24 September 2023 Week #52: A trip to Manila
Dear Family and Friends,
Monday was the usual morning routine and then a long meeting with some great projects presented. We had to make a visit to Ayala to get a couple items in the afternoon. That evening we had FHE with 19 present. All the senior missionaries were present except the Elder and Sister Cary and Elder and Sister Dickinson. We got to meet the two new Cebu East couples, the Halls who serve on Bohol and the Sorensons who are serving up in Bogo. For the lesson Sister Garner had arranged for Stake Patriarch Lee to come share his story. It was pretty cool. He is Chinese but was raised here in the Philippines. He joined the church as a teenager in 1970 into a branch of 38 people here in Cebu. Now there are six stakes here. Pretty cool!
Tuesday was turnover day on Panay Island. We had a 6:00 a.m. flight. Howerever, it got changed to 8:30. That would put us there too late for our first turnover at Badlan National High School at 10:00, so we took the 5:00 a.m. flight. That meant an alarm clock at 2:50, leave the apartment at 3:30, arrive at the airport at 4:00 to catch the 5:00 a.m. flight. A little early for me. We didn’t change the time for the Peters to pick us up, so we waited for a little over an hour for them. We arrived in Calinog at 8:30 and went to Jollibee’s for breakfast.
We had three great turnovers with very grateful recipients. However, the 200 Cofta armchairs hadn’t arrived at Badlan yet. At 12:30 we had a great turnover at Fernandez Perez Memorial National High School. Then at 2:30 the turnover was at San Julian Elementary School. We then dropped of a projector to Guiso Elementary School. They have a real nice school, so we didn’t give them the items they requested except a projector for big gatherings. They were very gracious. Of course, they fed us at each place after the turnover. I’m still not a big fan of Filipino food, but I find something I can eat to try to be a little hospitable. Then back to the airport arriving at 6:30 with a 7:30 flight. It was timed perfect. However, the flight was delayed until 8:45. We arrived home at 10:15. It was a long but good day. We slept in the next morning instead of exercising.
Wednesday found us sleeping and then wrapping up the morning with our monthly reports that are due on the 20th of each month. We were able to put in the pictures from the turnovers. We got both reports completed without too much foul language. Then off to the airport at 11:00 to fly to Manila. We had a 1:30 flight and it took over an hour to get to the airport. The traffic was bad.
We arrived in Manila at 3:30 and then slowly crept through the moving parking lot to the motel arriving at 6:00. We had a great surprise on our check-in. In the lobby were 9 of the 18 Filipino missionaries who have been serving in the Philippines while waiting for their visas to Japan. They were going to be staying there for the night before flying out. They had spent about 6 weeks in different missions here. Well, a few of them had been serving in the Iloilo Mission. One sister had been serving on Guimaras. We had visited with her when we had the turnover at the Sibunag Fire Station. It was so fun to see her. Also, they all knew the Star Valley Elders, Elder Dickey and Elder McClure. They say they are both great missionaries, so spread that on to their mothers if you see them. This sister was served in the same branch as Elder McClure and she says he is an excellent missionary. Also, they all know Elder Coates and think he is great also. One Sister is going to the Japan Kobe mission where Elder Coates’s little brother is serving, so that is going to be neat for her to meet these two brothers from Arizona, one in Iloilo, Philippines, and one in Kobe, Japan. Someone report to Sharilyn Coates, please!
Well, we were just getting started. The other group had served in the Bacolod Mission, and all knew Elder Jonas Bird, Zack and Krista’s son. They were in the same batch as him, so they all knew him in the MTC also. And one of them has been living in the same house as Elder Bird since they started their missions. He thinks Elder Bird is one fantastic missionary and a great kid. Someone be sure to report to Dana Thornock, please! This should bring smiles to a couple of grandma’s in Cokeville. Maybe you can catch them while they are chatting after their morning walk. Interrupt the fearsome foursome (Norene Thompson and Pat Taylor, they all walk together, and then visit forever in front of Norene’s place) and share this exciting news, at least exciting to me. I love these connections we get to keep making.
We checked in, then headed over to Eastwood to get something to eat. We found a Wendy’s, go figure. It was pretty good.
