heard any complaining.  They are dedicated to bringing souls unto Christ.
We are so saddened to be leaving shortly.

We love you and miss you all.
See you on the 13th.

Week of 25 December 2017

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

We had a very good week this week.  Things were very quiet because of the holidays.

President and Sister Hillam were over in the Western Region doing interviews so we were able to get some cleaning done at the house and get ready for Elder and Sister Fitch.

They were picked up Friday evening by the President and they spent the night in Accra.  We met them on Saturday afternoon.  They will do wonderfully well in the office.

On Thursday, we went with the Hillams on a little history tour of the church here in Cape Coast.  Bishop Edwusie took us around.  He was the 4th person baptized into the church in Ghana.  They are very proud of their baptismal number.

 He took us first to the first meeting place of the church.  It now belongs to another church, but he told us of some miraculous events that took place in this building.

Sister Hillam and her daughter Maddie.  Bishop Edwusie is in the white church explaining to the two others why we are there.

Next he took us to baptismal beach.  The first 89 members were baptized here in one day.  

Over to the one side, there were vultures waiting for dead fish to appear.

Then he took us to what they call their "Cumorah Hill".  They would gather everyone together on the first Sunday of every month and meet at the top.  They would then pray and sing for several hours.  Many wonderful things happened here also.

We are on the top of the hill.  Our home is over to the left.  Not very far away and we didn't even know about this place.

It was a wonderful 3 hours.

On Sunday, we took the Fitch's to Komenda with us.  I had to get a final picture with my "kids"  They are all so cute and loving.  All of them gave me a great big hug!

Later on that night, we went with President, Sister Hillam, Maddie and the Fitchs to catch the setting of the sun.  One problem - Harmattan is in full swing and you couldn't see anything but the glow of the sun.  But the ocean was fun!

So after facing west and catching what we could of the setting sun, we turned around and there was the moon starting to rise.

It was a good week.  See you all soon.

We love you and miss you all.

Week of 18 December 2017

Merry Christmas everyone.  Hope you have a wonderful day!

We are trying to get things ready in the office for Elder and Sister Fitch.  They will be arriving on the 29th.  I am writing up a "how to do it" book for Sister Fitch.  It's hard to remember everything that goes on.  Hopefully after they get here some things pop up that aren't exactly normal, so I can help her through it.  Wayne should have an easier time with the finances.  No surprises there.

Our missionaries from the MTC arrived on Monday.  The MTC put them on a bus, which was really nice.  I didn't go to the bus station, so didn't get any pictures.  But here they are at the mission home.

So transfers were Tuesday and everything went smooth. Here's a group - all being transferred.

Just waiting for their tros.

And all of the Sisters being transferred.

 President and Sister Hillam went over to Takoradi to start interviews already.  And to top it off, they had 4 missionaries with serious health problems, so they had to take care of them also.  I don't know how they get the rest they need.

Wednesday we started out to pass out supplies and check on apartments.  We went to the sister's apartments first.  All of them are close here in the Cape.  Then Thursday morning, we traveled out to Agona Abrem where two new elders were transferred to that area.  They said they spent all day on Wednesday cleaning the apartment.  It looked very nice.

Friday was the "Follow up Trainer's " meeting.  Had to be held at the Ola chapel because of the number of missionaries.

Elders Tovela and Smith doing some training during the meeting.

Friday night, President and Sister Hillam had a get together for the Mission "Staff"  

Supply Elders - Hess and Andreasen.

Assistants - Elders Tovela and Smith.

It was also Samuel Laing (FM) and his wife's anniversary.  He gave her a CTR Ring which we had ordered for him from the US.

We had a baptism on Saturday at Nkanfoa.  Elder Mease did the baptizing of two of them. More sheep gathered in!

The other was a father baptizing his son.  All the family is on the left of the picture.  Elder Agoua is in there, too.

Sunday was a good day at Komenda.  We had bought some small packages of biscuits (cookies) for all of the kids.  they all ran away so fast we couldn't get a picture except for this little one.  She was just a laughing at Wayne.

I am including Christmas Day in this blog.  We had a wonderful dinner at the mission home.  The 6 Elders were invited also and President and Sister Hillam's daughter came to Ghana to spend some time with them.  Here's the table before it was all gone!

President found a turkey, so we had turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, Ghanaian sweet potatoes, rolls, carrots, and pie for dessert.  It was awesome!

