TRANSFERRED!

We have been asked to move into the apartment above the mission office.  What a surprise turn of events.  First Elder and Sister Gottfredson went home a couple of months early for medical reasons.  It was sad to say goodbye again to dear friends. 

Elder and Sister Gottfredson on a remarkable bench carved out of one piece of wood.
We had one last trip to Banaue together with the Kiholms the week before they left.

We are down to 2 senior couples in our mission now and hope we can get more.  With all the new missions we may not see anyone new for a while.  (We have an additional couple that are assigned under the Employment Resource Center, so they aren't technically in our mission but we enjoy their company.)  

Branch President and his wife

Saying goodbye to our branch in Gamu was so hard.  We love those people so very much and will see them infrequently now we are busy in a new assignment as Housing coordinators.  They had a surprise party for us the Saturday before we left and many sweet thankyou’s were expressed to us and many tears shed. 

Young Men's president and his wife.  Elder Mills has a close friendship with him.

Part of the Lapiton Family, baptized in Feb. 2013

Bucu family including their married daughter

This sweet family went to the temple in March to be sealed.  
I taught piano lessons to Gazelle on my left

Reactivated in the last 8 months, they went to the temple in May this year.

The Ferrer Family, converts of a year.

This family (wife not here today) is being taught by the missionaries.
We read the Book of Mormon with them for over a month. The son
on the left is a member.

Brother and Sister Daggao, both returned missionaries.
Their son was born the same time as our last granddaughter.

Some of our precious young adults.  The two on the left are waiting for their mission call.

Angie on my right was baptized in February this year.  Her brother in law  in front is a member of our new branch in Cauayan.  We are reading now the Book of Mormon with his wife, Angie's sister!

Our beloved Balisi family.  They went to the temple in March.

He is the branch mission leader and a recently returned missionary.
She is a convert and has the fire of missionary work in her bones.

We also said farewell to members in other branches in Burgos District we have become close to.  We have shared some very sweet experiences in the homes of members with these beloved people – some of the best of our mission!

The day before we were going to begin moving I got the flu – the achy painful joint kind.  Elder Mills began packing up the pantry and taking boxes of our things to the apartment in Cauayan by himself. I missed going to the airport to say goodbye to Gottfredson's.  During the next 3 days I recovered enough with the aid of ibuprofen so that I could help and by Wednesday night June 12th we were moved. 
*(I know that seems ridiculous that it would take a couple days to move, but we expected we would live in Gamu for our whole mission and we had settled in.  We also had to change it from a couple missionary apartment to a sister missionary apartment.)

Thursday we cleaned the house in Gamu and the Elders helped moving the big stuff to get it ready for the lucky sister missionaries that would move in there the following week.  (We had to disconnect the air con – missionaries can’t afford that electric bill, and trade out the appliances for the simpler ones young missionaries use. Our queen size bed was traded for bunkbeds) 

Saying goodbye to Ray and Josie, our landlord/neighbors, and their daughter Jade was very sad also, and we will miss their many kindnesses to us.  They will be so good to those sister missionaries!