Bittersweet: The June Transfers

"This wave of truth and righteousness is wondrous! It is not man-made! It comes from the Lord, who said, “I will hasten my work in its time.” This wave is empowered by a divine announcement made 193 years ago. It consisted of only seven words: “This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"

Elder Nelson

        Transfer time is always bitter and sweet, bitter because we have to say goodbye to our dear missionaries with whom we have worked and whom we love so dearly. But also oh, so sweet in that we get to welcome a new batch of delightful, enthusiastic novice missionaries that we get to love and work with now and in the future.

        The first of those bittersweet experiences came with the calling of Elder Quick to be an Assistant to the President along with Elder Daynes, currently serving. But that meant Elder Warner would be leaving us after serving so faithfully and well.

Transition of the Assistants to the President:
Elder Quick newly-called, Elder Daynes,
President Woodbury, Elder Warner
departing two days later

        The all-sweet part began soon after 4:00 on Monday, the 10th, as the first of our newest missionaries arrived at the Louisville Airport. It was hard to tell which were more excited, them or us!

First-sighting

Sister Moskot, Sister Oliverson, Sister Kerr, Sister Pack, Sister Kankamp, Sister Munk

Sister Moskot, Sister Kankamp, Sister Oliverson,
Sister Kerr, Sister Munk

Sister Child, Elder Evans, Elder Jensen, Sister Davidson,
Elder Jones, Sister Hall

Elder Hill, Elder Eatough, Sister Bailey, Sister Byers, Sister Child,
Hermana Bailey, Elder Evans, Sister Davidson, Elder Jones, Sister Hall

        Our record-breaking group of thirty was scheduled to arrive in three flights spaced about twenty minutes apart. The middle one did come in on time, but the third was an hour and half late, and the first, supposed to be in at 3:35, didn't arrive until 10:20! We commented that the Adversary must know these Elders and Sisters are destined to do great things here in the Great Kentucky Lousiville Mission and was trying hard to thwart them coming in.
        We had tightly planned the evening to the minute, as to how the missionaries would be transported to the Mission Home, when each interview with the President would begin, when Sister Woodbury would do Orientation, pictures would be taken, dinner served, and the Testimony Meeting held, but all the scheduling had to be thrown to the wayside. Modifying and improvising as we went, the first two groups were moved on over to the Mission Home and got settled in, with President Woodbury beginning Interviews as quickly as possible, though in a different order than anticipated. Once all of the two flights worth had arrived, Sister Woodbury started in to do Orientation then we all sat down to dinner along with the two couples from the office, the Bolligers and Halvorsens. The latter, by the way,  had put together and cooked the potatoes in the office oven since the two Mission Home ovens were full with the main course. 
        Using her I-Pad, Sister Bolliger kept us apprised of the flight status of the Sisters and Elders stranded in the Houston airport. As the time got pushed further and further back we had no other choice but to go ahead and have our Testimony Meeting downstairs. It began, as is tradition, with a skit by the Assistants, about a missionary's first day in the Great Kentucky Louisville Mission, when, after an exhausting day of work filled with disappointment, they finally find a man who at the same time as they, has been praying for help from the Lord. It ends with the tired but very happy Elder falling asleep during planning time that night and his Trainer covering him with his own suit jacket, saying, "Welcome to the best two years..."

        Getting up at 2:00 a.m. that morning at the MTC in Provo, then traveling all day, made for a lot of very tired missionaries, but none so much as the last group who finally got to the Mission Home just before midnight. We fed them the same dinner as their predecessors, then put them promptly to bed.

