Morgans Letter & Photos 7 / 2014 Kona, Big Island, Hawaii Feb 24, 2014

Aloha!

We had a great week! I got a letter from Ethan, so that was super fun to read and see how he is doing. We had Stake Conference, so we got to listen to Elder Robert Packer of the Quorum of the 70, President Warner of the Hawaii Honolulu Mission, and The Temple President, and Our Stake President. We got to hear all 4 of them in Stake Priesthood Leadership Session, then an Adult Session, then at Stake Conference. They were awesome! It was fun to see all the members i knew from when i served in Waimea 1st ward a year ago, at the top of the stake boundaries.

So we were walking back to the car and we saw a guy just standing there. We were about to get in the car, but had the thought to go talk to him. So i grabbed a Marshalese Book of Mormon out of the trunk, then we walk over to him. We start talking to him, he was really open and friendly. We shared with him the story of the Book of Mormon, about Lehi's family leaving Jerusalem. The Book of Mormons that we use have pictures in the front of them. And so we used the pictures to kind of tell the story of the Book of Mormon. So kinda went over that, he was super interested in the story. And we left him with the copy, and committed him to read and pray about it. Elder Moala shared a powerful testimony of the Book of Mormon.

We have had a lot of luck teaching people this week. We had an awesome lesson with our Less Active Member Kona. He is super amazing. He has the biggest heart, and has started coming back to church, he helped pass the sacrament this week. And then he is working toward blessing the Sacrament. He is 40 years old, and hasnt been to Church since he was a teenager.

President Warner wanted to Interview all the bran new missionaries. So told us he was coming to our house to visit with Elder Moala. So we made sure we cleaned up our house really clean. President Warner visited us at our house, it was really fun to see him. We got to see him a lot this week.

So we got in a car accident this week. We were sitting at a red light, waiting for the light to turn green. We see a speeding jeep that runs the Red light, and almost hits an oncoming car. They swerve around each other, and the Jeep loses control and side swipes us. The jeep hit our rear left tire, smashing the whole back end of the car in. We get out and ask the Lady in the Jeep if she is okay. She wasnt injured or anything. But the Police came and investigated the Scene. They saw that she had crossed the Double line and hit us, and was going fast enough to end up like 50 more feet past us. The Cop saw signs of Alcohol in the car, and smelled her breath, and told her it smells like she had just been drinking Alcohol. She was acting really emotional, and slightly drunk. More Cops came to further investigate, they asked her to walk in a straight line, but she couldn't balance and walk straight. They tested her some more, and then hand cuffed her, and took her to jail for Driving under the Influence of Alcohol. It was a crazy experience, we tried to be friendly and nice to her. It even turned into a missionary opportunity. While i was filling out paper work with the Cop, Elder Moala was talking to her. She asked if he would pray with her right then, so he prayed with her, and shared a little bit about the Gospel. Later while i was talking to her, she asked which church we belong to, so we told her the Mormon Church and explaned where it was, and invited her to come to church. So hopefully we planted a seed, and maybe in the future she will talk to missionaries again.

Well i love you all, have a great week!

 Elder Morgan Durocher

Car tire is angled back 15 degrees or so.

 

                                                                            Zone in Kona

Ethan's 7/ 2014 First Transfer - Viedma, Argentina Feb 25, 2014

Dear Family, 

Well i didn't write yesterday due to transfers and i didn't have time to do it. I go transferred to Viedma, Argentina. Its the lowest city that we can serve at in our mission and it gets really cold in the winter. So i will have served in the hottest area in Santa Rosa in the summer and the Coldest area in the mission during winter. I am so excited to be able to serve here, the city is really nice, I'm serving in Viedma Centro, which is in the city part. I am companions with Elder Oruna from Peru. I am so excited to have a new area to work in and to grow to love.

  
  My testimony is growing so much and i am becoming more of the man that the Lord wants me to be. There has been times in my mission where I have been low and there are other times that i have been high, this roller coaster is molding a soldier of the Lord into a better person, a better man, a better future Husband, and a better Dad. I know the Lord is on my side.

  Not much more then that happened during the week and i don't have very much time to write due to its not P-day and i don't want to burn time. Id loved to write more but i sent photos so I hope that makes up for what i didn't send in my message.

I love you all so much!!!

 Con Amor Elder Ethan C. Durocher

Friend Elder Zach Mortenson from LPHS back home! They left the same day for the MTC and for Argentina.

 

Apparently a soggy day outside!

Morgans letter 6 / 2014 Kona, Hawaii 2-17-14

ALOHA FAMILY,

GREAT WEEK!! First off, Mom did you get your valentines day package from me yet? I sent it early last week, so you should get it any day now. 

