English Summer with its charm and cool weather

Shirley Station Master's House

Almost everyday we drive or walk past this charming Station Master's House in Shirley near our flat. In speaking with the owner on our frequent walks, we found that the home was derelict until he remodeled and brought it back to it's former glory about ten years ago.

Trains and buses come every 15 minutes but it doesn't diminish the absolute charm of this quaint little  home which is a reminder of the early 1900s.

Ironbridge

The first iron bridge metal works project built in 1779 is now a World Heritage Site. It is Britain's best known industrial monument and was near the villages of Dawley and Wellington where Joyce's ancestors joined the Church in the 1850s. Over 378 tons of iron with each part individually cast to fit were produced in the Coalbrookdale foundry by Abraham Darby.

Joyce on the bridge over the gorge where iron was initially smelt in 1709. The Industrial Revolution began here using the coal and iron ore from the region.

Charming village...

Charming girl among the beautiful flowers...

Gorgeous Saturday afternoon for a history tour...

Not far from Ironbridge, Buildwas Abbey stands from the 12th Century as a Cistercian Monk ruin with trails and fishponds.

Shropshire is simply magnificent with its rural setting... Can you imagine leaving this lush countryside for the deserts of Utah?

Elder Frazier (CA), Elder Onekawa (NZ), Elder Evans (AZ) and Elder Miller (UT) outside the Wellington Ward Chapel. These Manchester England missionaries serve in the city where Joyce's Baugh great grandparents first heard the gospel message in the 1850s.

With three wards in the Telford area and this new chapel in Wrecken, the story of the growth of the Church in Shropshire unfolds.

Joyce's great, great grandmother was from Dawley which was a village in the center of the Industrial Revolution with its huge ironworks 'Horsehay' operating from 1755 to 1984.

Missionaries

Elder and Sister Michaelis have taken on a new assignment from the mission president to serve as CES missionaries in addition to their Self-Reliance missionary role. They will share the teaching and organizing of the YSA in the Lichfield Stake.

Elders Mthethwa and Rane will have another baptism this coming Saturday, August 22nd. Elder Rane is an excellent new missionary from Rigby, Idaho who plays the piano extremely well. Elder Mthethwa is a recent 26 year-old convert with an Electrical Engineering degree who represents the finest of South African members.

Witley Court and Gardens

With the discovery of coal, England's rural gentry became fabulously wealthy.

This great mansion burned almost to the ground in the late 1800s and was later sold to art dealers who stripped the house of everything beautiful except the lavish grounds.

English Heritage maintains the grounds as they were during the heyday of Witley Court when it hosted the Prince of Wales and the royal family.

Amazing beauty in the gardens...

Elder Jones taking calls while on a P-Day outing...

History somehow preserves the serenity and peace of the English countryside.

Sister Russell's Farewell

With the return home of Sister Banner due to her cancer, Sister Russell has been re-assigned to the London Temple to complete her mission. We helped prepare the necessary physical requirements and everyone in the office, the Solihull Ward and the Public Affairs Department team wished her well.

Jan, Pauline, Sue, Sister Russell, Joyce and Shelley joined to have an afternoon tea send-off.

Typical 'English tea' with sandwiches (minus the crusts) with English mayo, desserts, scones, clotted cream and meringues all join with 'hot chocolate' to compliment the afternoon celebration.


Sister Russell's move

Office party wishing her well with cupcakes...

Most of the Solihull office join in the send-off...

Susan's parting gift...

We reserved the pool car (a Toyota station wagon) and it's a good thing we did... as evidenced by the photos of the load for a typical sister transfer. Just kidding!

We drove a fairly squished car to London without any delay.

Once we arrived at the accommodation centre at the Temple, several lovely people helped us move all the items to Sister Russell's compact, but lovely flat.

Port Isaac (Doc Martin's Portwenn)

For all of you that have ever seen an episode of the quirky English comedy,  "Doc Martin." Do you recognize any familiar sights here? That's Portwenn in the comedy series which is Port Isaac in real life.

