Twas the Night Before the Night Before

        Twas the night before the night before Christmas, in other words the 23rd of December, when twenty-five missionaries had a sleepover of sorts with us at the Mission Home. They had come into town either in their own mission cars or with Senior Couples from outlying areas in anticipation of our Mission Wide Christmas Eve Conference in Louisville. In addition to the twenty-five staying with us, others from long distances stayed with local missionaries in their apartments with everyone else driving in the next morning. 
        Back to the Mission Home group, most were hungry when they arrived throughout the late afternoon and early evening, so I fed them hamburger stroganoff on rice, with salad, veggies, and ice-cream sandwiches for dessert. After which we gathered to play the "Name Game" (very challenging with so many playing) and "Signs.". 
        The Elders' bunk room downstairs holds only twelve so we turned the Training Room into another Elders dorm with those involved using various pads, comforters and pillows to fashion beds for the night. The Elders' bathroom has two showers and sinks, but still it took awhile to get everyone ready the next morning. The seven Sisters fit nicely in the small bedrooms on the other side of the basement with two bathrooms at their disposal. 
        In the morning there was breakfast to be eaten, clean-up, and the start of many, many loads of laundry (25 x 2 sheets plus pillowcases and 25 towels and washcloths) before leaving for the church. I was over there two hours early to supervise getting the tables and chairs set up and rehearse with program participants there at the Louisville Stake Center. The missionaries who had brought cars followed an hour later and President Woodbury brought the rest in the mission van, Gus.

Ten of the eighteen Elders
Elder Robison, Elder Sidwell, Elder Howell, Elder Taylor, Elder Crichton,
Elder Clawson, Elder Loser, Elder Lowe, Elder Haws, Elder Nielson

Sister Ford, Sister Jensen, Sister Ward, Sister Walker, Elder Selvage,
President Woodbury, and Elder Olsen

Sister Ford, Sister Melendez, Sister Walker, and Sister Ward

Elder Clawson, Elder Loser, Elder DeGraw,
Elder Crichton, Elder Lowe, and Elder Haws

New Senior Couples in the GKLM

        The GKLM has had the blessing of the addition of three new Senior Couples recently.

        Elder and Sister Trimming arrived in November and are serving an eighteen-month mission in Scottsburg, Indiana.

Elder and Sister Brinkman came in December and are serving six months in Campbellsville, Kentucky.

Elder and Sister Long, who also arrived in December, are in Robinson, Illinois to begin their eighteen months of service.

These are warm, enthusiastic and loving couples who are and will bless the branches and areas of their stewardship. We welcome them wholeheartedly!

A Pre-Christmas Bonus

        We were thinking that November Transfers were completed but apparently we were wrong! With only two days notice, we received a pre-Christmas or Post-Thanksgiving bonus on Tuesday, the 27th, in the form of three additional missionaries to our GKLM family. 
        Sister Melendez, from Belize, had been assigned to Austrailia, then England, and now because of visa problems has been reassigned to us! 

Sister Melendez

        Elder Carroll and Elder O'Brien are Visa-Waiters going to Peru, who will be here for whatever time it takes for their visas to come in. 

Elder O'Brien

Elder Carroll

        After some quick scrambling and rearranging of apartments and areas, Elder O'Brien is being trained by Elder Singleton,

Sister Woodbury, Elder Singleton, Elder O'Brien, President Woodbury

 Elder Carroll by Elder Baker,

Sister Woodbury, Elder Baker, Elder Carroll, President Woodbury

 and Sister Melendez by Sister Ford and Sister Jensen.

Sister Woodbury, Sister Ford,
Sister Melendez, Sister Jensen, President Woodbury

Sister Ford, Sister Melendez, Sister Jensen

        Welcome to the Great Kentucky Louisville Mission!

November Transfers

For those less knowledgeable about such things:

A turkey is a bird that is eaten at Thanksgiving, but a person or thing that is of little appeal, a dud, a loser, is also referred to as a turkey.  

Cold turkey is what is left over after Thanksgiving dinner but also means suddenly or without preparation. 

Turkeys don't talk, but when you want to speak bluntly or get down to business you talk turkey.  Gobble is the sound a male turkey makes, but the word also means to eat or swallow food hastily and in large mouthfuls. 

And just so you'll know, a group of turkeys is called a rafter.

        We here in the GKLM had a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, not the least of which was the arrival of thirteen wonderful new missionaries just three days before the holiday. And there wasn't and isn't a turkey in the bunch!

        After loading up bags and driving to the Mission Home about ten minutes from the airport, the rafter, or rather group, settled in, had a snack, and, despite not being turkeys, started talking turkey in Interviews with President Woodbury and Orientation with Sister Woodbury. A couple of hours later both events were completed and we were joined by the two office couples, Elder and Sister Bolliger, and Elder and Sister Lewis for dinner. After gobbling down stuffed shells with meat sauce, a green salad, a fruit salad, scrumptious cheesy bread, and pumpkin cheesecake, the missionaries, the Assistants to the President, and President and Sister Woodbury went downstairs to the Training Room for a Testimony Meeting, a true spiritual feast. A good night's sleep was richly deserved by one and all, but especially the Elders and Sisters who had started off at the MTC at 4:00 a.m.

