February 26, 2018

Ren D'Angelo's graduation Feb. 20, 2018

FAM Donations for Sorting

Bus for Feb. 24 Temple Trip

Los Angeles Temple

Halvorsens at LA Temple

Larry and Leah Rober at LA Temple

Kirt and Chris Kennedy at LA Temple

San Clemente Ward Temple Trip

February 26, 2018

The week started off with Chelsey in our prayers as she underwent surgery.  She definitely continues to be in our thoughts and we are praying for her recovery to go well.  Wish we could be there to help the family while she is recuperating but we know Eric is doing a great job caring for all of them.

We enjoyed Tuesday's graduation.  Ren D'Angelo was among the graduates and we had a wonderful time visiting with his mother and grandmother who attended the ceremony.  Ren has been such a loyal and dependable member of our branch.  We are really going to miss him but we know he will enjoy his new duty station in Hawaii.  

We attached a picture of our area at the FAM Thrift Store.  This is where we get to sort through all of the bags of donations on Tuesday afternoons.  

Wednesday we had the opportunity to work with some really interesting people at the NMCRS.  One of the marines who had graduated from SOI and completed his MOS school at Camp Lejeune returned to the fleet here at Camp Pendleton.  We had a sweet reunion with Pvt Lyndon Lesa when he was  checking in at the Relief Society.  It was fun to see a marine who had completed the full training cycle and was now back to serve on our base.  

Working at the Thrift Store on Thursday was a bit chilly.  The weather has turned cold for California. Not sure how we're going to get used to really cold temperatures when we return to Utah.  We attended the Addiction Recovery Course that evening,  They discussed writing an in-depth inventory of our lives as Step 4 of the recovery process.  It is amazing to feel the Spirit in these meetings.  One woman shared how the Atonement has become more than a nice story--it is real and helps her every day.  The Lord stands with his arms outstretched to encircle us with his love and heal our wounds.

Saturday we arrived at the church at 7:15 am to catch a bus to the LA Temple. (Brad was really excited that he actually got to enjoy the scenery and didn't have to drive.)  28 members of the ward made the trip.  Randy Beckett, the High Priest Group Leader, served as the host and provided snacks and homemade cinnamon rolls his talented wife had made for all of us.  It was delightful to visit with ward members as we traveled together.  It was the first time I had been inside the Los Angeles Temple but Brad had sweet memories of the first time he attended to take out his endowments before entering the mission field.  The temple was huge and beautiful.  Our session included about 350 patrons. Members of our ward helped us complete work for ten of the names Scott had researched for Nicole's family. It was fun doing the work in that temple so near to where Scott and Nicole had lived while he attended UCLA law school.  We had a wonderful experience at the temple that day.

Our meetings on Sunday were outstanding.  Sister Alana Jolley gave an amazing talk about forgiveness.  Alana's mother was an alcoholic and as a child Alana suffered because of it.  She shared her experience of letting go of her anger through truly forgiving her mother.  Bro. Gutierrez from the high council shared how on his quest to become a professional snowboarder he had a terrible accident and broke his back.  He discussed the scripture where your treasure is there will your heart be.  His treasure was snowboarding and when that dream shattered his heart was literally failing him.  Through deep reflection, he decided he would serve a mission and that decision changed his life.  He changed what he treasured.  He now treasures 1) the Plan of Salvation 2) his testimony of the Book of Mormon and living prophets 3) the Atonement.  Through clinging to these treasures he knows he can safely return home to his Heavenly Father.  

San Clemente Ward Conference had a theme of finding peace.  In the third hour meeting that we attended they talked about the quest for perfection and how it deters us from finding peace.  When we are commanded to be perfect it is referring to becoming complete and turning our hearts back to God.   Speakers referenced DC 19:23--Learn of me and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit and you shall have peace in me.  One person described life's journey as floating down a river and dodging the rocks and rapids around the corner.  It is often hard to keep our head above water without drowning.  The Atonement can be likened to a raft provided by the Savior.  Although we will still maneuver around the rocks and the rapids, the raft will provide us safety and give us comfort throughout the ride.  I really liked that parable.  

