The MTC

Eating at the MTC is so interesting!  They feed close to 2000 missionaries 3 times a day.  They have 3 different times for each meal and if you are sitting there when a new bunch comes, they look like starving ants.  The Cafeteria is nice and clean.  The food is definitely geared for younger people, but good.  You have a little card you swipe and you can eat all you want for about $4.00.  After seeing the size of some of the Missionaries I decided that this was a very good plan.   On Wednesdays the new missionaries come and it is very exciting because they have ice cream (all you want with toppings) both for Lunch and Dinner.  They also had Steak for dinner.  I guess they want them to be happy to be there.

This is the Cafeteria Empty and locked

This is one end

And this is the other end

It was fun seeing all the young missionaries.  They really looked sooooo young!  And they were so nice to us, opening doors and letting us in line.  We had a Fireside and Elder L. Tom Perry spoke, we were seated early, down in the front of this big Auditorium, when they opened the doors in the back upper floor, it sounded like a Stampede, not because the missionaries were running, but because there were so many of them, 1950.  The music was beautiful and to hear 2000 missionaries sing Called To Serve, gave me goose bumps.

The whole experience at the MTC was very SPIRITUAL.  The lessons and lecturers were wonderful and helped us learn what we needed to do.  We had volunteers come for us to practice teaching the discussions to and that was scary and amazing.  I learned that I already knew what I needed to know, and our young missionary trainers, taught us how to present what we knew.  We also practiced the information for the visitor's Center we were going to and that helped me know what to do when I got to Hawaii.

                          

This is an original copy of the first publishing of the Book of Mormon

The Traditional Missionary Picture showing the location of our call

These are the Teels who are going to the PCC in Hawaii

This is the whole group of Senior Couples that we were with in the MTC, they were going all over the world and we enjoyed getting to know them.  We felt so blessed that we were going to our Hawaii assignment.  Maybe a little guilty even, until one of  the Leadership Sisters told us that we should not feel that way.  Many that were there also had either requested or been invited to serve in their areas and that was the way the Lord arranges things.  We were going where we were called because that was where the Lord wanted us to serve.

 

These are our the Young training Missionaries who work at the MTC

The Missionary Training Center

On October 26, 2009, we entered the MTC.  Senior couples are allowed to stay at home if they want to and commute each day from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.  We were excited, nervous and a little scared (Me).
They no longer allow friends and families to go in with the missionaries.  We drove our little white Jag there because it was our only car, we received all kinds of joking comments from the older Elders volunteering there, about what a tough mission Hawaii would be and how they would be happy to take care of our car for us.  It was a little embarrassing!  It is a beautiful facility and you fill the Spirit so STRONG as you enter.  They took our picture as we came in and then we went through an orientation.

Farewell Party - October 22, 2009

Sarah and Steve organized a wonderful Farewell Party at the Office on October 22, 2009.  They invited over a hundred co-workers and business associates.  Nicki and her friend JoAnn even made ribbon leis as well as real flower ones flown over from Hawaii.

There was a beautiful buffet filled with all kinds of goodies and Bird of Paradise flower arrangements.  Everyone went all out to make it really nice.  We sure appreciate all they have done for us.  It is hard to leave such a wonderful family.  I'm so grateful that we can talk and e-mail as much as we want to.

We spoke in Church that next Sunday October 25, 2009.  It was so nice to see our own family there, along with our brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews and many friends and neighbors.  Boy am I glad that is over, I was really nervous.  We had a nice luncheon at our house after and got  to visit with everyone.  Kenny and Carol Robertson even came and spent the afternoon with us.

Opening Our Mission Call

On August 22, 2009 we opened our mission call while vacationing with our entire family (yes all 45 of us) at a lodge in Bear Lake, Utah.  We had been waiting for 4 weeks for our call to arrive and when our son Mike had to come later in the week, he brought it with him.  We were really worried about where we would go.

When we opened the letter and read the "Hawaiian Temple Visitor's Center" a cheer erupted from everyone and of course I cried.  We are a little nervous, but soooo excited.  Our children and grandchildren have been  GREAT, encouraging us to go and assuring us that all will be well at home.  We know this is the right thing to do, we are very grateful to have the opportunity to show the Lord how much we love Him and how much we appreciate all His many blessings.  This will be a challenge for our family, but we know they will be there for each other and hope it will bring them closer together.  We are honored to represent the Church as missonaries.