We face-timed with our family on Sunday night.  All but Doug and Teri were at Tracy's home enjoying some waffles and all the fixings.  When we were able to see them all, on the table was a great big gallon of real milk.  Wayne and I just drooled.  Can't wait for that milk!

So again, Merry Christmas to you all.

We love you and miss you.

Week of 11 December 2017

Here's our picture from last week.

You can tell it's getting close to Christmas.  the Supply Elders pick up the mail twice a week.  We had 27 packages this week.  All from the United States.  None of the African Elders and Sister get packages, but the American Elders share.  It's good to get packages from home, but each one of them have to pay a duty when it arrives.  We've had some duties as high as $40 US dollars.  It doesn't seem like a lot, but when they have to pay the equivalent in Cedis, it comes to 175.00 ghc.  Now that's a lot!

The New Trainers meeting was held on Wednesday.  11 new trainers.  An awesome bunch!

Plus we got a new Assistant to the President.  Elder Masame is going home.  So here is Elder Tovela and Elder Smith training the "New Trainers"



Weighing luggage.  This is always a headache especially for the Sisters.  Their luggage is always overweight and they have to repack everything.


Breakfast time at 6:00 am for the departing missionaries.  Elder Smith, Sister Tembo, Elders Rugundana, Chipapala, Bills, Masame, Goodsell, and Sisters Akintoke, Aruoma, Sekgetho and Elder Tovela.


Saying goodbye and wishing all a good life!

We drove the missionaries to Accra this transfer.  3 in each vehicle.  The President, Sorensens and us.  

When Wayne and I went to the Area Office to get the passports, we had all of them except for Elder Rugundana, and the travel people didn't know where it was.  So we sat there for about an hour and they came back and told us that the immigration office had it.  We told them we needed the passport by 3:00 that afternoon.  Guess what?  They didn't get it for us. So poor Elder Rugundana didn't go home on Thursday.  He had to wait to till Friday to fly home.  What an expense for the church! And President wasn't too happy either.  He had some chose words for them.  What a fun experience.

Temple picture!

Our new missionaries will arrive on Monday, the 18th. They will be coming by bus from Accra.

We had a baptism on Sunday in Kissi.  So wonderful to see these people joining the church.  They were from Komenda branch.

So just some fun pictures.  there is a street in Accra that has "bats" always flying around.  We finally got a picture of the trees.. Hopefully you can see them hanging upside down.

And, I don't know how they do it.  These women have to have the strongest necks in the world!

We miss you and love you all.

Week of 4 December 2017

A week of Christmas Zone Conferences.  It was wonderful.  But, we almost lost an Elder, too.

One of the Elders from Mpintsin wasn't feeling too well on Sunday, so the President and Sister Hillam went to check on him.  They brought him right back to the Cape and put him in one of the hospitals here.  He was diagnosed with Cerebral Malaria which is the worst kind.  He was not conscious for a couple of days.  Very scary.  Come to find out that he wasn't taking his Doxy nor sleeping under a mosquito net.  He was in the hospital all week.

Also, the Area doctor for West Africa came to visit with him and during her stay one of the other elders came to the mission home to see her for some lower abdomen pain which he has been having.  Found out that he had a hernia and it was strangulating some other organ, so she took him back to Accra for an operation.

Just a beautiful picture to start out with.

Our Cape Coast Zone Leaders and apartment companions

Elders Malamala, Williams, Wright and Osei.

Sisters Willie and Mkhize

On Wednesday, we held our Mission Leadership Council.  4 of these awqesome misisonaries will be going home next Wednesday.


In Praso on Saturday, they had 6 baptisms.  We did not attend but the President got a picture for us.



So on Sunday, the wind started to blow and this is what Harmattan looks like


We weren't able to get pictures, but along the Elmina coast line, many building were blown over.

Pictures of the Christmas Zone Conferences that were held at the Mission home.














Wayne and I got into it, too.





On Sunday in Komenda, I did a small scene with the children in the Primary.  It was just the scene with the Wise men.  But here is a picture.  None of them would take off their costumes after.  They wore them all through class.
(Can't upload the picture from my phone.  Will send next week)

It's going to be hard leaving everyone.  We are trying not to think about it right now.  But there is also the joy we fill of going home and being with our family, too.  It's coming quickly.

We love you and miss you all.