Members in Guyana: Devon Sandiford

Devon can’t read, so in his frustration as a youth he turned to drugs and unsavory friends he describes as “criminals” to fill the void. Then four years ago, the missionaries knocked on his door with a message he now knows he had been waiting all his young life to hear! These two young men from the United States taught him about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ . . . and that there is a living prophet on the earth today who receives guidance from God, for the Church and for Guyana.

His life here still isn’t easy but he loves the Church and the gospel. Since his baptism, he has not missed a single Sunday meeting, although he sits in the back because he is self-conscious about “my stinky shoes” and because his clothes are worn and dirty and he can’t afford to buy anything new. His ability to read has improved since he committed himself to reading a scripture or two every day from the Book of Mormon, but he still struggles to find meaningful employment as a mechanic or carpenter, the fields he loves.

At 30-years-old, he is too old to qualify for PEF but he is nonetheless “worthy, ambitious and in need”. We hope to help him find work. He is a delightful young man - although it is obvious his earlier drug use has impacted him - who deserves a break or two in life!

Home in Guyana

We have now settled into our apartment in Georgetown, Guyana where we have been called to establish an LDS Employment Resource Services center in this city of 240,000 residents. Our ERS assignment is to help members find meaningful employment in a community where the unemployment rate ranges from 15-33% and help "worthy, ambitious and needy" students further their education through the Perpetual Education Fund.

To do so, we will build our program around www.ldsjobs.org, researching job opportunities and teaching business people how to set up an account where they can post job openings. We will also connect with trade schools and colleges and identify businesses willing to provide on-the-job training. We will be working with job seekers helping them connect with prospective employers and with students wanting to further their education but without the means to do so. We will be teaching classes, providing one-on-one assistance on such things as how to write a resume and how to complete the on-line PEF loan application. Certainly not by coincidence, the ERS is very similar to the structure of the Volunteer Center of Washington County except we will be helping people find job opportunities instead of volunteer opportunities.

Oh, and did I mention we will also be overseeing a smaller version of the mission office in our living room? It seems, the office couple in Guyana was needed elsewhere, so in addition to our work with ERS, PEF and probably lots of other program acronyms, we will also be balancing petty cash, paying bills and “other duties as assigned.”

We are quite certain this is where we will serve the remainder of our mission; and, as fast as our mission is passing, we are convinced we will hardly have time to turn around twice before it will be time to go home.

PS: I study the scriptures each morning at our outside patio table, but my favorite room in the apartment is my big shower!!!

Faith on the Berbice Harbor Bridge

Q: What do these four total strangers have in common?

A: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

We missed the Georgetown turn after attending the handing off program at the New Amsterdam Special Needs School so we were stuck in traffic created by the daily 2-hour opening of the Berbice Harbor Bridge. Everyone got out of their cars to stretch and talk. I decided to walk up to the washroom (about 25 cars away) and on my return I was approached by 20-year-old Courtney Johnson who asked timidly if I was a missionary then asked if I could help him find the church. He had moved in the past several months and had not been able to find a branch in his new area of Guyana and he really wanted to attend again!

We walked back to the car so I could write down his name and phone number to find My Elder with Faith and Fazina, two 14-year-old, 9th graders who had noticed his black nametag and introduced themselves as members of the Rosignol Branch. They also told him they hope to serve a mission on Temple Square in Salt Lake City when they are older. (Fazina, spelled F-A-ZED-I-N-A, is the only member of the Church in her family).

What a lovely experience! The example of faith among these wonderful Guyanese Saints is humbling and makes me very aware of how much more I need to do to truly become a Saint (with a capital S)!

Seven Enter In

On Saturday, May 14 Elder Sappington spoke on the topic of baptism, by invitation from Elders Scott and Fernandes, at a baptismal service for seven young converts. Surrounded by friends, family, and branch members, Andre Jacobus, Martin Kassim and five of his seven children – LaToya (age 15), Kristine (14), Emmanuel (10), Christopher (9) and Lawrence (8) – entered the strait and narrow way to become members of the Church and the Diamond Branch in Georgetown, Guyana.

