Dinner with the President

We enjoyed a delightful dinner on Thursday evening with President Gamiette, his wife Delphine and their five children (Corilee, Jennifer, Terry, Tom and Amy). President is from French-speaking Guadaloupe and is surprisingly young for a mission president. He is also a "first generation" member with an amazing knowledge of the gospel from several years teaching at the Institute in his home town and from dedicated personal study of the scriptures. We look forward to getting better acquainted and to helping him in his duties.

Pan Yards Make Sweet Music

Did you know steel pans originated in Trinidad? After World War II, Trinidad was strewn with oil drums and once they had been emptied there was no good use for them . . . until pannists realized they could make music using straight sticks tipped with rubber. Sixty years later, Trinidad now boasts hundreds of steel bands and dozens of pan yards. Every year there are numerous competitions, festivals and opportunities to hear them perform - even if it is just during a rehearsal. We’ve been to a pan yard 2-3 times since we arrived in Trinidad and, although it is not the type of music we would search for on the car radio, it is exciting to hear, wonderfully rhythmic and fun!

Skylar Postma

It was with mixed feelings we received word Skylar Postma, 2nd child of Kaytee and Josh was born at 2:31 am on Wednesday, January 26, 2011. This beautiful child weighed in at 6 lbs 4 oz. and is 19 inches long.

Why mixed feelings? As happy as I am that she is safely here and her Momma is OK, it makes me terribly sad I am not there to welcome her along with her parents and other grandparents.

When I said, “I’ll go where you want me to go, Dear Lord,” I knew as missionaries, we would miss some exciting family events, but did not expect it to be this painful! Congratulations to Kaytee and Josh. Even from this distance, I can see she is beautiful just like her Momma!!!

Left is Right

The rule of the road is a paradox quite,
For if you keep to the left, you're sure to be right.

Wow, driving on the left side of the road is a completely new - and nervewracking - experience! After driving on the right side of the road since we were 14 and 16 respectively, it is pretty strange.

Around the world, there are 76 countries where drivers hug the left side of the road - most who have an historical connection to Great Britain (exceptions are Japan, Canada and the United States) - including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Isle of Man, Guernsey, Jersey, Malta, Cyrus, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, South Africa, Thailand, Indonesia, Bhutan, Nepal, East Timor, Japan . . . and Guyana, Suriname, Barbados and Trinidad/Tobago in the West Indies Mission!

The idea to travel on the left side of the road stemmed from the need for either friendly handshakes - or self-defense - when knights and warriors met on rural roads. Most used their right hand for fencing so when horse-mounted, traveling on the left side of the road was the only way to draw and be able to use a sword swiftly.

No matter when it was adopted or whose idea it was, driving on the left side of the road is still odd and a little bit scary! What makes us smile, is how odd it is going to feel when we go back to driving on the right side when we return home to southern Utah.

Meet the WIM Office Staff

Although serving as the West Indies Mission Office Manager / Secretary to the President and the Mission Financial Secretary are not the assignments we expected as fulltime missionaries, we are "thrusting in our sickles with all our soul, that our sins may be forgiven ... that we may be laden with sheaves upon our backs ... and that our family will live (together in eternity)!" (D&C 31:5)

We hope soon to be working in the Perpetual Education Fund in Guyana, but for now we are busy ordering replacement nametags for missionaries, making sure they have rent money, arranging to have cars repaired, paying bills and reassuring worried Mothers! Jumping through a varity of governmental hoops to be sure all missionaries are in the country “legally,” ordering brochures and manuals and making certain there is a generous supply of Books of Mormon on the shelf for investigators!

Meet the mission office staff – four of 17 senior missionary couples currently serving in the West Indies Mission - including (from left [front] Elder and Sister Luster (Ephraim, UT); [Elder and] Sister Childs (American Fork, UT); Elder and Sister Wheeler (Blackfoot, ID) and Elder and Sister Sappington (St. George, UT). We are also happy to have an assortment of young elders, including Elders Johnson, Dyson and Jordan, helping from time-to-time in the office.

Stressed? Take Two Aspirin and Go to the Beach!!!

In Trinidad, the prescription for stress is to “take 2 aspirin and go to the beach!” So when Trekker, the Traveling Tiger, told us he was very stressed trying to get over his jet lag, we had no choice on our Preparation Day, but to take him for a beautiful drive through a tropical forest to a white sandy beach with swaying palm trees and white capped waves. He loved it and after a short time, he began to relax and soon forgot all his problems.

