Summertime in Milano

It is past time to write a bit about our experiences in Milano where we are trying to fill the shoes of President and Sister Dibb during their absence from the mission.  These past three weeks have been very full of very different work for Darryl and Bonnie.  This mission has 240 young missionaries (165 elders and 75 sisters), as well as 11 senior couples.  Those are quite a few missionaries to keep track of.

After a few days of settling in and getting our feet wet, we went right to work training twelve new missionaries who had been in Italy for just two weeks.  The way we do it here is after the first two weeks in country, we bring the new missionaries and their trainers back to Milano for a daylong training.

Getting ready to start

Reciting some mission scriptures

Darryl waxing eloquent, but the Assistants seem bored

A day full of treasures, hopefully

Both Darryl and Bonnie provided some essential training to these missionaries.  We tried to address the worries that can come up during the first two weeks, and most of all we tried to encourage them and inspire them to exercise their faith in the Lord to help them learn the language and get over any fears that they might have in doing missionary work.  This group seems prepared and ready to become great ambassadors of the Lord.

 

Darryl and Bonnie with the new missionaries and their trainers

That very evening we met a brand new senior couple that arrived to begin their service.  They will be serving near a U.S military base in the northern part of the country.   After providing them some training and taking them out for their first meal in Italy, we gave them their car and their TomTom, and pointed them off in the right direction.  They found their new assignment, moved into their apartment, and began their service.

One of the real disappointments of the timing of this special assignment was the fact that we missed spending time with our dear friends, Craig and Gayle Speechly, who planned to be in the Siena area just days after we had to leave for Milano.  But we were able to help them with their itinerary, and since they were flying out of Milano on their return home, they were able to stop by the Mission Home so we could spend a few hours together.  We cooked them a good, old-fashioned American breakfast, and sent them on their way.  It was great to see them!

On Sunday, June 1, we also had the privilege of preparing dinner for Elder and Sister Burger who were finishing their mission.  They have been a wonderful couple who had the unenviable assignment for at least the past year of finding and furnishing apartments for the missionaries.  With the announcement of the age change for young missionaries, all missions received a surge of new missionaries about a year ago, and we had to find places to put these missionaries. 

Sister and Elder Burger, coming for their "Last Supper"

The Burgers with Elder Harmer and Bonnie

The Burgers and the Lees

Plus, the Church has asked missions to get away from having more than two young missionaries in any given apartment.  Because of the high cost of housing in Italy, it had been the norm to house four missionaries in an apartment.  (When Darryl served his first mission here, it was typical to house 6-8 elders in one apartment.)  So this couple has opened more than 100 new apartments, has closed some very old apartments that were basically uninhabitable, and put thousands of miles on the mission van as they traveled all over this great country.

In between all these events, Bonnie has been very busy handling the health needs and concerns of all these missionaries.  She has become an expert in dealing with the Church's insurance facilitator, finding doctors and hospitals throughout Italy, consoling and counseling the sick and encouraging the healthy to keep up the good work.  She has dealt with things ranging from broken ankles, missionaries hit by cars while riding their bikes, hand, foot and mouth disease, a possible emergency appendectomy, a broken wrist, together with the more common ailments such as colds and the flu.

Darryl also has been dealing with some interesting things, such as special baptismal interviews, counseling missionaries who are feeling blue and want to go home (we haven't lost one yet), fielding calls from missionaries who get home too late, and working with missionaries on keeping focused on why they are here.

Last week we held our Mission Leadership Conference.  This is where we bring all the Zone Leaders and the Sister Training Leaders to Milano for an all-day training session.  We taught and trained these leaders, and learned from them how the troops in the field are doing and what we can do to assist them.  They have strong testimonies and a great desire to share the gospel.  It was good to rub shoulders with them.

Darryl with a few of the Zone Leaders

Sister Training Leaders doing a role play

The Assistants mugging for the camera

Darryl and Bonnie with the Mission Leadership Council

Now we are preparing to welcome another senior couple to the mission before we hit the road for five zone conferences in five different parts of Northern Italy.  No rest for the wicked!

We have learned much these past few weeks, and we hope to learn even more during the next two weeks.  President and Sister Dibb should be returning by June 22; so we hope to back in Siena soon with our wonderful branch members, our four tremendous missionaries, and the beauties of the Bella Toscana.