18-year-old Brother Jacobus, who was introduced to the gospel by a young woman with whom he goes to school, has expressed a desire to serve a mission when he is eligible to do so.

When asked how the miracle of today’s baptism of all the eligible members of her family had come about, Sister Kassim – who was herself baptized just 6 weeks ago - simply said, “we pray together night and morning and read the scriptures as a family. Then the children began asking, ‘why can’t we be baptized, Mommy?’”

The names, faces and circumstances may be different but this same scenario is repeated weekly in the West Indies Mission - and particularly here in Guyana - in fulfillment of prophesy by Elder M. Russell Ballard who petitioned the Lord in his dedicatory prayer on February 23, 1990, for a future day in Guyana when “wards and stakes [will] dot the face of this land . . . through the faith of hundreds, yea, even thousands anxious to receive their saving ordinances in preparation to receiving all the blessings of the House of the Lord, even a temple.”

Our hearts were full as we witnessed first hand the truth Ammon taught in Alma 26:37 when he reminded us: ". . . God is mindful of every people, whatsoever land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people and his bowels of mercy are over all the earth!"

Congratulations, Kelly

Even without us there to cheer her success, our eldest daughter Kelly graduated on Saturday, May 7 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from the University of Phoenix. For the past three years, she has matriculated as one of 420,700 undergraduate students and 78,000 graduate students (the equivalent of 224,880 full-time students) on 200 campuses. Wow, who knew?

Of her outstanding achievement, she writes: "Along with 850 other graduates in my “class” I completed a long journey by walking across the stage at the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City to receive a Bachelor of Science degree in Management. The question has been asked repeatedly whether I intend to pursue a Masters degree (since a Masters is the new Bachelors). I have not ruled it out, but I intend to take at least a year before making a decision because over the past three years (in addition to my studies):

1. Gary was State Captain of the Patriot Guard which, contrary to popular belief, is a 24/7 volunteer job

2. We coordinated the Gathering of the Guard, a national motorcycle event and concert with the Kentucky Headhunters and Confederate Railroad musical groups

3. We coordinated Dan’s Ride to raise money for scholarships for immediate family members of military personnel killed in action

4. We initiated the process to incorporate the Daniel G Dolan Patriot Fund which also included working through the process of obtaining a 501(c )(3) charitable status with the IRS

5. We remodeled our home

And, did I mention I also bought a new motorcycle I haven't had time to ride and welcomed two new grandchildren into our family? The most important part is my husband and daughter still love me. I do not know if there will be additional monetary returns or added responsibility but really none of that really matters. What matters is I made a goal and achieved it. Earning a bachelors degree is a matter of personal pride!"

Trekker Tours Guyana

Our Traveling Tiger finally ventured out from under the bed where he has been hiding from the bushmaster snake almost since we stepped off the plane in Guyana. He hissed and scratched when we first suggested a "mystery trip" into the bush, and only reluctantly agreed when we told him Elder Angus would be driving and Sister Angus would navigate.

For two days, we met with branch presidents and members to discuss chicks and garden supplies (an upcoming Humanitarian Service project), PEF and the need for an employment specialist in every branch. Then we visited the New Amsterdam Special Needs School, where the Angus’ are spearheading a project involving two dozen new school desks, a filing cabinet for the school office . . . and believe it or not, plumbing to supply water to the kitchen and bathrooms in a school caring for more than 70 physically and mentally disabled children. While the children appeared happy, the facility was absolutely filthy and run down as administrators and a dozen teachers waited their turn for funding from the Guyanese Ministry of Education.

Our last project on Tuesday was to take a beautiful 12-year-old recent convert shopping for a school uniform. She absolutely beamed when she talked about the church and the chance to go back to school after a year (she has not been attending because her family could not afford to buy her the required uniform).