Just as we were all beginning to relax like Trekker - while playing in the beautiful, blue Caribbean Ocean - it clouded up and rained for about 15 minutes. Everyone got soaked, but the day was warm, so as soon as the rainclouds disappeared, Trekker, Grandpa Ed and Grandma Linda dried in a hurry.

Another high point of the day was lunch at a roadside stand where we all enjoyed a tasty meal of bake and SHARK! No kidding!!! The “bake” part was like a scone, but the shark part was . . . well, shark, so Trekker - who is a kitty at heart - was really happy with the menu. So happy, in fact, he purred all the way home!!!

Trekker is in Trinidad

Trekker, the Traveling Tiger . . . and Grandpa Ed and Grandma Linda finally made it to Trinidad after riding on five airplanes and stopovers in three countries. We traveled from Salt Lake City to Dallas/Fort Worth, then on to Miami. From Miami Trekker flew to the Dominican Republic . . . then to Panama City and finally to Trinidad. Poor little Trekker was soooooo tired when we arrived, but the three of us can’t get into our apartment for another two weeks so Trekker, Grandpa Ed and G-Ma are hanging out at a bed and breakfast inn . . . with a swimming pool.

Stopping in the Dominican Republic

On Monday, January 17, we spent twelve hours in the air on 3 planes to travel from Salt Lake City, by way of Dallas and Miami before we finally arrived in the Dominican Republic. In Santo Domingo, a city of 3 million people, we participated in 2 additional days of training on the Perpetual Education Fund before heading to our final destination in Trinidad.

The DR is considered a 3rd world country due to widespread poverty. However, it has some amazing natural beauty, including unique flowers and trees and a splendid shoreline. The people are friendly and helpful. The city's skyline is filled with high rise buildings and the church is beginning to have a real presence here with 10 stakes, dozens of branches and a beautiful temple on a hill overlooking the city.

The most interesting memories of our time in the DR include toilets which don't always flush, frequent power outages, and driving city streets where there are no rules!!! No kidding . . . no one stops at stop signs or street lights. Drivers turn left from the far right lane . . . right from the far left lane and everyone takes whatever place on the road where they can stick the nose of their car. The biggest . . . or the most aggressive driver always wins! Driving in Santo Domingo can best be described as a cross between bumper cars at a county fair and a national game of “chicken” involving every driver on the road. This is one experience you have to have for yourself, because there really is no way to describe it in words. I kept my eyes closed much of the time, because driving in Santo Domingo is what we used to describe as an “E-ticket” ride at Disneyland!!!

Things I Learned at the MTC

It has now been three weeks since we entered the MTC and it is time to move on to our mission field. Before we board a plane for an 8-hour flight to the Dominican Republic (for three more days of PEF training before flying onto the West Indies), I thought it appropriate to share my list of those things I've learned since arriving at this wonderful place . . .

* The profound difference between the Bishops' Storehouse and the Lord's Storehouse.

* Becoming fluent in a new language in a matter of a few short weeks is a common, ordinary miracle repeated hundreds of times every month.

* The MTC has some of the best teachers in the church!

* Dozens of acronyms (CES, PEF, ITEP, S&I, DTA, SMS or PMG) make up the language of the MTC.

* Being together 24/7 as companions is challenging . . . for both of us.

* Everyone smiles, says hello and holds the door.

* All the young sisters and young elders are beautiful, courteous, enthusiastic and friendly to the senior missionaries and are happy to be here.

* The food is usually delicious - and abundant - and served hot when its supposed to be hot . . . and cold when its supposed to be cold . . . three times a day / seven days a week (including ice cream on Wednesday)

* The bed in our teensy, tiny apartment is really, really small - after sleeping in a kingsized bed for most of our married life.

* We have quickly become friends with dozens of amazing “total strangers” in our class.

* We miss our kids and grandkids every day.

* The campus seems very large especially when it is freeeeeeeezing cold outside.

* It really is possible to live without a big screen TV, a cell phone and Diet Coke at every meal.

* We will never assimilate into the population of the West Indies.

* A limited wardrobe becomes boring very quickly, even if it is "mix and match."

