The New President Has Arrived!

What an incredible week we have had.  It's hard to put down what happened onto paper.  To see the mantle of a mission president pass from one president to the next is truly an amazing experience.  We had been preparing for months for this event to take place and then--in a moment--in did actually take place and to be able to witness it is an experience I will never forget.  The transfer of presiding authority and keys is a real and tangible occurrence and from the moment that President Ahlander and Sister Ahlander walked through the door to the mission office with Pres. and Sis. Black behind them, it was evident as to who now held the keys.  What a moment in the history of the Nevada Las Vegas West Mission!

Also, because this week is the week before transfers, I had to send out all the leadership letters to the missionaries and their parents a little early, because Pres. Black had made the leadership calls, and would therefore sign their leadership letters.  I was SO busy trying to get them all done before Pres. Black left, as well as having Pres. Ahlander sign all the things that the new missionaries would need!  Glen was so busy making furniture deliveries to the new homes and places where the new missionaries would be living and was gone from the office a lot.  He even had to take some of the furniture from our apartment to the new senior couple's apartment that he was opening at Trellis Park where the Sudweeks live.  That required us to do some packing ourselves so that our chest of drawers, desk, couch, two big living room chairs, lamps, and other things could be moved.  What strange feelings that caused!  Hadn't we just barely moved in?  

Let me review the events of this week that led up to President Ahlander arriving.

Jay and Valerie Chapman invited us to their home for our "final dinner" along with Elder West who was being transferred and Pres. and Sister Black.  Sister Judd and Jay and Dorothy Burt were also there, and Valerie had outdone herself in this incredible meal.  She is an excellent cook and both of them are wonderful hosts.  It was a wonderful meal and Elder West and Elder Manning always leave them with very inspirational messages.  

We had to quickly leave the dinner to attend the Worldwide Leadership Training being broadcast in from the Marriott Center at BYU.  It was a part of the New Mission Presidents' Seminar and it was held at our church building.  It was a great sight to see the Redrock Zone missionaries all there together, and especially to see the thousands of brand new missionaries and 171 new mission presidents and their wives at the Marriott Center.  Brandon and Lindsey were also there!  Pictured above is us with the Redrock Zone.  How we love them!

What a meeting it was as we heard that missionaries would in time be using the internet for proselyting purposes and that church buildings would be open for people to come inside and see what they were like.  It made us want to stay on our mission to see what exciting things were going to happen!  We loved it all and were very inspired by it.

On Monday night it was the Blacks, ours, the Danas, and Sis. Macdonald's departure dinner as missionaries.    It was held at the Monte Cristo building because the Blacks had now moved out of the mission home so that it could be made ready for the new president and they were staying in a hotel.  It was wonderful to be together and especially to see Sis. Dana again--I missed her so much from seeing her daily at the mission office!  The Sudweeks, the Danas, and we all sat at the same table.

After the dinner, we had a testimony meeting where first  Pres. Webb (2nd counselor in the mission presidency, followed by Pres. and Sis. Andersen (1st counselor in the mission presidency) and then Sis. Macdonald bore their testimonies.  They were followed by Elder Dana, then me, then Glen, then Elder Carlson and Elder Hammond (the assistants) and then Sis. Splain wanted to add her testimony.  Sis. Black and then President Black offered their testimonies last.  It was truly a spiritual feast and a wonderful evening.   

After the closing prayer, we presented the Blacks with a plaque that I had ordered that was made of black slate and had engraved on it a big initial "B" and then "From your NLVW Mission Family."  All of the senior missionaries had signed it on the back and they seemed to really appreciate it.

Our final picture with the Blacks.  They had served well and faithfully up the very hour that they went home on Thursday.  We had learned so much from them. 

 The whole group (except the Webbs who had already left):  Pres. Webb, Sis. Clark, Sis. Macdonald, Elder and Sister Dana, Sis. Houseman, Sis. Splain, Glen and I, Elder and Sister Sudweeks, and the Blacks.  We all had shared many wonderful times together.

