The Shipp Mission

Farmers Market and Wheel Chair Project

2010-07-04T14:21:00.001-07:00

Some of the senior missionaries spent a Saturday morning browsing through an enormous Farmers Market here in Bogota. Everything imaginable was available in the market from flowers to all sorts of produce to live chickens.

All this meat to choose from. However, we were more interested, this day, in looking at meat as opposed to buying meat.

Chickens from live to dead and plucked to cut up. Your choice.

I have a hard time understanding why you would buy a live chicken and then have to go to all that work of killing it, plucking it, etc. For my money, I will take the cut up chicken. Maybe they wanted this chicken for eggs??

This is more like it but I prefer no heads and no feet on my chickens.

Any fresh herb you could ever want. We left with some mint and basil.

The most gorgeous fresh flowers you have ever seen are available in Bogota and very inexpensive. Sister Weidmer and Sister Hacking were deciding on which bouquet to buy.

Last week, we had the opportunity to visit the Corporacion Matamoros to discuss a wheel chair project they had requested. The above picture shows one of the types of wheel chairs the church provides. It is called a rough rider and is good for uneven terraine.

We also visited the First Lady of Colombias staff to discuss a wheel chair project for the first lady. In this picture are Carlos Ferandez, Claudia Tellez, in charge of the first ladies wheel chair project, Royal and I and Kelvyn and Kay Cullimore, the wheel chair experts from Salt Lake. The man on the far right works for the first lady as well and is a member of the church.

We visited two rehabilitation hospitals for soldiers who have been injured in the Gorilla war that is still going on in the jungles and coast lines of Colombia. Most of the injuries are due to mines in the ground that when stepped on explode and usually blow off a leg or even two legs. This young man was showing us his prothetic leg and foot.

Kelvyn Cullimore examining the prosthetic leg of the soldier behind him. It is being explained by Major Ortiz, head of physical therapy for this army unit.

We were all touched by the great spirit and attitude of this young man who had only been injured in May. He is one determined soldier and I have no doubt once he is fitted with artifical legs, he will run a marathon.

We visited the Navy's physical therapy facility. This soldier called us over to talk about the church. He was having electrical stimulus on his leg. He has a great attitude as well and is anxious to get his prosthetic so he can walk again.

Several more soldiers having physical therapy. They kept offering us these little crackers in the bowl. I never understood if they were a reward or just there to enjoy.

Some of these soldiers have head injuries so they have a room for cognitive skills. These two young men were busy putting together this complicated puzzle.

It was emotional meeting all these brave soldiers and I am glad the church is willing to donate wheel chairs to them to aid in their rehabilitation.

We have a great group of Senior Missionaries in Bogota. This photo was taken at Family Home Evening last Monday when the Cullimores were here. From left to right is President and Hermana Casablanca (South Mission), Elder and Hermana Lunt, office missionaries in the South Mission. Royal and me. Elder and Hermana Cullimore, President and Hermana Hacking (North Mission), Elder and Hermana Chalmers (PEF) and Hermana and Elder Johnson (Family History). Missing are Elder and Hermana Weidmer, the area doctor and his wife.

Atmit Distribution and Foundation for Disabled children

2010-06-19T13:34:00.001-07:00

We have had two choice experiences the last couple of week. One was participating in a donation ceremony of Atmit in Giron, a small colonial city near Bucaramanga. There was some concern about security and the above picture shows the two policeman that were assigned to stay with us throughout the ceremony. The first policeman never left my side.

There was a big crowd of moms and their children when we arrived. The distribution took place on the school grounds of a village of displaced people in the colonial city of Giron. Some had lost their homes in a huge flood five years ago. The majority were forced out of their houses and off their land by drug trafficers, right wing paramilitary groups or left wing guerillas.

We were accompanied to the distribution by Stake Presidente Ardila on my right and the director of the local hospital on Royals left. The woman is the nutritionist that works with these families.

It was a hot humid day and we were seated waiting for them to bring an umbrella to shade us. The poor man with the umbrella stood and shaded us for over an hour during the distribution.

After several speeches including remarks by Royal, we began the distribution. All the recipients had been interviewed prior to the ceremony and their names were on a list.

What a wonderful experience it was giving each mom a two month supply of Atmit for her young children. It was a day we shall always remember.

The children were all intrigued as to what was in those bright colored packages.

This is a photo of a house in the village I took as we were leaving. We were told there is one bathroom to accomodate the entire village. There is a washboard outside of the bathroom where the women do their wash. Before receiving the ATMIT the children all were deloused. Most children have worms as a result of drinking poluted water and the general lack of hygienic conditions.

Earlier in the week we were honored to attend the closing ceremony of a project that we had requested and closed. It was for a new refrigerator, new floors and paint to paint the walls of a facility that cares for mentally handicapped children. Imagine the emotion as we drove up and saw this sign on the door.

The facility has teachers, social workers and nutritionists. It has over 50 children that come each day from the ages 3 to 18 although I also think there are some older students in this group. They performed several musical numbers and danced for us. It was wonderful.

This is just a few of the young people that attend this school every day.

One of the things that impressed me is how the director allows the children to take responsibility for various things. This young man acted as a tour guide for us as we looked at the freshly painted walls and new floor. It made the place so much brighter.

The children made us thank you cards and this paper mache elephant that Royal is holding. It is adorable and I wish we could bring it home. I am holding a wall decoration that they made for us as well.

Cartagena, Barranquilla and Santa Marta

2010-05-29T12:56:00.001-07:00

Recently we took a trip to Cartagena, Barranquilla and Santa Marta. Our purpose was to visit several foundations that have been administering the churches food supplement to malnourished children and to visit the site of the vision project we have been working on. The above picture was taken in Cartagena and shows a class of teenage mothers with their babies learning about nutrition and child care.

Royal sampling the Atmit when it is made up as a drink. The teenage mothers prefer the vanilla flavor to the chocolate.

This photo shows some of the teenage mothers who are participating in the program. They are all very grateful for the Atmit they receive and how it is helping them and their babies.

This is a mom who has been through the program and is picking up her supply of Atmit.

