Christmas Transfer 2009 - 4 Missionaries Return

We were able to see off 4 missionaries right before Christmas. We trust they enjoyed being home for the holidays and in time to start the new semester at school. Elders Quilter, Williams, Larose and Sister Glenn all made it home for Christmas after wonderful missions here in Kobe.

Elder LaRose's mother sent us a Christmas present and we opened it the night before he departed. It was this beautiful quilt. Thank you Sister LaRose. It is beautiful and we love it!

Right after the missionaries left we travelled to Kakogawa for a baptismal interview and stopped by the home of Sister Rosario. We baptized her last Christmas day in Kobe. She has several little puppies from her dog's recent litter and we could not resist a picture with them.

The next day, we picked up Erika from her mission (you can see that blog entry separately) and began to prepare for our two holiday zone conferences on December 23rd and 24th. Needless to say we had a very busy holiday season.

Busy Week - Transfers October 2009

We had another busy transfer week saying goodbye to 8 great missionaries and welcoming 6 new ones from the MTC.The departing group front row from left to right: Sister Meyers, Elders Obata, Shoaf and Kunihiro. Standing are Elders Tupou, Fukui, Sorenson and Mauai.Elder Tupou gets his assistant to the president's wife apron for all the help he provided to Sister McIntyre while in Kobe as the President's Assistant. A few other elders got aprons from Sister McIntyre for helping her in various ways on various projects.

Elder Fukui's mother drove several hours from her home located in the Nagoya mission area to pick up Elder Fukui as he finished his mission. All the rest caught the bullet train out of Kobe.

The morning of their departure we ran up to Maruyama park. While waiting for the elders in front of their apartment, Sister McIntyre displays her talents on the beam.

Some of the departing group with Sister McIntyre in front of the mission home as we depart for the park.

Several make a run through the obstacle course at the park. It goes up along the hill and back down via the slide on the left.

Sister Meyers and Sister McIntyre prepare breakfast after the morning workout. We first met Sister Meyers in the MTC when we attended the mission president's seminar. She is the first missionary to return home who arrived after we did. We will miss her like one of our own daughters! The night before their departure we had a big sukiyaki dinner and celebrated Elders Tupou and Sorenson's birthdays.

We took a group picture with the cake and Sister McIntyre also made her famous face cookies for the birthday elders. They tasted as good as they look!

Blowing out the candles... We also welcomed six excited new elders this week. Back row Elders Jackson, Escalante, Ellis, Quilter, (front) Coburn and Lee.

Morning run with the some of the new elders and Elders Christie, Matsuoka, Harvard and Tupou who serve in Kobe.
A little morning soccer at the park.

Some of the new elders at Maruyama Park overlooking part of Kobe and the bay.

Welcome dinner with the new group. Yakiniku!On Friday morning just before we sent off the departing group, we had a phone call from the MTC in Utah telling us that we were getting one more new missionary the next day (Saturday). So we will welcome Elder Richardson this weekend. His visa was delayed and just came through so they are sending him out immediately. Not much of a break at the end of a transfer week, but we are always excited to get more missionaries! More to come...

Some More June 2009 Transfer Week Photos

Departing group June 2009. This a better picture than the one previously posted. New missionaries June 2009 after signed the mission quilt. These were big groups!

Elders Christiansen, Fishler and Beecher gave me this cane for my birthday in March. They reminded me that we never posted a picture of it on the blog. So here it is. Hand painted with a bell to make sure people get out of my way!

We will miss these elders. Elder Fishler is still here for one more transfer though!