Colourful (British spelling) characters are real in Port Isaac.

David, an extra in all of the Doc Martin series, was our guide for the tour of Port Isaac. He's also in the new BBC hit "Poldark" series which bring the Winston Graham Cornish novels to life. This could be coming to the US as it's been all the talk in the UK.

Doc Martin's surgery is the second from the right. The Large's restaurant is the long white building just off the water. The name Burt Large certainly fits the character in the comedy.

"Squeeze Belly Alley" (the tiniest street in the world) got it's name from smugglers squeezing through its slender opening. Supposedly the customs revenue men were fed well and the smugglers were a bit smaller and could get through with ease as they tried to avoid the taxation on imported goods.

Louisa Glasson's home in the series with it's 5 foot door is still occupied in the village where there are only 27 full-time residents in the lower village. The rest of the homes are holiday rentals that go for hundreds of GBP per week. This little home could sell for over $500,000 based on our examination of the local real estate market flyers.

Looking up at Louisa's school from the beach in Port Isaac.

Tintagel

King Arthur of legend made his home in Cornwall. It was our experience that it DOES rain during the day despite the lyrics sung by Richard Harris and on Broadway where "the rain may never fall till after sundown."

The hike down to Tintagel is steep and long, but nothing compared to the hike around and out of the castle area.

Joyce wondering not only about King Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot but how are we going to hike "outa-here!"

Magnificent Cornish Coast...

 Nothing much left of the Castle that was abandoned as a central point of Cornwall in the 1300s.

Sailing out to sea....

Devon and Cornwall

Many English people holiday in the south of England (Devon and Cornwall) where the warm weather and coastal regions resemble San Diego with palm trees included. Having never seen balmy temperatures or anything the vaguely resembles San Diego for the last 16+ months, we headed south for an abbreviated weekend before heading to Exeter for church on Sunday.

Torquay lights up the beach and the harbor in what must be one of the best natural ports in the world.

Sailing has been and still is all-important in Torquay...

About 70 miles from Torquay on roads that took us 3 hours to traverse is charming Falmouth.

We happened to choose the only weekend where the town was completely booked as it was celebrating Falmouth days. After seeing their parade (consisting of a local RBL band of 15 instruments followed by 25 people in outrageous costumes) we've come to appreciate Bountiful's Handcart Days, Brigham City's Peach Days and even Farmington Days parades!

Joyce enjoying the sun and surf...

Home Teaching Families

A family we Home Teach --- The Wilkins family of Carol, Amy, Jasper and Paul have welcomed us in their home for the past 17 months. We, in turn, have welcomed these good people into our hearts.

Linda Tucker (left) has been twice widowed and was just released as the Relief Society President. We home teach Linda and Mary Jo (below) who is the Ward Primary President. They have so little and yet are so generous with their resources, time and concern for members of the ward. Richard and Tonia were married last year, and it's cute to see how they take care of each other.

Mary Jo Smith is a teacher's aide at a Primary school and simply loves children.

We love the Camisani family, Daniele, Giulia, Fabio, Anna and Suzie, where our visits turn into Family Home Evenings. They welcome us with treats and always serve a punch or some English soda pop. We see the importance of home and visiting teaching as we feel connected to those we serve.

Planning, Preparing, Partying and (of course) Persevering

London meetings and Greenwich

With the London Public Affairs Council incorporating 11 stakes, we spend a bit of time in this great city. The Public Affairs Hosting Room in the Hyde Park Chapel welcomes community officials, government dignitaries, Interfaith representatives and media opinion leaders. Consequently, we regularly have the opportunity to host wonderful people in London. We've become very comfortable with public transportation and take the high speed train to London arriving in just over an hour from Birmingham International.

While in the city we frequent historic sites... Greenwich was the centre of the naval world and here Joyce is just below the observatory (at the top of the hill) where Greenwich Mean Time is measured.

Dan  stops outside the National Maritime Museum on a recent visit. Greenwich is most easily accessed by boat on the Thames where the 'Oyster Card' will allow you to take any form of public transportation - bus, underground tube, or boat.

