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 We said good-bye to the last set of missionaries on Monday.  Bittersweet for sure.....at times I cannot believe that this is the last transfer that we will be here for.  It has been a honor and a blessing to serve these dedicated missionaries during the past 18 months.  

Here is a picture of the group of missionaries that arrived this week straight from the Ghana MTC!


Elder Beck was in Kumasi for MLC.  He told me about these two 12 year old little boys that dress up everyday in their white shirts and ties and go with them to do missionary work!  I asked him to send me a picture of them......it just melts my heart that 12 year old little boys would do this every day.  I really cannot imagine that would be something most 12 year old boys would choose to do......but hey, this is Ghana!
Here they are following Elder Motuliki as he is about doing this work.......I LOVE this picture so so much!

This week was the last MLC that we will be here for.  MLC stands for mission leadership council.  It is where all the Zone Leaders and Sister Trainer Leaders come to the mission office to council with President and Sister Kunz and the Assistants in how to improve on what they are doing  and make decisions on certain policies.  They are a wonderful bunch of missionaries.  We don't have a whole lot to do with the council other than after it is over they swarm our office to do their "money business" with Elder Garrison and to get a cookie from me!


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Here I am with Alex (he is the mission driver, and honestly my executive secretary).  He and his wife presented me with this beautiful beaded necklace and bracelet on Monday.  I know that they don't have a whole lot of extra money, so this meant so much to me, and I will cherish them.  We were able to attend his ward (Where he serves as Bishop) today.  So we got a picture with him and his wife Evelyn and his sons, Scott, Oaks and Israel.  We will miss this darling family so much!



On Friday, the Thompsons (a senior couple that serve as MLS missionaries in Techiman) came to Kumasi!  It is always fun to see them and spend some time with them.  We had some good visits with them, played pickle ball on Saturday morning with Elder Thompson, Elder Kunz and the Moomeys and us.  Then that afternoon we had "linner" at Ike's Grill.  We just discovered this place last week, so thought we would try it again.  We all had the crispy
CHICKEN sandwich and fries.  You would think that really isn't much of a treat, but it was for us and especially for the Thompsons.  There is nothing like this in Techiman!  


Elder Thompson is a very talented artist.  He showed us this picture that he has just completed and I just LOVE it so much.  It depicts the story of the widows mite. In the corners of the painting, are some Adrinka symbols (which you already know, I adore!). See if you can look up what each one of them mean?  


"The Resurrection is at the core of our beliefs as Christians. Without it, our faith is meaningless. The Apostle Paul said, “If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and [our] faith is also vain.”5

Each of us will have our own Fridays—those days when the universe itself seems shattered and the shards of our world lie littered about us in pieces. We all will experience those broken times when it seems we can never be put together again. We will all have our Fridays.

But I testify to you in the name of the One who conquered death—Sunday will come. In the darkness of our sorrow, Sunday will come.

No matter our desperation, no matter our grief, Sunday will come. In this life or the next, Sunday will come. "(This comes from a wonderful talk by Joseph B. Wirthlin October 2006)

I want my friends and family to know that I know that Christ was crucified on that dark horrible Friday so many years ago, but I also know that he rose on that Sunday, and because of Him, we too will live again. Trust that, believe it and have faith in Him.

All our love to you.  Stay strong and steadfast. We are so grateful that we have had the last 18 months to live here and to learn what we have learned.  The next blog I do.....which will close up our "Garrisons in Ghana Blog" will be written from HOME...... May God bless you all,

Love,

The Garrisons











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