* Not having any “bling” (i.e., my diamond wedding ring, loop earrings and nail polish which we have been advised to leave at home) is harder than I thought.

* Sunday shoes worn daily quickly become uncomfortable, but flat shoes are rarely cute or stylish.

* The organization of this worldwide church is amazing!!!

* Regular and humble prayer strengthens me in many interesting ways.

* Giving up - even simple - bad habits is HARD to do!

* Being cold all the time is miserable.

* The scriptures - particularly the Book of Mormon - now speak to my heart in an entirely new way.

* The new Book of Mormon Seminary and Institute student and teacher manuals are WONDERFUL!

* To my surprise, I believe I really could be a fulltime proselyting missionary.

* With all the classes, devotionals, firesides and other activities . . . time is going very quickly.

* According to Elder Ed, 6 a.m. comes alot sooner than it used to.

* When we GET it, FEEL it, LOVE it, and LIVE it . . . we are about our Father’s business!

* Missionaries are the "hope of Israel"

* We still have lots of questions, but I wish EVERYONE could have the MTC experience . . . because the gospel IS TRUE. IT IS ALL TRUE!

Meet Trekker, the Traveling Tiger

Hey, kids . . . meet Trekker, the traveling tiger who has agreed to join Grandma and Grandpa on our excellent adventure in the West Indies. We will photograph him at various points of interest in and around Trinidad, Tobago, Guyana and anywhere else we travel, then we will send you a picture. As you mark the spot on a map provided by Mom and Dad, Trekker will teach you about geography!!!

It's a Small, Small World!

During dinner last night we sat across from a lovely couple who have been called to the MTC in England, where he will serve as a counselor to the President. The usual questions were asked . . . "where are you going?" "Where are you from?" "Where did you work." He looked familiar, but I couldn't figure out why. Turns out, this nice Elder Jim Williams has a younger brother named John in St. George who retired a couple of years ago as the Executive Director of the Five County Association of Governments!!!

It’s a small world, after all . . . It’s a small world, after all . . . It’s a small world, after all . . . It’s a small, small world!

Saying Goodbye (Again)

It is an interesting agenda here at the MTC. For the first week, all of us studied together and learned the lessons of "Preach My Gospel" . . . then a portion of the senior missionaries left for their assignments. In the second week, those of us still left in our large class, learned about the Church Education System, and in our case, the Perpetual Education Fund . . . then most of the remaining senior missionaries left for their assignments, leaving behind . . . well, US! It seems we were the only senior couple in our class of 24 here at the MTC for a 3rd week when we traveled to Salt Lake City to tour Welfare Square and learn what we need to know to help those living in poverty in our mission field. Since we are not the only senior couple serving in a 3rd world country, we were a bit mystified why we were the only couple staying for an additional week.

The senior missionaries are amazing . . . and in a matter of a few days, we became friends through sharing the experience of being in the MTC together. Elder and Sister Moon left on Friday of the first week for Rumania - their fourth mission for the church. Elder and Sister Tamo'ua (top right) are serving in their homeland of Tonga. He and his patient, loving wife have been married for 40 years, but he joined the church only five years ago. . . and wept openly as he testified of his love for the gospel and how sorry he was that he had wasted 4 decades being resistant to his sweet wife's encouragement to listen to the missionaries. Elder and Sister Montgomery (top left)are serving at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Honolulu where she will wear muumuu's and he will wear Hawaiian shirts and sandals while helping to design new buildings. Sister Lewis (green shirt) lost her husband two years ago, so decided to submit her papers. She was called to serve in South Carolina. Sister Beesley (blue shirt), who immigrated from Germany as a teenager, has now returned to her homeland where she is serving in the mission office in Frankfurt. Elder and Sister Wright (learning the computer) left their beautiful big home in Mesa to travel halfway around the world to serve the people of Micronesia / Guam.

Our testimonies have been strengthened and our hearts touched through our brief association with these wonderful couples.

One sad statistic we have heard numerous times since entering the MTC is that, worldwide, only 20% of the requests for missionary couples, are actually fulfilled. To paraphrase President Thomas S. Monson in the October 2010 General Conference, "we need many . . . MANY more senior couples." Please join us in this important work of the Lord providing those skills and talents only YOU can give!!!

Get Ready, West Indies . . . Here We Come!