Jenny's and Sally's Baptisms

Elders Alldredge and Mthethwa had two baptisms on the Fourth of July - Sally Dunkley and Jenny Ireland. Joyce spoke on the Holy Ghost and we celebrated Dan's birthday with cake for Sally and Jenny. Elder Mthethwa is an outstanding convert from Durban while Elder Alldredge from Farmington has been a great zone leader in the mission. We've enjoyed teaching with them on occasion and always marvel at the strength of testimony in these great missionaries.

Sheldon Ward Party

Being responsible for the Activities Committee, we organized the Ward Barbecue complete with American hamburgers and hotdogs. The English love the meat and most of the fruit, but are not fond of vegetables!

Michael Reynolds-Jones and his wife, Mary, are sweethearts and just dear souls. Dolly, Elaine (our new Relief Society President) and her husband enjoy the food at the barbecue.

The missionaries are always happy to help lend support to any activity.

Sian Davis, Stake Relief Society President, is joined by Sister Stilger (the Bishop's mother) and Anna Stilger (the Bishop's wife). Sister Stilger does not speak any English so it is very difficult for her to live in England.... but she is always sweet. We will take her to dinner while the Bishop and his family are in France and Israel for the month of August. We hope the German to English picture sheet works so we can communicate with her in the Bishop's absence.

Matt and Sarah Amison with their two beautiful children. Matt is a teacher and returned missionary. Sarah is only 22 and a cute mother to her little ones.

We had a "Bouncy Castle" set up for the ward party which seemed to attract the kids from the neighborhood as well as ward children. Daniele Camisani (red ball cap) is the First Counsellor (British spelling) in the Bishopric and a very nice Italian RM. Anna (his wife) is from South America then Italy (where they met) and now England. Her Spanish and Italian are impeccable with her English coming along. The lady in the white blouse and red skirt is Nadia (a Russian friend of the church) who is one of the most generous people we have ever met. We helped put locks on her windows last week and she welcomed us with a High Tea of herbal tea, fruit and pastries. Nadia was educated and held a respected managerial position in Russia only to be limited to cleaning duties in England due to her language barrier.

Fabio Camisani, Eliza Stilger and Susie Camisani play in the Bouncy Castle. Fabio loves for us to come home teaching --- nights that morph into Family Home Evenings where we end up playing games and eating treats.

Lots more food than people... We found that Friday nights are difficult for people to get off work and get to an event due to the traffic. Second lesson learned is that the English do not appreciate watermelon.... Germans, Italians, Ghanians, French love it. But the English didn't touch a slice!

Samuel, Jeremiah and Dolly discuss the games (primarily water gun fights) for the night.

Dan mans the grill... hotdogs and hamburgers. We bought and assembled the 'charcoal' grill prior to donating it to the ward for future outings. We hope they can enjoy it for a few summers to come.

Paul's Choir

We love our new friends in the Sheldon Ward and home teach the Wilkins family. Paul loves to sing and invited us to join their family in an excellent concert by the Canoldir Mens Choir joining with The Phoenix Choir at the new concert hall on the University of Birmingham campus.

The combined choirs sang wonderful medleys from Les Miserables and haunting Requiem numbers.

Canoldir Male Choir which are primarily Welsh singers performed traditional choral numbers as well as an American Trilogy.

The clock tower on the University of Birmingham campus dots the evening sky.

Kew Gardens in London

Magnificent Royal Botanical Gardens in the middle of London.

We thought about Joyce's mother and father when visiting these gardens. They would have absolutely loved the variety as well as the various styles of gardens. Notice the lawn after a week with no rain... amazing how fast the gardens dry out without the daily sprinkling from heaven.

 Vibrant reds dominate one section of Kew.

True English gardens mix with plants and vegetables.

Stunning lavender colors adorn another garden area.