Our evening Fireside was taught by Cal Weber.  He spoke of letting our light shine.  LCPL Ecton who was one of the marines we took to the temple last July as an SOI student came to the meeting to introduce us to his fiancee.  She is a darling marine from Utah.  They will be married in the Salt Lake Temple in April.  It was thrilling to see him so happy and meet his future bride.  We did have a near disaster at our evening meeting.  The couple bringing the meal got terribly lost and didn't arrive until about 8:20 pm (about 2 hours later than they should have)  Many of the marines waited for the meal to arrive before leaving--many didn't leave until almost 9 pm.  The poor sister was in tears and they had been driving all over the base trying to find the chapel.  One of the benefits of the delay was I got to meet Pvt. Talbott from Missoula, Montana.  He was so excited to share pictures of his family and talk about his adventures shooting the rapids of Montana.  He actually gave us a contact there for running the rapids--sounds like something we will add to our bucket list.  I got to share with him the parable of the Atonement I had heard earlier that day.  He liked it too!    

  

February 19, 2018

Hiking Feb. 17, 2018

Elder Halvorsen on P-Day

Checking out property to

build in San Clemente (ha, ha)

February 19, 2018

Happy President's Day!  How blessed we are to live in the United States of America.  We're so grateful for the opportunity we have to support young men who are preparing to serve and protect our nation.  Semper Fidelis

We had a family history oriented senior couples family home evening this week.  There is so much to learn about how to research our families.  Each person at the meeting shared a story about an ancestor.  It was interesting one sister told of her grandmother who immigrated from Leipzig, Germany (That's where my Knorr grandparents started).  It really is a small world.  The funniest part of the evening was we were asked to bring appetizers or a dessert for a light meal.  I decided to make a seven-layer dip because no one had ever brought that to one of these gatherings.  But, as luck would have it--the only appetizers that night were chips and dips (mostly bean based) with a few cookies for dessert.  We were certainly all on the same page.

Fox Company graduated on Tuesday.  After the graduation we took the missionaries out to lunch.  They chose to eat at Bonzai Bowl  So, we enjoyed an açai smoothy for lunch (so California)--it was actually very good.  Spent the afternoon sorting clothes at the FAM Thrift Store.  I must admit, we're getting faster each week and really emptying a lot of bags--hard work!

Valentines Day was a day to be thankful for those we love.  We are so thankful to be married and to be able to share this missionary experience together.  We're grateful for our wonderful family that brings so much joy into our lives.  We will be forever grateful for our parents and we are especially thankful to have Grandpa Halvorsen as the patriarch of our family.  He is such a great example and inspiration to us.  We have been blessed with dear friends and siblings who encourage us to be better people.  We're thankful for the sealing power that binds families together forever and for a loving Heavenly Father who loves each of his children.  We had a lovely Valentine's dinner with the elders at President Stephen's house.  It is a blessing to be able to work with Michi and Keith Stephens.  They are such generous and good people.

Things were pretty slow at the Camp Pendleton Thrift Store this week.  But, some weeks are like that.     Unfortunately our work on Friday was also very slow.  We were, however, lucky to be able to talk to Emma Halvorsen that day to wish her a happy birthday. She is an amazing young woman and we love her very much.

We had a deep cleaning day on Saturday and then we took time for a hike.  Gwen has asked for more pictures of "Podge" so we took a few on the hike.  The one with all of the power lines reminded us of the challenge at our Midway property.  Hope our lines are a little smaller than these.  We had a conference call with Brad's siblings that night.  We certainly love and appreciate these wonderful people.  It's nice to have a family that supports one another and is willing to listen to other's opinions--a great family.

I didn't sleep well Saturday night.  I was scheduled to teach the Sunday morning lesson at the Branch and I had a nightmare that my PowerPoint didn't work.  I was implementing the new discussion teaching style and had prepared a presentation on always remembering Jesus.  The pictures were going to lead us from point to point.  I got up and made sure Brad checked his computer and we verified everything was working.  We picked up Elder Fambrough to ride with us to the Base and when we got in the chapel we realized there was no power.  My nightmare had come true.  I quickly started rifling through all of the pamphlets and books on our shelves to see if I could pull up pictures I could use.  Then, as people started arriving, I realized we still had a laptop that was charged.  The pictures would be small but I had the pictures.  I ended up walking up and down the aisle with the laptop so everyone could see the pictures and the discussion went really well.  So it all worked out.  But, I was warned in advance.  