We left Cartagena and went to Barranquilla. The coastal area had received a lot of rain. We were on our way to visit a hospital where Atmit is used and the taxi driver could not get through the mud and so we walked a block or so in thick mud which coated our shoes only to find out we were at the wrong hospital. Here Royal and I are standing with Carlos Sanchez, the Public Affairs person for the church in Barranquilla as we made our way back to the cab through the mud.

We were two hours late getting to the hospital. When we arrived, we were overwhelmed at the outpouring of gratitude we received as representatives of the church for the Atmit that these women had received for their malnourished children. They clapped and cheered and shouted, "Atmit, Atmit!" We were amazed that they had sat there for 2 hours in the heat and humidity to express their thanks. Very humbling.

Royal and I with some of the children. The little girl next to me is drinking a glass of Atmit.

So many of the moms wanted to have photos taken of their children alone and with us. It was truly such a memorable moment for us.

A group photo of most of the women and children that had waited to greet us that hot muggy morning.

The next day we put on our vision hat and went to see the hospital in Riojacha, a five hour drive from Barranquilla, where the equipment for the vision project will be donated. It is a new hospital and will service as many as a 100 poor people a day. Eventually they will do surgeries as well. The opthamologist in charge of the foundation is a wonderful, caring doctor. Dr. Luis Escaf and his wife Fanny (the two people to Royals left) both are committed and dedicated to helping the poor and the needy.

We had lunch in Riojacha at the Casa de Mariscos (House of Shellfish) and then went across the street to look at some beautiful handmade bags. These bags are the handiwork of a tribe of indigenous Indians, (the Wayuu) that weave them by hand. They are functional, beautiful. and unique as no bag is like any other bag. Notice the beautiful beach in the background.

Our last stop was in Santa Marta. We were there to do some ground work for a Neo Natal training later this year. Santa Marta is a beautiful little city right on the coast. We were able to attend church there and have a few hours to relax and look at the sea. Here Royal is relaxing after a fine meal of sushi. You can see the sea in the background.

A look at the beach not far from our hotel.

The flowers throughout Colombia are breathtaking. I loved these orchids growing in a pot in the hotel where we stayed in Santa Marta.

Friends in Colombia

2010-05-16T15:16:00.000-07:00

Over the past 16 months, we have met many great people whose friendships we treasure. Here are a few of them. Above Royal is with our friends Jorge and Sonya. Sonya is our dentist and she is not only a wonderful dentist but a gracious and good friend. Jorge took us under his wing the day we arrived and has been there to do whatever we needed every day since. We love and adore these two people. They have had a huge impact on our life here in Bogota.

This beautiful family all joined the church a year ago. There are 5 girls, 1 boy and their mom. The two girls on the left are twins that volunteer in PEF in our office. We have adopted these girls and love them so much. When we met the rest of the family in their home a few weeks ago, we fell in love with the rest of them as well. Each of them is a very choice spirit and full of love for each other and everyone they meet.

In this picture is our favorite taxi driver. We met him through another missionary couple here in Bogota. He is kind, helpful, very friendly and in posession of a Book of Mormon. Hopefully, he will read it. Hermana Hacking is on my right and the lady on the far right was the salesperson at the leather store we visited.

Royal and I love young adults. We loved our young adults in Bella Vista and we love these young adults we worked with last June when the USSN Comfort was in Colombia. These are some really great kids. Diana, the only girl, is a really good friend and currently is living in Germany as a nanny.

This is the Rubio family. They have a long history of service in Colombia. Brother Rubio was the first temple president here. They are also friends of the Henningers and stayed with them in D.C. when they were all sealed in the temple. They drive us home from church every Sunday.

Going from left to right, the first four people are the Tobon family. He is the family history expert for all of South America. She is the Relief Society President. The kids both speak perfect english and they have been good friends here in the wad. The tall gentleman is the head of the American School here in Bogota and is returning to the states next month.

This sweet mans name is Francisco. He is in church every Sunday on the front row. He loves the church and is an active participant in Sunday School. He always asks me when I am going to teach him to play the piano.

This sweet woman is busy every Sunday helping anyone and everyone. On any given Sunday she might lead the singing, care for little children, teach a lesson or make sure all the Americans have english manuals. She always greets us with a big hug. We love her and feel blessed to have had the opportunity to get to know her.

Visit to Popayan

2010-04-24T11:10:00.001-07:00

Several weeks ago we had the opportunity to travel to the beautiful little town of Popayan.
We fell in love with the town and the people we met. We stayed at the Hotel Monastario which is located behind a large Catholic Cathedral and at one time was a monastary.

The grounds are breath taking and the temperature was perfect for our wonderful adventure.

I love the archways that surround the hotel.

We were only there for one day but we packed a lot in during our visit. The following morning before we flew back to Bogota, we had a relaxing breakfast on this elegant terrace.

The main plaza in the old section of the city is surrounded by beautiful white buildings and pathways between exquisite garden. Royal and I are standing in front of a very old tree on our way to the mayors office. Far off in the background you can see an ever present statue adorning the plaza.

This is a typical street in the old section of town known for its white buildings. You not only see cars and bikes but in the distance you can see a wagon being pulled by a horse. A very typical scene in Colombia.

The foliage is rich and green and beautiful. I couldn't stop taking pictures in this plaza because every corner had a new unusual tree or flower.

This photo was taken from the window in the mayors office of the plaza. As I mentioned before, every building is white and with all the green trees it is muy tranquillo.

We had a very productive meeting with the mayor and first lady. In the photo is the district president that traveled with us, the first lady, the mayor and then me and Royal.

Our main purpose for taking the trip was to visit the plant here in Colombia that is capable of producing the nutritious food supplement Atmit which the church supplies to malnourished children particularly in Africa. Colombia is the only other place that Atmit is produced outside of Provo. There is a great need for Atmit in places here in Colombia and we are hoping that the church agrees to another Atmit project here .

One nutrient that is added to the Atmit in Colombia is a grain that is grown here called Quinua. The above picture shows the quinua before it has been ground up and added to the flour.

