Service

We had the opportunity to help with some service projects recently.  Since we are not assigned a ward to attend on Sunday, we try to get to know more of the members by rotating between the four wards that meet in the Stake Center on the temple complex.  We usually attend multiple wards each week.  Recently the Basay Ward had a service project for one of their members and I, along with some of the other senior missionary brothers, was able to help.  The project was to put a septic tank in for Sister Patajo, a widow in the ward.  They were also going to put additional supports under her house because it swayed when there was a strong wind.  She has a larger home some distance from Cebu but has chosen to live in this home so that she can be close to the temple and serve there.  Her home is typical of many of the Filipino members.  One of the members helping on the project told us that his brother lives in a home about the same size as Sister Patajo's and has eight children.  They all sleep on the floor together.  He asked his sister-in-law how things were going and she told him that they were happy.  We are constantly reminded by seeing the living conditions here and that the people are still a happy people that it is not "things" that make us happy but family.

When told about the septic tank project I had the thought, "we are living on an Island formed by a volcano so I think I know how hard the ground will be trying to dig in it by hand".  I was not disappointed in my assessment of the working conditions.  We were glad to help but also glad that after a few hours we had some replacement help to continue the project.

The same evening as the septic tank project we were able to help unload and load thousands of shoes that are going to Tacloban to help the typhoon victims.  This project was initiated by Elder Wieland who is a senior missionary serving with his wife as family history consultants at the family history center on the Cebu temple complex.  He knows one of the men who started a non-profit organization called "Project Sole" which obtains and then distributes shoes around the world to people affected by disasters.  Brother Wieland made the contact and mentioned that there was the need in Tacloban if he wanted to consider helping.  That started things rolling and over eleven thousand pairs of shoes and twelve hundred items of clothing came to Cebu to be reloaded for shipment and distribution in Tacloban.

Zachary Stevens, who is a member and served a mission in Honduras, is over Project Sole and has taken shoes to Honduras and other areas in the world the last few years as well as Oklahoma and Colorado in 2013 because of tornadoes and flooding.  It was interesting talking to Zachary and hearing about some of his experiences in helping in other countries and specifically here in the Philippines.  He told us he was stuck in customs in Cebu with the shipment, a 40 x 10 cargo shipping container.  He was originally told that it would be Thursday, the shipment came in on Monday, before they would be able to get the paper work done to release it from the dock.  He has been around the world enough to know how things work so he passed some PESOS (gave them a bribe) and within two hours the shipment was released.  After arriving at the temple complex the boxes were unloaded from the cargo container, sorted by manufacturer and then reloaded on two trucks to be taken to Tacloban for distribution to those in need.

We appreciate the opportunities we have to serve in many ways.

Sister Patajo next to her kitchen in front of her house.  She cooked sweet potatoes for us.

The men are by the septic tank hole.  Some extra support to keep the house from swaying in the wind was needed.

Elder Sorensen using a bar to loosen the ground.

Sister Patajo had a bed which many Filipinos don't have.  A nice one room home.  

Sister Patajo and Elder Sorensen

The view was nice from her bedroom (house) window.  The tall building in the distance is Cebu City.

The cargo box on a truck with some of the boxes of shoes removed.

Zachary Stevens (left) and his photographer that photo journals their projects.

A sample of some of the shoes to be distributed.  Almost all of the shoes were new.

Rubber boots were also in the mix.

Sister Sorensen helping bag some of the loose shoes.

One of the two trucks that were loaded to take shoes to Tacloban.

Catching Up

Time to get caught up on what we have been doing the last few weeks.

The Temple Presidency has asked several of the temple missionary couples to go with them the past three Sundays to meet with the members and ordinances workers outside of the Cebu Stake where we normally attend Sunday Services.  Three weeks ago we went with President and Sister Pagaduan, and two other couples, to attend the Cebu Central Stake Conference.  President and Sister Pagaduan spoke as well as members of the stake and the stake president. We recognized a number of the members from seeing them at the temple.  One of the employees that works at the temple patron housing spoke and was also sustained as a new High Councilman for the stake.  It was nice to see some of the young missionaries and some of the senior missionaries that are serving there also.

The next week three couples went with President and Sister Pagaduan to attend the Bogo Branch.  It was a two hour ride to get there because it is located almost on the North end of the island.  It is in the Cebu East Mission. We were driving along the beautiful coast for part of the time and then went into the mountains.  This area was less populated and we passed numerous farms.  During typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) the eye of the storm passed over this area.  We were told that half of the homes were destroyed.  We saw trees that were blown over when the storm hit.  There were two branches of the church meeting at the same time in the church which is a very nice L.D.S. building.  It was testimony meeting that Sunday and President Pagaduan shared an experience they had with the birth of their first child just three days after he was baptized.  What a testimony of turning to prayer by a new convert when faced with a challenge bringing their first child into the world.  During the ride we learned more about the conversion story of the Pagaduans as well as how he was guided to work for the church in CES and serving as a stake president.  He has also served as a mission president.

Last Sunday we and one other couple went with President and Sister Siady, 1st counselor in the temple presidency and assistant to the matron, to the first stake conference for the Consolacion Stake.  This stake was created from a district only three months ago.  It was a wonderful conference.  President Siady spoke and they had four missionaries who will be leaving from their stake soon share their testimony.  One of them came to the temple to receive his endowment this past week and I was able to visit with him and officiated on the session he was on.  President and Sister Tanner spoke, the Cebu East Mission President and his wife, and the 1st counselor in the stake presidency, who is the engineer at the temple.  President San Gabriel, the stake president, was the concluding speaker and was a very dynamic speaker.  We would have enjoyed his talk even more if it hadn't been almost entirely in Cebuano.  We were able to talk to him before conference started, he speaks very good English, and learned that he is a church employee and is involved with a new program that helps members in third world countries to obtain the necessities of life and generate extra income.  We also were able to speak with President and Sister Tanner after the conference as well as many of the members there.  It was nice to mingle with these great saints.

The coast on the way to Bogo Branch.

Sugar Cane growing around coconut trees.

Sugar cane fields and coconut trees.

Members at the Bogo Branch and the sister missionaries.

The church building at Bogo.

A field of corn.

More sugar cane fields.

Trees blown down by Yolanda.