We got to the San Clemente Ward in time for Relief Society.  After the lesson, a visitor stopped me to ask about serving a military relations mission.  Sister Fisher's husband is a retired army colonel.  We chatted a few minutes but I had to cut it short because we had to drive back to the Base to pick up a marine (Gardson) who is investigating the church and needed a ride to the YSA Ward.  Gardson is from Ghana and was such an articulate and interesting person.  We really enjoyed our time with him. But, the traffic was horrible and it took us an hour to reach the YSA Ward so we arrived late.  The young elders came out to welcome him to the ward.  Gardson was introduced to the gospel through a chaplain on his ship during his 7 month deployment.  He attended all of the LDS services conducted by Chaplain Hammond and is excited to have the discussions.  

When we arrived home about 2 pm, Sister Fisher called with more questions about our missionary experiences.  We invited them to attend the Fireside that night, which they did.  They are from Orem and have met Grandpa in the past and Blair Tree (director of Meet the Mormons) is their Sunday School Teacher.  They are were very excited about the possibility of working as military relations missionaries.  Brother and Sister Harline, who recently returned from serving a mission in Ethiopia, were the speakers at our meeting.  They were powerful speakers.  It was a wonderful day.

February 12, 2018

Elder Fambrough at graduation

Elder Sanford with pack

San Diego Temple

Cameron Newberry with Elder Halvorsen

Sister Halvorsen with Cameron Newberry

Theory of Relativity

Emma Dawson with some cast members

Emma Dawson

February 12, 2018

Our first full week of February was packed with service and activities.  Monday we received a call from the grandmother of a marine's wife.  The couple had just moved to Camp Pendleton and unfortunately, their household goods were lost/delayed and had not arrived.  Samantha, the wife, has been inactive for a few years and she didn't feel comfortable contacting the bishop for help.  So, with input from her grandmother, we were able to step in and give a helping hand.  From our experiences at the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, we knew of agencies on base that they could contact to receive help.  We made arrangements to take them a meal, contacted the LDS Relief Society President and the ward missionaries who also took them meals while they were waiting for their kitchen supplies.  So, they received a friendly welcome in Camp Pendleton which they really appreciated.

We attended FHE at the Kennedy's home.  It was really fun getting to know them a little better.  Sister Kennedy is confined to a wheel chair but has a very positive and cheerful attitude.  She is really a great example to everyone she meets.  We slipped away early from the FHE to attend Missionary Correlation Meeting at the Langs.  The missionaries had made some excellent contacts this week and were excited about teaching the people they had met.

Elders Fambrough and Sanford accompanied us to two graduations on Tuesday.  One of the graduates that day was 27 years old who had grown up in Afghanistan and served as an interpreter for the US military for four years.  He then served in the Afghan army for two years before preparing to become a US Marine.  He will shortly become a US citizen--an impressive journey. 

We served at FAM on Tuesday afternoon and the NMCRS on Wednesday.  We were excited to see pictures of Grandpa skiing at Sundance with Blake and the largest US flag in the country--Grandpa is so amazing.  Had fun sharing the video of the event with our friends.  

We celebrated our half-way mark on Thursday, February 8.  Hard to believe our mission is already half over.  We got to talk to Kent for his birthday (a little late--his actual birthday is Feb. 6).  He certainly had a wonderful time with his family celebrating.  He is a special 6 year old.  That night we attended our first Addiction Recovery Class at the San Clemente Stake.  We had a spiritual experience seeing how the Atonement of Jesus Christ can work in the lives of those who are struggling with addictions.  Each attendee had a unique story that touched our hearts.  Jesus Christ knows all of us and only He has the ability to lift the burdens that we carry.  Through Him nothing is impossible.

Saturday we enjoyed a variety of wonderful experiences.  We had planned to take five marines to the temple but unfortunately four were unable to leave the base.  So, we enjoyed the day with Cameron Newberry from Peoria, AZ.  Cameron is currently in rehab due to a hand injury.  He was really excited to see the temple.  We met the Kapololus and Sattleys in San Diego.  Cameron and the Kapololus went to the Mormon Battalion Museum while we attended a session with the Sattleys.  Afterwards we all met for lunch.  We really enjoyed our time with Cameron and on Sunday he reported that his trip to the temple was the highlight of his week.

