Snaps and Snippets

Kathy-

When you want to take a picture here, you ask, “Can I take a snap?” Here are some snaps from the last few weeks paired with snippets of information.

Tinkertoy Towers

As part of MLC (Mission Leadership Council) every month, we do some kind of leadership training activity. For our last MLC, we divided them into two teams. Each team had ten minutes to plan how to build a tall tower using tinker toys and were given 30 seconds to build it together. We were impressed by how well they did! Afterwards, we discussed things they learned about leadership such as communication, teamwork, delegation, making plans, following through with plans, etc. The discussion is always interesting and insightful. These leadership activities are one of my favorite parts of MLC!

We brought a world map with us and were finally able to get it framed so it could be hung on the office wall. The next step is to put pins in every country we have a missionary serving from. According to our latest count, it is 23! 

On one of our morning walks, we passed two women sitting on a pile of rocks. They were using hammers to smash the rocks into gravel. Their small children, including two infants, were nearby, the oldest tending the younger ones. They seemed content to watch or play quietly while their mothers worked.

On that same walk, we saw these children, waiting for school to start. We were surprised because it was a Saturday but quickly learned they attend school six days a week. They explained, “Every day but the Lord’s Day.”

I never get tired of watching Scott with the children. They love to give him High Five’s and Fist Bumps.

When new missionaries arrive, they are supposed to bring a set of twin bedsheets with them. There are many missionaries, however, who cannot afford bedsheets. Since you can’t purchase sheets in Sierra Leone, we hire a tailor to make them. The Ettinger’s found a place that teaches disabled people how to sew so they can become self-reliant. This woman has a withered right hand, the effects of polio. She was happily making a cute little doll’s dress.

Check out this coal iron! The women at the tailor shop can iron faster and better than I can with my fancy electric iron.

Roger Dahle, one of our friends from Providence, donated a Blackstone Pizza Oven for us to use. It is so much fun! We have already made pizza twice with the senior couples. A large group of missionaries had a pizza party on P-day. (I forgot to take pictures but I’m sure we’ll have more missionaries using it in the future.) Thank you, Roger!!!

Pigs and Pickleball!

And speaking of delicious food – our Polynesian elders really know how to cook! They invited us to a pig roast for their zone activity. The highlight for me was playing Pickleball with some of the missionaries. I need to give a HUGE shoutout to all my Pickleball friends back home who donated a Pickleball net, lots of paddles, and a ton of balls! They are being well-used!

It was a bitter-sweet week as we said farewell to the Ettinger’s. They completed their 18-month mission working hard to the very end. We will forever be grateful to them for helping make our transition to Sierra Leone so much easier. We miss them terribly yet are glad knowing they are home enjoying being with their family once again.

Here are all the senior couples we serve with. We love and appreciate every one of them!

(Left to Right: Us, Jan & Brent Arnell, Fred & Tracy Thacker, Locke & Carol Sue Ettinger, Jane & Paul Taggart)

We welcomed fourteen new missionaries this week. It was really fun to be around them as they are full of enthusiasm. They couldn’t wait to meet their new companions and start doing missionary work! We love them already!!