Elder and Sister Painter Return Home

This past week we said goodbye to Elder and Sister Painter who have spent the past year and a half serving in Japan as our office couple. The office couple serve as our office secretary and financial secretary. They also can engage in proselyting, help with English classes and in training the missionaries. There is a lot of back office support that goes into running a mission, and they make sure it happens. Here they are with our family (minus Erika) their last night in Japan.The Painters were wonderful and served so diligently. When we arrived they had already been here for about 6 months. They made sure things kept moving smoothly during that transition and beyond. Ricky said Sister Painter always greeted him with a big hello and smile! She was just so happy all the time. Although the language was a challenge at times, you would have never known. Elder Painter has his own company back in the US and he handled all our mission finances without any trouble. It was truly a blessing to have them serve with us.

With children and many grandchildren left behind at home, it is a great sacrifice for these couples to go to a far off land and serve for all those months. But they would tell you it was well worth it. In their final testimony, they shared their feelings about how they have grown closer through serving together and how they have learned to love Japan and the people here.

Hope you had a great reunion with your family. We love you!

Arrival in Mission!

After a wonderful 5 days in the Provo MTC where we were counseled and taught by the prophets and apostles, we had one quick night at home to pick up the kids and visit grandpa before departing for Japan. Our good friends, the Fowers, picked up Ricky as he will stay behind for a month or so in Utah to attend summer camps. The rest of us were up until about 2am with final packing and preparation. Then off to the airport at 6am! Jeff Evans was kind enough to pick us up and take us to the airport.

Japan Bound New Mission Presidents with Elders and Sisters Walker and Stevenson of the Seventy. (Left to right -Daniel's, Tateoka's, Isa's, Brother and Sister Pincock, McIntyre's, Walker's and Stevenson's)

We arrived in Tokyo on Friday the 27th of June. After a wonderful dinner at our hotel with the other new mission presidents in our area and the Area Presidency (Elder Evans, Elder Choi and Elder Yamashita - and their wives) we had a long awaited good nights rest!

James and Sammy on the Bullet Train! On Saturday morning we had additional training with our Area Presidency. The kids went to pick up Sammy. And we were on the Shinkansen (bullet train) to Kobe by early afternoon.

We were greeted by President and Sister Tucker on the platform accompanied by the Assistants, Elders Hanna and Ahmu, and the Kobe Stake President, President Oshima.

The mission home is only about a 10 minute drive from Shin Kobe station. Upon arrival we were greeted by the two mission home staff elders, Elder Christie and Elder Kunihiro and the Sisters, Sister Bensen and Sister Webb. They had made a big welcome sign for us. We were already exhausted! But our mission was just beginning!!!

The rest of Saturday was spent getting oriented and unpacking. (It has taken us all this week to finally get unpacked with all the other activities and things we have been doing. But it is starting to feel a little like home.) Sunday we attended the Kobe Ward and the Kansai (English) Branch. We had the chance to introduce ourselves and share testimonies in each. After some meetings with President and Sister Tucker that afternoon the mission was officially transferred to us and they left! The mission home is on the right (you can only see a corner). This is the church next to our home.

Monday we held our first Zone Leader's Council. All the missionary leaders came to the mission home for meetings. It was a wonderful experience to finally start to meet these great missionaries. We have 100 in total. We have now met every one of them. This week we held zone conferences and our family had the chance to speak to the missionaries and share our vision for the next three years. The kids all introduced themselves and Erika participated in the conferences as she prepares to start her mission soon.

We felt a desire to create a spirit of unity in the mission and Sister McIntyre made a beautiful Japan Kobe Mission Quilt for each missionary that serves with us to sign and then date it when they return home. The missionaries love it!
Take a look at some of our wonderful missionaries!!

We have another 60 or so just like these! They are wonderful.

Today - Sunday July 6th -After sacrament meeting in Kobe, we traveled to the Sekime Ward in Osaka to attend a baptism for a 90 year old sister we met on Saturday. It was a great meeting and she was so excited to get baptized and follow Christ. It just goes to show you it is never too late!

Sister Tsuji is next to Sister McIntyre. Elder Allen got caught with his eyes closed, but Elder Ring is wide awake! They are the Elders who taught her and the Zone Leaders in the Osaka Zone (Stake).