On Tuesday we were invited to dinner by Tom and Leslie Thomas, our ward mission leader.  They are a stalwart and dedicated couple and live in a beautiful home, and we were so excited to have dinner there along with Elder West and Elder Manning.  It was a fabulous salmon dinner and it was great being with them.

 I spent most of Wednesday evening and Thursday morning preparing the luncheon and the office for the arrival of the Ahlanders.  Elder Carlson and Elder Hammond got to the office at 11:30 to await their arrival but they didn't get there until 1:00--we were all pacing the floor!  We had a sign and flowers waiting for them at the front desk.  

We were so excited when we saw them come through the front door!  We immediately felt and knew that this was the couple that had been called by inspiration to preside over this mission.  They seemed to be a natural fit and their was no awkwardness or hesitation on anyone's part.  The Blacks took them to the president's office at the back, and talked to them for about 5 minutes.  (They had already talked to them for about two hours at the mission home.)  Then the Blacks came out to the front of the office, but the Ahlanders stayed in the back.  I asked Pres. Black to sign just one more thing, and Sis. Black suddenly started to cry.  I can only imagine her feelings as they went out the door and left behind all the things that they had done and worked so hard to achieve.  They truly had given their all for the mission and they would be missed. 

In the back room, the office staff, the assistants, and the Ahlanders were gathered and we began the luncheon that I had worked so hard to prepare:  chicken salad sandwiches, fruit plate, chips, and a beautiful decorated cake that said, "Welcome President and Sister Ahlander to the NLVW Mission."  As we ate, they told us about themselves, and it was fun and lighthearted.  They were both so gracious as they thanked us all for the warm welcome and felt like the red carpet had been rolled out for them.  

Sister Ahlander had developed cellulitis at the MTC and we had been notified by the Missionary Dept. that she may not be able to come on Thursday because she was on IV antibiotics. Pres. Black had even been asked to stay a few more days if necessary.  I asked her how her foot was doing (she developed the cellulitis from a broken metatarsal in her right foot) and she told me how EVERYONE was praying for her at the MTC, including the apostles, and she had truly been healed enough to come.  She was so grateful as were we!  

President Michael B. and Rebecca M. Ahlander and Elder Carlson and Hammond.

The office staff with President and Sister Ahlander.  We met with them after the luncheon and I was amazed at his knowledge of the mission, but he also expressed that there was a lot he didn't know and he asked a lot of questions.  He seemed to rely on me for a lot of answers and it was a scary feeling!  I had him sign his first letters and certificates so I could get them sent off!

On Friday, we had a busy morning at the office and then closed the office at 12:15 to make our way to the Monte Cristo building where we were holding a "Meet the New President" missionwide meeting.  We were SO excited that we were able to be there at this historic meeting!  The Ahlanders showed a powerpoint with pictures of their ancestors, of them, and of their children.  They spoke so freely and the missionaries seemed to lap it up.  Afterward, each missionary was able to go up to the stand and shake their hands personally.

It was SO SO fun to have all the missionaries from the whole mission in the chapel and while we were all waiting our turn to go shake their hands, I was able to take pictures of these beloved missionaries.  Here are Sis. Pulsipher, Sis. Cornelsen, Sis. Cox, Sis. Ali'ifua and Sis. Dewey.

Here are Sis. Chapman, Sis. Mataele, Sis. Long, and Sis. Belliston.

Here are Elder Wong, Elder Findlay, Elder Kraft, Elder Bruce, Elder Short, and Elder Woody.

Here are  Elder Wynn, Elder Steenstra, Elder Ringer, Elder Loertscher, and Elder White.

, 

Here are Elder West, Elder Tinoco, Elder Murry, Elder Sellers, Elder Parker, Elder Houghton, and Elder Dowdle.  

 

Here are Elder Werner, Elder Sanders, Elder Sellers, Elder Park, and Elder Pyron.

Elder Vieira talks to Glen.

Elder Fugate, Elder John, Elder Kredt, Elder Pierre-Louis.

Sister Ridley, Sister Clutts, and Sister Badoni. 

