Witnessing the measure of commitment . . .

Part of our Public Affairs responsibility is helping to bring people to the understanding that we are followers of Jesus Christ. The London Temple Visitor Centre along with the Hyde Park Visitor's Centre have the Christus by Danish sculptor Thorvadsen in their lobbies to remind all of our commitment to the Savior. We are impressed with the community outreach and spirit of Elder and Sister Pinegar of the Visitor Centre. Elder Pinegar was a Professor at BYU Marriott Business School prior to their mission. Sister Pinegar has equally as deep intellectual roots being a daughter of Elder Bruce R. McConkie.

Elder and Sister Pinegar with Sister Madducks at the Visitor Centre

The temple grounds are magnificently maintained which make this sacred spot truly a 

peaceful sanctuary from the cares of the world.

Gadfield Elm is the first chapel owned by the Church as it was given to Wilford Woodruff by the United Brethren when 600 of their members were baptised (English spelling) in the Malvern hills during 1840. See if you can unlock the door to get into the little chapel by answering the quiz that allows access?

Now that you've answered the quiz, let's see if you unlocked the door.   

Sister Jones at Gadfield Elm where we celebrated the 24th of July with Elder Jay and Sister Joan Peck and Elder Reese and Sister Kathryn Hansen (Office of General Counsel) who drove hours from Chorley to join us at this historic site. The Pecks are friends and neighbors from Farmington while the Hansens are new-found friends from Provo with whom we have several family and personal connections.

The inspirational Joan and Jay Peck... marvelous role-models of service, faith, and humor!

Kathryn and Reese Hansen have the calm, thoughtful demeanors reflecting their depth. Elder Hansen is the former Dean of the BYU Law School and Sister Hansen is a sister to Ann Smedley Hansen, a dear family friend.

On Saturday, the 19th of July, the Birmingham Stake celebrated the summer with a Barbecue hosted at the Harborne Ward / Stake Centre. The day was gloomy as we experienced a downpour... Debating between traveling all the way across Birmingham (the second largest city in the UK) and staying home, we exercised our faith and started out in the rain. Just as we arrived, the welcome sun burst out from behind the clouds and bathed us for the entire event. The jump houses for the children were set up in the cultural hall as a safety measure, but everyone soon began to vacate the church for the parking lot, green spaces, and warmth.

Elder Hess (on the far left) is the grandson of Patriarch and Sister Hess of Farmington.

Elder Alldredge (far right from Kaysville) is a cousin to friends of Sister Jones's from Bountiful, the Horgesheimers of Mueller Park Jr. High School.

With a free Saturday morning and the welcome sun out, we purchased our English Heritage passes and ventured to historic Kenilworth Castle. Just a short drive from Solihull where we live we saw jousting, birds of prey show, toured the ruins, walked in the gardens and ate delicious 'real' ice cream all while basking in the sunshine. The reason we note this rare treat of 'real' ice cream is that it was creamy, flavorful, hard and just like home! With the beauty and heritage of this land, it is a delight to partake of the cultural offerings.

We suspect Rachel, Madeleine and London would love the horses while Jackson and little Carter 

would love the Knights!

Kenilworth was finally conquered (and subsequently destroyed) by Cromwell. In addition, Queen Elisabeth I enjoyed time spent here. History comes to life as we see where great events have taken place.

It's All About People! Let us introduce you to a few...

We have been blessed to meet and grow to love many people over the years. Our time in the United Kingdom has proven to be no exception as we have been accepted by a number of new friends! Let us introduce some of these wonderful people to you.

Elders Velasco, Ruka, Martin and Leal represent their families and the Lord from the Phillipines, Kiribati, Scotland and the USA... Idaho. We have had the opportunity to teach with these Elders as they testify of the Lord and the Restoration. How powerful it is to hear 18 and 19 year-old men with tremendous conviction bring hope and faith to those who want to know more about the gospel.

Adrian and Agnes Martin represent the "cream of the crop" as they have served missions, been in Stake leadership and will be serving at the Preston Temple for the next year. Brother and Sister Martin welcomed us to the Sheldon Ward with a marvelous roast dinner at their home. She also is a wonderful Primary chorister with Joyce being the pianist for this small group of Primary children. It seems Joyce is playing the piano a good deal more these days... We will miss them so much as they will be in Chorley beginning in August.

Pat Sheridan (coming out the door of the chapel) along her daughter, Dolly (who is in the green sweater), are stalwarts in the ward here in Sheldon. We imagine that Sister Sheridan is approaching eighty and still contributes with her great scriptural knowledge and her quick English wit. At a recent auction to raise funds for the youth to attend Youth Conference in Nottingham, Dolly bid on just about everything... eventually snapping up our Dinner and Movie tickets donation. Pat's pumpkin pie is so good that the young men were hotly bidding against each other to win the prized pie.

