Christmas

December 28, 2015

Dear Family,

Where did the year go?

For Family Home Evening we went with a couple families in the branch Christmas caroling to less active members. There were some great moments and it just shows that we care and are thinking of them.

The members here are awesome, I know I have said that before but it's true. Many of them got us Christmas presents, chocolate, socks, ornaments. Our investigators Jennifer and James got us ugly Christmas sweaters, haha.

Christmas morning we went and opened up our presents with Bernice, our mission "grandma" and spent the morning there. Then I got to skype all you's of course, which was the best part of the day, and then we had dinner at Jennifer and James house. Pretty relaxing Christmas. I love the gifts, thank you! (I have so much candy now, haha) We had a green Christmas and now that it's over the snow just won't stop, we are being buried right now. Time to break out the shovels.

So I was pretty nervous about transfer letters because I am not quite ready to leave Montague yet, but good news, I am staying, and so is Elder Kleinkopf. Even better news, we are having a baby. We are going to be in a trio and his name is Elder Smith, so original. Don't know anything about him because he is coming from the MTC so we get to be parents (train him). But we are not sure how long he will be staying because he was called to a different mission but has been reassigned here until he gets his visa.

We hope to see great things this next transfer.
Love You, Happy New Year!
Love, Elder Ray

Senior Couple in Summerside! The Brewsters.

A while back  Bernice mentioned that she would like a picture of Christ
with children in her house, so we had one printed and put it in a frame, she loved it!

This is Elder Kleinkopf's reaction to Bernice opening the gift we made her.

Christmas Zone Conference

December 21, 2015

Dear Family,

This past week has been crazy....crazy awesome.

On Monday night we traveled to Amherst in Nova Scotia right before a snow storm hit, so that way we could get off the island and be there for the Christmas zone conference that was on Tuesday.

The zone conference was great, it started off with a devotional and a few talks from missionaries, but at the same time we were getting flu shots, haha it was very interesting. After that we had lunch and just got to hang out and enjoy each others company, something we don't get to do much. Then we had a talent show where you could choose to do something and I was a part of a few things actually. I did a back flip competition with sister Craeger and Elder Warner (yes I can do back flips on the ground now). Then I also sang with Elder Gibb and Elder Kleinkopf a parody that we all edited/wrote called Tractin' in A Winter Wonderland, all about our mission and the work, very funny. And the final part of the conference was a white elephant gift exchange, which can get pretty crazy with sixty people. I ended up with a little model of a Star Wars X-Wing (don't even talk about star wars right now). It was really fun and well needed for quite a few missionaries.

Afterwards there was almost a foot of snow and the storm continued so we had to spend another night in Amherst, where there were seven Elders total, and the power went out...

On Saturday we helped out by serving and cleaning up at a Curling/Lions club that was hosting a dinner for a work party, and we talked to almost a hundred people.

Our investigator David, who I have been teaching for four months so far, finally came to church for the first time, and he stayed all three hours!
It was the Christmas program and I think we sang every Christmas hymn in the book, no joke. The third hour we watched the Christmas Devotional. And after we had a linger longer (a potluck). It has been a great week, can't wait to see you on Christmas!

Love, Elder Ray

Christmas Zone Conference!

Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Turkey

December 14, 2015

Dear Family,

When it's ten degrees Celsius and you think it's warm outside.

We had a lot of lessons set up and ready to go this past week but unfortunately most of them fell through. What can you do?

On Wednesday we went over to President Dourte's house and slayed one of his turkey's for the branch Christmas dinner we had on Friday. I helped with the carrying and the plucking but couldn't handle the cleaning out the insides, so Elder Kleinkopf did that part. Instead I took pictures and videos of it haha. It was so gross. By the time we were done and weighed it, it was thirty-five pounds, it was so heavy. And just think about watching this process and then eating it a couple days later. For me it is a good mission story and experience.

Speaking of the Branch Christmas dinner there were like twice the amount of people there than there is at church. There were quite a few less actives and even non-members that were there to talk to and get them comfortable with the church and the people. It was a very enjoyable evening with food, caroling, and laughs, and a big fat turkey.

Didn't have any snow this past week but there is supposed to be a storm coming in tomorrow, other than  that stacking wood and shoveling for days.
Since Montague has been knocked so many times we are still trying to come up with new ideas to get the community involved. We have an Addiction Recovery Program that we do and are going to start publicizing it. People might like it considering Montague is the drug capital of PEI.

Love you all more than Gingy loves his gumdrop buttons!

Love Elder Ray

p.s. we saw a black fox, it was really cool.

...Turkey

Just turkeying around.