We woke up at 5:00 a.m. The van picked us up at 5:45 for a full day. We pulled through a McDonald’s drive through at about 7:30 to get a sausage/egg sandwich and hashbrown. We went on to the University of the Philippines, the most prestigious university in the Philippines. It is very difficult to get into. If you do get in you don’t have to pay for your education. You do have to pay for your living quarters, food, and transportation. It is an agriculture college. We were there for about 4 hours. We witnessed some great presentations. One was in the ornamental edible garden. That was pretty cool. The young lady was a great presenter. We also spent quite a bit of time in an organic garden. These were interesting presentations, but the one we really went for was next, food preservation. We want to know how we can help people store food here in the Philippines. With the heat and humidity it is a different ball game than back in good ole’ Cokeville USA. Two reasons, one for emergency, and the other for savings, just like back home. Buy in the season, and when it is cheaper, then package it for later.
We then headed to a school to do an evaluation on a wash station that was provided by LDSC. The Haynes had done this project. It looked good and was working well. In our group were the Haynes, the Heslops, the Lees, and a single senior service sister missionary, and us. Well Elder Lee got visiting and was ready to help them some more. This is a big school in San Pablo. They are a Lamborghini School compared to the ones we have visited. If we end up giving them something I won’t be a happy camper. It turned out to take quite a bit of time and then a long drive back.
We arrived back in Eastwood at 7:00 p.m. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast. I was a little hungry. The Heslops, who stay at the same motel as us when we go to these meetings, joined the Huffs and us for dinner at Kenny Rogers Roaster. I had a half rack of ribs with steamed vegetables and parsley potatoes. Clyda had roasted chicken with a mango salad and a fruit cup. It was a good meal and great conversation. The Huffs and Heslops are great people and are doing great things. We were tired when we got back to the motel at about 9:00.
We had to be up before 6:00 the next morning, checked out by 6:30 to head to the area office for the day’s meetings starting at 7:00. Some great projects were passed with our main people, Director of Temporal Affairs and the Controller. They weren’t going to pass the Huff’s literacy project, they wanted to delay it. I’m not supposed to say anything, and if we had been in Cebu on Teams, I wouldn’t have, but being in the room I couldn’t help myself. I raised my hand and gave my opinion that if they wait until February to start the program, schools probably wouldn’t do it that late in the year. After that the Huffs would be gone and then it might not get started at all. I said that programs like this need to be started early in the school year. They okayed the project and gave them the go ahead. (Dad was the hero of the day!)
The rest of the day was spent in meetings with our team. It was a good day and probably the best two days we have spent in Manila. We caught a shuttle at 4:00 to the airport, a 7:45 plane ride to beautiful Cebu. We arrived before 9:00 and home by 10:00. It was so good to be back home, seeing the smiling faces of our house people and their warm welcomes for us. I think they like us okay. We sure like them.
Up at 5:10 to the templex to finally get another walk in, since we hadn’t been on one since Monday. Home for morning activities, clean-up, then head to the templex to pick up the Koyles and Taylors to go to open food market to get some great vegetables. Then to the office while they clean our apartment and to watch the Cokeville vs Kemmerer game on the big screen TV. In the afternoon we worked on preparing better monthly power point presentations and doing them correctly as we learned in our meeting on Friday. We have received a second bid for our prosthetics project. It has 45 tools. From two different vendors and we had 17 items with significantly different quotes. We haven’t got a clue which one, if either, is the better item. They must not be quoting on the same kind of tool. This will take some time to get it all straightened out. We were hoping to get this done before October 9th for the BYU 2FT project. It won’t happen. We will be lucky to have this one completed by Christmas. We do want to get it done though. We feel strongly about providing these prosthetics for these people.
It was a good evening watching Star Valley vs Evanston while eating dinner, a great pasta dish with a few vegetables in it. Have I mentioned Clyda is a GREAT cook!
Great meetings today. It is Family Month in the Philippines this September, and our ward has done something each week to celebrate. It will finish up this coming Saturday. Today’s Sacrament Mtg. was about how family relationships are better when we try to improve our relationship with Christ. In Elder’s Quroum and Relief Society the talk discussed “Jesus Christ Is Relief” by Camille Johnson.
After meetings Isaac Opoco visited with me for a few minutes. He has a mission call to the Naga Mission and leaves November 1st. He will be a good missionary. He comes from a talented family and strong in the gospel. He asked where I served as a young missionary. When I told him Alaska he said his uncle served there about 2004 or close to that time. So do any of you Alaskans remember a Filipino Elder Opoco?
I continue to marvel at the growth of the church here. The stone continues to roll on even with evil all around. It is true! It will spread all over the earth. It is the winning team. Make sure your an active member of the winning team.
