""KINDERGARTEN FIELD DAY

Helping with a sack race

A class photo

The children are four, five and six years old

After the races each child received a sweet treat

 

Every Thursday we visit the Sogulu Kindergarten. Today is Field day

and Teacher appreciation day.  Parents in the village prepared

a plate of treats for each child to enjoy after the races.

They also prepared a beautiful lai for the teacher.

This teacher wants the students in her class to hear

what she calls "real" stories because she knows that

someday God will ask her what she taught her

students and she wants him to know she taught them that

they are his children.

 

3 Nephi 17:21

...and he took their little children, one by one,

 and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them.

 

 



"THE END OF THE DAY"

 

The view from the deck at our home in Sogulu.

Every day we come home to the color and drama of Taveuni

The colors are brilliant and the air is soft and inviting.

After hard and not so hard days, the beauty of our back yard warms our

hearts and lets us know that God is watching over our efforts.



"CHRISTMAS IN AUGUST"

 

The Sister missionaries enjoy a Christmas craft project.

 

The Senior couples enjoy preparing then sharing the food

complete with gingerbread cookies and candy canes.

 

The Elders enjoy showing off their Christmas gift.

 

At our last zone meeting we enjoyed Christmas in August.

Elder and Sister Terry provided food, fun and gifts for

the missionaries. 

 

Elder and Sister Terry served for two years as Member, Leader Support Missionaries

 Elder Terry helped with MLS and electronics while SisterTerry looked after

 the missionaries. 

They are loved and missed in Fiji.

 

Mosiah 2:16

Behold, I say unto you that because I said unto you that I had

spent my days in your service, I do not desire to boast,

for I have only been in the service of God. 

"SUNDAY THEN MONDAY"

 

The supermarket is closed and the gate

 is locked because it is Sunday.

 

The local market is empty because it is Sunday.

 

The Meridian Store is the first business to open

in the world.  It is on the International

Date line.  It is bolted shut because

it is Sunday.

 

 

Six day a week you can walk down the streets of Nagara  and enjoy

exploring the shops and visiting with the people. But on Sunday

everything changes.  Nagar becomes quiet. The shops are closed

and the people are either in the church houses or

visiting family members in the village.

 

D&C 59:9-10

And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt

go to the house of prayer and offer up they sacraments upon my holy day;

For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay

thy devotions unto the Most High;

 

 



"BY SEA"

Tourists travel by Yacht

 



 

Fishermen prefer the Motor Boat

 

 

The Big Ship delivers "goods" and people to Taveuni

on Tuesday and Saturday

 

Every day at noon the Ferry delivers people from Buca Bay

to Taveuni

 



 

Sometimes  people fish from a boat carved out of a log.

 

 

Every morning at eight or nine but definitely by 10

 the Ferry leaves for Vana Levu

 

 

 Fiji missionaries travel on all of types of boats to tell God's

children that he loves them.

 

 

We have learned to enjoy traveling on crystal clear water

while breathing soft air that tastes like salt. 

On every island we are lucky enough to visit the people know that we are

" Mormons" and they

respectfully call us "Elder" and "Sister"

 

Alma 63:5

"And it came to pass that Hagoth, he being an exceedingly curious man,

therefore he went forth and built him an

exceedingly large ship, on the borders of the land Bountiful, by

the land Desolation, and launched it forth into the wet sea,

by the narrow neck which led into the land northward."

 

 

"ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIME"

Crossing Rivers one way

Or Another

Elder McFadden, Elder Inia and Elder Tukea trying to conquer

 the bush with a smile and a granola bar.

 

Traveling in Vuna is always an adventure.  The village shares a water tank where water is collected when it rains. .  The water is used for cooking, bathing and drinking.  There are several

copra (coconut) plantations in Vuna.  There are also cattle ranches and a resort called "Paradise"

Traveling in Vuna makes us feel like we are back in Idaho.

 

"HELPING HANDS"

 



 Working with President Lesume to provide a

restroom for the Vuna Branch
 

 Filling Sand bags for the restroom septic system

 

Enjoy the clear water in Matei

 

Worldwide "Helping Hands" project in Matei

 Sister Hill and Sister McFadden cleaning

Hibiscus flowers from a bush.

 

 Helping the Young Women,( Mele Fisher and

Angelina Mohamme) learn how to conduct music

 



Finding a way for members to receive proper

medical care

Fixing a fence in Somosomo with the Elders

from the Taveuni district

(Elder Magalogo, Elder Nawaheni, ElderGardner, Elder Tamuera)

Elder Tamuera cleaning chairs for the Somosomo Branch

 

Finding a way to provide water tanks for villages

in the bush with Elder Inia  and Elder Tukea

President Watakini and Elder McFadden providing

clean water to Vuna

 

Filling pop bottle and plastic barrels with clean water
to take to the Saints in Vuna

after the community well went dry



Helping the blind to see and a five year old

deaf girl, Luisa, get proper health care

 

Service

 

Missionaries spend at least one day each week giving service to the communities where they live. The missionaries fix fences and clean chairs.  They clear litter from roads and teach music.

There are no rivers on the south end of Taveuni so when the community well dried up

 we began spending allot of  time hauling fresh water to the missionaries and members there. We also helped provide containers to catch rain water used for cooking, bathing and washing clothes. 

( How strange that an Idaho problem is also a problem on the South Pacific island of Fiji.) 

We also spend time gathering and delivering coconuts to people in need.  Every part of the palm tree is used for something. The liquid and nut provide nourishment while the husk is made into utensils and twine. The leaves become coverings to keep insects off of food and are made into brooms.

Additionally, we watch for individuals with special medical needs then help them find proper care.  

However, our most important service is given to those who will accept a Book of Mormon from us and then will read it and pray to find out if it is true.

 

Mosiah 2:17

"And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom;

that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow being

ye are only in the service o your God."