23 August 2018

This week has been busy with the Retro Auto and Concours de Extravagance show at Spanish Bay. We coordinated the missionary support for the program through Ellen Martin who directs The First-Knight volunteer organization in Monterey. We recruited, with mission president approval, a set of Elders and a set of Sisters to be escorts for the speaker's forum on Friday and Saturday. Elaine and I volunteered Tuesday and Wednesday to help with the set up and inventory. We rolled posters for sale at $50 a copy, helped set up the poster booth, and did other support items. We met new people and had fun. Also got to talk a little about the Church. The program is hosted by Pebble Beach at their Spanish Bay resort. It is a beautiful resort and the links are spectacularly beautiful, much of it along the Pacific Ocean coastline. We got to see a little of the wealthy side of life with fancy cars and people who have plenty of money to blow. The green fees for Pebble Beach are between $600-$800! They have some wonderful old vintage and newer automobiles on display and famous people, like Jay Leno and Jerry Seinfeld, who come to speak. Spanish Bay and Pebble Beach are about 15-minute drive from our little apartment, and are located in Del Monte Forest - a beautiful place. I've included several photos of the resort and posters.

This morning, we attended graduation exercises for the Defense Language Institute at the Presidio. Three of our LDS military personnel were graduating, but we also discovered another married man. When we heard that he was from Utah, I had to ask him if he was a member, and we found out that he was married and resided with his wife and child over in Salinas-Prunedale area. That's a bit of a drive to make every day. We gave out four "armor of God" honor coins (medallions) today. We tell them that we represent the Church, particularly the Military Relations Department, in recognizing them for their achievement in completing the course and for their diligence in living gospel standards. In one of the cases today, the young man had not been active at all during his time at DLI, but it gave us an opportunity to recognize him and encourage him to be faithful. In every case, these kids are really great young people. I am not allowed to post any graduation pictures, although I have many from the last months, because it could compromise these graduate's future safety because of their duties.

19 August 2018

Everything here is so routine week-by-week that I hesitate to post anything that often. We did have a good stake conference this past weekend. Michael Ringwood and his wife presided. She is the daughter of President Nelson. He teaches well from the scriptures and we felt the spirit throughout all of the talks. Sunday morning we conducted a short sacrament meeting for military on DLI. Two came, and one of them came with us to the Sunday morning conference session. We are pleased that he has become active and is striving to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood. We have become good friends. Sunday evening, the Ringwoods did a special fireside for the YSA ward, which included our single military saints. That evening, the sister missionaries called needing a blessing as one of them was sick with a stomach ache, headache, and weakness. We were blessed to provide that. Monday, we attended the Zone conference in the Seaside chapel. Again, we were taught by Elder Ringwood and President Hunt (mission president). We studied and discussed 2 Nephi 2 for part of the time. Tomorrow and Wednesday, we volunteer at the Retro Auto Pavilion at Spanish Bay, helping to set up for the big event. It is quite famous auto show that draws high-profile speakers (such as Jay Leno and Jerry Seinfeld). Two of our elders and sisters are acting as escorts for the people. It should be fun for them. We took a nice walk along the Pacific Grove shoreline the other day during one of the few sunny days we have had. I took some photos to use when I get back home for oil painting of the California scenery. I did the same for Yosemite. I would like to get good enough to have some nice ones in our home to represent places we have been. I'd like eventually to have an oil painting of Hawaii, Europe (Germany), Yosemite, and Monterey coastline.

31 July 2018

Our mission is half over! Time goes by so quickly. I sometimes wonder if the Lord has sneakily increased the speed of rotation of the earth to hasten His work. This past week we had transfers. Luckily neither Sister B or myself were transferred. We kind of like our companionship the way it is. They whitewashed both of the sisters' areas. All four were transferred out. Our zone leader was transferred up to San Jose and another elder came in to replace Elder Deeter who returned home after completing his mission. Sister Sanft also ended her mission this transfer and returned home as well. Sad to see them leave, but happy for their accomplishments. We are getting acquainted with 4 new sisters, one zone-district leader, and another elder. They seem really good and dedicated. One sister is from Korea and speaks wonderful English. Her companion is from SLC and has the same last name as Elaine's mother's maiden name: Openshaw. They were able to find where in the line they are connected. Fun.
        This past week we spent a lot of time ministering and reaching out to military couples living in the Marina ward. We got acquainted with several new families. We ministered to one who was struggling with depression and sickness, and helped coordinate help in moving two other families into their military quarters at old Fort Ord. We really enjoy these meetings. These young mostly newly-married military couples are under such heavy stress with the language training. We try to keep a close eye on as many as we can and try to help them out. We often get requests from the bishops or relief society presidents of wards to minister to someone. We love that.
         I've been enjoying volunteering at the Family History Center (FHC) in Seaside every Friday morning for 4 hours. I've been able to get quite a bit of work done for myself - mostly just getting more familiar with family history sites and how to search for connections and people. My sister, Marilyn, discovered a book that belonged to our mother that is a 250th anniversary edition of the Hobson's in America from 1707-1957. It is chuck-full of genealogy on the Hobson line and is a wonderful resource for doing family history on that line and others. I'm anxious to get involved with checking things out for ordinations and accuracy, etc.
         Our fellowship evenings each Tuesday at the Presidio (DLI) continue to be useful tools to communicate with the YSA military folks. Feeding them each week is like feeding a hungry family. We go through food like we had 20 children - and we do!!! Yesterday, we took the two sister missionaries who live near us our shopping and showing them around the area a little. They came over and used our WIFI to email their families (it was P-day). While they were here at the apartment, I received a phone call from the mission president (President Hunt), asking me counsel with these two sisters, as one had said she wasn't getting along well with her companion. It's a bit tricky trying to speak with one sister and not having the other around. But we are working on it. I continue to work with some elders with other issues, assigned by the mission president. It makes me happy to be able to help lift his burdens.
           The pictures are all of "Lover's Point" (different views) along the Pacific Grove shoreline.

