Zone Leaders Gather in Trinidad

More than twenty zone leaders - the future leaders of the Church - from the West Indies Mission gathered in Trinidad on Saturday, April 23 from Suriname, French Guiana, Grenada, St. Vincent, Guadeloupe, St. Lucia, Martinique, Barbados, St. Martin/ St. Maarten, and Guyana to receive direction and council from Presidents Claude Gamiette (West Indies Mission), Emrol Gould (Port-of-Spain Stake) and Francisco J. Viñas (Caribbean Area).

President Viñas, a member of the First Quorum of Seventy since 1998, encouraged these young missionaries, responsible as ZL's for training, motivating, leading and inspiring other missionaries, to “solve problems with patience and long suffering and to be consistent in your efforts to share the message of the gospel. Pay attention to the words of the prophets and remember every new member needs those important three things: a friend, a responsibility and to be nurtured by the good word of Christ.”

The ZL’s were admonished to remember most of the members of the Church in the Caribbean are first generation members who need to understand their role is not to give orders, but to govern by love and council as they strive to establish the church more fully. Missionaries are encouraged to get to know all ward members and to understand the ward mission plan.

“Remember,” said President Viñas, “conversion doesn’t stop with baptism. Encourage members to focus on getting to the temple. Total conversion comes when we understand – and apply – the Atonement. Then we must repent . . . and repent again.”

Humanitarian Services Hosts Kids Camp

Elder and Sister Angus, Humanitarian Services missionaries for the West Indies Mission along with local missionaries and members from the Port-of-Spain Stake, spent a week in April with 30 little boys (ages 5-10) from the Nelson Street School in Trinidad. The purpose of this “first ever” Easter kids camp was to bring the children together in an atmosphere of learning and fun. Each day, the rambunctious campers took part in activities focused on a specific theme including love, appreciation, health and exercise, anger management and teamwork taught through arts and crafts, games and a special puppet show scripted to teach the children about tobacco and alcohol use.

Church humanitarian work primarily helps those in need who are not members of the Church. There are many people in virtually any community in the world who struggle to meet their basic needs. The Church seeks to help as many as possible, including emergency relief assistance in times of disaster and humanitarian programs that strengthen the self-reliance of individuals, families, and communities.

The Angus’ have facilitated an impressive list of projects during their time in the WIM such as distribution of hundreds of wheelchairs in Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad with training on how to measure recipients and fit them to the proper wheelchair. Also in Guyana, the couple has been involved in training doctors, nurses, midwives and nursing students in the right way to perform neonatal resuscitation. They have assisted with emergency response and disaster relief following last year’s hurricane in St. Lucia and St. Vincent; provided supplies for area orphanages, schools and nurseries; and organized a health fair puppet show to teach residents of Berbice about hygiene, sanitation, nutrition and harmful substances with an additional goal to encourage wards and branches throughout the mission to repeat the success of this event in branches and schools in their area.

The Angus’ work in partnership with well-established non-governmental agencies with proven track records will soon include a project designed to provide running water at a special needs school with 75 students and no water system.

Through these area Humanitarian Services representatives the Church is developing a solid reputation for good in the Caribbean, recognized by one observer as, “the only organization willing to help and give us stuff without expecting anything in return.”

Zone Conferences Held Around WIM

Missionaries from throughout the West Indies Mission gathered in Trinidad / Tobago, St. Vincent, Barbados, Suriname, Guadeloupe and Guyana for Zone Conferences with President Gamiette. In these four daylong gatherings companionships, including couples, stood and repeated in unison “My Purpose” from “Preach My Gospel.” Many received certification stickers for their name badges (which means they had memorized 50 scriptures and can recite them by heart). Sister Gamiette presented each companionship with instructions on what to do in the event of a hurricane or civil disturbance and Sister Ellison gave missionaries good advice on staying healthy, including a list of items to have available in first aid kits in each missionary apartment.

President Gamiette – a remarkable teacher and leader – gave excellent counsel on how to get investigators to the point where they will ask “what shall I do?” in response to modern missionaries, like those investigators of old when Alma questioned their testimonies and willingness to repent. President Gamiette noted “when you exercise your faith and make your teaching personal for each of Heavenly Father’s children, He will always provide you with a ram” (Genesis 22:10-13). He also noted, “the most golden contact you will find each day is going to be behind the last door you knock on.”