This photo shows Royal filling a bag of Atmit with the ingredients that are then mixed with water to produce this most nutritious food supplement.

This company also produces a very delicious cookie that contains the nutritious grain. They sent us back to Bogota with about 10 bags of the cookies and I have been very popular at the office ever since. Sadly, I will run out of the cookies next week.

After breakfast the morning we left and before our flight, we walked over to see the beautiful cathedral that used the monestary where we stayed. We really loved our visit to Popayan.

This and That

2010-04-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

We recently visited several places in Colombia with a short term specialist to determine where we would have a vision project. At each place we visited, reading glasses and sun glasses were requested. Since we have a big inventory of glasses in our store house, we spent a morning last week boxing up glasses to be sent to Bucaramanga, Barranquilla and Cali Colombia. I am standing there admiring our hard work.

Royal is going over his notes to be sure that all the glasses were equally distributed. These items are stored at a house that is attached to the Ahlambra Stake Center.

Last week we had a two day holiday because of Holy week. Five senior missionary couples decided to take a trip up to the quaint colonial town of Villa de Leyva. On the way, we stopped at this rest stop and watched the young lady with her bucket of dough make arepas which were cooked on the brick stove behind her. We bought some and they were hot and delicious.

Presidente Casablanca and Elder Lunt enjoying their arepas. Also in the photo is Hermana Stull the psychologist for the area who is going home on the 14th of April.

We had lunch at a lovely restaurant. A unique kind of trout is a specialty dish in this area of Colombia so many of us had the trout. Pictured are Elder Stull, the Lunts and Hermana Chalmers mother of Michelle Chalmers of the McLean Stake.

I love this little town with its white buildings, unique roofs and cobblestone streets. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. I even had a shop owner escort me two shops down to find some tagua seeds.

Everyplace you go in Colombia seems to be built on hills. This photo shows the missionaries walking up such a hill only on cobblestone streets

Both coming and going you see military strategically placed along the roads. An interesting custom is as you pass one of these military folks, they give you a thumbs up and you return the gesture back to them

One of the things I have become intrigued with here in Colombia is tagua. Above is the tagua pod. It comes from the tagua palm that grows in moist coastal areas. The seed inside the pod is extremely hard and its texture is similar to ivory. The seeds, after harvesting, are allowed to dry for 3 months during which time they become very hard and dense. Then craftsman take the seed and polish it to a beautiful lustre. They can also be dyed brillant colors. Many interesting crafts are made from the seeds.

Above is my collection of polished tagua seeds. You can see that they can be polished to the point where all the brown is eliminated or you can get them in various stages of brown and white. Each seed has a small hole in it where it was attached to the pod.

Beautiful crafts and jewelry are carved from the tagua seed. Above is a nativity made from the seeds.

Pictured above is a bracelet and a necklace I have purchased made out of tagua seed.

Tumaco and Illegal Aliens

2010-03-14T13:02:00.000-07:00

Adriana Guiand, on the right, is the Colombian director for the International Relief and Development (IRD) a large US-based organization that has a major humanitarian project which the Church is supporting in Tumaco, a very poor city in south western Colombia near the Ecuadoran border. In Colombia, internally displaced persons (called Desplazados here) -- people driven off their property and out of their homes -- is a big problem. About 10% of the population of Colombia is desplazado. The photo shows a view of the Pacific ocean from a restaurant where we ate lunch. Adriana is talking with one of her Tumaco staff. The shrimp we had was the best we had ever eaten.

Our first stop was at a fish processing plant. The women in the picture above are all desplazados that IRD placed in the plant. They peel shrimp 6 days a week; eight hours a day.

The shrimp is processed; quick frozen and the above picture shows the finished product before it is packaged.

The plant also receives other catches of fish. In this photo, is a boat of fresh fish and the men are about to walk up the slippery steps with their catch.

Our next stop was to see where some of these desplazados live. They have to build these houses above the ground as water comes up every evening at high tide.

Two children that reside in the village. IRD weighs and measures these children when they arrive in Tumaco. As you can see these children are very malnourished.

A woman that lives in the village is explaining to us about the water she gets from the well. They use the water to drink but I am uncertain how clean it is. IRD provides water purification tablets with a grant from the US state department.

The second day of our trip we went to a food distribution held in front of the IRD offices. The photo shows the people that are there for their second months food. IRD provides food for them during the two months it takes the government to process their papers. The food consists of rice beans and cooking oil donated by the Church. It is at the first distribution that these people are given hygiene kits, newborn kits and school kits also donated by the church.

I love this photograph. The children who have come with their mothers to get the donated food are playing with toys that have been donated by the church. Each child gets to take one home.

This photo shows the bags that have been prepared for distribution. Each woman gets enough in her bag for her own family for a month so the size and amounts vary.

IRD tries to make this a happy occasion and always invites a group to perform for the desplazados. These kids are all from displaced families that a foundation supports that teaches music to children of displaced persons in their school. They asked us if we knew President Obama among many other questions. Carolyn always enjoys interacting with the kids.

At the airport as we were leaving Tumaco, it was brought to our attention that we were in the country illegally. Our visas had expired. Not good. This situation was resolved last week as Royal and Carolyn along with another senior couple and two elders flew to Pasto, Colombia, a town two hours from the border. For the next three days, we stood in long lines in Colombia and Ecuador but when we left we were legal again. The photo is of us and Hermana Morgan crossing the border from Colombia to Ecuador.

The elders crossing the border.

A common sight everywhere you go in Colombia is people selling things along the road. This young boy was running down the road selling fruit as we travelled back to Pasto. He is the youngest person I have seen doing this selling.

We passed several of these buses on our trip from the border. Inside the bus is filled with people who crossed the border from Ecuador into Colombia. On top of the bus is all their belongings. I am not sure what the job of the two men were. Perhaps to make sure the stuff didn't fall out.

Vision and Clean Water Projects

2010-03-01T11:15:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of Royal visiting with the first lady of the department (state) of the Valle del Cauca (in green blouse) after our meeting to discuss humanitarian projects with her.