Elder Meisel

Elder Wessells

Sister Goodrich

Elder Pipe

Elder Johnson

Elder Arnold

Elder Dursteler

Elder Champion

Elder Edwards

Elder Crook

Sister Egbert

Elder Tuttle

Elder Miller

At breakfast

        Following a hot breakfast the next morning, all participated in Companionship Study conducted by the Assistants, 

Temporarily, we had three Assistants to the President.
Elder Shaffer on the left and Elder Gardner on the far right
had been the amazing and enthusiastic Assistants, but now
with our beloved Elder Shaffer going home, Elder Jolley, to the right
of President Woodbury, was called to the position.

and listened as Elder Bolliger gave instruction on missionary finances. More picture-taking ensued, then...

Sister Goodrich

Sister Egbert

Elder Johnson

Elder Wessells 

Elder Crook

Elder Pipe

Elder Miller

Elder Tuttle

Elder Meisel

Elder Dursteler

Elder Arnold

Elder Champion

Elder Edwards

Top: Elder Miller, Elder Tuttle, Elder Crook, Elder Edwards, Elder Champion, Elder Johnson
Middle: Elder Pipe, Sister Woodbury, President Woodbury, Elder Wessells, Elder Dursteler,
Front: Elder Meisel, Sister Goodrich, Sister Egbert, Elder Arnold

...it was time to pack-up and proceed over to the Church next to the Mission Office about two miles away for Transfer Meeting.

        Words of Wisdom were given by the departing Elders and Sisters then the new arrivals were introduced to their first companions, aka Trainers. "Called to Serve" was sung, GKLM-style, then the rest of the Transfers were called out for those changing companions and areas in the mission, always a sizable number. After the meeting the Trainers and Trainees met for a Training Session regarding the 12-Week (you've guessed it) Training Program. 

Mingling following the Transfer Meeting

Elder Selvage, Elder Bratter, Elder Migliori, Elder Bjorklund

Elder Lipsh, Elder Arnold, Elder Rollins

Elder Arnold, Elder Berube, Elder Rollins

Sister Goodrich, Sister Clemons

Elder Wood, Elder Magleby, Elder Beale, Elder Dansie

Elder Ipson, Elder Edwards, Elder Earl, Elder Peterson, Elder Day-Nuah

Elder Casteneda and Elder Blake

Former Capital District missionaries
Elder Baker, Elder Stevenson, Sister Walker, Elder Simms,
Elder Wilson, Elder Jolley

Lunch was served at the church then everyone walked across the parking lot to the Mission Office for pictures in front of the Mission sign. 

Sister Woodbury, Elder Potter, Elder Crook, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Allen, Elder Champion, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Earl, Elder Edwards, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Mickelsen, Sister Egbert, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Souza, Elder Johnson, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Forsgren, Elder Pipe, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Anderson, Elder Dursteler, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Rollins, Elder Arnold, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Musgrave, Elder Wessells, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder St. Martin, Elder Meisel, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Clemons, Sister Goodrich, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Garrity, Elder Miller, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Hicken, Elder Tuttle, President Woodbury

That was it for the new missionaries. Going relatively cold turkey, they flew the coop, so to speak, and drove off with their companions to their first areas.

Elder Casteneda adding on the first part of our mission name

        As the new Sisters and Elders departed, the more "experienced" Sisters and Elders had their turn in front of the camera...

Sister Nelson, Sister Woodbury, Hermana Guerra, Elder E. Nielsen, President Woodbury, Elder WIlson, Elder Shaffer, Elder Bjorklund, Elder Casteneda, Elder Migliori, Elder Richins, Elder K. Wood, Elder Fry
Elder Lush, Elder Bratter, Elder Fisher

then briefly gathered back at the Mission Home before traveling to the Louisville Temple in Crestwood. They met in a Sealing Room with the Temple President and Matron before going through a special session just for them, joined by the office couples.

Far back: Elder Wilson, Elder Migliori, Elder Nielsen, Elder Wood, Sister Bolliger, Elder Bolliger
Middle: Elder Casteneda, Elder Richins, Elder Fry, Elder Shaffer, Elder Bjorklund,
Elder Bratter, Sister Nelson,
Elder Fisher, Elder Lewis
Front: Elder Lush, Sister Lewis, Hermana Guerra, Sister Woodbury, President Woodbury

        Back at the Mission Home that evening, President Woodbury conducted Exit Interviews, which he had begun earlier in the afternoon. Everyone stuffed themselves on the same dinner menu as had been presented the night before, then we had another Testimony Meeting, a moving and touching experience. Bags were weighed and re-packed over and over until they were finally zipped up and their owners got a few hours of sleep.

Hermana Guerra

Elder Lush

Elder Nielsen

Elder Bratter

Elder Wilson

Elder Bjorklund

Elder Fisher

Elder Wood

Elder Migliori

Elder Fry

Sister Nelson

Elder Shaffer

Elder Richins

Elder Casteneda

      Very early Wednesday morning, after enduring multiple cancellations and rescheduling of flights because of weather and holiday travel, the Elders and Sisters flew the coop homeward, leaving their full-time missionary service behind. 
       Oh, how we'll miss them!