Le Tour De Faith

December 7, 2015

Dear Family,

On Tuesday we had dinner with brother Shumate and we had like the best tasting salad I have ever eaten. Anyways, he told us one of his first missionary stories that he had where he went to the MTC for almost four months and was trying to learn Spanish but was having a hard time with it. All the other missionaries seemed to be picking it up pretty quick. In his group at a small foreign airport, they tried to take one of the American passports from one of the Elders, but "Elder Shumate" made them give it back and was speaking their language with ease and could understand them. But for some reason no one else in his group knew what they were saying. He said, "Come on guys we have been studying Spanish for months now." Another Elder said, "That wasn't Spanish, they speak Portugese here." What?! Gift of tongues I tell you, he didn't know any Portugese. I just thought it was a really cool story.

This week, because of Le Tour de Faith, we did a crazy amount of tracting and talked to as many people as we could in this little town of Bethlehem...I mean Montague. There was a challenge in the mission for every day of the week, Monday was how many investigators and less actives you have at a FHE, but unfortunately we didn't hold one that night. Tuesday was how many baptismal invites, where we invited to people but nothing yet. Wednesday was most creative way of finding people to teach. I can't even remember what Thursday's was. Friday's was how many books of Mormon passed out and we made it to five. And Saturday was how many invites to church. Overall, between the Elders and the Sisters, the sisters won, but this week has definitely shown what everyone is capable of.

We were knocking one night and this family from India answered, and all four of them came to the door. We tried talking to them but they couldn't understand us, I think all they got out of it was when we said servants of God. They just stared at us in confusion. It was actually kind of funny but pretty awkward all at the same time.

Sunday we had our Joyful Sounds Choir Performances which took up a big chunk of the day after church. We had one performance up in the town of Souris (pretty much pronounced like sorry) and then in the evening at the Hillcrest United church. It was so fun and had quite a few people there. Everyone in Montague knows who the missionaries are now, we talked to many of the people there.

P.S. It's really cold, and the people here say that this is nothing yet... I'm going to die.

Love You!!

Love, Elder Ray

Joyful Sounds Christmas Concert.

Just got these pictures, it was back with Elder Shambrook.
The Dourtes have been raising these for months and we are
going to eat one this Friday for the Branch Christmas dinner.

New Goals and New Contacts

November 30, 2015

Dear American Family, (Cause you know I got a Canadian family too)

On Tuesday we spent the whole day in Moncton for a zone conference where we learned new things for this upcoming year. As a mission we have new standards and new goals that will get us to work even harder and work more effectively. This week we will be having a Tour de Faith, where all meetings in the mission are cancelled for the week and we will be dedicating all our time to finding new people to teach. But it is a competition between the elders and the sisters throughout the mission, and whoever wins serves the other at our Christmas Conference.

For American Thanksgiving our dinner appointment got cancelled so Elder Kleinkopf and I made some burritos, doing it Arizona style because Mexican food is scarce up here.

We planned well for this week and actually had quite a few appointments happen so that kept us fairly busy. After almost a month of praying and trying to find someone new to teach, we found two new investigators this week, Jennifer and James, who had been taught a little in the past and are going through a rough patch right now and want to learn more/get more into religion.

On Sunday Elder Kleinkopf and I were pretty much church. It was the primary program for sacrament meeting and we were a part of it because they needed more people to sing and speak there being only five primary children and all. Then we taught youth Sunday school, like we do every week. And then because it was fifth Sunday we also taught a combined third block about less actives and ways to reach out to them.

This week I also found out that Gary and Owen, two investigators that I had been teaching back in Sackville, were both baptized in the past couple of weeks! I was allowed to call and congratulate them and they both expressed how grateful they are for the time I was there. I am sad that I couldn't be there for their baptisms but am very grateful I still got to be there for part of their journey. It helped me to realize even more the importance of this work and the blessings that come from it. It isn't easy, but it is worth it.

Love You All!!

Celebrating American Thanksgiving with Mexican Food.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
(with our tiny tree) haha

Companion Transfer

November 23, 2015

Dear Family,

Well, the first half of the week we spent a lot of time visiting all the members so that Elder Shambrook could say goodbye to everyone. He was pretty sad about it and I mean who wouldn't be after being there for six months with so many awesome people? I was even started to feel sad with all the goodbyes and I wasn't even the one leaving, which means it will be a lot harder when I do have to go.

On Thursday (Transfer Day) said so long to Elder Shambrook and Elder Batley and they left, so I spent the day in Charlottetown with Elder Larson while we waited for our new companions to arrive. It was sweet though because we went out to talk to people on the street and in Montague you can't really do that because Montague is so small and like no one is outside, so I was like aw, so many people!

