Saturday, June 30, 2012

Welcome President & Sister McDonough

We greeted President & Sister McDonough at the Mission Office and had a little party with the Office Staff.  Sister Miles organized a delicious lunch for them.  After lunch we took them to the Mission Home and oriented them to the mission.  After an hour or so they took us to the airport where we said our final good byes, by the end of the night we were in the arms of our loving family.

Friday, June 29, 2012

Gift from the Jackson Branch

Sister James has been working so hard and created this beautiful quilt as a reminder of our time with the Jackson Branch.  We love President and Sister James!  They contribute so much to the church and the members of the Jackson Branch.
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Permission to Visit The Baton Rouge Temple

As our time in the South was quickly ending, we were honored to get permission to leave the mission for a day and attend the temple sealing of a former missionary who married a sweet young lady from Hattiesburg.  Best Wishes Mr. & Mrs. Tonumaipea!!

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

A Gift from our Missionaries

Each of the missionaries wrote us a sweet thank you letter and secretly gave it to the Assistants along with all of these reminders of the South.  The Assistants surprised us with our gift.  We loved it and will always treasure our memories of the wonderful missionaries in our mission.
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Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Joel Johnson and Family Return for a Visit

Tuesday morning after the new missionaries met their trainers we were pleased to meet with the Johnson family at the mission home.IMG_0408

Monday, June 25, 2012

Photos for their Family

Airport and lunch together before orientation

Welcome to the MJM

After a weekend in Gulfport attending Stake Conference and spending time with the wonderful members and missionaries serving their,  we returned to the mission home to get ready to greet our last group of missionaries.  Monday was a beautiful day and everything went as planned as we welcomed Elders Canaan, Arthur, Anderson, Hartwig and Hanzlik along with Sisters Jenkins and Parkinson.

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Last night in the MJM for Sister Findley and Sister Pinto

Our last group of departing missionaries were a delight to have in the mission home.  We love and appreciate the hard work and determination of Sisters Findley and Pinto.  They have both contributed so much to the MJM. Sister Urie and Mokalake joined us for dinner that evening and then we were spiritually fed as the sisters shared with us their testimony and some of their experiences while serving their missions.
  

Finishing Up Our Mission

Sorry for the delay in adding some of the details of the ending days of our mission, time seemed to speed up and duties seemed to double.  Now that August is half over and our road trips should slow down I will attempt to catch up on some of the exciting events with the people we have grown to love and always love to see. 

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Early Settlers of Red Star Area

We spent the afternoon visiting with Brother & Sister Cronin, Brother Cronin is a grandson of Mayberry and Arabella Britt early settlers of the area.  Brother Cronin has spent more than 1200 hours building this model of his grandparents homestead.  In his family history room he also has photos and artifacts from each of the 10 children of Mayberry and Arabella.

Red Star Ward

We attended the Red Star Ward and were greeted by Elders Phillips and Wadsworth along with Brother & Sister Cronin.  This ward was one of the original wards in Mississippi.
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Friday, June 15, 2012

Elder Hatch–Candid Shots after Leadership Training

After the meeting we spent some time visiting with the missionaries, Elder Hatch “borrowed” our camera and created a wonderful album of memories.

Leadership Training–Monroe

Friday we met with the Jackson, Monroe and Shreveport missionaries for leadership training.  
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Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Leadership Training–Hattiesburg

We held a leadership training meeting in Hattiesburg for the Clinton, Hattiesburg, Gulfport and Slidell Zones.  They wanted to make sure that I posted their goofy picture to the blog – We were treated to a picnic lunch by the Purvis Ward Relief Society in the picnic area at the rear of the meetinghouse.  Earlier in the day it had rained, so it was very comfortable and a great break.
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Monday, June 11, 2012

Korby Howell returns for a visit

It was fun to visit with Korby, his mother and his brother at the Mission Home.  He returned home from his mission several months ago.
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Saturday, June 9, 2012

Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Aaron Schell

The former Elder Aaron Schell and Keri Hill from Madison, began dating after finding each other in Salt Lake City several months ago.  We are so excited for them as they begin their life together. 