Later that evening we attended part of our stake conference and heard President and Sister Clark speak about "Where your treasure is there will your heart be also."  We also were able to support the Dawson family as honorary grandparents and watch Emma perform in The Theory of Relativity.  It was a wonderful musical that I had never seen before.  The performers were terrific and I loved the music.  It was a delightful production.

It was a very quiet Sunday at the Branch.  Many of the marines had limited leave due to disciplinary actions so we only had two marines at our morning meeting and 19 in the evening.  But, those who attended were very grateful to be there.  We were able to attend another hour of stake conference which was very uplifting.  In the afternoon, we were asked by Elder Pack to pick up Maxter Highrent from Camp Horno and transport him to meet with the missionaries off base.  Maxter had worked with Elder Pack while he was at SOI.  Maxter is now in Recon and leaves Monday to do extensive sea training for a month.  We really enjoyed our time with him.  When we returned him to the barracks he asked Elder Halvorsen to pray with him before his next training phase.  His time with the elders really strengthened him.  It was a blessing to be able to help him before he leaves.  Again, we realized we are here to minister to the one.

February 5, 2018

Elder Ryan Bowen

Gill Marley's Baptism

Elder Lemon

Zach Crump (Gill's first missionary)

Lindsey and Kensley Colman

Ben, Spencer, Andrea and Emma Dawson

Kensley's Party

February 5, 2018

It's been a busy and interesting week.  Monday we got a call from an anxious marine who was in transit to SOI but had left his dress uniform in Kansas.  He contacted us through the texts we had sent him after graduating from MCRD.  He needed the uniform to check in at SOI on Tuesday morning and asked if he could have the uniform sent overnight to our addressing if we would then deliver the uniform to him when he got off of the bus from San Diego so he could change before checking in.  We were really excited that he knew to contact us for help and we gladly agreed to accept the package which would arrive before 10:30 am on Tuesday.  Tuesday 10:30 came and went and there was no package.  We texted him and asked if he could track the package and figure out where it was.  Oh, he said, they changed the delivery time to before 3 pm.  (And he forgot to tell us)  He was supposed to check in at 1 pm so I was very nervous  We skipped the graduation at 11 hoping the uniform would arrive.  At 1 pm we contacted him wondering what we should do.  He said--oh, I'm still in San Diego.  The bus hasn't picked us up yet so don't worry I'll call you when we leave.  (He forgot to mention the delay.)  We were scheduled to work at the FAM Thrift store at 2 pm.  The package arrived at 1:50.  We decided I would work at the store and Brad would leave to take him the uniform. About 4 pm we contacted him again.  Oh, he had fallen asleep on the bus and forgotten to call us to let us know that he was on his way.  At 5 pm, we contacted him again--at this point I'm getting an ulcer.  Oh, they said because they were picked up late, they could check in in our cammies so he didn't need the uniform to check in.  He would get it on Sunday.  It's now been a week and we still have the uniform in our car.  Can't wait to finally meet this marine.  

Wednesday was Zone Conference.  We were so excited to see Elder Ryan Bowen (the elder we worked with at SOI when we first arrived.)  Elder Bowen is now an assistant to the president.  He returns home in six weeks so we may not see him again.  It was wonderful to be able to rub shoulders with him before he returns home.  He has decided to become a hospital administrator like Elder Halvorsen.  Funny, Elder Halvorsen decided on that career because of someone he met on his mission.  

Besides seeing Elder Bowen, we really enjoyed the Zone Conference.  President Clark's younger brother Dan Clark instructed us.  Bro. Clark is a world renowned motivational speaker and he inspired all of us with his message.  He was paralyzed as a college football player and defied all of the odds to walk again.  He talked about raising the bar and why when we are given an obstacle that is 12 inches above the ground, we only lift our leg 14 inches to clear it even if we could jump 36 inches.  We do what is expected of us.  We need to expect more of ourselves.  He asked us to consider the question--Does my life matter?  We need to do our part to create miracles.  Bro. Clark shared some amazing missionary experiences he had in Ireland.  It was a fabulous conference.  On our way home, I got a sweet text from the mom of the marine waiting for his uniform thanking us for reaching out to her son so he knew who he could call when he needed help.  It reminded us that we too are helping create little miracles that provide the tender mercies that marines need.

