In August 2010 we were called to a one year Service Mission to serve in the Special Needs Seminary at the Logan, Utah High School. We enjoyed the first year so much we requested to serve another year. The request was approved and we completed that mission in June 2012. During the fall of 2011 we made a decision to serve a full time mission. After speaking with our bishop, Bishop Paul Parkinson, we began the process of filling out our mission paperwork. In early February 2012 we submitted our mission papers. On February 14, 2012 we were leaving for our weekly temple session at the Logan Temple and decided to check the mail prior to leaving our home. We were surprised to receive our mission call so quickly and marveled at the fact that the letter calling us to the Philippines Baguio mission was issued by President Thomas S. Monson on Valentines Day 2012. Our Missionary Training Center (MTC) report date was August 6, 2012. We were assigned to speak in sacrament meeting on July 29th, which was also our 29th wedding anniversary. Our family and friends hosted a missionary open house for us on July 29th following the block meetings. We are now at the MTC and tomorrow we will start our second and last week of training prior to leaving for the Philippines on August 20th. We leave the MTC at 5:00am and fly from Salt Lake City to San Francisco and then on to Hong Kong and finally to Manila in the Philippines.
Arriving at the Mission Training Center (MTC) on August 6, 2012
We found the location of the Philippines Baguio Mission.
The MTC Is a beautiful and spiritual place.
THE STANDARD OF TRUTH
Our missionaries are going forth to different nations, and in Germany, Palestine, New Holland, Australia, the East Indies, and other places, the Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.
Our wonderful instructor, Sister Emily Andersen, a returned missionary, who we were pleased to have as our instructor each morning. She instilled confidence in each missionary in our District.
Four of the five couples in our district with our two capable instructors.
A classroom picture of four of the couples in our district.
The locations our district will serve their missions in are --
Elder and Sister Fullmer to the Philippines Baguio Mission
Elder and Sister Andrus to the Germany Berlin Mission
Elder and Sister Jefferies to the Hawaii Mission
Elder and Sister Harrell to the Utah Salt Lake City Central Mission
Elder and Sister Fillmore to Australia Mission (The Fillmore's are in the previous photo standing next to the Fullmer's)
Enjoyed Saturday morning at the Provo, Utah Temple
The purpose of the Mission Training Center is to assist missionaries in fulfilling their purpose 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."
When we arrived at the MTC there were 2,500 missionaries. There are more elders than sisters.
On 's Wednesday 300 to 500 more come to the MTC as many more
leave for their missions all over the world.
The lunch room is huge with 4 serving stations with different kinds of food. The food is really
good, They have the most delicious and different salads and soups everyday.
Different desserts of which we should not have tried so many. They always
have chocolate chip cookies and other varieties. On certain days they have
the BYU creamery ice cream with 3 different flavors. It is so much fun to watch the elders
eat. They will have 3 to 4 glasses of different drinks on their tray with their meal and then after eating their meal many will also eat a bowl of cereal. There are about 8 varieties of cold cereal and
oatmeal and cream of wheat. There are all kinds of fresh fruits daily.
The missionaries give one day of service each week. They are divided into
groups called districts. These districts are responsible that day for cleaning the buildings and keeping the grounds attractive. These groups line up to get sack lunches for their breakfast because they are in work clothes and do not eat in the lunch room unless they are in white shirt and tie. They eat their sack lunches and then go to work. They are vacuuming floors, cleaning windows,
dusting pictures, pulling weeds, pulling dead buds off of flowers. There are
flower gardens everywhere. I'm so impressed at how the missionaries hold the doors for you.
We were told that the MTC doesn't teach manners but
their mothers taught them to be courteous before they came to the MTC.
The MTC is so incredibly organized and it takes a large number of people
to keep this place running so smoothly. It is heart warming to see some elders
in their boots or on crutches because they hurt themselves while playing or exercising. Hopefully the will heal before they leave the MTC for their mission. Then
there are those in wheel chairs and they will probably be serving in an office.
The rooms for the senior missionaries are extra nice with a lovely view of the mountains. The senior missionaries also have their own elevator to the 3rd floor and a very nice exercise room located on the 3rd floor. When senior missionaries leave the MTC they hang a departure tag on their room door that says "We have left for our mission". This tag has a picture of an airplane flying on it.
The devotionals in the auditorium are wonderful. To hear a thousand or more young men and women
sitting behind you singing is just awesome. When they sing "Go Forward With
Faith" "Called to serve" and "I Know that My Savior Lives" it gives you chills. The auditorium is large, but will not hold all the missionaries so they have overflow seating in another building.
Our first devotional was with Elder David F. Evans of the
seventy. He is head of the world wide missionary department of the church.
Elder Robert Dellenback a general authority emirates was the speaker at another devotional we were able to attend.
This is Elder Misustin from our ward who was in the MTC at the time we were there.
This is Elder Parkinson, our Bishop's son who was also in the MTC when we were there.
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| This is Sister Madeline Rippstein who is the daughter of friends of ours in Texas. She was in the MTC at the time we were there. |