Sister Durfee

Sister Davidson

Elder Jensen

Hermana Adams

Sister Hall

Sister Bailey

Sister Byers

Sister Moskot

Sister Kankamp

Sister Oliverson

Sister Kerr

Sister Pack

Sister Bayles

Sister Munk

Sister Child

Elder Evans

Elder Newbold

Elder Jensen

Elder Eatough

Sister Swenson

Elder Van Beekum

Elder Shelley

Sister Reeder

Sister Saunders

Sister Smith

Sister Williams

Sister Priebe

Sister Ray

Sister Pope

       Normally all the interviews would have been done and finished Monday night, but instead the last ten had to occur starting at 6:40 Tuesday morning. Usually by that time President Woodbury has prayerfully made the decisions as to which new missionary goes with which Trainer, but naturally that wasn't able to happen until he had had a chance to talk to everyone. While he was doing this, Sister Woodbury conducted another Orientation for hte late arrivals while the first two groups did individual and companionship study with the Assistants. Everyone was reunited for a talk on finances by Elder Bollger from the Mission Office, and then pictures with President Woodbury were taken along with a group photo on the front steps of the Mission Home.

Sister Pack with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Durfee with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Bailey with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Hill with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Jones with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Newbold with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Evans with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Van Beekum with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Jensen with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Eatough with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Oliverson with President and Sister Woodbury

Hermana Adams with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Priebe with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Swenson with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Bayles with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Ray with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Kankamp with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Pope with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Smith with President and Sister Woodbury

Elder Shelley with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Williams with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Saunders with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Munk with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Child with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Hall with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Davidson with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Byers with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Reeder with President and Sister Woodbury

Sister Kerr with Presidenet and Sister Woodbury

Sister Moskot with President and Sister Woodbury

Top: President Woodbury, Elder Van Beekum, Elder Shelley, Elder Evans,
 Elder Newbold, Elder Jensen, Elder Jones, Elder Eatough
Second from top: Sister Child, Sister Byers, Elder Hill, Sister Bayles, Sister Durfee
Middle: Sister Oliverson, Sister Munk, Sister Williams, Sister Priebe, Sister Smith, Sister Kankamp
Second from front: Sister Saunders, Sister Pope, Sister Kerr, Sister Reeder,
Sister Swenson, Hermana Adams, Sister Bailey
Front: Sister Moskot, Sister Davidson, Sister Ray, Sister Pack, Sister Hall, Sister Woodbury

        A mass text was sent out Monday that Transfer Meeting on Tuesday would be at 11:00 instead of 10:00.  Still we cut it close getting everyone transported over to the church across the parking lot from the Mission Office (The 12-seater mission van, the Assistants mini-van, President and Sister Woodbury's cars, and the Bolligers mini-van were all called into play). During the meeting the departing missionaries gave the Words of Wisdom then the new arrivals were introduced and their Trainers. "Called to Serve" was sung, "GKLM-style. From there the rest of the Transfers for the mission were called out.

With the largest incoming group ever, and all the other transfers,
it made for a very large Transfer Meeting

Everyone loves to mingle after the meeting
Elder Brook and Elder Nielson are in the foreground

Mingle, mingle, mingle...

Sister Whiting, Sister Murphy, Sister Tripp, Sister Smith

Sister Minson, Sister Williams

Sister Saunders, Sister Goodrich

Sister Egbert, Sister Munk

Sister Munk, Sister Baldwin, Sister Jaco

Sister Myler, Siser Brooks

Elder Gill, Elder Behling

The posterity of Elder Blake - Elders he trained
and Elders they trained, etc.
Elder Shelley, Elder Hill, ELder Holt, Elder Kidd,
Elder Evans, Elder Thomas, Elder Blake, Elder Hathaway,
Elder Despain, Elder Scott

Elder Moorhouse, Elder Stoddard, Sister Walker, Elder Clawson

Elder Day-Nuah, Elder Stoddard

Elder J. Johnson, Elder Meisel, Elder Shousen, Elder Pradera,
Elder Blauer, Elder Gallagher, Elder Carson

Elder Larsen, Elder Seal, ELder Tuttle, Elder Scott,
Sister Thorne, Sister Pack, Sister Black, Sister Hall

Elder Gallagher, Elder Carson, Elder Larsen, Elder Seal,
Elder Tuttle, Elder Scott
Sister Thorne, Sister Pack, Sister Black, Sister Hall

Sister Mickelson, Sister Hodges, Sister West

Our new Sister Training Leaders for the East Area:
Sister Hodges and Sister West

Elder Lowe, Elder Butcher, Elder Hathaway

Sister Whiting, Sister Murphy

Elder Scott, Elder Tuttle, Elder Hathaway, Elder Johnson, Elder Scott

        A meeting about the 12- Week Training Program ensued with the new missionaries and their Trainers, after which lunch was served to them, the departing missionaries, and the members who were giving rides, and pictures were taken in front of the sign at the Mission Office before everyone left for their areas.

