SEASONS

SPRING...

Our tree is covered with blossoms, and beautiful flowers are blooming everywhere...

And best of all...

The new baby lambs...

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On a sadder note...

The Byers are leaving us... ...heading home to Oregon. Wonderful people, who...like our other Senior couples...use this SEASON of their lives to make such an important contribution! We will miss them so much...

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And the SEASON for MISSION FOOTBALL is here again...

The three southern zones played in Cardiff...

Sisters of the Cheltenham and Merthyr Zones...

CHELTENHAM

Zone

In PINK because they lost last time...

(There may be a reason for this!!! )

(What sport are we playing?)


CARDIFF
Zone
AND...the WINNER for the South end of the Mission...

MERTHYR TYDFIL


Meanwhile, on a field up in COVENTRY...

another tournament is taking place.

A group of missionaries from the UK...

A picture of all of our German missionaries who serve in the Northern half of the Mission...

(only Elder Magpantay and Elder Heller were missing...)

The Sisters of Coventry, Lichfield, Birmingham, and Leicester...

LEICESTER
Zone

LICHFIELD

Zone

COVENTRY

Zone

NOTTINGHAM
Zone

And the WINNER of the northern zones...

BIRMINGHAM!!!

HAPPY SPRING FROM THE ENGLAND BIRMINGHAM MISSION...

CATCHING UP

MARCH

We had our own version of March Madness in the EBM. At Interviews, the AP's tried to stir up competition between the districts...

They whispered to the opposing district leaders things such as "Elder Olsen said you couldn't give away a Book of Mormon if it had twenty quid strapped to it"...or "Elder Spence said you couldn't stop 90 year old lady on crutches!"

"I don't know...that's just what I heard!"

TRANSFERS

Here are the missionaries who left us last week...

Elder Brandenberg (The Netherlands), Elder Burri (Switzerland), Elder D'Ottavio (Italy), Elder Wark (Scotland), Elder Koyle (Idaho), Elder Nimer (Utah), Elder Rudd (Utah), Elder Grover (Washington), Sister King (Utah), Sister Zechmann (Austria)

Elder Wark passes the keys of the Assistants to Elder Blackwood.

Elder Langner (below) was part of this group, but had to leave a week earlier to get home for his brother's wedding.

Our brand new Elders and Sister...the biggest group we've ever had come in!!!

Front row: Elder Price (England), Elder Salmans (Utah), Elder Durfee (Oregon), Sister Kottambagahagedara (Sri Lanka), Elder Stoddard (Idaho), Elder Steed (Utah), Elder Hinkle (Arizona), Elder Howe (Arizona), Elder Cauffman (Wyoming)

Back row: Elder Knecht (Utah), Elder Lindstrom (Utah), Elder Ercanbrack (Utah), Elder Beus (Utah), Elder Brewer (New Mexico) , Elder Habicht (Germany), Elder Mathews (Arizona), Elder Haider (Utah), Elder Prestwich (Oregon).

(Hope I got them right...its hard to see those faces!!!)

Being introduced to everyone.

Elder Hill trying to find a buyer for his bike.

Another special event this month was having Todd's family come for a visit. This picture of them was taken from on top the Cardiff Castle.

I was especially happy to have them here on the morning of transfers. Todd made pancakes for all the the greenies. Everyone agreed, they were the best pancakes ever. Max and Cassidy are really growing up. Since we missed their 12th birthday in February, and Max's ordination to the Priesthood, he and Chuck passed the sacrament together in our Wylde Green Ward on Sunday.

FEBRUARY TRANSFERS

Each transfer passes by with lightening speed now. We've said goodbye to some really wonderful missionaries...WE MISS THEM ALL SO MUCH!!!!

Elder Hallows (our AP---from Bountiful, Utah),
Elder Walker (Leeds, England), Elder Weeks (Roy, Utah),
Elder Patterson (Ogden, Utah), Elder Wright (Howell, Utah),
Elder Leber (Glendale, Arizona!), Elder Callister (La Quinta, California),
Sister Kochet (Ukraine), and Elder and Sister Cable (Bountiful, Utah)

(I told Elder Leber...whose home is very close to where my daughters live... that if he ever sees two beautiful young moms at Arrowhead Mall, with 8 of the cutest kids he's ever seen, to go say hello to them for us!!!)

We'll sure miss the Cables. They were CES missionaries down in Cardiff, Wales. They helped us with flat checks, and were so kind and nurturing to our missionaries in that area.

THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK:

Elder Dudley (Calgary, Canada), Elder Balla (Harrogate, England),
Elder Clarke-Wills (London, England), Elder Davis (Calgary, Canada),
Elder Grappi (Bern, Switzerland), and Sister Nadsady (Scotland)

We also welcomed Elder Blackwood into the office as our new Assistant.

(Elder Wark from Scotland, and Elder Blackwood from Reading, Engand... the Assistants to the President.)

You might have noticed that none of those new missionaries were from the USA. However, Elder Bussell from Maine came from the Provo MTC about a week later. He had been held up by his Visa.

A NEW YEAR....A NEW CHALLENGE

Transfers

Elder McOmber turns over the 'Keys of the Assistants' to Elder Hallows in preparation for his departure.

The ones we lost...Elder Peteru (Australia), Elder Briggs (Utah), Elder Carroll (Wisconsin/Arizona), Elder Israelson (Utah), Elder McOmber (Idaho), Elder Gee (England.

Each of them made a wonderful contribution to this mission...we're so thankful to have known them. We're excited to see what great things they'll accomplish as they move ahead.

The weather here was so bad, their flight was delayed a day.

In January, we were pleased to welcome back Elder Wangsgard who had been home for a while for medical reasons. We're so happy they sent him back to EBM...he had a reputation as a great missionary.


Zone Conference

This past week, we've had our first Zone Conferences for 2010. The leadership of the Mission shared a vision for the coming year of maintaining the high rate of baptisms we've had (720 in 2009), but improving on keeping them as active members of the Church. This will take a lot of diligence and hard work...we have about 25% fewer missionaries now than were in the mission at the beginning of 2009. But we know they can do it. It is wonderful to work with such choice young men and women.

Elder Callister and Elder Zito training the Lichfield Zone.

Elder D'Ottavio and Elder Richter doing training with the Cardiff Zone.

Elders Blackwood and Westwood of the Coventry Zone...

Elder Stevenson and Jette had a unique approach in teaching their Zone. Elder Olson and Elder Duke have 'angels around them'. (Elder Stevenson remarked, "You should have seen the strange looks we got in 'Claire's' yesterday!")

President does a role play with Sister Kawakami and Sister Kochet.

Zone Leaders of Leicester...Elder Davidson and Elder Perry (far right) with Elders Atchley and Haslem.

Shortly after Zone Conferences, we welcomed two new missionaries. They are Elder Bray from England, and Elder Krywult from Austria.

INTERVIEWS

For the past few weeks, we've been visiting the eight zones so that President Ogden could conduct interviews. Elder Hallows and Elder Wark (our new Assistant) used a wonderful object lesson in showing the importance of making the first time at church a positive experience for our investigators. They gave each companionship an egg (which represented someone they had invited to church), and asked how the visitors might enjoy it if they were just 'dropped in'. (They demonstrated this by dropping an egg into a trash can which represented the church.) Then they gave the missionaries a few supplies consisting of small amounts of paper, plastic cups, and tape (these things represented a ride, someone to greet them and sit with them, an introduction to the Bishop, etc)....and let them see if their visitor was 'cushioned' enough to enjoy the experience! Creative ideas were flowing...

Unfortunately, so were alot of egg yolks!!!