Friday, June 8, 2012

Our Last Zone Leader Council

I promised the Zone Leaders I would publish their goofy pose because it is our last time to meet as a Zone Leader Council, this is a meeting President Tucker and I will truly miss.

Here is a more missionary like pose

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Farewell Sister Platt – Welcome Sister Mokalake

Time for our Temple Square Sisters to change.  We have enjoyed having Sister Platt serve in the MJM, we will miss her.  We are excited to welcome and love the lively spirit of Sister Mokalake from Durban South Africa.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Staff Meeting

We had quite the Staff Meeting, with two new couples learning the tricks of running the mission.  Welcome Elder & Sister Miles and Elder & Sister Miller!  Welcome also to Elder Nykamp, who learned from Elder Garrett how assistants help keep us Seniors on task.
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Saturday, June 2, 2012

Magnolia Flowers

I decided to bring a Magnolia Flower in the house to enjoy, these are such beautiful flowers, they are white when they first bloom, but after a couple of days turn brown.

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Thursday, May 31, 2012

Hattiesburg Zone Yummy Lunch – Thanks Sandhill Branch RS

Hattiesburg Zone

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Hattiesburg Car Inspection

Thanks Elder Evans for helping Elder Tucker and Elder Miles all week!

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Elder & Sister Staheli

Elder & Sister Staheli spent the week with us during Zone Conference, Elder Staheli is our Area Medical Advisor, he was able to talk to us about bug’s and bites, it was a little creepy but very informative.  He also took the time to meet with anyone who wanted to visit with a doctor.
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Clinton Zone

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Jackson Zone

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Another Yummy Lunch - Clinton Relief Society

Getting together is soo Much Fun!!!

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Yummy Lunch Shreveport Relief Society

Monroe Zone

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Elders Henrie and Eisinger serve in Greenville which is in the Monroe Zone, but attend Zone Conference with the Jackson and Clinton Zones to save on travel time.

Shreveport Zone

Zone Conference Shreveport – Inspecting the Cars

It is always exciting getting the cars inspected before Zone Conference.  Elder and Sister Tucker were passing their knowledge on to Elder and Sister Miles who are taking over the Fleet and Media positions as Elder and Sister Tucker prepare to return home to Family.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Nothing Better Than Family!

Thanks to President Tuckers niece Becky, a Tucker Family Reunion was held in Jackson on Saturday.  We were treated to a visit from President Tuckers brothers and their wives, along with some of his nieces and nephews and their families.  His only sister had planned on coming but had to stay home due to health problems.  Sunday we were greeted by our Jackson Branch Missionaries, Elders Bendel, Green, McLean and Flint

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Spanish Elders Mission Complete

Elders Price and Hickman spent the night in the mission home before returning home to their families.  We are grateful for their service and the strength they provided to the Spanish speaking missionary effort in the MJM.
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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Peru Bound Missionaries Visit

Welcome Elders Zepeda and Zamudio!  They will serve in Vicksburg and Biloxi speaking Spanish. We are happy to have them with us while they wait to travel to Peru.DSC_0080

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Texarkana Texas or Arkansas

Someone was creative when this town was formed and decided to have half of the town in Arkansas and half in Texas.  We decided to check out the boundary marker and here is what we found.

Texarkana Weekend

We were able to enjoy a Saturday evening performance of the BYU International Folk Dance Ensemble which was amazing.  Sunday we attended church in the Texarkana ward and enjoyed our wonderful missionaries Elders Palmieri, Jones, Larson and Sumsion.

Friday, May 18, 2012

Welcome Elder & Sister Miller

Elder & Sister Miller will be a wonderful blessing to the Wiggins Branch. We appreciate them and their willingness to serve a mission. It has been a pleasure getting to know them before they continue South.DSC_0078