When Elder Edge and Elder Kleinkopf arrived, all four of us spent the evening helping serve food and clean at a soup kitchen, run by Mckenna, who is from Kenya but lived in New York for a while and now here. She is so funny and loves the missionaries. She was taught before but she doesn't quite like meeting because she gets so attached to the missionaries and then they just up and leave and she doesn't want that to keep happening and is disappointed that we don't stay longer.

Elder Kleinkopf is awesome though, you know being from Arizona and all. Jk, but there are lots of things for us to talk about back home which is cool, and surprisingly doesn't make me homesick. I guess it only takes nine months to get over it. He is such a hard worker though and we will get a lot done this transferred, hopefully find some new investigators because we have been dry for a while.

Sunday morning we had the opportunity to go to the Montreal temple re-dedication (being broadcast throughout some of the chapels in our mission) and it was really cool to be a part of.

In the evening there was a Book of Mormon fireside and we had Ron, who is just about an investigator but not yet because of his work schedule, come to the fireside, and he thought it was very informative.

Great week, but hopefully it continues to go up from here.

Love you all!

Love, Elder Ray

...We tried.

I have come to love ties....I think I have a problem.

When one scarf isn't enough and your necks still cold.

Remembrance Day

November 16, 2015

 Dear family,

On Wednesday, Remembrance Day, we helped the veterans at the Legion with their ceremony and also helped serve food for their luncheon afterwards. I know we have Veteran's Day in the States but it doesn't seem to be a very big thing for a lot of people. Here it is a big holiday, to honor the veterans and it was really cool to be a part of. We were very involved with it because we have been helping at the Legion every week.

Here it is that time of the year where everyone is cutting and stacking wood for the winter so we help some members with that every week, does make me sore but is still fun.

For the past couple of weeks we have been visiting a less active member from the Charlottetown area because they were in a hospital in our area. But when we went to visit him this week a lady said that he had been discharged and she wasn't allowed to tell us where he went, soooo he's kind of gone.

We taught Joe this week about accepting help to help him accept support and other things to try to help him stop smoking, he is pretty much a member though, he always comes to church and branch activities, it's just this one, very difficult thing for him, but he has been happier this past week than I have seen him since I've been here.

Our other investigator David, who didn't seem the most solid, dropped all our appointments this week, we kept rescheduling and he was never there so sadly we might be losing him.

And yes, transfers are happening this week. Elder Shambrook is leaving and going to New Glasgow in Nova Scotia. He has been fun to work with and have had a blast making the missionary video, but everyone has to go at some point, he has been here for six months. My new companion will be Elder Kleinkopf, who is, take a guess, from Arizona! He went to mountain view high school. I met him before at a zone conference so I know a wee bit about him.

This upcoming week should be interesting but am kind of ready for a change.

Love you all more than Medusa loves her stone statues!

Love, Elder Ray

PEI District 2.0

Remembrance Day!

Chasing Pheasants at the church

Service

November 9, 2015

Dear Family,

It has been a long week, and this upcoming might be the same.

But good things have happened this week.

On Wednesday we performed with the high school choir for their Remembrance Day assembly for the Veteran's, it was awesome, and a big part of the community saw us in it. As missionaries we are a huge support to the veterans and to the Legion here because we do so much service for them.

We also did quite a bit of service helping people stack their wood for the winter, which left me pretty sore the next day but it was fun, good workout too.

On Friday we had a branch activity where everyone brought a soup, a stew, or a chowder for everyone to try. Elder Shambrook and I also put together a talent show for the evening and I did the song Danny Boy (BYU Vocal Points rendition) in sign language, people enjoyed it.

Well we only had one investigator lesson this week because the others kept falling through...
But we did teach Joe about Agency and applied it to his smoking situation. He is having a hard time with it but he is really working at it, I am sure that he can do it, it may not be in the time that I am here but he will.

Love you all!

Love, Elder Ray

Soups and Stews Night!

In the UK they have a holiday they call Bonfire Night (November 5th),
because Elder Shambrook is British we had to celebrate it,
but we weren't allowed a bonfire so therefore...
roasting marshmallows over a candle.

It's gonna eat me!

This one was hard to find.

Halloween

November 2, 2015

Dear Family,

On Tuesday we had dinner with Jennifer and James, a few potential investigators that have been taught by missionaries in the past. James said that he was looking for an answer to his prayers and that by running into all four Charlottetown missionaries in one day was a sign and his answer, crazy! So we are going to work with them again and help him and even Jennifer.

Choir is fun as always and we used the choir director, Christie, and her kids in our video. We are actually singing with the high school for their performance on Wednesday.

