Trinidad Central and South Zones

The Central and South Zones of Trinidad had their Zone Conference on February 19, 2010 at the mission home where the elders love to be.

February Zone Conferences, Trinidad

On February 18, 2010 the Zone conferences in Trinidad were divided into North Zone on the 18th and the South and Central Zones on the 19th. We were able to move back to the Mission Home for the Zone Conferences, which is such a nice atmosphere.

WIM Helps Haiti

On 25 January 2010, Emrol Gould, President of the Port of Spain Stake, asked for volunteers to help sort clothing and food to be sent to Haiti following a devastating earthquake. President Gamiette gave permission for North Zone elders and four elders from the Central Zone to help with the project which generated many, many bags of clothes and boxes of food.  The United Way people were pretty amazed!!!

Christmas 2009 in Tobago

Sister Leishman (serving in Tobago with her husband) reports: Our Christmas day service project was visiting at a children's home called the SylPhil House, home to 26 children (ages 9 months to 18 years).   Phillip and Sylvia started the home over 55 years ago. Sylvia is deceased but Phil has a daughter, Susan, who helps him run it now.

The Elders decorated sugar cookies and we took 3 dozen along with two boxes of food items and a laundry basket fulled with gifts for each of the children. We purchased crayons and coloring books, reading books, and journals to give to the children. On Christmas Eve, Elders Duncan, Chambers, Linton and Jensen helped us wrap the gifts.

On Christmas morning the Elders came over for breakfast.  Elder Chambers did his best to beat Elder Jensen in a pancake eating contest but Elder Jensen outdistanced Elder Chambers by two pancakes. After breakfast was cleared away, we headed over to the SylPhil House to take our gifts and to sing them some Christmas carols. Turns out, we were the ones entertained by a small band made up of some of the children. There were actually about 10 playing instruments which included recorders, bass guitar, drums, keyboard, clarinets, and the star of the show, the steel pan.

After entertaining us, the children went outside to have fun in the sun. They had a blow-up swimming pool big enough to hold about a dozen of the smaller children. They were shoulder to shoulder in the pool, but they didn't care. It was a hot day so, as long as they were wet and cool, nothing else mattered. The elders were tempted to join them but they obeyed mission rules and stayed out of the water.

November Guyana Zone Conference

 

24-November-2009--Zone Conference already again! Time does go by quickly!
 
The LaGrange Building is where we meet--as you can see, it is a gorgeous place here in this land. In this conference we continued to discuss and practice how to use three different types of questions to teach the gospel--using the scriptures, mainly the Book of Mormon: 1) Search, 2) Analyze, and 3) Apply. We had some one-on-one practices (most of them not with their own companions) and then later in mini-groups--it was quite effective and enjoyable. 

It was an incredible moment, too, when 29 Guyanese missionaries stood among the 40 missionaries at the conference.  When the foreign missionaries were expelled earlier this year, many in the world thought the Church in Guyana would simply go away . . . then these valiant warriors came forward and said, "send me!  I will serve a mission!"

That same evening after Zone Conference, there was a special fireside for the eight Guyanese missionaries who will be traveling to the MTC in the Dominican Republic tomorrow. They are Brother Narine, Santakumar Pitamber, Leon Wilkins, Christina Jaipaul, Marcia Gaspar, Premchand Bharat, Triston Murray, and Henry.

Guyana Zone Conference-La Grange

We are back again at the LaGrange chapel for Zone Conference on 12 October 2009!  Four couple (Hymas, Lingren, Handly and Collins) are in their places along with new and currently serving missionaries bringing our total to the legal limit in Guyana of 20!  Elder Park lead the music and Elder Mose conducted.  President Gamiette and AP's Elders Jones and Palmer were also here along with prospective sister missionaries Mentore, Gaspar and Jaipaul!  We were also please to have Sister Gamiette and our mission nurse Sister Ellison.

President Gamiette taught us how to answer questions effectively using the scriptures to do so, while Elders Palmer and Jones instructed us on recognizing the spirit when we teach.   Brother Chin, from the Diamond Branch, catered the lunch - which included a wide variety of tasty food which we all enjoyed.

Sister Missionaries Make History

History was made in the West Indies Mission this week as the WIM welcomed Sister Bibi Girdharry from New Amsterdam, Guyana (left) and Sister Chennel Camejo from Port of Spain, Trinidad Tobago - the mission's first two young sister missionaries. This was a "dream come true" for President and Sister Robison. When the two missionaries met for the first time they developed an instant love and friendship blossomed.

Sister Camejo is the youngest of 9 children and has been the primary care giver for her mother. It was very hard for Mrs. Camejo to see her daughter leave for her mission.  She is not a member of the Church. Sister Girdharry was so tender as she sit down next to Sister Camejo's mother to offer her love, she told her she would take care of her daughter.

Two very excited, brand new sister missionaries preparing to fly to the MTC in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. They will fly first to Panama then on to the Dominican Republic. This day is the first time for both to fly. They are excited and ready for this new adventure in their lives. We wish them the very best and know they will be outstanding missionaries.

With big smiles and hearts pounding they give one last wave and they are on their way!!!