Not far from Kew is Wimbledon... no the All England Lawn Tennis Tournament was not on, but we saw the courts and most importantly, the gift shop! We tried to determine whether we would get up at 4:00 a.m. to join "The Queue" to wait for day tickets, but had an emergency on the first day of The Championship with Sister Banner. We spent the week in Heartlands Hospital with Nyla going through scans and tests to determine the source of her seizure.  I'm sure she would have much rather had us at Wimbledon than at her bedside!

Just outside the gardens is a fresh market located next to the Kew Tube Station.

Cute girl with old guy... with a whopper-sized head!

Purple and white Foxglove dot the landscape.

Colorful Penstemon...

Lakes dot Kew Botanical which seems to go forever with skywalks, bridges, greenhouses, boat docks to the Thames river transport... Just marvelous!

Planning the 2016 NDPA Conference in UK

Each year the National Directors of Public Affairs from twenty-five countries in Europe gather to share successes and learn of new initiatives promoted by the Church. We loved attending these conferences led by a member of the Area Presidency in Germany and Portugal. Next year the conference will be held late in May in England. In the meantime we are making preparations for our office to host the event. Joyce loves planning, preparing and organizing.... she's a 'cruise director' at heart. So we were off checking venues, hotels, cultural options, food, rooms and conference facilities. Obviously, we will help plan this event, but will not be attending.

England has wonderfully charming places tucked away on golf courses, estates, and villages.

Joyce checks the dining room at the Worsley Park Marriott. It's not just the food (my focus), but the ambience, convenience and feeling that counts (according to Joyce)!

Preston Temple Trip

While in the North West we met our friends, Martin and Judith Cook (National Great Britain Public Affairs Directors) at the Preston Temple to enjoy an afternoon session.

We capture a peaceful moment by the  lily pond outside the Preston Temple.

One of our little traditions is to eat at The Italian Orchard when we are in the North West of England. The melon starter along with the spaghetti bolognese and lasagna with béchamel sauce make our mouths water.

Sister Banner Returns Home

Sister Nyla Banner and Sister Susan Russell joined our office in late September of 2014. It has been a delight witnessing Nyla's faith and devotion to the Church as she and Susan have faithfully served in Public Affairs and the Solihull Ward. Three weeks ago, Sister Banner complained of a headache and went home early. The following day she experienced the same pain and thought it might be related to a possible carbon monoxide issue. After a week experiencing the pain, we arranged a visit to a private clinic and the doctor thought it may be an inner ear infection. With medicine in hand, we took her home to rest. Early the following morning we received a phone call from Sister Russell who explained that Nyla had passed out and needed help. We had her call 999 (UK's 911) and rushed to their flat arriving about the same time as the paramedic. She was experiencing a seizure and an ambulance was requested. Dan gave her a blessing and several 'tender mercies' took place over the next couple of days. She slowly regained her ability to move her right side of her body and received excellent care at Heartlands Hospital. But the news is not good as she is suffering from a brain tumor 1"x 2" in the back of her head. David, one of her sons, flew over and she was able to return home to Morgan Utah after about 10 days in the hospital. Joyce's father often spoke of a 'miracle a day' if you just look for them. We can affirm that there are miracles each day and we were privileged to witness several due to Nyla's great faith. Please keep this great lady in your prayers as you pray for all  missionaries throughout the world.

Joyce, Sister Banner, Sister Russell and Dan at the mission office.

Solihull Office Party

Armed with matches, brickettes, tongs, spatula, apron and real American Hotdogs from Costco, we broke out the barbecue grill (again) and threw a summer office party for all our co-workers in Solihull.

Rob shows Shelley how to eat a Costco all-beef hotdog in three bites!

Sister Russell, Pauline, Sue, Craig Nigel, Luke, Shelley, Sister Henley, Anna and Jan enjoying the barbecue.

 Alan Tong helped Dan with the barbecue duties joined by Abbey and Anita (two of our lovely friends who clean the office building each night).

Garnishing the hamburgers...

Another photo with more gathering...

Anna and Sister Russell helped Joyce set up for the lunch.

Dan serves Anita a mouth-watering hotdog from the grill. Everyone made fun of his apron, but he didn't seem to mind!