Bon Nochi di Santo Domingo!
This week went great, and transfers were a success! We got to have our P-Day today, Wednesday, which was a huge blessing. We got to rest from transfers and got to catch up on our sleep.
This time when we went to the airport in the morning, we only had one sister to take, Sister Ward from Thatcher. Then we headed back and tried to rest for about an hour, and then we picked up the new missionaries and they gave us breakfast at the CCM (that's what we call the MTC here in the DR), that was huge blessing too! We brought them back, and then we started the normal process there of the introduction meetings for the new missionaries and the meetings for the missionaries that are going to be their trainers. We also went back and picked up a new elder that just got set apart I believe. They are starting a new system here for elders who are Dominicans and going to foreign missions and will have to wait on visas. The elder that we picked up from the CCM is one of the first to be a part of this program. The new program is that when there are Dominican elders who are going to other countries like that and they have to wait on a visa, then they just go straight into the field in a mission in the country that they are coming from, so we get some of them, and they never enter the CCM here in the Dominican Republic. They will actually be in the mission here until they get their visa and head to their respective countries where they will serve their missions. Then, once they get their visas they will go the CCM that is in the country of their mission, which is the CCM where they should be. So there will actually be elders who have been in the field for a couple of transfers without any training who will then enter the MTC after a couple of months in the field and get their training in the MTC, pretty interesting, huh? I think that that will be the new system now for the Dominican Republic and missionaries who are waiting on visas.
(We asked Jeff if Senior couples are among those that they pick up and take to the airport each transfer.) We do not pick up senior couples normally, and they don't typically come with the elders from the MTC. They usually come at different times, and up until now, other people have picked them up normally. People from the central offices I think. But that may change, I'm not for sure, because we are now going to be put almost completely in charge of senior missionary housing for senior missionaries who are assigned to our mission. We are going to be in charge of looking for housing for the senior missionaries who are coming to the mission. The next couple that we are looking for housing for is actually a couple from Arizona that should be getting here in April. Their names are the Haws, any chance that you know them? Haha, I doubt it.
James is doing great, I just feel kind of bad because he has been wanting to meet with us, but we just haven't been able to because of how busy we've been with transfers. We actually didn't go to our church on Sunday either. President invited us to go with him to Sabana Grande de Boya on Sunday and attend the meetings there with him and his wife. It was sweet, they have a really nice building there. There actually haven't been missionaries there for a while, but they are just getting put in again this transfer, so they are going to love that. We actually drove those missionaries out to their house yesterday, so they are there and ready to go. That was a pretty good story actually.
We took those elders (the ones opening up the area in Grande de Boya) out to their house in the office van because they had never seen the house. They were "white washing" as we call it, where two missionaries enter an area at the same time. In this case it happened because the area was closed prior to this transfer. So, we drove out there, probably about an hour or an hour and a half, and then I was supposed to show them where the house was, because I was the only one who had actually seen it before. So, we passed by the church and I said to turn down the next street, and we went down the street and down some more, but we couldn't find the house, so we tried the next street and couldn't find it, and then we ended up trying all over that area, and back down the first street again, haha. We finally called my regular companion Elder Delarosa, and he told me that it was by the police station, so we asked someone where that was, then we went there and turned down the street, and then we were able to find the house. I had told us to turn too early, haha, because I had never entered the town from that direction, I had always entered from the other side. So, then we finally got there, and as I was getting out of the car, I asked the others, "you have the keys, right?" And then they all started smiling and saying that I was joking, but I really didn't have the keys. Being the financial secretary, I never thought about getting the keys from Elder DelaRosa before we left! He is the missionary over housing so he keeps all the keys and I am usually with him. This time I was with Elder Jensen. No one had the keys. So we were on the northern edge of the mission, and the key for the house was on the complete other side of the mission! Wow, that made things difficult. So, we called the landlord who lives above the house on the second floor if he had a copy of the key, but he said that he didn't, and he came down and tried to help us. We asked him if there was a locksmith, but he said that the locksmiths only work during the day, so they wouldn't be out at that time. So then I thought about a door that I had seen inside the house that was a weaker door and just lead to the outside. It was actually a door that entered from the garage. So, the landlord let us in the garage, but the door wouldn't open. So, he backed his car out of the garage, and we had to move our van so that he could. As we were parking the van again, I jumped in the van real quick with Elder Jenson and we said a quick prayer, that was the only thing we had to try to get into this house. We just explained to Heavenly Father that we were trying our best to do His Work, but we had forgotten the keys, and we asked Him if it was His will to please help us to get into the house. So, we got out, and we talked with the landlord, and he said, "give me a minute, I'm going to see if a guy that I know can break the lock off." Before we had prayed, like I said, he said that all of the locksmiths didn't work at night, but after we prayed and got out of the van, he said that he knew someone that might be able to open the lock. He went and looked for the guy, and he found him and he came with a hammer and a chizel looking tool. He broke the lock off, and we got into the house, and the missionaries were still safe with the lock broken, because that door leads into a garage that is completely closed and has two other doors that lead out of it. What miracle! We were able to get the missionaries into the house (both of which are from Arizona, Elder Hiatt and Elder Ford), and they were able to get all set up and ready to go. We just have to take them the keys as soon as we can. I truly know that the Lord does hear every word that we say in prayer. How grateful I am that He helped us with those missionaries.
I love you all and am so grateful for the righteous examples that you are for me. Thank you so much Mom and Dad for helping me with my registration for school, that has been such a big help for me. I filled out the form and sent it back to you, please just let me know if you need anything else.
I should also tell you, there is a new missionary that came in yesterday named Elder Rainey. He actually went to Gilbert High, and we might be family. His mom is a Gillespe, and she is from Pinetop I think. He knows Aly Weech, Brother Grover, and Brother Abplanalp, and a bunch of kids from Highland that I know. It was really cool to get to talk to him and see how many connections that we have!
I love you all and thank you so much for all that you do! I will try to send pictures. Also, you talked about Matt Carlino in the last letter, does he play for BYU? How did Nick Jonson do this year as a guard for UA? Did you know that I trained for him too? His brother might be playing somewhere too, his name is Cris. Any idea what they're up to? Love you!
Love,
Elder DeSpain
