Sorry to See Them Go
Six were bound for home while one is leaving us to continue serving in the Temple Square Mission.
Elder Joel Kartchner, Elder Russell Knight,
Elder Samuel Lund, Elder Erik Porter,
Elder James Puertas
Sister Ainsley Despain, Sister Aleina Rogers
It all started with a pass-along card!
A young man lost his way after joining the church. He spent some years experimenting with practices that took him further and further away from the gospel. Then one day he started to do some soul searching. A friend gave him a mormon.org pass-along card which prompted him to go online and take a look. He clicked on the “Meet WithThe Missionaries” link and a referral was immediately generated. The referral made it to 2 elders in his area who went to meet him. The elders were kindly invited to dinner and to present their first lesson. Not only was he interested in hearing the elders’ message, but he was now married with 2 children and his wife was interested in hearing the gospel as well. The missionaries began teaching an entire family! A baptism was held held in November and it all started with a pass-along card!
December 1 Departures
Elder Jacob Hereth, Elder Kye Hofer, Elder Spencer Killian,
Elder Jordon Lindsay, Elder Joshua Redfearn,
Sister Raquel Lopez, Sister Caitlin Nichols
New Arrivals!
November 29 we welcomed 12 new missionaries
to the OEM:
Elder Justin Griffin, Elder Carter Jennings,
Elder Hayden Jones, Elder Jeffrey Jorgensen,
Elder Kyson McBride, Elder Jonathan Perrine,
Elder Daniel Thompson, Elder Edgar Tilley,
Elder Dallin Webb, Sister Courtney Barton,
Sister Ashlee Hoffman, Sister Cinthya Lovato
to the OEM:
Elder Justin Griffin, Elder Carter Jennings,
Elder Hayden Jones, Elder Jeffrey Jorgensen,
Elder Kyson McBride, Elder Jonathan Perrine,
Elder Daniel Thompson, Elder Edgar Tilley,
Elder Dallin Webb, Sister Courtney Barton,
Sister Ashlee Hoffman, Sister Cinthya Lovato
2011 Winds Down
The year may be cooling off and winding down but the missionaries in the Oregon Eugene Mission are gearing up. They accepted a challenge from President Young and are hard at work. The names of the people they have prepared for baptism are rolling in to the mission office. Their Christmas gift to the Savior this year will be many more souls brought unto Him.
Book of Miracles
In our Zone Conference, one elder spoke of his 3 favorite books: The Book of Mormon, the Bible and Elder Bagley’s Book of Miracles. The mission is full of stories of the hand of God in our work. Here is one:
A woman in Southern California was at the end of her rope. Her sons were gang members and she feared for the well being of them and her family. She was searching for some peace in her life and was desperate to know what to do. In her desperation she knelt in prayer. While she was on her knees her doorbell rang, and when she opened the door, standing there were 2 missionaries. She knew right away they brought the peace she needed and listened to their message. One of those sons now serves in the Oregon Eugene mission sharing that same message of peace with others.
Zone Conference Week
Zone conferences were held this past week in Central Point, Eugene, Albany and Redmond. There was instruction, discussion, competition and celebration!
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| Zone Conference Redmond |
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| Zone Conference Albany |
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| Zone Conference Eugene |
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| Zone Conference Central Point |
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| Singing the mission song |
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| The road to Redmond |
OYM - Open Your Mouth!
Recently a gentleman from Bend, Oregon was traveling on a plane and found himself chatting with a member of the church. The church member recommended he take a look at mormon.org. and the next week the gentleman visited the site where he asked for more information. Meanwhile his traveling companion mailed him a Book of Mormon with his testimony. A pair of our wonderful missionaries visited the man, taught him the gospel and have now set a date for baptism! The missionaries call it OYM - Open Your Mouth! Thankfully, that's just what this member did!
Easy As Pie!
President and Sister Young invited all the sisters to attend an overnight seminar at the mission home. President Young taught principles centered on the Doctrine of Christ and Real Growth. President Lowary taught how to make an easy dinner and Sister Watts taught how to make a 15 minute pie. There was a testimony meeting, a sleepover, an early morning run and a day of training. Twenty-two sister missionaries.....two bathrooms. Enough said.
Zone Leader Council - Training, Food, Field Trip
The first week of the month is Zone Leader Council. The Zone Leaders come from near and far to spend a day with the President and get their batteries recharged. Thanks to President and Sister Young, President Lowary, and the AP's, this month's Zone Leader Council was full of good training, good food and a field trip to the University of Oregon campus and stadium. Check out the last picture to see the extra bit of fun the APs threw in for good measure.
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| An early start! |
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| Who's your homeboy? |
Former Mission Presidents Visit the OEM
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| L to R: President and Sister Young, President and Sister Smart, President and Sister Cushing, President and Sister Fugal |
What a great time President and Sister Young had in October with former President and Sister Smart, former President and Sister Cushing, and former President and Sister Fugal. They came to Oregon to enjoy the BYU game at Corvallis. The game was great - especially since BYU won J - and the weather was perfect! There was even time for some visiting with friends during dinner at the mission home. What a treat to spend time with people who share a common love for the people, the missionaries and the work of the OEM!
If At First You Don't Succeed............