After our meeting in Cali we went to lunch where I ordered barbecued chicken. Here in Colombia, they serve your chicken with plastic gloves so you do not need to bother with a knife and a fork.

Dr. Christiansen (we are related through the Merrill line), Patriarch Barbosa of the Cali Stake and Royal at lunch.

Out of order!! This photo was taken at a restaurant in Bucaramanga that the notario took all of us to for dinner on Royals birthday. The young lady sitting in front of the entertainers works in the notarios office and helped us with the NRT when we were there a few months ago. This photo is taken in Bucaramanga in the office of Governor Uribe of the department of Santander. He is standing to the right of Royal. Next to him is Presidente Ardila, the Christiansens and to my left is Presidente Barreno and Henry Mendoza the public affairs person that helped arrange our visits. In the background is the ever present portrait of the Great Liberator, Simon Bolivar.

A photo with the mayor of Bucaramanga at his home. He is standing next to me.

We were greeted on our arrival to Bucaramanga by the two stake presidents on Royals right and Henry Mendoza on my left.
This photo is taken in Barranquilla at a vision clinic. Our friend and driver Cristian Juliao is standing between the very handsome doctor and Royal. The other doctor is head of the clinic and he is standing next to Dr. Christiansen.

Moving right along to Cartagena, you see Royal and me ready to take off on our unforgettable boat ride to Baru.

The boat with the blue trim was our means of travel to Baru.

A house along the inlet to Baru.
A typical street in Baru. Notice the water buckets.
This is the well where the folks come each day to get their water. The water is clean but salty. It's not for drinking but is used to cook, wash clothes and bathe. For drinking they have to wait for a small pond to fill up with rain water or buy clean water that business men transport by boat from Cartagena and sell to the Baru residents.
While Royal walked through the town of Baru to look at the now-empty pond where rain water is collected, I found a shady place to rest. Before long, I had a group of curious children surrounding me laughing at my spanish and examining my camera. The little boy standing in front of me was the most talkative and inquisitive of the group.

As we walked through the streets, we saw this young man either repairing or finishing this chair.
I have seen several iguanas in our travels but this was the closest I came to one. I didn't ask if they bite!!!

We ended our trip with a lovely horse and carriage ride through the old section of Cartagena. The old town was lively and beautiful and the ride was very relaxing. Our friend Cristian is sitting in front of us.

2010-01-31T13:50:00.000-08:00

Our visit coincided with the first day many of these children attended the facility. Some tears and some bewilderment on their faces. They were all too cute.

One of the objectives of the foundation is to teach the mothers of these children skills. Above are some dolls wearing the uniforms of different private schools in the area which these moms made and which will be sold to parents of students attending these private schools. The goal is to help these moms become more self reliant.

We had talked with Amparo Rueda, a friend who used to work at the Library of Congress, about a foundation founded by her father, Roberto Rueda Williams, who was a well-known professor and promoter of good nutrition in Colombia. The Fundacion Nutrir has four "casas" in a very poor area of North Bogota where 1400 poor children and pregnant and lactating women (mostly young single women) are served two meals each day. We toured the "casas", talked with the director of the foundation, and invited them to submit a proposal listing the needs of the foundation to continue their work. The first two photographs show the streets of two of the "casas".

In this photo are two children waiting for their meal. Each of the 1400 children have a very thorough examination by a (volunteer) doctor and then a nutrition plan is formed for each child to give them the daily nutritional meals they each need. They are closely monitored to see if their needs are being met.

Changing subjects. Occasionally, Royal and I will go to lunch at the mall across the street. Each time we do this, we literally take our lives in our hands. Notice the taxis, the motorcycles and the street venders which are strategically located every couple of hundred feet apart.

This pictures shows we made it across the street. The building on your left is Liberty Seguros, the building where the church has its offices. Notice the bus. To get on the bus, you have to hail it down and then while it "slows" down, hop on and go through a very obnoxious turnstile. You have to get off really rapidly as well. We have seen people literally fall on the ground as the bus slows down and then starts up again. Needless to say, we take taxis. You might notice how small the taxi is in front of the bus. About the size of a volkswagen.

In the food court in the mall, is a place that sells American pizza. Very tasty. This young man that Royal is ordering from is our friend now and when we come up, he immediately puts two pieces of pizza in the oven. He always picks the two best pieces.

Liberty Seguros is well patrolled by many, many security people. This guard is one of the most friendly of all of them greeting us warmly whenever we go into the building or exit the building

posted a picture earlier of a street vender in front of Liberty Seguros. This vender is located behind the building and we pass it on our way to our favorite Mexican restaurant. Notice the variety of treats you can buy. Really, it beats stopping at the safeway for some doritos or some candy.

Royal is standing in front of the Mexican Restaurant. It is open aired, clean and the food is delicious. We usually share an order of beef nachos. This picture is taken inside the restaurant. You order your food where the two men are standing and then they give you a number and you go pick it up to the left when it is ready. Good hot sauce too.

Feliz Ano

2010-01-09T13:05:00.001-08:00

The photo above is inside the house of Amparo Rueda Arciniegas at Chia Colombia, a small pueblo about one half hour outside Bogota. I knew Amparo when we both worked for the Libary of Congress. A few years ago, Amparo moved back to colombia (she is Colombian) and lives in the house her paents built on a small finca (farm) soon after they were married. Amparo's family is part of Colombia's "elite". She has a cook/housekeeper and three gardeners/drivers/handimen to help her manage things. Even though it's a warm day, inside the house it's cold, hence the fire in the fireplace. Amparo invited us to a lovely lunch.

This photo is of the grounds surrounding Amparo's house. She is now an event planner and often has weddings and big parties on the grounds of her home. There is even a small Catholic church on the grounds for marriages. We had a picture of us with Amparo and it went away. We will post it later. She is a very gracious woman.

One morning we ventured into a part of Bogota we were unfamiliar with to go to a warehouse where some of our humanitarian supplies are being stored. It wasn't easy for the taxi driver to find. It was nestled in a building among many buildings where there were enormous amounts of food of every kind stored. There were also venders all along the way selling their produce.

