Elder and Sister Oaks and Elder Amado visit . . .

We were blessed to have Elder Dallin H Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife visit Osorno this past week. He was accompanied by Elder Carlos H Amado of the First Quorum of Seventy and President of the Chile Area. They spoke at a two hour fireside with all of our missionaries, with the exception of Coyhaique and Punta Arenas, and they spoke later that evening at a singles fireside in the Osorno Stake Center. It was a wonderful opportunity for our missionaries and members. What a great experience!

I love this picture with all of the missionaries (except Coyhaique and Punta Arenas Zones). Have you ever seen such a great group of young men and women? Seated from l-r are Pte and Hna Otay (my first counselor), Susie and I, Elder and Sister Oaks, Elder Amado, and Pte and Hna Carcamo (my second counselor).

Susie and I were blessed to be able to host them in the mission home for lunch and some relaxation between meetings. We enjoyed being able to spend time with them.

In August, Elder Scott came to Chile. In October, Elder Nelson came to Osorno. And now Elder Oaks has come to Osorno. I know the Lord loves this country.

San José de la Mariquina . . .

Branch building in San José de la Mariquina

President & Sister Salas and their two daughters Paula and Pamela

Susie and I with some of the branch members. Wonderful people.

Susie and I spent Saturday in Villarrica conducting interviews with members and leaders. For Sunday, we attended church in the small branch of San José de la Mariquina which is in the Los Lagos District. We had a wonderful day with these great members. The branch is blessed with an exceptional branch president (Pte Salas), two great missionaries and some excellent families. Several of the recent converts have added significant strength and several are preparing to go to the temple. We were fortunate to be there when a young husband was confirmed a member of the church, having been baptized yesterday and on the same day seeing his new baby boy blessed. In a year this family will be going to the temple to be sealed. It was very nice.

June Cambios . . .

This was cambio week again and we received 10 new missionaries. Above is a picture taken at the Osorno airport upon arrival. The sisters in front with Susie include (l-r) Hna Stout from Plainfield, IN, Hna Burningham from Layton, UT, Hna McMaster from SLC, UT and Hna Whisenhunt from Las Vegas, NV. The new Elders from l-r are Elder Jaita from Bolivia, Elder Benitez from Uruguay, Elder Riches from Grantsville, UT, Elder Paris from Santiago, Chile, Elder Cortez from Nicaragua and Elder Olmedo from Paraguay. They are a great bunch of missionaries and we are grateful to have them here.

After interviews, dinner and training, here are the new missionaries in the mission home. Sisters l-r are Hna Stout, Hna McMasters, Hna Burningham and Hna Whisenhunt. Elder l-r are Elder Shallenberger (AP), Elder Paris, Elder Riches, Elder Benitez, Elder Olmedo, Elder Jaita, Elder Cortez and Elder Matorell (AP). On Wednesday the met their new companions and left for their areas. This will be an excellent group!

The hardest part of cambios is seeing the missionaries we love so much leave the mission to return home. This is one of those great groups and we will miss them so much. The sisters l-r are Hna Apaza from Santa Cruz, Bolivia, Hna Crook from Centerville, UT, Hna Koontz from San Diego, CA and Hna Wood from SLC, UT. The elders l-r are Elders Matorell and Shallenberger, out Assistants, Elder Escobar from Costa Rica, Elder Aranda from Bolivia, Elder Alves da Costa from Uruguay, Elder Pizaro from Chile, Elder Lainez from Honduras and Elder Gomez from Argentina. Also leaving this week are Elder and Hna Allen, our senior couple. These are all exceptional missionaries and we will miss them. We will especially miss the Allen´s who have been such a wonderful blessing. They´ve served for two years and have been such a big help. They were especially helpful for Susie and I when we arrived last year. They will be returning to their daughter´s home in Oklahoma, so it will be nice to know they are in Oklahoma. I think their kids live in Mustang, OK.

I can´t emphasize enough what a blessing these senior couples are. If any of you are considering this, please serve. You will love it.
In this picture before dinner, Susie, Hna Allen and Hna Westover join with the departing sisters for one last picture.

Fresia Branch Conference . . .

Sister Lovell with Hna Allen and Hna Westover

Some of the members from the Fresia Branch

Elder Hernandez from Santiago, Chile who is serving as the Branch President and his companion, Elder Bateman from Salem, OR

Fresia Branch Chapel

Susie and I visited the Fresia Branch today for their annual Branch Conference. Elder and Sister Allen were there (they finish their service next week) as well as Elder and Sister Westover who are the new missionary couple that recently arrived.