President Wilkinson of the Birmingham Stake represents the best of the best. It's incredible to meet some of the most outstanding people in the world faithfully helping others. We are amazed that even though they could be enjoying themselves anywhere in the world, they continue to stay "where they've been planted" to help in an area that truly needs their leadership. Paul retired as the Head of a finance firm in eleven European nations and spends nearly his full time serving in his calling as well as a volunteer auditor for the Church. In his "spare" time, President Wilkinson is helping interface with MPs in Parliament and fixing up missionary flats (apartments). Comfortable in a suit or in jeans, he is another inspirational English friend.

 

President Martin Turvey is shown being trained as a National Spokesperson in addition to his role as a Multi-Stake Chair on the National Public Affairs Council. President Turvey is the CEO of an international software firm as well as having just been released following 17 years in the Bristol Stake Presidency... the last nine as the Stake President. He spends a week each month in San Francisco, owns a home in American Fork... Yet he's needed in Bath and continues to serve here in the UK.

More of our English friends will be introduced over the next few weeks. But suffice it to say, we are impressed with the commitment of so many who represent the Lord so faithfully.

A new SIGN has been posted near our flat... Just for my birthday!

We don't know whether this sign was posted due to Dan's recent birthday or represents how the neighbors really feel about us???  Dan is trying hard not to take this personally...

In addition to the obvious reference to Dan's age (notice he's the one with the cane) look below at what the local council sent him so he could have "free" elderly transport on the train and buses during the off-peak hours. Older, redundant (retired or laid-off) persons can travel almost anywhere for nominal rates on all means of public transportation. The British are very sensitive to those of us who are in the 'twilight' of our lives. 

Despite the obvious attempts to ruin Dan's 65th birthday by the signage and bad photo travel ID, we still celebrated as evidenced below.

Anna, Sue and Pauline provided the much appreciated chocolate treats!

Joyce made her famous Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Watermelon, Crisps (Chips), Shrimp Macaroni Salad, Victoria Sponge Cake for the office celebratory luncheon with Jan assisting.

 Shelley, Jan, Sue, Pauline, John, Alan, Luke, Nigel, John and Ray joined the festivities. They were great sports to join in celebrating that "colonial holiday" on the 4th of July.

Alan Tong (on the left) joined the Church in Hull when Elder Jones was a young missionary and still keeps in touch with many of the missionaries from the "old" North British Mission.

 John Henley (Physical Facilities Manager) and Dan golfed at Lickey Hills Golf Course a couple of days after the 4th.

Later that evening, we celebrated with the Jolleys (old friends and Self Reliance Missionaries in Birmingham) with dinner at our favorite Miller and Carter's and the traditional Angel Food Cake! Dan has it once each year. Thanks to Brittany for providing the cake mix and Joyce for preparing the yummy cake with orange glaze frosting.

Dan cannot wait to get even with Joyce when she celebrates her 39th birthday in October...

Celebrating Carter!

We were so relieved and pleased to receive the email that announced the arrival of CARTER JAMESON JONES born the 27th of June at 5:23 a.m. Carter was a natural birth baby measuring 21 inches 'tall' and weighing 8 lbs. 15 oz... Hooray for Laura, Jameson and Rachel who have anxiously awaited his arrival.

Just a few hours later, we were Skyping with all of them from the hospital and getting our first glimpse of our healthy grandchild number five! How blessed we are!

 Mom and baby... Laura is such a good mother and beautiful wife.

Rachel is so excited to be a Big Sister... Carter will never lack for attention!

Here's to a happy family of four.

Traveling, Teaching and Training

Guernsey is a beautiful island about five miles square off the coast of Normandy that is a Bailiwick of the United Kingdom, but not part of the United Kingdom. English speaking with the French flair, Guernsey today is where the wealthy go to vacation and was where Victor Hugo wrote much of Les Miserables while in exile. We drove to Southampton to catch a 45 minute flight to this little paradise on the 18th of June.

 We found that the tide fluctuates more (nearly 30 feet) in Guernsey than almost any place in the world as seen from the missionaries' flat. That rock pier is covered at high tide.

Each Guernsey parish competes with the other to beautify their homes and gardens in an island competition each summer. The missionaries are mentioned in the Forest parish brochure for their care of the Wild Spot to be shown below.

With a small branch of less than thirty today, it has a rich history in the Church as nearly 150 converts immigrated to Utah in the 1850s. The current Branch President, Elder Mike Hancock, who along with his wonderful wife, Marsha, lead this tiny congregation. Joining the Hancocks (who are from West Weber, Utah) are four great missionaries: Elder Travers (Tasmania), Elder Bodhaine (California), Elder Erickson (Kaysville) and Elder Preece (Salem).