Holy Habits
Righteous Routines
Lift Where You Stand
With love,
Dad and Mom
Grandpa and Grandma
Briant and Clyda
Week #52 9/18-9-24
Monday was the usual morning routine and then a long meeting with some great projects presented. We had to make a visit to Ayala to get a couple items in the afternoon. That evening we had FHE with 19 present. All the senior missionaries were present except the Elder and Sister Cary and Elder and Sister Dickinson. We got to meet the two new Cebu East couples, the Halls who serve on Bohol and the Sorensons who are serving up in Bogo. For the lesson Sister Garner had arranged for Stake Patriarch Lee to come share his story. It was pretty cool. He is Chinese but was raised here in the Philippines. He joined the church as a teenager in 1970 into a branch of 38 people here in Cebu. Now there are six stakes here. Pretty cool!
Tuesday was turnover day on Panay Island. We had a 6:00 a.m. flight. Howerever, it got changed to 8:30. That would put us there too late for our first turnover at Badlan National High School at 10:00, so we took the 5:00 a.m. flight. That meant an alarm clock at 2:50, leave the apartment at 3:30, arrive at the airport at 4:00 to catch the 5:00 a.m. flight. A little early for me. We didn’t change the time for the Peters to pick us up, so we waited for a little over an hour for them. We arrived in Calinog at 8:30 and went to Jollibee’s for breakfast.
We had three great turnovers with very grateful recipients. However, the 200 Cofta armchairs hadn’t arrived at Badlan yet. At 12:30 we had a great turnover at Fernandez Perez Memorial National High School. Then at 2:30 the turnover was at San Julian Elementary School. We then dropped of a projector to Guiso Elementary School. They have a real nice school, so we didn’t give them the items they requested except a projector for big gatherings. They were very gracious. Of course, they fed us at each place after the turnover. I’m still not a big fan of Filipino food, but I find something I can eat to try to be a little hospitable. Then back to the airport arriving at 6:30 with a 7:30 flight. It was timed perfect. However, the flight was delayed until 8:45. We arrived home at 10:15. It was a long but good day. We slept in the next morning instead of exercising.
Wednesday found us sleeping and then wrapping up the morning with our monthly reports that are due on the 20th of each month. We were able to put in the pictures from the turnovers. We got both reports completed without too much foul language. Then off to the airport at 11:00 to fly to Manila. We had a 1:30 flight and it took over an hour to get to the airport. The traffic was bad.
We arrived in Manila at 3:30 and then slowly crept through the moving parking lot to the motel arriving at 6:00. We had a great surprise on our check-in. In the lobby were 9 of the 18 Filipino missionaries who have been serving in the Philippines while waiting for their visas to Japan. They were going to be staying there for the night before flying out. They had spent about 6 weeks in different missions here. Well, a few of them had been serving in the Iloilo Mission. One sister had been serving on Guimaras. We had visited with her when we had the turnover at the Sibunag Fire Station. It was so fun to see her. Also, they all knew the Star Valley Elders, Elder Dickey and Elder McClure. They say they are both great missionaries, so spread that on to their mothers if you see them. This sister was served in the same branch as Elder McClure and she says he is an excellent missionary. Also, they all know Elder Coates and think he is great also. One Sister is going to the Japan Kobe mission where Elder Coates’s little brother is serving, so that is going to be neat for her to meet these two brothers from Arizona, one in Iloilo, Philippines, and one in Kobe, Japan. Someone report to Sharilyn Coates, please!
Well, we were just getting started. The other group had served in the Bacolod Mission, and all knew Elder Jonas Bird, Zack and Krista’s son. They were in the same batch as him, so they all knew him in the MTC also. And one of them has been living in the same house as Elder Bird since they started their missions. He thinks Elder Bird is one fantastic missionary and a great kid. Someone be sure to report to Dana Thornock, please! This should bring smiles to a couple of grandma’s in Cokeville. Maybe you can catch them while they are chatting after their morning walk. Interrupt the fearsome foursome (Norene Thompson and Pat Taylor, they all walk together, and then visit forever in front of Norene’s place) and share this exciting news, at least exciting to me. I love these connections we get to keep making.
We checked in, then headed over to Eastwood to get something to eat. We found a Wendy’s, go figure. It was pretty good.