Elder Birch, Elder Selvey, Elder Gidewall, Elder Wissinger, and Elder Cook.  Oh, it was so great to see all these missionaries and visit with them!  After it was over, we went back to the office and had a planning meeting to go through transfers with Pres. and Sis. Ahlander.  It lasted until 6:00 and I was amazed at the trust that Pres. Ahlander had in me!  

We went straight from the mission office to Wendy and Jamie's house to meet Elder Mavromatis and Elder Vieira to teach them.  I felt so bad for the elders because they are on bikes and it was 117 degrees outside!  

On Saturday was the baptism of Alan Beaty, who was introduced to the gospel by Deb Moppert, the convert who was baptized about 3 or so months ago.  He had been prepared to receive the gospel by the Lord, and it was so neat to again see an investigator progress from investigating to being baptized.  We had them over for dinner a few months before and got to know him, and it has been amazing to see his joy for the gospel take a hold of his life.  Elder Manning baptized Alan, and when he came out of the water he said, "What a blessed day!"  We were so happy for him!

I had said to Elder West and Elder Manning that I wondered if Deb and Alan were a "couple" and they told me that Deb said that they were just friends.  But while I was talking to Deb after the baptism, she told me that she and Alan ARE a couple and that she thinks they may get married in  October!  Her goal is to get married in the temple and they were both so happy!  I just can't believe the change in both of them.  After Alan's confirmation in church today, he said, "I've never had so much peace in my life."  The joys of missionary work!

That night we had Bethany and Nathan Jones over for a RAGNAR meeting.  (and fun!) We got a lot of things figured out for our RAGNAR team, and it was great being with them.  What a fast paced week we have had and a week filled with a lot of emotions.

Getting Ready for the New President

It seems crazy that we will be getting a new mission president in just a matter of days.  We have been SO busy getting ready for his arrival!  I've had to update an entire 3" binder with all of the documents that I use to prepare the Missionary Guidebooks, do the SPC's, luncheons, and all the letters I write to parents and missionaries, and stake presidents.  I'm not finished yet, and it has taken me HOURS!  The missionaries have expressed concern about having so many changes take place:  a new mission president, new mission secretary, finance/housing/cell phone secretary, and vehicle coordinator.  (Elder Dana is being released just four days after us.)  They've said such kind things to us.

Glen also had a very busy week doing two full days of visa waiters again.  He processed nearly 70 visa waiters in the last 3 weeks and he has had to be away so much!  Plus to get the housing and cell phones ready for our next transfer and train Elder Sudweeks--he has been BUSY!!  But it makes the time fly and we are enjoying it a lot.

When we arrived at the office on Monday morning, this picture was on desk.  It was a picture of the Spoken Word taken the day before by one of our assistants, Elder Carlson.  He thought the man circled in the picture looked just like Glen.  Funny, huh?

Tuesday, is of course, my favorite day of the week at the office because the zone leaders come in to give us the stats from their zones, do vehicle reports, and get supplies.  We never imagined the amount of supplies that fly out of a mission office.  They take stacks of copies of the Book of Mormon, pamphlets, and pass along cards.  Pictured here are Elder Dowdle, Elder Werner, Elder Sanders, and Elder Torgersen.  They are all such good elders!  On Tuesdays the Church also emails me the new missionary recommends that are assigned to our mission--and on this day I got a record number of twelve new missionaries who were assigned to our mission in just one week!  

On Tuesday evening we had some special visitors--Michael and Nancy Boyer, Juliann's brother and sister-in -law and their four children.  They have recently moved to Las Vegas for Michael's job as an RN, so we were so excited to see them and have dinner with them!  They are just darling and we had a great time with them--but I forgot to take a picture with them!   I was devastated!  

On Wednesday I was invited by Sister Larson and Sister Hoffman to go out to lunch!  Their choice to go was Subway, and we had SO much fun talking!  They both told me that when the announcement was made to lower the age for missionaries they immediately knew that they should serve even though they hadn't planned on it before.  They are both beautiful and wonderful missionaries.