Trekker loved meeting all the children and purred with pleasure at the home of President Samaroo when he invited us to enjoy a VERY HOT curry and rice dinner which had some kind of unidentifiable meat our Traveling Tiger thought was quite tasty but Grandma was hesitant to eat. When we arrived home, Trekker admitted he was a little less nervous about living in Guyana and had enjoyed the trip and the people . . . but was appalled at their living conditions. He also admits he’s a pretty spoiled kitty living in the “lap of luxury” in the US and promises never to complain again about his place in the world.

PS: The little boy with the scars on his face and head lives in an orphanage and attends the special needs school because his parents had abused him so badly he is now mentally disabled.

Members in Guyana: Georgina Augustine

Sister Georgina Augustine taught a lesson on “change” in the Diamond Branch on our first Sunday in Georgetown, Guyana. As most teachers do, this Amerindian (descendents of the original inhabitants of Guyana) woman shared a little of her own life story.

She was born in the bush, had only a limited education, but loved to read. Her family home did not have electricity so she made some little coal lamps so she could read after dark (about 6 p.m. in Guyana). By age 12 she had read everything she could “beg, borrow or steal” so pleaded with her Catholic priest for a Bible. He told her she couldn't have one since only the priest could have a Bible! Somehow she came into possession of a tiny copy of this book of scripture which she read over and over again until she had almost memorized it.

At age 14, she moved in with the man she would live with for 27 years. At about age 40, she met the missionaries and, because of her knowledge of the Bible, recognized their message of truth. She desperately wanted to be baptized, but couldn’t until she and the father of her 8 children got married. Her children, who were by then all members of the Church, encouraged her to make him move out if he wasn’t willing to get married. Eventually, they were married . . . and she was baptized . . . but there is much more to her story.

She wept as she stood before the women of the Relief Society bearing her humble testimony and her great love for the Lord who had found her in this faraway land. She also told us she was promised in her patriarchal blessing she would use her skills and her great knowledge of the gospel to teach the women of the Church and “to bring souls to Christ.” What a delightful experience to meet those of the House of Israel here in Guyana, most who are descendants of Manasseh! The gospel is true!!!

From St. George to Georgetown

One of my favorite pioneer stories is about David and Willie, a young married couple when they were called by Brigham Young to help settle St. George. She quickly became weary of the heat and the bugs and told her young groom she wanted a divorce so she could return to her family in Vermont. David begged her to reconsider. She finally relented on the condition he could find even one thing of beauty in (then) southern Utah’s godforsaken desert. The next day he brought her a sego lily!

Upon arriving in Guyana on Saturday, April 30, I looked around and saw nothing of beauty . . .

Guyana is a 3^rd world country with a capital “tird”! I have heard of culture shock, but have never experienced it before . . . until now! The missionary couple who chauffeured us around told us about the country but the more they talked, the more uneasy I became. We learned about the bush (a dense forest which covers most of the country), the bushmaster snake (whose victim’s die within 4 minutes), how many – and how frequently - missionary apartments have been robbed … then ended their treatise with how much they love it here and how much it feels like home to them. In the meantime, I was ready to get back on the plane and return to the safety of Trinidad or, better yet, to my home in southern Utah!

Our apartment is half living quarters and half mission office/storage. It is a clean 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with two really nice showers and a comfortable bed, but filled to overflowing with boxes of missionary tracts, water filters and financial records, desks, filing cabinets and oversized furniture.

May and June in Guyana are the two hottest, wettest months of the year with temperatures in the high 80’s and low 90’s . . . and humidity between 75 – 77%.

PS: The rest of the story is that Willie stayed in St. George and together she and David created a beautiful family and a legacy of faith. My story has much the same ending. At our first meeting at the Diamond Branch, I met some wonderful members with strong testimonies and on the way home, I noticed a beautiful stand of lilies alongside the road! Like Willie, I have decided to stay and help build an Employment Resource Services Center and strengthen PEF in Guyana, since I have now found my one thing of beauty.