“If at first you don’t succeed perhaps sky diving isn’t for you”
This sign appears on a fence near the mission office. Sometimes members of the church feel the same way about missionary work. Sometimes we are afraid to try, and before we know it we have given up altogether. Thankfully the missionaries in the OEM don’t have that attitude.
The Assistants to the President have recently started “The Assistants’ Challenge.” They challenged one pair of elders to make thirty OYMs (Open Your Mouth) the next day. Those contacts can be anything from a door knock to stopping someone on the street. Thirty seems a lot, but the elders themselves changed it to forty! These missionaries had been praying hard for a family to teach, so they were up to the challenge and off they set the next morning to find their forty. During the day they knocked and talked and even had success with some, but no families. By late in the day, they were tired and their total was only thirty-nine! They could have given up, but had promised themselves and Heavenly Father they would hit forty. Instead of going home they decided to knock on one more door. There they were invited in to teach a family of six! …..and they have another appointment! The Assistants called it the "Miracle of the 40th Door." Blessings come when we don’t give up!
What Are Visa Waiters?
When visas don't come through for missionaries destined for foreign countries, they are given assignments inside the United States while they wait. Visa Waiters! We love visa waiters in the Oregon Eugene Mission. They come to the OEM for a brief time, where they are paired with great trainers and learn about mission life. We are so grateful for the service they render, but before we know it, they are gone :( Right now we have four visa waiters with us. Elder Newell leaves for France this week. Elders Tillack, Henrie and McIntire as well as Sister Miller must be patient a little longer before they are off to Ukraine and Brazil.
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| Elder Tillack (Ukraine) with President and Sister Young |
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| Sister Miller (Brazil) with President and Sister Young |
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| Elder Henrie (Brazil) with President and Sister Young |
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| Elder McIntire (Brazil) with President and Sister Young |
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| Elder Newell (France) with President and Sister Young |
Fall Arrives in Oregon!
President and Sister Young decided on an impromtu photo shoot to capture the beautiful Fall colors.
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| Assistants to the President: Elders Jensen, Knight, Edwards, Sutton |
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| President and Sister Young with Office Staff, L to R: The Brownes, The Watts, The Fridens |
Sorry To See Them Go!
Elders Taylor Cash, Eric Culver, Janz Engen, Michael Fonseca,
Zachary Klinefelter, Riley Parsons, Steven Russon, Kelby Wright and Sister Brittney Stoehr
A New Group of Missionaries Arrive!
We welcomed several new missionaries to the OEM in October:
12 Elders, 4 Sisters and 3 Couples. Some arrived on Tuesday the 18th and some were earlier arrivals. However, all have now been assigned to their various companions and areas and are already hard at work.
OCTOBER 18
12 Elders, 4 Sisters and 3 Couples. Some arrived on Tuesday the 18th and some were earlier arrivals. However, all have now been assigned to their various companions and areas and are already hard at work.
OCTOBER 18
Elder Scott Asay, Elder Nathan Berg, Elder Bryan Burton,
Elder Nathaniel Cole, Elder Marshall Erickson, Elder Forrest Gowan,
Elder Benjamin Hales, Elder Nicholas Henrie, Elder Joel Johnson,
Elder Joseph McIntire, Elder Jordan McMaster, Elder Anthony Mitchell,
Elder Thomas Newell, Elder Jared Reed, Elder Bractn Williams.
Sister Alexandra Cluff, Sister Heather White
Elder & Sister Charles and Dianne Friden
EARLY ARRIVALS
Elder and Sister James and Patricia Wels
Elder and Sister Richard and Connie Creamer
Sister Ainsley Despain from Temple Square
Sister Tiffany Christensen from Nauvoo Visitors' Center
Sisters called to serve in the church's visitor center missions are given the opportunity to spend some time in a proselyting mission. We are thrilled to have them.
The Oregon Grove and August Zone Conference
One of the first new traditions President Young implemented was to take brand new missionaries from the airport directly to a special location in Hendricks Park for a very spiritual experience. He calls this "Oregon's Grove." Accompanied by their trainers who often become life-long friends, they get a sense of this Mission and the Children of God who are seeking to find the true Gospel in this part of the world.
AUGUST ZONE CONFERENCES
Zone Conferences were held in three different locations in August. Training centered around teaching the Doctrine of Christ. Missionaries were reminded about the importance of inviting their investigators to pray, attend church and read the Book of Mormon. Their investigators should be invited to accept the ordinance of baptism. President Young stressed the importance of teaching by the spirit and encouraged the missionaries to study in more depth chapter 3 of Preach My Gospel.
STAND TALL AND STRAIGHT LIKE THIS TREE IN THE OREGON GROVE
Zone Conferences were held in three different locations in August. Training centered around teaching the Doctrine of Christ. Missionaries were reminded about the importance of inviting their investigators to pray, attend church and read the Book of Mormon. Their investigators should be invited to accept the ordinance of baptism. President Young stressed the importance of teaching by the spirit and encouraged the missionaries to study in more depth chapter 3 of Preach My Gospel.
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| The Albany Zone Conference |
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| The Central Point Zone Conference |
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| The Eugene Zone Conference |
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| Sister young introduced the Missionary Charade game at Zone Conference |
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