Conversion Story

We got to the Colon Ward almost a half hour early today.  It is a beautiful, light colored, chapel.   There was a gentleman about 60 years old in the chapel, reading his scriptures.  (Uh...that's Jerry in the picture.  The man I'm talking about is on the left, outside the picture.)   Not wanting to bother the man, we went to the first row and sat down.  No one else was in the chapel.  There was a CD player playing hymns for the prelude.  What  a beautiful way to begin a sabbath morning! 

After a few minutes, the brother came over and greeted us.  He told us his story.  About 30 years ago, he was taking the discussions.  He decided he was not interested, so he brought all the books back to the church and left them there.  No one was at the door to greet him, so he just left. 
He became very active in an evangelical congregation for 20 years or so.  He served a lot in that church.  He didn't agree with some of the beliefs, however, and eventually stopped going.  

In February, 2011, two young elders knocked on his door. He was interested and wanted to know more. They were happy, because that very night, there was an activity planned at the church. He went and at the end of the activity, the elders gave him a Book of Mormon. He came to church the next Sunday. In the investigator's class, he was answering questions because he knew so much.  The elders were excited to have such a golden contact.  He was baptized two weeks later!  ( I got this information from Elder Howell from Layton, Nevada, who baptized him, to make sure I understood the story correctly.)

I wanted to take a picture of the brother right there in the chapel, but restained myself.  The thing is, his face just shined with the spirit!  He had white hair, was wearing a dark suit, with a white shirt and tie.  What a wonderful example of a person who has the light of the gospel in his countenance!  He was very excited because today he was getting set apart for a calling. 
He looks like a patriarch or a general authority because of the light the emanates from him.  I was so impressed with his humility, his excitement at being a member of the church, and his new calling. 

He was truly an example to me of someone who knew the Bible well and was used to serving in a church.  Once he found the truth, it was an easy thing for him to attend and be a devoted member.   I hope someday, I will be able to eminate the light of the spirit like he does.   

Teaching the Career Workshop

Jerry and I are the official teachers of the Career Workshop in our office. It is a 12-hour workshop spread over 3 days. We try to have one every week, but we end up with enough people twice a month. Often, we think we have enough, but they don't show up. That is disappointing when it happens. However, this week we started with eight people for the "Taller de Autosuficiencia Laboral." The title is a mouthful, but Jerry has become very good at teaching it. I help a little, but usually put the posters up and write on the board. I set up the room ahead of time also. Often, I am the receptionist in the office while Jerry is teaching the workshop because we are short on volunteers. It's better when we can both be in the workshop together.


I thought I would take some pictures of one of our workshops to show you what we do. 

The classroom is set up ready for the students to arrive. There is a maroon workbook under the hymnbook. (I forgot to take a picture of the workbook by itself.) This week the workshop is in the morning. Next time, it will be in the afternoon.

Jerry keeps the students' attention very well, using stories and personal examples, which makes it very interesting. The people feel free to add their comments too. It makes for a great workshop.

Here the students are practicing what they will say in an interview. 

Jerry has them practice interviewing each other. They practice before they have prepared themselves, and then afterwards to show the difference. The second time, I run the video camera so they can see themselves. After watching the playback, the students give each other feedback as one of the final activities of the workshop. It's very effective because Jerry has prepared them so well. 

Often when the people arrive for the workshop, they are discouraged and don't have a plan. They don't have a job and no one is offering them one. They don't know where to turn or what to do to help themselves. They feel unemployable. After the first day, they have lists of their qualities and abilities that shows them what they have to offer to an employer. They find out they are employable. Each day, they gain more confidence and their self-image improves.

After teaching the workshop, Jerry is tired. I am too, but I don't know why. I don't do that much.  (Behind him is just a poster that is stored behind the couch.)

Jerry has all the pressure of how to teach a particular group of people, and how to express himself in a different language. He stands most of the time when he's teaching, except when he is sitting on his chair.







I get up and down, writing on the board,

 putting up posters,

and trying to read, comprehend, and help the students when they have written something. It's nothing like what Jerry has to do, though.
At the end of the workshop, everyone gets a diploma.  Note that there were only six who finished.  That happens a lot.  These people were great!

They are so excited and happy. They are beaming because they have the tools they need to go forward. We are so impressed with the change in their countenances. They get lighter each day. It's so amazing. I thought that I was making it up, but the students do improve physically as well as spiritually. It's visible in the faces, their stance, and their mannerisms.


We have a testimony of the power of the workshop. It truly is inspired and based on true principles. What an amazing thing it is to be a part of this wonderful workshop!

The Municipal Branch in the Montevideo North Stake

Today was another great example of the spirit that is in the meetings here. There were about 35 people in the Rama Municipal (Branch.) The building was a converted house. I was so impressed with the branch presidency, the young people, and the level of knowledge the members have. It was a blessing to be able to meet them and participate in the meetings. As I was finishing my talk, I looked out and felt the spirit strongly.

In Sacrament Meeting, the missionaries confirmed a newly baptized brother who was about 30 years old. He has so much light in his eyes!  You could see the joy shining through him as we talked.  Jerry had extra time, and told Nibia's story before he talked about our job here. What a wonderful spirit that brought to the meeting! I love hearing that story. It's the reason we came on our mission.

Branch President Carreras Alvarez brought us into his office to talk to us a little before the meeting started. He told us two stories. The first one was about his conversion to the church. He has been a police officer for over 34 years. He told about how he investigated the church for 3 years. He smoked and didn't want to give that up. His mother had been ill and she wanted him to stop smoking so he could gain a testimony and join the church. He decide to pray and said to Heavenly Father, “When I go see her tomorrow, if she is better, I will take that as a sign that the church is true. I will stop smoking join the church.” When he visited her the next day, she was significantly better. He decided to join the church. Regretably however, the next day, she got much worse and died. He quit smoking that very day, and joined the church soon after, to keep his promise to the Lord and honor his sweet mother.    That was years ago, and now he is the branch president!

The other story was when he was recording baptisms in the temple. He was working at the desk. There was a door to the right and a little behind him. He heard the door open and a woman come in and say, “Thank you for doing this work.” When he turned to see who it was, she had left. He went out the door to see her, but there was no one there. No one had seen anyone come in or out, and everyone was busy with ordinance work in other areas of the temple. He believes it was one of the ancestors for whom the work had been done. We tend to agree with him.

Here is a picture of Carreras Alvarez with his lovely wife, Alici.  It looks like they are by the temple.

He has 2 children, and his wife was the R.S. teacher and the S. S. teacher today. She is also the early-morning seminary teacher. She is amazing! We are so blessed to be able to see the growth in the church here. 

One of the sisters introduced me to her lovely daughters who were 14 & 15. She says they are in the YW program, and she is the YW leader. She has been a member for 20 years. I told them that they are pioneers. What a blessing it was to meet them! Everyone was very friendly and wanted to introduce themselves.

None of the people in that branch were members when Jerry was here 40 years ago. The church is growing! And we are here to see it.  We are so grateful to be here!