         

22 July 2018

Many new military families and individuals have come to Monterey for school this summer, and several of the old ones have graduated and moved on. Such is military life. We have stayed busy identifying, reaching out to, and ministering to those who are moving in. Many of those attending DLI are required to remain on base for a few weeks, and we encourage them to attend our post sacrament meetings and fellowship night. Some choose not to accept this invitation and want to remain aloof from the church. Many of them are less active when they arrive or are very young and want to get out from under their parents' and church leaders' influence. We do all that we can to bring them into the fold, but you win some and lose some.
        Last week was a week of presentations. I gave a presentation on Vietnam and my experiences there as a combatant at fellowship evening. We had 2 non-members attend. I did a power point with slides which Chaplain Allen helped me show with his laptop. Later in the week, he sent a kind email to the head garrison chaplain, Bill Lovell, on how spiritual and great the presentation was, and offered it for chaplain training. I don't know that they will want a Mormon teaching the chaplains, but I'll do it if asked. I was also asked by the relief society of the Marina ward to do a presentation on major depression, signs, symptoms, causes, and how to help people. I did a 60-minute presentation to about 20 sisters. It was well received.
        We met a woman named Teresa at the Monterey cemetery office (where she works) and became friends with her. We did some family history work for her and presented her with a fan chart and some information about her ancestors. She was very grateful. We followed up with another visit and gave her a copy of "My Family" with our testimony written inside about the significance of families in the Lord's plan and of their eternal nature. We also gave her a booklet called "Families and Temples," along with a copy of the Family Proclamation. She accepted these graciously. We have established a nice relationship with her and plan to give her time to read these materials and then follow up with another visit.
        It is transfer time and we are losing some of our missionaries. Elder Deeter and Sister Sanft return home, having completed their missions. Elder Watkins, our Zone Leader, is being transferred, and they decided to white wash the sister's area here in Monterey. They transferred out Sisters Wong and Aliasa and are bringing in two new ones. This last Saturday, we attended a Pioneer Day event at the Spencer Ranch in Carmel Valley hosted by the Monterey 1st ward. It was fun with lots of food and activities.

8 July 2018

We had a nice 4th of July here in Monterey, although we surely missed the hot-air balloons rising up over Utah Valley. The Old Monterey Business Association (OMBA) approached Elaine and me when we first arrived in Monterey back in February if we would help get volunteers from the missionaries and LDS population to help with their 4th of July parade. We had meetings with them and were able to secure 20 volunteers, most of them Young Single Adults (YSA) and 8 missionaries to help. We showed up at 8 a.m. and received our assignments. All of the missionaries, including ourselves, all wearing our missionary badges, were asked to carry banners in the parade for sponsors. One of the sponsors was a local grill and pub that is trying to become a more respectable establishment in Monterey. We arranged for one of our older couples who were not missionaries to carry that one. Elaine and I certainly aren't show people, and walking down the street in front of thousands who lined the way was fun but not my cup of tea, so to speak. That night, they had a nice fireworks show over by the old Fort Ord Community and golf course. I don't think it was as big as the one in Provo, but it was a pretty setting over Monterey Bay.

Our elders and ourselves are helping with the big Retroauto show and pavilion at Spanish Bay in August. It is a fun event with some celebrities like Jay Leno and Jerry Seinfeld who often attend. They absolutely love our missionaries to serve as greeters, ushers, and escorts for the show because they look and act so professional. We are looking forward to that later in August.

New military families and singles are moving in this summer to study at DLI and also the Naval Post-graduate School has a big class starting. We are busy identifying and helping new military move in and adjust. Some show up at our DLI sacrament meeting. We helped a young husband and wife move into their house, and are visiting with others. We have new single servicemen arriving, and the challenge is always to get them coming to church services on post and to the YSA ward. We are sometimes a little shocked at the seemingly lax attitude returned missionaries have about attending sacrament meeting and worshiping the Savior. They know better than that, but being out on their own and involved in intense training seems to make it challenging.

We are busy doing family history presentations for ward councils in the four wards that we serve. We also have an appointment next Tuesday to meet with a military chaplain who does family, marriage, child counseling for the military. I've asked him to teach me about the army's resiliency and self-reliance program to help for deployments, and I am sharing with him the LDS program on Building Resilient and Self-Reliant Families. It will give us an opportunity to share with him the importance we place on families - even from an eternal perspective.