We visit a less active member every week, Shelly, and she just started school again to get her GED, she was so excited that after her first day of school she called the whole branch, including us, to talk about how good it was. She is awesome.

Halloween was eh, Elder Shambrook and I went as each other (we just switched name tags for the day). We had to be in by five for the rest of the evening because stupid things can happen that night. We still got some candy from some of the members during the day though, so that was good.

Other than that the week has been pretty low key, nothing has really changed but there is good potential to pick up an investigator this week.

Love you all!!
Love Elder Ray

Well, I guess this week you just get to see me enjoying a bowl of frosted flakes...

And The Work Goes On

October 26, 2015

Dear Family,

So, Elder Shambrook and I are making a video about missionary work to help others see some of the things missionaries do everyday. We are trying to include our whole branch in it, which shouldn't be too hard because their are only thirty of them. It should be done in this next week and will be up on the Missionaries in Montague facebook page. I'm super pumped for it.

On Tuesday we spent our morning picking apples with the people who volunteer at the food bank to help with their food supplies that they give out.

In choir we have a ten minute break in between where we can talk, and someone asked Elder Shambrook a question about being a missionary, and all of a sudden it seemed to get quiet, and we both had the opportunity to tell the whole choir a little bit about what we do as missionaries, and that is where the idea for making the video came from.

With Tom being baptized we still continue to meet and have spiritual discussions. We had an awesome one on spiritual gifts and patriarchal blessings. We all definitely learned something.

Slightly funny experience, at least to me anyway. we went knocking one night and we met this guy who wasn't interested. But the next day we were knocking a different street and the same guy answered one of the houses, I just had a look on my face like, what the heck, you live in two houses. He's was like, "Oh it's you again...this is my grandma's house." It was pretty funny.

After church we went to our investigator Joe's veteran awards ceremony to support him. But in the ceremony we were also recognized, which was unexpected to us. But it was because we go clean up at the Montague Legion every Friday morning.

Always finding, trying to teach more, the work will go on!

Love you all!

Love, Elder Ray

PEI sunsets

First Baptism

October 19, 2015

Dear Family,

This week went by so fast, it was full of hard work. On Monday, Canadian Thanksgiving, we played rugby with the Charlottetown ward because we were invited, which was so fun, but definitely left all the missionaries sore for the week. We are just not as physical as we were before our missions I guess. We ended up eating three dinners. So here's what happened, we were spending the day with the Charlottetown Elders and Elder Larson bought us all pizza around three o'clock. While we were eating the DeVries called and asked if we could move dinner from five to four...so we did. I was full after eating with them and then we had another dinner at a recent converts house, Bernice. Oh man I was dying in that appointment, I have never forced so much food into my system before, haha. Oh well, is was our fault, but definitely a good day. After being that full we helped a less active stack firewood for the winter for the rest of the evening. Woohoo! First Canadian Thanksgiving!

We taught one of our investigators, David, about church attendance and the sacrament this week because he hasn't come to church yet and that is the next step for him. He did pray at the end of the lesson though which was a huge surprise to me because for the past several weeks he would always say,"you do it, I will do it next time," and he never did. So that was a big step for him.

Friday morning we get a call from John, who we didn't know, and he asked us if we could meet and that he was sitting in the church parking lot waiting... uh, yeah of course we will be there. We got to know him and I thought he would become a new investigator but it turns out that he is a lost less active that lives in our area but is on different missionaries records, so we hope to work with him more now. It was amazing that he came looking for us, it shows that people do still want to change and have God be a part of their life.

That same evening we were knocking and got a referral to go see a Catholic minister, I was like uh oh, here we go. But Tim, the minister, was really nice and we ended up talking for like an hour and a half. He was so interested in learning about our Faith just not in the converting part, he just wanted to know more. So we discussed religion and I learned quite a bit about the Catholic faith that I had never known, so it was a new experience. I love that being on a mission you learn more not only about your own faith but others as well.

Sunday evening was the best way to end the week. We had a baptism for Tom, the person that we have been working with and past missionaries have been working with for quite some time. It was amazing to see his life change in just this short time that I have been in Montague.

I love the area and hope to stay here for a while, even if it is pretty small.

Autumn may already be coming to an end, we woke up to it snowing outside this morning, first of the season.
Winter is Coming.

I love you all!!

Love, Elder Ray

Tom's Baptism! (Tom on the right)

New Brunswick East Zone Training

PEI Fall

I don't want to leave PEI!!

It's only mid October... too soon.

This is the Dourte's "personal beach" It is not too far behind their
house and no one ever goes there. ....I just want to touch the water

This is the ferry that is always coming in,
thought it was beautiful. (always bringing tourists)