The Hancocks (Mike and Marsha) and the missionary force (Elders Erickson, Bodhaine, Preece and Travers) on Guernsey.

 Missionaries find joy in every aspect of their lives... especially in chocolate!

 Every garden is fabulous... even the wheelbarrows are decorated with blossoms.

 Very narrow roads, high walls and lush green gardens adorn the island.

Responding to a Channel ITV request to follow the missionaries for a day filming them in their daily activities, Sister Jones and I helped facilitate the production as best we could. We had the opportunity to witness these faithful missionaries street contact passers-by on the High Street of St. Peter's Port, clean a parish Wild Spot garden, sing at a centre for the blind and fulfill their daily activities with complete joy! We helped them understand the responsibilities associated with being media spokespersons and how they could represent the Church in the best possible manner. We hope the final film production reflects how much good these missionaries do in positively representing the Lord through their service. We are so grateful and proud of each of them and of the Hancocks, who are more than 'saints.' Eighteen months on a 5 x 5 mile island (initially with no car) living with four elders who become more like their sons, paying $2/liter for milk, $12/gallon for gas and virtually having zero (I mean nada) privacy! The Church hasn't any more faithful members than these two amazingly patient, loving, and devoted souls.

London offers so many cultural, educational and intellectual opportunities to enrich one's life. Combine that heritage with the talented professors from the BYU and you form a lifetime memory for fortunate students who study there. The BYU London Centre is one of the most beautiful spots in this great city as it is just steps away from Hyde Park and Kensington Palace. We worked with professor James Faulconer (who Dan had as a professor at the Y) to help with a re-opening reception of the completely remodeled facility on the 24th of June. The event brought President and Sister Kevin J. Worthen and a number of academics in addition to community and church leaders together to celebrate this remarkable centre. We enjoyed lunch with Gabriele Sirtl, the Director of Public Affairs for the Europe Area. Joyce's article will soon be published in the Deseret News which follows her recent publication of the article on the Manchester YSA Centre opening. My only contribution was taking this photo below and getting dignitaries to sign releases.

 The BYU London Centre in the heart of Westminster provides a world-class opportunity for the best college students in the world.

In keeping with the whirlwind pace, we were home for a day and then off to Edinburgh via the Lakes District and Dove Cottage where we met with the Director and Curator of the Wordsworth Trust Foundation. BYU has been invited to provide interns at Dove Cottage in Grasmere where they become immersed in the Romance Poets of the day... Wordsworth, Coleridge, Southey, etc. We were introduced to Shane Peterson, a RM from Henderson, Nevada, who is an English major at BYU planning to go to law school and currently the summer intern at the foundation.
Joyce had the rare opportunity to handle original manuscripts and learn the creative process that Wordsworth used to write his poetry.

 Shane Peterson, BYU intern at Dove Cottage

 Jeff Cowton (Curator), Michael McGregor (Director) and Sister Jones handle the original Wordsworth first edition of poetry

 The gardens are magnificent...

and Elder Jones still cannot get away from answering Public Affairs emails and calls while on the road. We had a 'wee bit of press' this past week that needed attention and had us hopping.

Scottish Borders

Edinburgh is a 6 1/2 hour drive from Solihull due to the winding roads and busy traffic. But it is a fascinating city with a rich history and a yet-to-be-determined future with the Independence Vote coming up on the 18th of September. Many Scots want to be independent of Britain, many centuries old debate. Remember William Wallace? We viewed the city a bit and then prepared to train Stake Presidents and Stake Directors of Public Affairs on how to become effective Spokespersons for the Church.
It is amazing as we see these faithful people travel hours to attend a four-hour Saturday training, contribute so effectively to the training, and then travel hours home. It was a beautiful day in Scotland which made their sacrifice even more remarkable.
Sister Dawn Keough (the wonderful Mulit-Stake Director of Public Affairs for Scotland) scheduled the training and invited the participants who were "brilliant" as they say in the UK. Of particular note is President Daryl Watson of the Dundee Stake... Many of the leaders in the Church here have been refined by being so strong in a difficult environment and represent the most spiritually in-tune people we have ever met. We were graciously invited back, so we took that as a compliment to the training.

Grandpa Wrigley (a Cunningham descendent) and Grandma Wrigley would have loved hearing the bagpipes that play all over the city. 

 A view from the castle at Edinburgh.

 Cute girl... beautiful day!

Even the Dalmahoy Marriott Hotel was once a castle... now a 36 hole golf resort! Too bad we haven't played any golf, miniature or otherwise, since we've been here. We wouldn't know what to do with 5 free hours of time.