This photo was taken inside the warehouse of our humanitarian supplies. You are looking directly at the boxes of hygiene kits. There are 5 hygiene kits in each box. We figure there is a total of 2,000 right now. To the left is our supply of Atmit. Atmit is a nutritional drink that does miraculous things for young malnourished children.

The new year brought us to our final resting place, office wise. This is the third office we have occupied since coming to Colombia. We are pleased with this office. Although it is small, it is light and airy and for the most part quiet. Carolyn sits in the empty chair across from Royal

Our first church meeting of the new year was at the small branch of Sesquile about an hour drive outside of Bogota. We went with President and Hermana Hacking. President Hacking tries to visit a different branch or ward each week where he has missionaries serving. This branch is particularly unique because many of the branch members are from an Indigenous tribe of people from Otavalo Ecuador. The Otavalo natives are strong members of the Church, because, one brother told us, they have the blood of Laman. There are two strong stakes in the town of Otavalo. One of their cultural traditions is for the males not to cut their hair. It's worn in long braids down their backs and they are the only people, we are told, whose young men don't have to cut their hair when they go on missions. About 40 years ago, a few families from Otavalo moved to Sesquile Colombia and have formed the strength of the branch their. The older members maintain the traditions of Otavalo but some of the younger people, born in Colombia, are not following the old ways -- at least in dress and hair style

This photo shows the women in their black skirts, each with a shawl and many strands of gold beads around their neck. They have beautiful white blouses with hand embroidery on them. The men wear the little white cloth shoes and the white midcalf pants.

This photo shows Royal with one of the members. Their hair is simply gorgeous

We love the hat, pants and shoes but especially we love these people. They are warm and friendly and gracious. It was a wonderful meeting.

On the drive back to Bogota, we drove through several quaint pueblos. We took this

picture to show the typical narrow streets, white buldings and the traditional pauncho and hat worn by many of the men.

We drove through the mountains and the scenery was breath taking. We stopped just as we entered Bogota and took this picture capturing a view of the city. We completed our lovely fast Sunday by joining the Hackings at their beautiful apartment for dinner. We were so grateful for this choice opportunity and the new friends we made that day.

Christmas in Bogota

2009-12-15T14:19:00.000-08:00

Last night, December 14th we walked down one of the main streets of Bogota, to see a light display at a local park. The above picture was taken as we approached the park

This is 15th Street. It is 4 blocks from our apartment and really puts you in the Christmas spirit.

Royal and Carolyn standing in front of the tree at the entrance of the park.

In the park, there were two very unusual nativity scenes. This scene is sculpted out of sand. They have been working on it for about three weeks. Above is Mary, Joseph and the babe.

You can see the sculpting is not yet complete. Here they were sculpting the shepherds with some sheep.

This is another nativity in the park made out of reeds. We were told the reeds that were used to make the basket Moses was placed in are the same kinds of reeds they used to make this nativity.

This nativity is on display as you enter the food court of the mall across the street from our office. I love the Baby Jesus on his tummy.

I had Royal stand next to the nativity so you could see that these figures are almost life size. It is an exquisite nativity and takes my breath away every time we walk past it

Here you see the three wise men (life size) posed just before a nativity scene of Mary and Joseph. They will add the baby on Dec. 24th

Sister Hacking, Sister Stull and I went to a fabulous craft show last week. There were hundreds of craftsman from many remote areas of Colombia and Ecuador. These people make the neck pieces similar to the one that lady has on. They are all beaded by hand.

Sister Hacking admiring the intricate detail this woman is putting into the hat she is making. Many different patterns as you can see from the display on the wall. We bought some beautiful bracelets this woman made

Another craftman showing the bags he makes that are so popular here in Colombia.

NRT project in Colombia

2009-11-29T12:35:00.000-08:00

The week of November 8th, we accompanied the Neo-natal team for an NRT project in Colombia. The two cities were Bucaramanga and Tunja. Both cities had an excellent turn out and the project was a huge success. In the above picture, Royal and Jenny (a neo natal nurse from Lehi) are eating the biggest and best hamburger ever made. We were lucky to have the hamburgers since there was such a huge turnout for the project that we ran out of food so Hector Ariza, the Notario, bought us these scrumptuous hamburgers.

After the first day of the project in Bucaramanga, we went to visit the office of the Notary. The whole office helped us out with the project since their boss is a member of the church. Bucaramanga is a progressive city, very pretty with a year-around lovely climate. It's a favorite city for missionaries in the Bogota North mission and has two stakes. Across the street from the office is a beautiful plaza. This is a statue of Francisco Santander and in front of it are Royal, Carolyn, Gloria (a doctor from Popayan) Mary and Jeff Zollinger.

Lunch time during the second day of the project in Bucaramanga. Carolyn is busy correcting exams that are taken at the end of each of seven lectures.

At the end of the second day in Bucaramanga, some people from the church and the office of the Notary danced and sang for the participants. The above picture is Hector Ariza, the Notary, and his partner dancing a Colombian dance with a glass of water on their heads.

We were told that at a certain time of the year, these huge black ants appear. They are scooped up, then fried and eaten as a delicacy. I am told they taste like nuts. This is Julio, a doctor from Popayan at the airport where he bought a package of fried ants and was partaking of the delicacy; none of the North Americans were courageous enough to eat one.

When we finished the training in Bucaramanga, we flew back to Bogota and then a big van picked us all up from the airport to drive us to Tunja. We made several stops along the way. This picture of the entire team was taken outside a dairy in a beautiful little valley on the way to Tunja. From left to right is Xavier (Popayan doctor), Jenny (from Lehi) Dr. Zollinger (obstetrician from Idaho), Julio(Popayan doctor) Mary Zollinger(computer whiz), Eric Welling (anestheisiologist from SLC), Carolyn, Royal and Gloria (Popayan doctor)

Carolyn and Royal at the Puente de Boyaca, the site of a crucial battle in Colombia's struggle for independence from Spain. The Colombian soldiers were led by two great generals, Simon Bolivar and Francisco Santander.