On Thursday night we were able to go see "The Music Man" with the Buffalo Ward Empty Nesters FHE group.  Even though I saw it the week before, I was so excited for Glen to see it!  We had a little picnic dinner and had so much fun with this group.  Pictured are Jay and Dorothy Burt, us, Eula May Judd, Tania and Brent Leonard, Jay Chapman, Lata Tu'ua, and Valerie Chapman.

  Bradley Stirling, who works at DI, would come into the office a lot to visit us because this was his last week to work at DI.  His next step in the training process is to get a job outside of DI.  He's a sweet man and for some reason, he really latched onto us and kept telling us how much he would miss us.

I was at DI looking for more desks and chairs for the missionaries when I saw Ashley and Priscilliano standing together.  I was SO excited because I had wanted a picture of them so bad before we left, so I could remember how much they had always helped me throughout our mission.  DI has been a big part of our experience here and I just love the people who work here and have helped me so much.  Glen always calls Priscilliano one of the Three Nephites because he is not married and is so awesome and good.

On Saturday we drove out to Pahrump to bring furniture to the member home who will be housing a new set of elders, bringing the total number of missionaries who serve in Pahrump to eight!  This is a beautiful home, and we were so appreciative of Elder Bloomfield and Elder Houghton who came to help us move in the furniture.

After all of our work, we met the other missionaries at Mom's cafe and had lunch with them.  We had so much fun with them!  They all love it in Pahrump and it's the first time the mission has ever had sister missionaries there.  Pictured are Sis. Rasmussen, Sis. Baker, Elder Wong, Elder Van Etten, Elder Bloomfield (he is SO funny!), and Elder Houghton.  

After lunch we went to Elder Wong and Elder Van Etten's "house" so that Glen could inspect it.  It was quite the place, but they like it!  

We got back just in time t ogo to the Hofbrauhouse, a German restaurant that Glen has been wanting to go to since we arrived in Las Vegas.  It is patterned exactly after the Hofbrauhouse in Munich Germany where he served his mission, and where Danny, Heidi, and we went in 2006.  It was quite the place!  A musician came to our table and played this huge Swiss horn--it was really awesome. 

We were so excited to go to dinner with Joni and Dave Rasmussen and Spencer and Jill Judd.  The food was great and we had such a good time with them.  It was a good way to end our busy week!

A very busy week leading up to Father's Day

Today is Father's Day and I want to express gratitude and appreciation for Glen, who has been a wonderful father to our children.  He has been steady and consistent and has provided refuge, safety, a wonderful home, teachings, support and love for our children.  How grateful I have been for his goodness, kindness, patience, acceptance, and forgiveness.  He would always drop everything to help them for whatever they have asked.  He has tried to follow the Savior in His Christlike attributes that have blessed our lives.  Thank you for everything, and Happy Father's Day, Glen!

Happy Father's Day from our children and grandchildren!

This week has been so very busy with so many things going on!  Glen again had two full days of visa waiters from the MTC which is hard, because he also has full days of work in the office to complete.  He has all the housing now for the new transfers except two, so he's made a lot of progress.  He is also training Elder Sudweeks, which takes a lot of his time, and also has to answer questions and provide assistance to missionaries all the time.  I've also been busy preparing files and notebooks for the incoming missionaries and a notebook for the new mission president and the usual many things going on, plus training Sister Sudweeks.  

We heard this week one of the many wonderful stories we hear about our missionaries.  Elder Zachary was teaching a man in need and he has accepted baptism. He had challenged him to attend church more regularly when the man said, "I just don't have any shoes that I can wear to church."  Elder Zachary asked him what size he wore, and on finding that they wore the same size, he took his own shoes off and gave them to the man.  It was a tender moment.  Elder Zachary went out into the 105 degree heat without any shoes, but was rejoicing nevertheless.  These are the kinds of missionaries that are serving in the Army of the Lord!

On Monday night we had dinner with Wendy, Jamie, Christian, Elder Vieira and Elder Mavromatis.  Afterward, Elder Vieira and Elder Mavromatis taught them the three pillars of forming the foundation of a testimony:  prayer, scripture study, and attending church.  They used an awesome object lesson using three cups and three knives, which held a lot of weight, as shown in the picture.  It was so great!  The Spirit was strong as they taught Wendy and Jamie, and we are praying for them to be able to strengthen their testimonies and for Jamie to be baptized.

