Monday, May 11, 2015

Estaca Atlantico Conference

Dear Family and Friends:
     Hope that you have all had a wonderful week.  Ours went by very fast as usual, however the temple was not filled this week.  We are always a little sad when the people don't come, but we were able to do a lot of needed training so it was a productive week.  Every obrero is to be re-certified in all areas of the temple work each year and Hermana Burk is determined to have this done before she is replaced on November 1st.  We have some shifts which will be done by July, but the Saturday shifts have a long way to go.  Saturdays are just so busy that we don't have much time for training.  The men struggle with this more than the ladies because there are so few of them on most shifts and their coordinators are not as organized as the women.  But we just keep trying to get everyone on the same page and serving the correct way.
     We went downtown to the Central Market with President and Hermana Burk on Monday the 4th. 
The plaza just outside the Central Market is over run with pigeons.  We didn't think it would be very smart to stand under the pillars as they are filled with pigeons. 
     
      The Central Market is right in the heart of the city and we would never be able to find it ourselves.  There are no street signs at the intersections and if you didn't know where you were going, it would be so easy to get lost.  The top floor of the market has hundreds of small booths were you can buy almost anything that you can think of.  If one booth doesn't have what you want, the owner will go to another booth and bring it to you.  We had a good time shopping and found all of the treasures that we needed (wanted). 
    
     The lower floor of the Market is the fruit and vegetable stores. 
    
      We wish that we could shop here every week as the fruits and veggies looked so much better than at the regular markets.
 
 
               President y Hermana Burk
 
     There were rows and rows of foods and each area was owned by a different family so if you bought food from one side of the aisle and turned around to buy something from the other side, you had to deal with someone new.  The best way to shop is to try and get everything from one person as they will try to give you a better deal if you stay with them.  We had a great time.
   
      On Sunday we were assigned to visit the Estaca Atlantico and speak at their stake conference.  This stake is in a very poor area of the city. We had spoken here in August of 2014 at a Fireside.  Their stake conference has to be in two sessions as there is not a building large enough to hold the whole stake at once. 
 
     As it was Mother's Day (here it is always on the 10th, no matter what day of the week it falls on) the attendance was not what the Stake Presidency had hoped for but each session was full.  We spoke in the first session, 8:00-10:00, and then were treated to a sandwich and juice.  We then spoke in the second session, 11:00 - 1:00.  As usual, the best part was meeting with our obrero's who live in this stake.
 Hermana Xicara and her son and daughter who are all obrero's on Saturday Morning

 The stake choir.  They too sang in both of the sessions.  They did a good job.

 Hermano Jacome is the Wednesday Evening Shift Coordinator

Los Thompson's, First Counselor Pte. Cabrera,  Pte. Velasquez, Second Counselor Pte. Gomez
  Pte. Velasquez also works here at the temple.  He is in charge of the temple housing.

Hermano y Hermana Maldonado who serve on the Wednesday morning shift
 
     There were others in the sessions but we didn't get photos of them; Hna. Mendoza, Hna. Cuque, Hno. Jimenez, Hno Estrada, Hno. Arias to name a few.  It was a great way to celebrate Mother's Day.
     We are so thankful for our Mothers.  They taught by example and love.  They showed us how to work and to play.  They showed us that by serving our Heavenly Father, our lives can be filled with peace and happiness.  We are thankful for their testimonies of the restored Gospel that has strengthened our testimonies.  We have been so blessed with two amazing Mothers. 
     We send our love to all.  We look forward to the new adventures that this new week is sure to bring.  Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma, Lon and Nancy

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