A statue of the great Libertador, Simon Bolivar, on a steep hill overlooking the battlefield at the Puente de Boyaca. There is a statue of Santander also, but a more modest one down on the battlefield itself. It was a steep climb to Bolivar's statue.

A pedestrian street in Tunja. We had not been told that it's always very cold in Tunja and did not come with appropriate clothing. This street in particular, near the center of the city, is always cold, so much so that they refer to it as the street of pneumonia.

We were pleased that the Secretary of Health for the Department of Boyaca came one of the days and spent time with us and speaking to the group of doctors and nurses being trained. The Secretary is the man in the middle with the orange tie. Also in the photo are Eric Welling, the tall guy in the back, Lely Guzman, director of public health for Boyaca, Gloria Martinez, one of the local doctors from Popayan, and on the far right, Cesar Hooker, the AreaWelfare Manager.

The donation of the equipment and mannequins to local hospitals in the Department of Boyaca (Tunja)

A view of Tunja, the capital of Boyaca. It's a very old city with narrow streets and white buildings.

On the way from Tunja to Bogota, we stopped at a very old colonial town called Villa de Leyva. It's a charming little town with cobble stone streets and white buildings. Villa de Leyva has become a place all tourists have to visit to see and to buy artifacts. There even are very nice hotels and restaurants for those who want to stay overnight.

Royal reading a plaque in one of the many shops along the cobblestone streets. To the right is a small plaza with tables and chairs and a small bar.

It was a holiday weekend and there were a lot of tourists everywhere. I watched the young woman with the basket on her head walk several blocks and then sit down on a corner where she put the basket in her lap that contained a large array of baked goods to sell.

Jeff Zollinger is purchasing some little knit purses from this woman outside one of the shops. One of the great things about living in Colombia is within a few hours you can go from an extemely cosmopolitan city like Bogota and see life in rural areas where people wear the typical clothing of South America and live very simple lives.

NRT project in Venezuela

2009-11-01T13:36:00.000-08:00

The first step after arriving in Venezuela is to go to the stake center where all the training dolls and other medical equipment necessary for neonatal resuscitation has been gathered and stored. Then the ardous task of putting together all of this equipment into three different kinds of "kits" to be used in the training and later donated to the participating hospitals and clinics. The most "advanced" kit has 30 separate instruments! The main feature of the advanced kits is the sophisticated manniquin, each of which costs $700 american. In this photo we are putting the kits together.

This photo was taken the first day. The doctor is teaching the participants how to resuscitate the baby.

Carolyn holding the resuscitation manniquin. You can peel back the skin and actually see the inside of the baby.

Baby and equipment ready for the participants to learn and practice on.

Royal and I are standing in front of the Basic Kit dolls. These dolls are called Baby Anne and are CPR dolls. The smaller hospitals that are not equipped for resuscitation get these dolls. Every delivery room gets the kits next to the dolls which have 5 pieces of equipment in them.

Royal speaking to the participants at the closing ceremony explaining the churches roll in sponsoring these humanitarian projects noting that the funds for these type of projects come from donations to church humanitarian services.

A participant receiving her certificate of completion of the course

Carolyn wearing the necklace given to her at the closing ceremony.

Royal with his certificate given to him by Jana who we worked closely with in planning the project.

Participants of the NRT in Valencia at the end of the ceremony.

Royal in Caracas with Elder Hooker; the Area Welfare Manager for the South America Northwest area and the person we report to.

We were able to have a brief visit and lunch with a dear friend from the Bella Vista Ward who is currently living in Caracas, Yanire Infante Matos and her little girl Tabatha, family of Danny Matos.

Rosa, one of the Venezuelan doctors that helped teach the course, teaching Royal how to resuscitate. He did a good job!!!

The evening of the last day of the course, Rosa Quinteros, one of the local doctors who did the training, our driver, and Juan Carlos Chasine took us on a tram ride to the top of a very large mountain to see the spectacular view of the city. Afterwards, Rosa took us to a very good restaurant and ordered us a typical Venezuelan meal. It was delicious and a lovely ending to our week in Venezuela.

Juan Carlos Chacin with his family at the tram. He is the head of the Church's Employment Resource Center for Venezuela and also a stake president. We worked very closely with him and he became one of our cherished friends.

Moniquira celebration of the Dia Blanco (white day)

2009-10-12T14:06:00.000-07:00

A downtown street in Moniquira, a city of 30,000 about 4 to 5 hours by car from Bogota, over rough, windy roads. We went there at the invitation of officials of the municipality and of the Fundapedis, a non-profit organization set up to try to meet the needs of disabled people in the city. The Church had donated substantially to the city and to the foundation, including wheel chairs, crutches, canes, and big bundles of blankets and clothes. In addition, a multi-stake single-adults conference included humanitarian work by 450 young people in the city, including painting, cleaning up, repairing, etc. A four hour ceremony was held on Saturday, including a catholic mass and performances by some of the disabled young people. This Saturday was Dia Blanco, a day for world-wide acknowledgement of the disabled and a celebration of their accomplishments. The Church's contributions were acknowledged and praised. We brought with us additional donations, two big bales of clothing and 1500 pairs of prescription glasses.

Royal and Edgar Gomez from the office who drove us up eating breakfast. The night before we had trout in this restaurant. Trout is suppose to be quite a delicacy in the department of Boyaca.

Edgar holding a very big cockroach. This is one of two I saw Saturday morning!!

We were pleased to see Elder and Hermana Chapman along with two missionaries sitting on the front row waiting for the program to begin. Elder Chapman proceeded to take the photos for us.

Royal and I standing among the various donations from the Church.

Royal visiting with one of the dignitaries present.

At the end of the lengthy program (about 4 hours) they served a rice dish that they cook inside the pig. I was brave and ate some and it was actually quite tasty.

This young man has downs syndrom and the young lady is deaf. They performed a darling dance. Instead of clapping, the audience waved their hands in appreciation.

They had several musical numbers performed by the gentleman in the hat. He was joined very enthusiastically by this downs syndrone young man.

We were enjoying the performance of the young deaf dancers.

