Serving the Dead and Living; It's all in a Week's Work!

As with life, the mission is always changing.  Just one short week after transfers, and after our Elder Warnick was made senior companion and district leader, he left for what we hope to be a quick trip to the United States to have some surgery done on an injured knee.  That left us wondering what might happen to our elders in Siena. 

Bonnie giving last minute instructions and gifts for the road.

Elder Warnick waving goodbye, and Elder Johnson helping with the bags.

But, after a few days of worry, President Dibb sent Elder Johnson back to Siena with Elder Moa.  Elder Moa is from Hawaii, and he brings the Aloha spirit to all of us here in this beautiful medieval town.  We are glad that we still have a great set of elders and a wonderful set of sisters to help us with the branch and to carry the missionary work forward in this small corner of the Lord's vineyard.

Elder Moa joins forces with Elder Johnson

Since Elder Johnson had only been in Siena one week before Elder Warnick left, and because Elder Moa is brand new to the city, they are feeling a bit lost.  So we had all the missionaries over to our apartment for a missionary correlation lunch just after Elder Moa arrived.  We discussed the needs of our less active members, and we were pleased with the enthusiasm these missionaries have to minister to our lost sheep.

Sisters Salmond and Remund, Bonnie, Elders Johnson and Moa

We spent many hours preparing for a special Family Search event that the church decided to hold in various cities throughout the Toscana.  The leaders in Salt Lake City decided to hold an event in Siena, as well as Pisa and Florence.  As we don't have many active members in our branch, it was a challenge to get the word out and make sure that we had people to come to the event.  We published flyers and put up posters in the commercial centers throughout the town.  Our missionaries handed out invitations, and one of our members got a local reporter to do a newspaper story announcing the event.

We really didn't know what to expect, but we moved forward with faith, doing our part to make sure as many people were aware of the event as possible.  The afternoon of the event came and we were at the church to help the Family Search leaders from Salt Lake and Italy unload the van and set up the displays.  We had about ten computer stations set up, and we were ready to help whoever came.

Sisters Remund and Salmond helping set up the displays

It was a cold and rainy day.  Nevertheless, we had many non-members brave the elements and find our church (which isn't easy), and we were able to open the doors of genealogical research to them and show them all the electronic resources available to find their ancestors.  We had many of our members come as well.  It was a great success, especially given the small core group of active members that we have here in Siena.  The Family Search directors were very pleased with our efforts and the turnout, and took some of the ideas we had implemented as examples of ways that other units could hold a successful event.

Sister Rogai from Florence helping Daniela, our new convert

Brother Castaldo from Taranto and Sister Manfredi from Salt Lake helping non-members who came

The same reporter who wrote the article before the event also showed up at the event to interview the Family Search directors and do a follow up story.  She wrote a nice article, giving the work even more publicity.  She even included a great shot of our two sister missionaries.

This past week has been very busy.  We went out and visited some of our members who live far away from Siena, and we provided some much needed spiritual and temporal assistance.   Darryl conducted a baptismal interview for a young father in the Montevarcchi branch.  He will baptized this Saturday, and his mother is currently taking the lessons from the sister missionaries in that area.

We have also been working hard to assist one of our less active sisters from Nigeria with wedding plans.  Tina wanted to have a wedding ceremony, luncheon and party in the church.  She also wondered if someone in the branch could do a cake for her.

As the week progressed, she needed other help.  She needed Darryl to accompany them to Siena's City Hall and do the translation for their actual marriage ceremony, which occurred on Friday.

So we girded up our loins and got to work.  Bonnie talked to Kristine for some advice on how to make a wedding cake, and she researched a number of related issues on the Internet.  After much hard work, she succeeded in creating a wonderful wedding cake and some beautiful cupcakes to boot!  And both tasted scrumptious!  The wedding cake was banana, and the cupcakes were carrot cake.  Healthy even!

Starting the day before making the cakes from scratch

Into the fridge to gel with the base coat of frosting

Ready for the final coat

Bonnie hard at work

The classy touches

Bride and groom go on last

Bonnie's Masterpiece!

Yummy cupcakes!

On Saturday the missionaries helped decorate the church and prepare for the luncheon.  

Ready for the luncheon

Decorating the chapel

Sister Salmond helping

Elder Johnson too

Sister Remund making table decorations from our Christmas babbles

Darryl officiated at a ring ceremony and an exchange of vows.   After a short ceremony, everyone ate some very spicy Nigerian rice, and the bride and groom cut the cake and ate it.  Then the dancing and very loud music began!  

Tina walking down the aisle (short walk, small chapel)

Darryl helping with a ring exchange

The happy couple with their friends

Tina expressed great joy with all the help our little branch and our wonderful missionaries were able to provide.

Lunch in the Relief Society Room

Then everyone in foyer for some dancing and loud music 

Tina even got Presidente Lee to dance!

Feeding the groom some tasty wedding cake

She and her friends had a great time, and our missionaries took every opportunity to talk about the church with the guests.  They even got some addresses and numbers of people who would like to hear more about the church.  So here is another finding tool!  Throw a wedding for your Nigerian members, and spread the good news to all who come!

Because of her work schedule and health issues, Tina hasn't been able to attend Sunday meetings ever since we arrived in Siena more than a year ago.  But we have made it a point to visit her in her home every month, bring a spiritual message, pray with her, and keep her connected.  Yesterday, the day after her big party, she came to all three Sunday meetings, and she took a few minutes during Sacrament meeting to share her testimony and express her thanks.

We are grateful for our opportunity to serve, and we try our best each day to meet the challenges and serve our members, missionaries and investigators.  The work is moving forward, even in these times of increased opposition.  Let us all put our shoulders to the wheel and be instruments of good in the work of the fulfillment of prophesy as the message of the restoration expands to the four corners of the earth!