Smitty's South Pacific Adventures

Family Hous Naet with Hungai Family

Week 13 on Port Vila

Dia Famle Blong Mi,

Sorry you haven't heard from me awhile, we've been SO busy with transfers!!! Since you last heard me , Tuesday last week we had our transfer meeting and made plans to get all missionaries in place and some ready to train before President Granger arrives next month. We came to the conclusion that Elder Dakunimata, from Fiji, will be my new companion. This next transfer will last 8 weeks instead of 6. We had our meeting and taught Edmas about Temples and she was very interested in the topic, there's so much more we can learn from the Restored Gospel! We also saw Moses and Norman and taught them about Obedience and how it's so important in our lives. Then we also saw Sele and we taught him about Enduring to the End. We ate dinner at president Tiasanmal's
house as well, his wife is a good cook!

Wednesday morning went to the airport and checked in with President and Sister Brewer and we flew to Santo for Zone Conference once again. We arrived around lunch time and Elder Killpack and Elder Pearce picked us up and took us to the Luganville chapel. Missionaries were just finishing cleaning it up and we exchanged. Me and Elder Pearce dropped off Elder Smiler and Elder Killpack in their area (called "Tanavoli) and they taught there while went back to the chapel to help translate some interviews for prospective missionaries. We also talked with Elders and Missionaries and that afternoon we drove to Tanavoli as well with a prospective missionary from Gaua named Larry Mol. He followed us and we drove to a member family's house and taught them about priesthood keys and how it can be used in the home.

Thursday morning we all woke up and Zone Conference started at 9am and we held the conference and just before it finished 6 Elders from Ambae arrived, their flight changed and got postponed to the day of the conference. We ate good food at the Santo Hotel again and then waited for all the interviews to get done and we exchanged again and we visited the Hungai Family in Tanavoli. They fed us rice, fish, bread, and Tuna for dinner and we shared a message about the blessings of families who are sealed and how there's nothing that can separate us as families.

Friday morning we had MLC meeting and it was a cool meeting, we discussed lots of things we need to prepare for when President Granger comes. Afterwards we went with other elders into town and we just walked around, looked at stores and ate at a restaurant called the "Altar". I had a good cheeseburger for lunch there and there was a tame parot there and I put my finger right by it and it climbed on and I put it on my shoulder and it wouldn't come off. I had it there for a while but when I was ready to take it off it would run to the other shoulder and get mad and peck around, but I finally managed to get it off, it was a pretty funny, stubborn bird. That afternoon we went to the airport and we arrived in Port mila at about 8:30pm.

Saturday we studied and went to the mission office and had a few meeting with mission president about changes in the transfers and ended up staying until the afternoon and then all the missionaries
finishing the next week went to dinner with President Brewer. So Elder Smiler went with others and a new missionary exchanged with me and we drove to the airport to pick up an arriving missionary who will be transferring. Then after the others had dinner me and Elder Smiler went to the mission office and we called all the Zone Leaders to let them know who's all transferring and we did that for the rest of the night.

Sunday we went to church to Sacrament Meeting and the Branch Presidency and District Presidency bore their testimonies for the last time before Port Vila District becomes a Stake. Many of the
testimonies were powerful and everybody was touched that it would be our last time meeting as a branch and this week we will meet as a ward! After church we taught Elorine about the importance of Scripture Study and we taught Moses and Norman the same thing. That night we taught Maria and their family about the Plan of Salvation and she and her kids are really progressing! The all came to church too. At the end of the Day we picked up Elder Dakunimata so he could stay with me and we could plan together and start working together.

Monday morning at 5:30am, we checked in Elder Oli in the Airport so he could transfer to Santo and then afterwards we had to go get a few additional plane tickets for other missionaries. Then we took Moses Namak, a prospective missionary from Tanna, and went with him to buy a suit and a few things for his mission. At 1pm we had our usual Office Meeting and afterwards we went straight to the airport to checkin Elder Braden Passey and Moses Namak to Fly to the U.S.A.
Elder Passey is from St. George, Utah, and finished serving and he was flying back home while Moses Namak would be flying to the MTC. So if any of you hear about a returned missionary in St. George from the Vanuatu Port Vila Mission, it's Elder Passey. Then we went to the District President Basil's house and we had a family house night with their family and a last dinnner with Elder Smiler. They're all from the "Banks Islands" Merelava, Motalava, Gaua, Vanualava etc... and
they're a great family.

Tuesday morning Elder Smiler exchanged with Elder Ormond while me and Elder Dakunimata went to the airport at 8am to checkin Sister Boehula to transfer to Malekula. Afterwards we had propane tanks for the missionaries to refill and we did that and washed the truck and then went to the airport with President to meet Elder Din and Elder Taleo arrive from the MTC, they were only there a couple weeks and just came back. We brought them to the mission office and gave them
an orientation of the mission and then ate burgers and fries for lunch at seaview and dropped them off in their areas and then we drove all the way to Etas to pick up Sister Lekupe to take her to the airport so she could fly home back to P.N.G. We checked her in at 6pm and she flew at 8pm and also President Tiasanmal's son Elder Tiasanmal returned from his mission. They invited us over for dinner and me, Elder Dakunimata, Elder Smiler, and Elder Ormond came for Elder Tiasanmal's homecoming dinner with the family and we ate some good food there: sausage, potato salad, steak, rice, it was all good!

This morning we woke up at 4:30am and checked in Elder Smiler, and Elder Ormond at the airport so they could fly back home to New Zealand. They flew at 7am and we went home for breakfast and went back to the airport and checked in Elder Tupou so he could transfer to Ambae. He flew at around 11am and then we had lunch and went to the office for a couple hours to record baptisms on our computer and meet with President Brewer. We got done at 3pm and then we saw Avock and
Rose and taught them about Enduring to the End and afterwards saw little Avock and taught him about obedience and we commited him to be baptized next month and he's very excited! Then we also saw Maria and her family and we taught them about the gospel of Jesus Christ and invited her to be baptized as well. After teaching her we had planned on going to the airport to pick up Elder Esplin, he was supposed to arrive so he could transfer to his new area but we got a call saying
he will arrive tomorrow, so we decided to take this time to email right now.

I'm excited for the end of this week, President Pearson and Johanssen of the Area Seventy will be coming this weekend for the creation of the Stake and Saturday afternoon there will be a big
cultural activity at Blacksands Branch where members from each branch will do a Custom Dance and it's gonna be cool!!! Then Sunday morning we we all meet at Le Lagoon once again!

We are keeping busy and are working hard. Many blessings are being poured out and the church is growing fast!!! I can't wait for this weekend. Mi lavem yufala evriwan mo evri samting i gud nomo lo ples ia.

Love,

Elda Beynon