AP’s Ipson and Hicken followed the same line of thinking by reminding the elders, “angels are guiding you to those who have been prepared to hear the gospel message (Alma 13:24). Your goals as missionaries must match your accomplishments.” Continuing with Alma 5 as his text, President Gamiette pointed out the teaching tools used by this ancient prophet. Getting them to “Search” is reminding investigators of the history of gospel doctrine among men. “Analyze” gets people to think about the doctrine for themselves; and, “apply” is getting them to visualize how specific gospel principles apply in their lives. He encouraged missionaries to “sharpen” their teaching skills; set and then work to reach daily goals, pray more mightily, and make it personal.

The 117 young missionaries and 18 couples, who participated in the Zone Conference, shared their knowledge and testimonies of the gospel studying together and working side-by-side to “bring souls unto Christ.”

Here’s Who Really Runs the Mission Office!

Three senior couples in the West Indies Mission office put on a good show of running the business of the mission, but the real "go to" guys in the mission office are Elders Johnson and George who generally have the answers to mission-related questions and can solve almost any computer problems and Elders Ipson and Hicken, who travel with and provide support to President Gamiette.

Elder Johnson (left), at somewhere between 6’3” and 6’4” is a whiz at keeping everyone’s technology working as it should. The 7th missionary in his Green River, Utah family of 8 boys and 2 girls, loves sports and being outdoors so Elder Johnson never imagined himself as a “computer geek” in the mission office. However, he has great faith in the Lord’s plan for him and has happily served more than six months in this assignment.

Elder George has only been in the mission office for about a month, but has already risen to his full stature in service to the Lord. This avid soccer player and Eagle Scout, who is about ½” taller than his companion in his stocking feet , is one of four siblings in his Yuba City, California family. Elders Johnson and George spend their days in the office tracking investigators’ progress toward baptism and other mission goals, collecting data from call-in-summary reports and creating key indicator reports for the president and for church headquarters in Salt Lake City.

Elder Hicken (on the right), who is the newly called Assistant to the President, is a distance runner which sport has prepared him to work in the mission office where he works alongside Elder Ipson on Zone Leader reports, companion evaluations, relays information to Zone Leaders, helps to plan councils and conferences and travels with the president. His only complaint about this new calling is a loss of sleep due to the President’s preference for early morning flights around the mission!

Few in Number, but Strong in Faith

The March 2011 transfer brought the West Indies Mission only 3 new missionaries from the MTC, but while they are small in number, each has a mighty testimony, a great love of the Lord, and a huge desire to bring His children in the Caribbean unto Christ. On the French side, Elder Matthew Garlick, from Alpine, Utah and Elder Paul Makanani from Long Beach,California will serve in Guadeloupe and Elder Adyen Jensen from Salt Lake City will serve in St. Vincent to help bring to pass the prophecy “in that day, the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people . . . from the islands of the sea.” (Isaiah 11:11)

Home with Honor

An even dozen of the Lord's finest will return to families and hometowns in Utah, Idaho, Arizona and American Samoa on March 24 after two years of fulltime service in the West Indies Mission. These outstanding elders, who have served worthily among members and investigators in the islands of the Caribbean and in parts of South America, are Kip Clawson Gilley, Phillip John Peterson, Daniel Gordon Christensen, David Blake Lish, David Eugene Gaddy, Donald Caleb Powers, Jacob Wenlock Free, John Luke Jarvis, Jordan Brent Clark, Preston Kim Manwill, Quinton James Montgomery and Von Shumway Hill. Elders, you will always be sons of the West Indies!

Meet Elder and Sister Bush

Elder Robert and Sister Raylene Bush were recruited by caring WIM missionaries for service in the West Indies Mission. Thanks to Elder and Sister Harris who planted the seed of service in the West Indies and to this exceptional couple who followed the promptings of the Spirit to act on this invitation.

Though both are native Utahns, they have lived 22 years in the nation’s Bible Belt, rearing their family of 7 children in Warner Robins, Georgia (grandchildren now number 23 with one more due in August) where Elder Bush was the Chief of the Multimedia Services Division, Headquarters, Air Force Reserve Command. While rearing her large family, Sister Bush was employed in the Human Resources office of the local hospital doing payroll and “other duties as assigned.” In their church service, the Bush’s served in numerous leadership roles, including Elder Bush’s duties as a Bishop. Together, they served two years as their stake’s Employment Resource Advisors.

In their service in the West Indies Mission, the Bush’s will spend their time serving the saints on the Caribbean island of Grenada, where they will provide shadow leadership, fellowship to reactivate and strengthen new members, organize at least one annual temple trip and 1-2 humanitarian service projects on the island while also acting as an extension of the mission office and, as all other senior missionaries before them, performing “other duties as assigned.”