We were just finishing up two days of training at the MTC on the Church’s employment centers / Career Workshops. The whole time we were next door to several classes of missionaries learning to speak French in preparation for their service around the world.

During a break in our training, we had the opportunity to visit with them and to answer the “standard” question around here . . . “where are you going, Sister Sappington?”

My answer evoked a whoop and a big smile from these four young men . . . (from left) Elder Garlick from Alpine, Utah; Elder Makanani from Long Beach, California – both who entered the MTC yesterday; Elder Yockey from Tullahoma, Tennessee and Elder Harris from Reno, Nevada (the great-grandson of Glenn Judd, a former member of our ward in Bloomington) – both who have been language learners for more than 5 weeks. (Note . . . Elder Sappington served in Tullahoma, Tennessee at the very same age as these four elders).

They will all be serving in Martinique, but we promised these young elders we would be waiting for them in the West Indies.

This is My Church

On Monday, we toured Welfare Square as part of our Welfare and Humanitarian Service training. I am so very proud to be a member of a church which - through the inspiration of the Lord - has re-enthroned work as a ruling principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Church’s welfare program - a model of efficiency throughout the world which has been viewed by kings and presidents - was implemented in 1936, during the Great Depression, when unemployment rates nationwide ranged from 50 - 70% with a guiding principle which allows men and women the opportunity to earn - by the sweat of their brow - what they need for themselves and their families.

Today, the 13-acre Welfare Square includes a dairy, wet pack cannery, home storage center, bakery, employment center, Deseret Industries store and a testing laboratory to guarantee quality and safety - and they ship millions of pounds annually of clothing, household goods and other materials to meet the needs of those in poverty or distress all over the world.

Here are some of the statistics surrounding these amazing programs:

* The Bishops’ Storehouse produces - in-house - 60% of the products needed “to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, provide for the widow, dry the tear of the orphan, and to comfort the afflicted, whether in this church, or in any other - or in no church at all - wherever he finds them" (Joseph Smith, 1842).

* The other 40% of all that is needed for this purpose is purchased with tithing and fast offering funds.

* The Church has been one of the first on-the-scene to more than 200 disasters in 84 countries in the past decade - providing food, funds and volunteers - to help in the recovery of nations

* The Church owns - and 3 times a day milks - more than 4800 head of cows

* The Church provides most of the food used by Salt Lake Catholic Services in their soup kitchen

* The Church Bakery creates almost 3000 loaves of bread a day for distribution to 30 non-profit organizations around the Salt Lake Valley

* The Church, in partnership with BYU, created Atmit, a creamy food supplement used to fight famine and severe malnourishment in children and adults in Ethiopia, Uganda, Sudan, South Africa, Haiti, Gaza, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Niger. Made from rolled oats, powdered milk, powdered sugar, vitamins and minerals, it is easily digestible, high in protein and calorie content - and has saved the lives of MILLIONS of children around the world.

* The Church currently has 16 million pounds of wheat in a grain silo on Welfare Square, which is refreshed every five years

According to D&C 82:18, “And all this for the benefit of the church of the living God, that every man may improve upon his talent, that every man may gain other talents, yea, even an hundred fold” that each may learn, grow and reach the full measure of their creation.

I am so pleased to be able to say, “this is my church!!!”

Change, Change and More Change

It is said, "the joy of life consists in the exercise of one's energies, continual growth, the enjoyment of every new experience . . . and constant change!"

When talking to senior couples who have served missions before us, we have been counseled to learn - quickly and above everything else - to “go with the flow,” “roll with the punches,” and accept change as inevitable. They were not wrong because change has, so far, been the operative word!!!!

In the beginning, we were called to the Jamaica Kingston Mission . . . then 4 days later, we received a phone call from the Missionary Department saying there had been a mistake and we were actually being called to the West Indies.

We were told we would be at the MTC for a total of two weeks before we flew out to our mission field. We have now been at the MTC for three weeks. Thankfully, the training has been absolutely WONDERFUL.

We were told we would fly out of Salt Lake City to New York on Monday, January 17 . . . catch a “red eye” arriving in Georgetown, Guyana on Tuesday, January 18. One of the PEF trainers told us on Thursday our plans had been changed. We are still leaving from Salt Lake on Monday, January 17 . . . but we are flying to Dallas, then on to the Dominican Republic for 4 more days of PEF training (now a total of nearly 4 weeks of training).