The gentleman standing next to me was the recipient of a cane. His left foot is a stump and his right foot is almost completely turned around. He gets around pretty well and was so grateful for the cane.

These ladies (minus me) did a very energetic dance and seemed to have a good time doing so.

Senior missionary trip to the Gold Museum, etc.

2009-09-27T14:36:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday, we had the privilege of meeting a new missionary couple serving in Lima as the Area Medical Director. They came to get acquainted with Dr. Malouf, the Assistant Area Medical Director and the mental health specialist Hermana Stull. Their names are Elder and Hermana Slingerland. He was a pediatrician in Provo. Six of us went over to the mall for lunch on Wednesday.

On Friday, the medical group kindly invited Royal and me to go sight seeing with them. Due to the pressures of our two upcoming NeoNatal projects Royal could not go but I was not about to miss out on a fun outing so I joined them. We went out to the MTC (CCM) and had a tour and met with the MTC Director for about an hour and then we went off to the Gold Museum. The picture above is Sister Slingerland standing next to the ever present guy on stilts in front of the Gold Museum

The Gold Museum is a treasure here in Bogota. Justifiably so. There are some exquisite pieces of gold to look at dating back to the 1700's. The above picture; a display that is located in the floor.

The museum is beautifully done and it is truly amazing to see all the various pieces of gold.

Notice the shadow behind these gold pieces. You cannot detect this shadow which looks like the frame of a person to me when you are in the museum. I only noticed this after I took the picture.

After a delightful lunch in an elegant Italian restaurant we walked across the street from the Gold Museum to browse the shops. This shop is where I found a little souvenier for my children and grandchildren.

This is my new favorite shop. It is upscale and has exquisite hand made items mostly made by some of the indiginous people in the remote areas of Colombia. Most of the beautiful items are made from leaves, bark, etc. from the trees that surround their villages.

Here I am taking a break and admiring all the beautiful crafts surrounding me.

There is quite an amazing story that accompanies these gorgeous baskets. A must have for me for Christmas!

Another piece I fell in love with is this beautiful handmade Mary and the baby Jesus.

At the end of our day, we had a group photo taken by our driver. We really enjoyed meeting the Slingerlands. In the photo from left to right. Hermana Stull, me, Hermana Malouf, Elder Malouf. On the top is Elder and Sister Slingerland and Elder Stull. We missed Royal!!!

Monday Market

2009-09-13T13:52:00.001-07:00

Last Monday Elder and Hermana Stull took me with them to the Monday Market. We took a taxi and then took a "bicycle taxi" to get over to the market. Hermana Stull is standing next to the bicycle taxi.

You can see me peeking around the corner. Very smooth ride and very cheap.

Our first stop was at the fruit stand. A beautiful array of fresh fruit, mostly grown here in Colombia.

The young man in the red hat knows how to pick out good fresh fruit. Here he is filling the Stull's order.

We wandered down the streets stopping in at a fish market, a bread market and then the meat market. Everything in the market waas clean and the meat looked very fresh. Today I am cooking the pork roast I bought.

At another meat market we passed, I couldn't help stopping and taking a picture of these cow hoofs. I am sure they have a purpose but anything that has a cow hoof in it shall never cross my lips.

My fruit purchases included baby bananas (very sweet), a miniature watermelon (not so sweet according to Royal), a mango and some concord grapes. It was a great experience and I hope to go back again soon.

Trip to Ibague, Girardot, and Neiva

2009-09-06T13:25:00.000-07:00

We traveled to three Colombian cities, Ibague, Girardot, and Neiva, not far from Bogota. The purpose was to give presentations on Church welfare and home storage principles to stake, District, Ward, and Branch leaders. We went in a Church SUV driven by Carlos Fernandez who gave Church training on the Employment Service in the same cities. The photo above shows a big bus called the Transmilenial. These buses constitute the rapid transit system for Bogota and run on their own special roads.

The trip to Ibague, the first city, took about 5 hours. Along the highway were a variety of places to stop and get things to eat and drink. At this stop, hunks of pork hung in view for purchase and for eating. The restrooms at this particular stop needed serious upgrading.

Cooking the heart, kidneys, etc. of the pig.

We stopped for lunch at quite a nice restaurant with quite clean restrooms. However, Carolyn didn't like the idea of chickens roaming throughout the restaurant.

The District Presidency in Ibague, along with Carlos Fernandez and Elder and Sister Shipp. Taken outside the stake center in Ibague.

A view of the city of Ibague taken from our hotel window.

More Colombian delicacies sold along the road between Ibague and Girardot. They are crunchy like crackers and quite good although Carolyn thought she could taste sand in them.

At a restaurant in Girardot, where the temperature was very hot and the city had a definite tropical feel, like on those old movies with fans, bars, palm trees and drunken expats.

The chapel in Girardot had no piano. It did have a key board which had to be played standing up and only half of the key board worked.

Crossing the Magdalena River, famously featured in novels by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, between Girardot and Neiva. The river flows all the way through Colombia to the Caribbean near Baranquilla.

A Colombian milk cow, quite unlike the Jersey and Holstein cows of my growing up years.

Outside our hotel in Neiva, with the first lady of Neiva in white, Carlos Fernandez, the first lady's assistant, the stake public relations person, and Dr. Casallas, first counselor in the stke presidency and a medical doctor. We all had lunch together and talked about ways the Church could collaborate with the city government of Neiva and related foundations in supporting health and social service programs and projects. The Church has a long history of working with this particular first lady. The hotel was elegant and the Stake President had planned an exhausting schedule for us. The climate in Neiva is very hot and by the end of the day on Sunday we were exhausted and ready to return to Bogota with its lovely climate.

With our friend Jose Luis Cardenas the day before we left on our trip. Jose Luis's last day of Church employment was the Friday of that week. He is already busily engaged in getting his own business set up.

Colombian Food

2009-08-17T10:28:00.001-07:00

Once every couple of weeks, we go to lunch at the Sopa y Postres restaurant that serves authentic colombian food and is near our office. A lunch for two is about $20 US, sort of in the mid range of lunch prices. The foto above is of he menu.

The foto above shows small empanadas of cheese, deep fried and delicious with the special sauce.