Fresia is a wonderful branch that struggles in a small and isolated area of the mission. The branch does not belong to a stake or district, and is therefore an independent branch belonging to the mission. The branch president is a missionary, currently Elder Hernandez from Santiago, Chile. His only counselor is his companion, Elder Batemen from Salem, OR.

We had excellent turnout today with over 45 in attendance and it was wonderful to be able to see them again and speak to them. We originally attended Fresia on our second Sunday in the mission, so we were anxious to get back to them. I love the Spirit in these small branches and am inspired by the faithfulness of these members.

April/May Zone Conference . . .

This past zone conference was especially nice because we were joined by two senior couples from Santiago that are serving as the Area medical and pyschological support for the missionaries. In the picture above with Susie and I are Elder and Sister Davis and Elder and Sister Dixon. Sister Davis, a psycholgist, provides counseling support for missionaries in all of Chile, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. (Now that´s a tough mission) Elder Dixon is a medical doctor providing medical support for the nine missions located in Chile. This is his 4th mission, having served first as a proselyting missionary 60 years ago to Japanese speaking people in Hawaii. He and his wife have also served medical missions for the church in California, Spain and now Chile. They are such a wonderful resource and help to us in the mission. It was nice to have them accompany us on the conference tour to provide additional training and instruction to our missionaries.

Above you see members of the Coyhaique zone modeling the new rain gear we will be using in the mission. We are hopeful this will keep them drier as the winter rain season arrives. They are actually trying to imitate a "Charile´s Angel" type pose that the Sister have done. From l-r are Elders Rivas (Panama), Hogan (Texas), Nash (Utah), Ribera (Bolivia), Saade (Argentina), Aspitia (Argentina), Wohlfart (Germany) and Opazo (Chile).

Here is Susie at the mission home with several of our sisters after the conference in Osorno. From top to bottom are Hermanas Biggs (Oregon), Guevara (El Salvador), Bustos (Bolivia), Aguilar (El Salvador), Koontz (California) and Crook (Utah).

At the Osorno Zone conference, Sister Davis leads the missionaries in a stress relieving "hand dance". At least the missionaries can do this dance. It was a lot of fun.

At some time during our zone conference in Valdivia, an Elder took this picture. I can´t even think of an adequate caption for this photo, so I´ll leave it to your imagination. Pictured with Susie from l-r are Hermanas Moemai (Utah), Torrico (Bolivia), Perez (Panama), McClellan (California), Butler (Utah) and that is Hermana Wood from Utah in front. She is actually a very accomplished Ballet dancer, so I can only guess that is where this got started.

In the spirit of equal opportunity, we have some of the Elders from the Coyhaique Zone with their own interpretation of the sister´s dance pose. Here are Elders Aspitia, Wohlfart, Ribera, Saade, DeGroot and Nash. Fortunately, I was in interviews at the time and was unavailable.

May cambio . . .

We had an unexpected transfer this past week when we were informed of a missionary from Santiago, Chile that would be sent to our mission. Elder Vilasau has actually served some 10 months in another mission before being reassigned to serve in Chile Osorno. He seems like a great young man and will be an excellent addition to our mission. He will be serving in a trio in Llanquihue with Elders Lopez and Adlard.

April Cambios . . .

A new group of missionaries arrived on Tuesday of this week. Here they are arriving at the airport in Osorno. In the front row are Hna Perez from Panama, Susie, Hna Gonzalez from Argentina and Hna Earl from Utah. In the back is Elder Vergara one of our Assistants, Elder Moyano from Ecuador, Elder Schubert from Canada, Elder Ospino from Columbia, Elder Navarro from Peru, Elder Shallenberger our other Assistant, Elder Razón and Elder Cisternas from Chile.

At the mission home after interviews, orientation and a nice meal, they are exhausted, but still ready to get to work. Seated are Susie, Hna Perez, Hna Earl and Hna Gonzalez. Standing are Elder Vergara, Elder Shallenberger, Elder Razon, Elder Ospino, Elder Cisternas, Elder Navarro, Elder Schubert, Elder Moyano and Elder and Sister Allen.

Unfortunately, with cambios, we must say good-bye to some excellent and much loved missionaries who have finished their term of service in the mission. This was an exceptional group and we will miss them all. Seated are Susie, Hna Claros from Columbia and Hna Fuertes from Bolivia. Standing are Elder Shallenberger an Assistant, Elder Smith from Florida, Elder Lowry from Canada, Elder Leal, Elder Vergara and Elder Pinto all from Chile and Elder Matorell from Alaska, our new Assistant.

It is a testament to the divinity of this work that it moves on seamlessly through the great efforts of these young missionaries. Whether they are new or experienced, they bring a great attitude and devotion to preaching the gospel. We love them so much and will forever be grateful for their sacred service.