Honorary Members of the Mormon Battalion

It's official.  We are honorary members of the Mormon Battalion in California.  We visited the memorial in San Diego this week after attending Family Day at MCRD. (We were trying to avoid rush hour traffic but it didn't help much.)  What a wonderful interactive display.  It was really fun to hear the story of the soldiers who marched 2000 miles from Council Bluffs, Iowa to San Diego, California.  This was one of the longest continuous marches in US military history.  By the time the Battalion reached San Diego, the war with Mexico had ended and they never fought in any battle.  Along the way, however, they did forge a road that would be followed by the Southern Pacific Railroad to open the Southwest for travel and commerce.  When the Battalion reached California, they provided service by digging wells and constructing buildings in the area.  Several of Brad's ancestors served in the Mormon Battalion--William W. Spencer and John Brimhall.  If you ever go to San Diego, it is worth the visit.

Monday night Brad presented his Candy Bomber presentation at our Senior Couples Fireside at the Mission Home.  The highlight of the evening was having Grandpa (with Marilyn's help) Skype in to talk to the group.  Everyone certainly enjoyed talking with him.  Karen Zimmerman, a child during the Berlin Airlift, was with us.  She told us how much the candy from heaven meant to her as a child. She said her father brought home buckets of "slop" for their family to eat--telling people he had dogs at home that he would feed it to.  In fact, this is how their family survived.  She was thrilled to talk to Grandpa and thank him for his kindness.  It was touching to hear her story too.  (She is the mother of Karen Rogers who is also serving in our mission).  The presentation was streamed on FaceBook and had 342 views--many in Germany tuned in.  Technology is remarkable.  It was quite the event.  Brad and Grandpa did a fantastic job.

We had a busy week with our service activities.  Brad is being trained as a Case Worker at the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society and I will soon get to start teaching the Budget4Baby class.  I'm excited about that.  We're learning a lot and loving the people we associate with. We're communicating with our marines via texting.  One marine said he actually attended the meeting last night because he had received a text telling him where it was--our system is working.  Brad is sending information about the marines to their next service station.  Several marines have mentioned how much they appreciate the help they are receiving.  Nice to know we are making a difference.

We were able to visit the Family Day in San Diego again and met a new group of marines.  We also met Elder and Sister Nelson who are serving in the San Diego Mission.  It was fun because they work under Chaplain Ryan Williams (our nephew) at the Balboa Naval Hospital.  I'm always amazed how we are so connected with people.

Sunday morning President and Sister Clark joined us at the Basilone Branch.  It was such a nice surprise to have them join us for that meeting.  President Clark shared an inspirational message about Semper Fi (always faithful). This is the Marine Motto.  There is so much tradition and honor associated with the marines. Sunday evening the first group of marines arrived who we had connected with in San Diego a few weeks ago. It was like welcoming our sons with a big hug.  So fun to see them again.  They are a terrific group of men.  Constantine (from Provo) played a piano solo in our evening meeting.  Playing the piano is one of his favorite pastimes and he was so thankful to be able to share his talents with the marines.  It was a special event.  We were also able to transport Shawn Nichols to receive his Patriarchal Blessing.  He was thrilled to have that opportunity and we were happy to help him receive that blessing.

We were able to FaceTime with several of our children and their families.  Delightful to see the faces of those we love.  Once, again, thankful for technology.  We're looking forward to seeing Scott and Nicole, Ivey, Tate, Beau and Hazel this week when they come for a short visit.  Ready to enjoy some sweet family time.  They just returned from a terrific family trip to Glenwood Springs.  That brought back some fun memories.  Sure love that part of Colorado.

Happy Birthday to Chelsey today.  Kate and Susie are off to Girls camp this week.  Hope Kate's leg feels better soon. Good luck to Cathy who is in charge of Girls Camp in her ward (a big job) and Boyd who is providing a boat for the activity.  Aspen and Emma will be participating.  Nice to hear that Craig is enjoying the work at Eaton.  So happy for their family.  Wisconsin has been very welcoming to them.  So blessed to have such a wonderful family.