While we were working at the Thrift Store on Thursday, Bill (the Navy-Marine Corps Mainside Director) escorted the VP of the Headquarters Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society on a tour of the facility.  When he was standing by me as I was cashiering he gushed about how Elder Halvorsen and I volunteer in so many of their facilities on the base.  He was extremely complimentary.  Nice to know people feel we are making a difference here.

February 2 was Grant's birthday.  Feel so very blessed to have him as our son.  He is a talented and caring man who is a terrific father and husband.  Couldn't ask for more.  We are so proud of him.  This week I contacted Lila Bohman on FaceBook.  Lila and her husband also served as military relations missionaries a few years ago.   She was my best friend when Grant was born 38 years ago in Arizona.  I think of her often as I see young marine wives helping each other.  How blessed I was to have a friend like her at a that time in my life.  Friday morning we went to a reception at the San Onofre NMCRS Office to meet the dignitary from headquarters for a reception.  Since we were already on base and needed to return at noon for our regular volunteer hours, we went to the beach and sent our texts to the marines.  What a beautiful area we are blessed to serve in.  The warm sunshine and the gorgeous ocean made our wait so enjoyable.

Saturday we were very busy.  We attended the baptism of Gill Marley.  What a joyous day.  Gill was born in England during the depression.  He grew up in poverty begging for food at factory doors.  He lived with bombs exploding and killing his little friends during WWII.  As an adult he immigrated to the US and became a well respected aeronautical engineer for NASA  He said he had lots of his "junk" on the moon.  He and his only son started a consulting business and traveled extensively between California and Hawaii.  When Gill's son died from liver cancer, he lost all of his motivation and wealth.  Eventually, he became homeless.  At his lowest point, he had contracted pneumonia and was living in the bushes outside of a Starbuck's restaurant.  He thought he was going to die and sincerely prayed for God to save him.  A kind man, Bro. Schwartz met Gill that day and took him home.  His family "adopted" the elderly gentleman.  Missionaries were teaching the Schwartz family but it was Gill who was converted.  He had a number of missionaries teach him and each of them learned to love this dear man.  He came to recognize the he was a spirit being who had worth.  He learned to love the Gospel and he said his baptism day was the happiest day of his life. Zach Crump who was released from his mission six months ago flew in from Utah State to see Gill baptized.  He was the first missionary to have met him.  What a joyous reunion they had.  Gill had tears as he told how much he loved Elder Crump and all of the dedicated missionaries who had taught him. Elder Pack who recently served with us at SOI will now have the opportunity to teach Gill the new member lessons.  Attending the baptism was a spiritual feast.

Saturday afternoon, we had been invited to attend the birthday party for Kensley Colman.  Kensley turned one. (She has three big brothers and you can tell from the pictures she is quite the princess.)  The Colmans are a great marine family who we have the blessing to know.  Dawsons were at the party so we took the opportunity to snap a family picture of them--such dear friends.  After the party, we visited several families on base that we had not had the chance to meet before.  So, it was a busy and delightful day.

Sunday was another glorious Sabbath Day.  Elder Fambrough asked if Elder Halvorsen would serve as his companion so he could attend the Basilone Branch with us in the morning while Elder Sanford attended the San Clemente Ward at the same time.  We enjoyed having him with us.  We had a touching testimony meeting.  So many of the marines are struggling with loneliness and sickness this week.  Newbury had been in the hospital with the flu.  Hill shared that it was the very first time he had ever shared his testimony.  He has always been the quiet one.  But, he said how much he enjoyed coming to church and feeling the love there. D'Angelo quoted President Monson about Dare to stand alone.  He said he has felt very alone in his company where he is the only active LDS marine.  He's thankful the Lord is with him.  Radoni is a sailor who is here for Recon training.  He has been in the navy for several years so he testified that you can be true to the faith as you serve--it was a wonderful meeting.  Elder and Sister Kapololu and Elder and Sister Sattley joined us at our fireside.  Last year on Super Bowl Sunday, they only had 8 marines attend so we were surprised that we had 27 there last night.  Vic Lundquist (in the Branch Presidency) shared with us that he feels our texts and the effort we are putting into fellowshipping the marines has made a huge difference  He asked us to document what we are doing because it works!  He hopes the next missionaries will follow our example.  We are so grateful for the Church Missionary Relations training we received  and the Spirit that continues to prompt us as to how we can make a difference.  We had a very fulfilling week.