The Road to Des Moines
We left the MTC the afternoon of March 23 and headed on our trek to Des Moines. It was snowing hard, but after having a prayer together, we felt all would be well. We traveled north on the 15 FWY to Salt Lake and took the 80 East. We were determined to get to Cheyenne, WY and spend the night. The further east we traveled, the harder it snowed and the the wind was really howling. It took about 8 hours to arrive in Cheyenne, we were worn out and retired for the evening. Our hope that tomorrow would bring better weather was all but gone, when we awoke to a blizzard. Again, after checking the weather reports and prayer, we felt a need to press on. As we loaded the car that Saturday morning, it was 9 degrees and 40MPH winds fueled a snow storm. Our hands were like ice and as we finished our task, I turned to Sister Warner and said, "I could not have been a pioneer!!" Our goal was to reach Omaha that evening and we safely pulled into Council Bluffs, IA after 10 hours of scary, wintry weather. Much of our travels were through blowing snow, on a one lane freeway. All others lanes were closed due to snow drifts and the snow plows could not keep up with mother nature. Sunday morning (3/25) found us back on the road towards Des Moines and we arrived at the Mission Home about noon. We spent a great deal of time with Pres. and Sister Jergensen as they began to provide some necessary training we would need in the mission field. They are wonderful people and really good trainers! Monday morning found us in the Mission Office in Urbandale, IA. The office is rather small, but very busy! The Sr. Missionaries provided us with all of the materials that we would need in the field. The AP's were there to give us some further direction and then President Jergensen sent us on our way. Our first stop was in Fairfield, IA. were we met Elder and Sister Gifford, who provided Sr. Couple training. They discussed the necessary follow-up that would be needed in the field and the required documentation. Yep, the dreaded paper work! Sr. Couples are required to complete the same forms, etc. as the younger companionship's; such as Progress Reports, Daily Planners, etc. We spent some additional training time with the Gifford's on Tuesday morning and then departed for Nauvoo, about a 2 hour drive.
We left the MTC the afternoon of March 23 and headed on our trek to Des Moines. It was snowing hard, but after having a prayer together, we felt all would be well. We traveled north on the 15 FWY to Salt Lake and took the 80 East. We were determined to get to Cheyenne, WY and spend the night. The further east we traveled, the harder it snowed and the the wind was really howling. It took about 8 hours to arrive in Cheyenne, we were worn out and retired for the evening. Our hope that tomorrow would bring better weather was all but gone, when we awoke to a blizzard. Again, after checking the weather reports and prayer, we felt a need to press on. As we loaded the car that Saturday morning, it was 9 degrees and 40MPH winds fueled a snow storm. Our hands were like ice and as we finished our task, I turned to Sister Warner and said, "I could not have been a pioneer!!" Our goal was to reach Omaha that evening and we safely pulled into Council Bluffs, IA after 10 hours of scary, wintry weather. Much of our travels were through blowing snow, on a one lane freeway. All others lanes were closed due to snow drifts and the snow plows could not keep up with mother nature. Sunday morning (3/25) found us back on the road towards Des Moines and we arrived at the Mission Home about noon. We spent a great deal of time with Pres. and Sister Jergensen as they began to provide some necessary training we would need in the mission field. They are wonderful people and really good trainers! Monday morning found us in the Mission Office in Urbandale, IA. The office is rather small, but very busy! The Sr. Missionaries provided us with all of the materials that we would need in the field. The AP's were there to give us some further direction and then President Jergensen sent us on our way. Our first stop was in Fairfield, IA. were we met Elder and Sister Gifford, who provided Sr. Couple training. They discussed the necessary follow-up that would be needed in the field and the required documentation. Yep, the dreaded paper work! Sr. Couples are required to complete the same forms, etc. as the younger companionship's; such as Progress Reports, Daily Planners, etc. We spent some additional training time with the Gifford's on Tuesday morning and then departed for Nauvoo, about a 2 hour drive.
In Nauvoo, we met the Hawes', the Sr. Couple assigned to that area. The task at hand was to thoroughly train us as to the inner workings of this beautiful city. Their home is located right next to the Nauvoo Temple and there is a wonderful view of the Temple from the living
room window. It is especially beautiful at night! The Hawes' are a
wonderful couple that love the work and are exactly obedient. They
taught us a great deal about Nauvoo and how to deal with certain aspects
of the city. Nauvoo is about 75% Catholic and many other religions are
located there as well. There are still some ill feeling harbored towards the Saints by many of the local
people. Part of our task in Nauvoo will be to improve community relations,
as well as cover two Wards. (three in the spring and summer when the
site missionaries arrive). We received a great deal of valuable training
on Tuesday and Wednesday morning.
Wednesday afternoon, we drove to Manchester, IA to our first assigned area. We arrived at our apartment at 3:00PM and the full time Elders helped us unload the car. We were grateful not to be living out of a suitcase for the first time since March 10, when we left for the MTC. We have great Elders in Manchester, Elder Elder and Elder Belliston. Yep that's right, Elder Elder is his real name! Later that night, we met with the Branch President, President Johnson. He is young, a hard charger and loves missionary work. He served his Mission in Taiwan. (Sound familiar Tarver's)? He is a lot of fun, but a no nonsense guy when it comes to the work. His little flock loves him and they are anxious to do missionary work. He immediately exercised his priesthood keys by giving us several less-active families to visit and then asked us to return and report on Easter Sunday. More on that next week...
We
love the work and we are excited to be in Manchester! The Lord has
blessed us with His spirit and we feel of His closeness. Prayer has been
a vital part of our mission and we have felt the presence of the Savior on many occasions. We feel fortunate to be serving the Lord in the Iowa Des Moines Mission and we know we are here for a reason.
Our love to all,
Elder and Sister Warner
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