Friday, February 6, 2009

Couples Conference

The West Indies is a unique mission.

We knew that when we received our call to serve. That is why my husband started, even before we arrived in Trinidad, to recruit missionary couples.

Missionaries and members are spread across the Caribbean in eight different countries and speak three different languages. We knew that we would need HELP. When we got here there were five couples, now there are twenty-three!

What does that mean to this mission?

Everything!

The work here has accelerated at an amazing pace, the young elders are fantastic, and the branches are growing stronger.

We held a couples conference this week so that the specialist couples could train all the rest of us on CES, humanitarian, family history, record keeping, finance, etc. It was fabulous!

Sister Myers was a professional conference planner in her 'former' life. She made it perfect for us.


The couples had an optional free day before the conference started and had the perfect tour of Trinidad.

It started with a drive through the rain forest...


...to gorgeous Maracas beach



With a few refreshment stops, of course

This is a favorite - Richard's Bake and Shark


with, of course, fresh coconut water


After the beach they toured some gorgeous old mansions in downtown Port of Spain


And then went on a boat tour of the Caroni Swamp where they got to see hundreds of the national bird of Trinidad - the Scarlett Ibis



plus some other, not so pretty, creatures


OK - enough play - time to get to work

The conference started Wednesday morning and we finished Thursday night.

What did we do?

Sing


Learn


Chat


Cook



Eat


Eat more


Clean


Sing again


Learn more


Teach


Sing again and again





Laugh


Listen to music

Steel Pan - Trinidad's national instrument


Sister Oliver (serving in St Martin) who has a PhD in piano performance

Have fun being taught how to proselyte by the 'gray power' elders





And so on and so on...





At the end of the conference....

there were bonds of friendship that will never end


Here they are - the energetic and powerful West Indies Mission Couples


Hurrah, Hurrah, for Israel!

1 comment:

  1. What a great post! I love the couple missionarries and am so very thankful for all they do for the mission! I know that you have helped my son so very much and he has a great love for each of you that he has meet.

    ReplyDelete