We have been telling everyone for weeks we would be living in Linden, Guyana . . . but as of Thursday, it appears we are being reassigned to Trinidad where we will be working in the mission office for what we hope will be a short time. In addition, we will also be traveling to Guyana from time-to-time to make contact with local leaders to help establish the PEF program (unless, of course, the brethren - who we have been told have their eyes focused on the future of Guyana - change our assignment again).

But D&C 31:11 states . . . "it shall be given you by the Comforter what you shall do and whither you shall go" so despite all these changes, we are confident we are in good hands!!!

NOTE: Ed took the picture of the Salt Lake Temple during one of our meetings on the 8th floor of the Church Office Building.

Behold, the Army of Helaman (Alma 53:20-21)

The Provo Missionary Training Center is a world unto itself! The largest of 16 MTC’s around the globe, the facility houses a mix of 2500 young and senior missionaries. They are tall and short, black and white (and every color in between), even some who are blind, deaf or in wheelchairs, but all are handsome young men and beautiful young women, eager to “invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.”

Our class of 24 senior missionary couples and 3 single sisters are from everywhere in the United States and will soon be traveling to all parts of the world - Cambodia, Tonga, South Korea, Micronesia, Samoa, Canada, Hawaii, Argentina, Rumania, California, Virginia, South Carolina and of course, the West Indies. They are retired bankers, nurses, accountants; state, federal or church employees; business people, school teachers - even a sheep herder - all who have left family, homes and other interests behind for at least a year to serve the Lord.

The winter weather is bitter cold and our apartment is small - probably less than 400 square feet - but we are pleased to be here and housed in the Jacob Hamblin Building (an appropriate choice since we are from St. George), one of 19 buildings on the MTC campus with another large addition currently under construction. It is a "total immersion" experience, with classes all day, devotionals and various training meetings in the evenings. We are falling into bed every night grateful for the experience, but exhausted.

Our travel plans are in limbo at the moment, but last we heard, we are flying to the Dominican Republic for another 4 days of training on PEF on Monday, January 17. When we finally arrive in the West Indies, we will be weary but eager for the opportunity to serve the Lord.

Home is Where the Heart ... and the Snow ... Is!!!

On Monday, January 3, residents of Bloomington and all the other communities around St. George awoke to 2-inches of snow. People in Wisconsin, Minnesota, New York and other more northern communities will ask "so what?" but in St. George "white stuff" is rare (the last time was in 2008 . . . but before that, it was probably 5-7 years) and there is no snow removal equipment in any local municipalities or in the county. It has been snowing and freeeeeeeeezing all the time we have been here at the MTC, but snow in St. George has occurred only 3-4 times in the entire 32 years we have lived there. Although I am suffering from the cold, perhaps snow in St. George is the Lord’s way of reminding me just to stop complaining and “bloom where I am planted.”

Happy Birthday, Elder Ed

It is New Years Eve 2010 . . . and, Elder Ed’s 70^th birthday, the first of two he will celebrate as a senior missionary in the West Indies. Elder and Sister Moon, Elder and Sister Montgomery and Elder and Sister Tamo'ua provided cookies, candy and a veggie tray . . . a complete and happy surprise to Elder Ed, who admitted to his class mates, "when I was on my first mission in Kentucky, I never could have imagined living 70 years!"

On Saturday - still celebrating on our first Preparation Day - we left the MTC to do laundry and run errands . . . then ended the day at dinner with Michael and Tara, Kelly and Gary, Whitney, my friend Jan Gardner, and my cousin Kathy Owen Beeder.

Speaking of senior missionaries, in a welcome letter our MTC President noted: "Of you, Elder and Sister Sappington, President Ezra Taft Benson has said, 'You are able to perform missionary service in ways our younger missionaries cannot. What an example and a blessing it is to a family's posterity when grandparents serve missions. Most senior missionaries who go are strengthened and revitalized by missionary service; many are sanctified and feel the joy of bringing others to the knowledge of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ'."

Everyone seemed to enjoy our time together . . . at least until we went outside after dinner where it was freeeeeeezing!!! In fact, it was so cold, everyone ran for their cars, taking no time for hugs and kisses.

Although Elder Ed complains of the cold and how it affects his "poor old body" he is enthused about the next 18 months when we will be serving the Lord in the tropical heat of the West Indies.