On Tuesday, several elders came in and while they were waiting for some things to get done, they sang "Ye Elders of Israel" for us.  Oh, it was just amazing!  The harmony they used was just beautiful and they blended so well.  I love moments like these!  What great, dedicated elders we have and what a treat it was! They are, from left, Elders Fugate, Gaytan, Jett, Walker, Jarman, and Reel.

On Wednesday, Michae Garcia (formerly Sis. Garcia) came to the office with her parents to introduce them to us.  She was released just a few months ago, and was on her way to Provo for school.  She was an awesome missionary, and it was so fun to see her as a released missionary!

Bishop and Sister Evans also stopped in to see us from Logandale and brought us this whole box full of goodies:  homegrown tomatoes, zucchini, three kinds of peppers, and onions, plus homemade apricot jam, homemade tomato basil soup, with croutons and cheese to go on top!  It was incredible! (Half of it is gone in this picture.) They are truly the salt of the earth and a very choice couple.

On Wednesday, Randy, my friend from high school, also stopped by to bring us some home grown figs to try. They were quite interesting and pretty good! Can you believe how nice that was?  What a kind, good person he is.

On Wednesday night, we went over to Sis. Splain's and Sis. Houseman's for dinner and games.  We played chickenfoot dominoes and had so much fun.  How I love these senior missionaries!  Sister Macdonald gave me a sweet card and homemade loaf of wheat bread and Sis. Clark gave me this hotpad.  

On Thursday night, we went to the Sudweeks apartment and had dinner and played games.  We played games that we've never played before--Quirkle, and Sadoku.  They were so much fun!  The apartment looks so different and we had a great time with them.  The mission is very blessed to have them come here.

On Friday night, Dianne Christensen planned a girls night out to say goodbye to Teresa Wilhelmsen  and me--can you believe that?  She had invited several others to come, and I couldn't believe all the work she had put into it.  We drove to Spring Mountain Ranch where they have outdoor community plays that run during the summer.  On the way there, we passed these burros on the side of the road--burros that I have wanted to see since we got here, but they have never been there when we have passed by!  And to see a little family together was such a bonus!  Dianne pulled over so that I could take a picture, and as I was getting the camera ready, a coyote also trotted by.  I was so excited!

We spread out our blankets on the grass and all the ladies had brought things for a picnic for us.  There were hoagie sandwiches, fresh fruit, potato salad, chips, drinks, and brownies.  It was incredible!  Then they presented us with a book that they had all signed.  I was just stunned with their kindness and caring.  It meant so much!  From left, Teresa Wilhelmsen, me, Dianne Christensen, Joni Robison, Leslie Thomas, Kara Matthews, Kaylene Chambers, Melissa Smith, and Bethany Jones.  Awesome ladies.

Teresa, Dianne, and me before the play started.  It was "The Music Man" and it was so well done and fun!  The stage is behind us.  We had so much fun!

Glen and I got up early Saturday morning and went to Beatty (110 miles away) to check out our missionaries who were just sent there at the last transfer.  It's a tiny little town, but so charming, and Elder Hart and Elder Wrathall just love it there.  This is the apartment building they live in.  Pretty nice for such a tiny town!

We took them to eat breakfast at the local diner and had a great time talking to them.  They are the first elders to serve in this area exclusively and they love the distinction and the opportunity to lay the foundation.

This is the small church that they meet at.  It is a branch and only about 20 members are attending now, so they are excited to build up the branch.  They're great elders.

From there we headed to the northern area of Death Valley. Beatty is kind of the Nevada gateway to this part of Death Valley.

We went on a tour to see Scotty's Castle, a huge and beautiful castle built in Death Valley in the 1930's   There is a fascinating story surrounding it's history and we loved hearing about it.  It really is out in the middle of nowhere!

We hurried home (a three hour drive) and then went to dinner with the Larkins, our wonderful friends.  We had so much fun with them!  They are adorable.  It's been a busy busy week, a very full week, and we loved it.