Sister Woodbury, Sister Ward, Sister Priebe

Sister Woodbury, Sister Loveless, Sister Child, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Baldwin, Sister Bayles, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Black, Sister Hall, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Thorne, Sister Pack, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Pisciotta, Sister Davidson, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Peterson, Sister Byers, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Swenson, Sister Jensen, Sister Moskot,
President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Singleton, Elder Eatough, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Rasmussen, Elder Evans, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Holt, Elder Hill, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Hildebrandt,
Elder Van Beekum, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Sizleove, Elder Jones, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Hermana Davis, Hermana Adams, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury Sister Ray, Sister Dickerson, Sister Oliverson,
President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Logan, Sister Durfee, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Heywood, Sister Reeder, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Evans, Elder Shelley, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Horlacher, Sister Pope, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury,Sister Egbert, Sister Munk, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Goodrich, Sister Saunders, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, SIster Roberts, Sister Bailey, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Kuenzle, Sister Kerr, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister Short, Sister Kankamp, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Torgersen, Elder Evans, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Elder Earl, Elder Jensen, President Woodbury

Sister Woodbury, Sister McInnis, Sister Williams, President Woodbury

Waiting to pick up mail at the Mission Office
Elder Loser?, Elder Edwards, Elder Kidd, Elder and Sister Leavitt,
 Elder Gallagher, ELder Carson, Elder Dopp

President and Sister Woodbury, Elder Garrity, Elder Haws, Elder Nielson, Elder Blake, Elder Gardner, Elder Lipsh, Elder Warner, Elder Adams, Sister Walker, Elder Olsen. Elder Clawson somehow didn't get in the picture.

        Since everything was pushed back because of the late arrival and interviews of the last arriving group, the pre-session meeting we usually have with the Temple President and Matron in the Sealing Room had to be cancelled, but instead the Temple President came in and spoke specially to us in the Endowment Room before the session started. This is a time just for us on an afternoon the Temple is normally not open. It is a tender and sweet way for us to spend time together before these wonderful missionaries go home, or as President Woodbury calls it, before their next Transfer.

At the Louisville Temple
Sister Bolliger, Elder Bolliger, Elder Adams, ELder Lipsh, Elder Olsen, ELder Garrity
Hermana Velasquez, Sister Walker, Elder Nielson, President Woodbury, Elder Blake, Elder Haws
Elder Clawson, Elder Warner, Sister Woodbury

        Back at the Mission Home, President Woodbury was able to have Exit Interviews either that night or in the morning. We had dinner together then a tender Testimony Meeting. As interviews continued some of the Elders played ping-pong and then most all played group parlor games. We were joined by Elder and Sister Bolliger, dropping off laundered sheets, who stayed and played with us.

Elder Gardner and Sister Bolliger gave us a marvelous impromptu concert.

Elder Gardner

Elder Lipsh

Sister Walker

Elder Clawson

Elder Nielson

Elder Garrity

Elder Olsen

Elder Adams

Elder Haws

Elder Blake

Elder Warner

        In the morning we had breakfast then it was time to say our goodbyes - that was the bitter part of the bittersweet. These were missionaries we had known their whole mission, the Elders being those we met in the MTC and our first group that joined us soon after we arrived in the GKLM. (The Sisters from that group went home six months ago.) We had seen them as bleary-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights new arrivals and had watched them grow and develop as ambassadors of the Lord; it made it even harder than usual to send them on their way. 

        "Well done, thou good and faithful servants..."