Faces We Love

This is the sweet face of "Little Larry"! 

 We love this little guy, we are not sure if it his face or his name!!!!!!!

His mother is the Relief Society President, Sister Santos, she is one of our very favorites!

The other day she said, in her broken English with a Spanish accent, "I've been out of the church, and in the church, and out of the church and in the church, 

and out of the church, and in the church...

I hope this time I stay in!!!!!"

It felt like Farah dropped straight out of heaven and landed in St. Lucia!

She is truly a breathe of Heaven.  She just moved here from Guyana, is educated, has taught school and is now a Pharmacist, which brought her here.

Farah is so excited to be teaching the CTR class in Primary, and what an outstanding teacher she is.  I sat in on her class and was blown away with just how well she did.  The children love her, it's no wonder with the kindness she shows them. 

 How blessed the branch is to have her, we are so very grateful.

August Happenings

August 18 was Elder Procter's birthday.  We had Family Home Evening and invited a few members, sang, had Cake and Ice cream and the "Birthday Circle"!

Ethan is 4, and usually has his hair all done up in braids

 but this my favorite way he wears his hair!!!

A few of the sweet children here in St. Lucia,

Phoebe, Kiki, Mundae, Kimberly and Xian.

August 23, 2008

Two Baptisms

18 year old Keenan - terrific Young Man!

10 year old Lyndie - just moved here from Guyana.

Keenan graduated from College in June and now is looking for job.  He is intelligent and is a real pleasure to be around.  Last Tuesday for Mutual Activity we were suppose to do "Modest is Hottest", but because several of the youth had a meeting at school, very few came.  We sent the Young Men out to play basketball while I taught the Young Women how to make popcorn balls and homemade rolls.  Keenan got there late so he joined the Young women, helped make popcorn balls, and rolls.  Then I was teaching the Young Women how to lead music, Keenan was just a natural, he caught on very fast and enjoyed every minute of it.  We had a terrific day!

The Miracles Continue....

A day we have been waiting for since last October.

Br. Joseph and his new bride Marie were married August 15, and baptized August 16th.

It was a glorious day, and the ocean was calm, just as Marie had requested!

Br. Joseph has been sporting his "Fro" for 40 something years!

He is a good man and one of the few that is always on time!!  Now you know why Elder Sherwood likes him so much, being on time is huge!!!

Marie was so very shy when they first started coming to church, they sat on the back row and she never said more than "Good Morning".  Knowing that, makes you realize what a miracle it was when she bore a powerful testimony after the baptism.

This will probably be the only time we will see Br. Joseph with a flattened "Fro"!

We all had a good laugh, and no one laughed louder than Br. Joseph!

The members of the Castries Branch have come to love Joseph and Marie.  Br. Joseph makes sure his truck is "spit-spot" each Sunday, then he picks up (exactly on time) as many members as he is able to and brings them to church.  Many of them do not have money for a bus and would not have transport without Br. Joseph's help.   He has been doing that for months, we will love him forever for that act of service.

Sarah Damaze - extaordinary Young Woman

A tender moment with Elder Sherwood and Sarah.

Sarah Damaze was baptized Saturday, August 9, 2008!

We were thrilled, and didn't think her parents would give their permission before we left to come home.  She has wanted to be baptized for some time, but her mother was against it.  After much prayer and fasting, her mother's heart was softened and permission granted.

We are so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who hears and answers prayers.

Sarah - D'Wayne - D'Anne

D'Anne is already a wonderful missionary, she introduced Sarah to the gospel and has helped her every step of the way.  They are best friends and bring so much love and joy to us.

Elder Cromwell - Sarah - Elder Sherwood - Elder Procter

Hurrah for Israel!!!!

These three could not be happier!

Where's Waldo?

Sarah - Sherryann - Arcadius - Kacy - D'Anne

We had a fun Youth activity Saturday, August 2.

WHERE WALDO?

Five of the youth dressed up in a disguise and were scattered all over the mall.  The rest of the youth tried to find them.  They all had fun and it was a great activity.

They were given specific instruction and then sent off.  At the end of the activity there was a prize for the winner, the one that found all 5 of them in the least amount of time.

The twist came when we asked if there was anyone who followed the instructions

and did not cheat...only one girl raised her hand!  She won the prize, and we related it to the gospel, when you are sincere about "following the instructions" and are honest with yourself and Heavenly Father, your reward will be eternal life.

We then  went back to the church, made pizza and had song practice.

Great way to spend a Saturday!

Blessings of the Priesthood

Two young men were baptized last Saturday, July 26

Teddy Busby & Azan Maxius

Elder Cromwell, our new District Leader is working hard to be a great missionary.

Elder Procter does such a good job of teaching, they are a great companionship.

Marlon, who was just baptized 2 weeks ago, was given the Priesthood and was worthy to baptize Azan! 

 Azan, because he is so thoughtful,  wanted Marlon to have that wonderful opportunity.

The minute we met Azan we could tell that he was an exceptional young man.

He is kind, soft spoken, thoughtful, & very serious about the gospel and receiving the Priesthood.  When Elder Sherwood was doing the interview, Azan told him the reason he wanted to be baptized was because he felt such joy!  He then went on to say that when he was a little boy he had a step-father who treated him like his own son.  His step-father was kind and good to Azan, and brought him a lot of joy.  Then his mother left the step-father and Azan lost that joy in his life.  For the last 6 years his life has not been happy, then when missionaries started teaching him about the gospel the joy returned!  Azan was the bright spot in a very trying week, we are so blessed to know him!!!!!

Teddy is another young man from, what we have come to call, "The Teddies"!  It is the family that all have "Ted" in their name:  Ted-Teddy-Teddisha-Teddiann-etc.

His twin brother, along with his mother and 4 sisters were baptized last March.

Teddy wasn't ready then, but has been attending church since and finally decided to go ahead and be baptized.  It was a happy day for all of us.

Castries Branch new Relief Society Presidency

Castries Branch Relief Society Presidency

Marie Joseph - Mirla Santos - Michelle Chastanet

The Relief Society sisters are all smiles because I just told them there was a yummy dessert for refreshments.  Some things never change!!