We woke up at 5:00 a.m. The van picked us up at 5:45 for a full day. We pulled through a McDonald’s drive through at about 7:30 to get a sausage/egg sandwich and hashbrown. We went on to the University of the Philippines, the most prestigious university in the Philippines. It is very difficult to get into. If you do get in you don’t have to pay for your education. You do have to pay for your living quarters, food, and transportation. It is an agriculture college. We were there for about 4 hours. We witnessed some great presentations. One was in the ornamental edible garden. That was pretty cool. The young lady was a great presenter. We also spent quite a bit of time in an organic garden. These were interesting presentations, but the one we really went for was next, food preservation. We want to know how we can help people store food here in the Philippines. With the heat and humidity it is a different ball game than back in good ole’ Cokeville USA. Two reasons, one for emergency, and the other for savings, just like back home. Buy in the season, and when it is cheaper, then package it for later.
We then headed to a school to do an evaluation on a wash station that was provided by LDSC. The Haynes had done this project. It looked good and was working well. In our group were the Haynes, the Heslops, the Lees, and a single senior service sister missionary, and us. Well Elder Lee got visiting and was ready to help them some more. This is a big school in San Pablo. They are a Lamborghini School compared to the ones we have visited. If we end up giving them something I won’t be a happy camper. It turned out to take quite a bit of time and then a long drive back.
We arrived back in Eastwood at 7:00 p.m. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast. I was a little hungry. The Heslops, who stay at the same motel as us when we go to these meetings, joined the Huffs and us for dinner at Kenny Rogers Roaster. I had a half rack of ribs with steamed vegetables and parsley potatoes. Clyda had roasted chicken with a mango salad and a fruit cup. It was a good meal and great conversation. The Huffs and Heslops are great people and are doing great things. We were tired when we got back to the motel at about 9:00.
We had to be up before 6:00 the next morning, checked out by 6:30 to head to the area office for the day’s meetings starting at 7:00. Some great projects were passed with our main people, Director of Temporal Affairs and the Controller. They weren’t going to pass the Huff’s literacy project, they wanted to delay it. I’m not supposed to say anything, and if we had been in Cebu on Teams, I wouldn’t have, but being in the room I couldn’t help myself. I raised my hand and gave my opinion that if they wait until February to start the program, schools probably wouldn’t do it that late in the year. After that the Huffs would be gone and then it might not get started at all. I said that programs like this need to be started early in the school year. They okayed the project and gave them the go ahead. (Dad was the hero of the day!)
The rest of the day was spent in meetings with our team. It was a good day and probably the best two days we have spent in Manila. We caught a shuttle at 4:00 to the airport, a 7:45 plane ride to beautiful Cebu. We arrived before 9:00 and home by 10:00. It was so good to be back home, seeing the smiling faces of our house people and their warm welcomes for us. I think they like us okay. We sure like them.
Up at 5:10 to the templex to finally get another walk in, since we hadn’t been on one since Monday. Home for morning activities, clean-up, then head to the templex to pick up the Koyles and Taylors to go to open food market to get some great vegetables. Then to the office while they clean our apartment and to watch the Cokeville vs Kemmerer game on the big screen TV. In the afternoon we worked on preparing better monthly power point presentations and doing them correctly as we learned in our meeting on Friday. We have received a second bid for our prosthetics project. It has 45 tools. From two different vendors and we had 17 items with significantly different quotes. We haven’t got a clue which one, if either, is the better item. They must not be quoting on the same kind of tool. This will take some time to get it all straightened out. We were hoping to get this done before October 9th for the BYU 2FT project. It won’t happen. We will be lucky to have this one completed by Christmas. We do want to get it done though. We feel strongly about providing these prosthetics for these people.
It was a good evening watching Star Valley vs Evanston while eating dinner, a great pasta dish with a few vegetables in it. Have I mentioned Clyda is a GREAT cook!
Great meetings today. It is Family Month in the Philippines this September, and our ward has done something each week to celebrate. It will finish up this coming Saturday. Today’s Sacrament Mtg. was about how family relationships are better when we try to improve our relationship with Christ. In Elder’s Quroum and Relief Society the talk discussed “Jesus Christ Is Relief” by Camille Johnson.
After meetings Isaac Opoco visited with me for a few minutes. He has a mission call to the Naga Mission and leaves November 1st. He will be a good missionary. He comes from a talented family and strong in the gospel. He asked where I served as a young missionary. When I told him Alaska he said his uncle served there about 2004 or close to that time. So do any of you Alaskans remember a Filipino Elder Opoco?
I continue to marvel at the growth of the church here. The stone continues to roll on even with evil all around. It is true! It will spread all over the earth. It is the winning team. Make sure your an active member of the winning team.
Holy Habits
Righteous Routines
Lift Where You Stand
With love,
Dad and Mom
Grandpa and Grandma
Briant and Clyda
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