I picked up my new companion, Elder Moala, from the Airport on Wednesday night at 8pm. He spent his whole life in Tonga, then 2 years ago moved to Oakland California to finish up high school. So he has the Tongan background and personality, but has been broken into the American Culture and English Language a little bit. He is a very awesome guy, were gonna have an awesome 2 transfers together. He played football back home, and had a Full Ride Football scholarship to BYU-Provo, To SUU, and to a School in Oregon and Washington. He turned them all down to go on his mission. He played on the United States National under 19 Rugby team, where he traveled all over the country and to France and Europe to play. He is super cool guy, were getting along awesome, we have had a super fun week!

So Sunday was the best day of my life! So we have been teaching a Part-Member Less-Active family for 3 months, ever since i got here. the Salvador Family, the Mom is a member, and she has a 16 yr old, 9 yr old and 8 yr old that all have not been baptized. I have taught them pretty much every single week since i got here. We always invite them to come to church, and they would promise us they would come. We would go over to remind them Sunday morning about church, and then they would never come. So for 3 months they never would come. We never lost hope though, and kept teaching and inviting them. Sister Salvador told us that she would go if the boys wanted to, but if they put up a fight, then she wouldnt force them to go to church. Thats what happened every week, the boys would decide they didnt want to go to church when Sunday came around.

Finally last week we set a goal to have them come to Church this Sunday, we wrote down the Goal on a Piece of Paper, then they all wrote their names that they would come to church, and stuck it on the Fridge. We went to Visit them Sunday morning to remind them about Church, and they were already ready to go, all of them were dressed for Church. So we met them at Church, they sat next to another Member, With Us right next to them too. Sacrament was awesome, i could tell Sister Salvador was listening to the Speakers, the kids were kinda bored. Then I asked Kelsie, a 8yr old girl in the Ward, so show the 8 and 9 yr old Salvador boys where their class was. She was super nice to them, and talked to them, showed them around the church, and introduced them to all her friends. It was super cute and cool to see someone so young being so outgoing and nice to the non member boys. The Ward really welcomed them, and helped them to feel comfortable. After church the youngest boys were begging their Mom if they could come back next week to church! It was so great, i seriously was to happy! I was so over joyed to see them finally make it to church, and enjoy church too! best Day eVer! 

Valentines Day we baked some cookies and gave them to a Widow in the Ward, Sister Lorie Gusman. We saw here at walmart the day before, looking at Jewelry, and asked what she was doing? She replied that she was buying herself a Valentines Day present. So we decided the next day we would make her some cookies and drop them off at her house. She wasnt home, so we just left them on the porch, but she called us later thanking us for the cookies. We also did service for her that week, and cleaned up her weeds and cut her hedge. Great Week!

Love you All, Thanks for everything!! 

Elder Morgan Durocher

Ethan's letter & Photos 6 / 2014 Santa Rosa, Argentina 2-17-14

Dear Family,

I can not believe how fast this transfer went. We have one week left in this transfer, and we find out our transfers this Saturday. I really am good friends with my companion, but i have 6 months in the same Area... Thats the parts thats hard. I feel like I have knocked every door in our area and i dont know what to do now...haha I know that the lord knows whats best, if i should stay or go to a new area.

   I was sick again Tuesday and my companion also. We were in the house most of the week and this really was a bummer.. but we studied A LOT!! I found a scripture in D&C 88:15 and then tied this to D&C 18:10, 15-16, then also to Enos 1:4. WOW MIND BLOWN!!! it was a little thing for me but then it just hit hard, that the ALMA in Spanish, but The SOUL is the spirit and the body, and in Enos 1:4, it says "y mi alma tuvo hambre"  this is what it is in Spanish, but i really hit hard that his Soul but really every fiber of his body hungered. I really LOVE the book of Enos, and my favorite scripture right now is Enos 1:4. There is a song from the Book of Mormon sound track about Enos and wow it is so powerful! its a sound track or CD from the church...

    We were at a F.H.E. and this family has a Book of Mormon thats from the 80s or so and it had a message in side in English and i translated it for the family. It had his name and Address also

NAME: Blake Dunean

4677 W. 11200 N.

HIGHLAND, UTAH

If anyone knows this Man or Mom if you can try to look him up and talk to him. Tell him that a family in the Mission Bahía Blanca has his Book of Mormon. and what ever else more. Its really cool to see. His Companion i think was Elder Mordasini when he was in this area.

Well I love you all!!!

Durocher Means = de la roca in spanish

                               OF THE ROCK in Eng.

                               Durocher in French

"Of the Rock" of our Redemer. (Helaman 5:12)

Con Amor Elder Ethan C. Durocher

Raquel Carrion Family

 

 HAIL!