These are the main dishes with the Ajiaco soup on the left, with the piece of corn on the cob and in front the ever present rice and avacado. Above the Ajiaco are shown a little dish of caper-like condiments and cream to add to the soup. The dish on the right is a special rice dish, with pork, with strips of deep fried plantain and with a fried egg on top

A view of the outside part of the restaurant It's very pleasant when the weather is nice. We also enjoy eating outside because the chairs have backs; inside one sits on backless benches.

Enjoying the ambience after a nice meal. Sitting at a nearby table was a birthday party consisting of six pretty young women, one of whose birthday it was, and a single young man. They sang Happy Birthday, first the English version, followed by the same tune with Spanish words.

Avacados are eaten with nearly everything. We eat avacados with all of our green salads. The sauce is our favorite and compares in flavor with the tortilla factory.

Carolyn's first attempt to make cookies at this high altitude. They turned out pretty well, if a little flat.

Aides foundation and mission home

2009-08-07T14:30:00.000-07:00

We went with Jose Luis Cardenas to deliver Church-donated hygenic kits to children with the HIV virus who live in an orphanage operated by a community of the Catholic Church. The kids' don't have functioning parents -- the parents are dead or drug addicted. The kids go to school and eat and sleep at the orphanage. The above photo shows the official kit presentation to the director of the orphanage.

The little boy above can't tolerate the drugs needed to prevent full-blown aides. He is in isolation and probably won't live much longer.

The children at snack time. We arrived at the orphanage just as the children were coming home from school.

Carolyn and Royal with the children and the orphanage director. This foundation, supported by the Catholic Church, is better furnished and maintained than many similar foundations that we have visited. What keeps the children functioning are the expensive drugs they are able to get. There are about 20 children, ages 1 to 15. The hygenic kits were very much appreciated. The Church ordinarily doesn't partner with well supported foundations like this one except with small gifts like the hygenic kits. These kits are assembled at the humanitarian center in SLC and then shipped all over the world.

Last Sunday we , along with three other senior missionary couples and the president of the Bogota South mission and his wife were invited for dinner at the home of the president of the Bogota North mission. It was very nice. They served Ajiaco, our favorite Colombian soup. Shown in photo above at the right are President Casablanca (white house) of the Bogota south mission and his wife. He is from Puerto Rico. His wife, although born in the USA, lived most of her life in Puerto Rico and met her husband there.

Sister Casablanca on the left and Sister Hacking on the right -- wives of the two Bogota mission presidents.

Presidential Palace and Plaza de Bolivar

2009-07-26T14:32:00.000-07:00

We went down to the Plaza de Bolivar, with surrounding government buildings in the center of Bogota, twice last week. The first time was for a meeting with Dona Lina Moreno, first lady of Bogota and a great friend of the Church. The meeting was to talk with her and her assistant about a shipment of wheel chairs, which the Church has built in China and 1,250 of which are being donated to a foundation of the first lady. There is a presidential election next May and President Uribe is not eligible to run again. So the Church will have to develop new relationships. The photo above is of the entrance to the Palacio de Narino (or Casa de Narino), the residence of the President and his wife and the seat of executive branch government. Security was very tight and we were not able to take a camera to the meeting with the first lady.

A parade of military people in front of the Palacio de Narino. Narino was a famous general in the war of independence. Colombia won its independence from Spain in 1811.

The statue of Simon Bolivar, el gran libertador, in the center of the Plaza. Note the ever present pigeon on Bolivar's head.

All central plaza's have, as one of their central buildings, a grand Catholic cathedral.

Our second trip to the Plaza de Bolivar was to attend a ceremony in El Salon Eliptico del Congreso de la Republica where the Senate meets. The occasion was for the presentation of the "Orden del Congreso de Colombia en el grado de Caballero" to two noted medical doctors. We went as sort of representatives of the Church which has supported foundations where the medical doctors worked. The photo above is of a wall in the Senate chamber, showing, of course, the gran libertador.

Another view of the Senate chamber, very impressive.

A view of the chamber looking toward the back of the room.

In front of each seat are buttons to push for voting. The invitation to the event had a note at the bottom that dress was "Calle Oscuro" or street dark. This worked for men, all in dark suits. But some of the women wore dresses that they wouldn't necessarily wear in the street.

On another topic, we discovered a new fruit, called granadina, I think. The photo above shows the fruit before it's peeled. The photo below shows the peeled fruit with the delicious seeds which are very sweet and tender.

Office events and people

2009-07-20T09:36:00.001-07:00

Farewell lunch for Elder and Sister Sanches (he is Brazilian which accounts for the funny spelling) at the Sopa y Postres restaurant -- famous for authentic Colombian food. Sanches have been Perpetual Education Fund missionaries. Sanches are on the left. The couple on the right are Colombians who will take over the PEF work. they recently completed a mission at the bishop's storehouse.

Another view of the farewell lunch.

Two more PEF (which they call "PEF" in Spanish although the Spanish name is Fondo Perpetuo de Educacion) workers. The brother on the left talks to Carolyn in Spanish and waits for her to answer even though the Spanish speakers in the office say that it's very difficult for anyone to understand his Spanish. The girl on the right has just received her mission call. In her ward they have the custom of the bishop reading the mission call letter even before the missionary has read it so that the entire ward learns where she is going at the same time.

Andres Villegas, a very talented young man who is a manager of the PEF work. He speaks perfect English and has been very helpful to us in dealing with technology and computer-related questions. He has been a bishop and a counselor in a mission presidency.

Jose Luis Cardenas and his wife. They are a special couple with three young daughters. Jose Luis has worked in the welfare and humanitarian programs and also has been very helpful to us, teaching us about the complexities of computer programs, making travel arrangements, and working with us on humanitarian programs.

Tumaco Reunion Party

2009-07-05T14:59:00.000-07:00

On July 4 (the fourth of July) we held a reunion/party for the Tumaco volunteer translators. We had a nice dinner, presented individual certificates from LDS Charities, saw a power point slide show of the USNS Comfort hospital ship and the work on land, and laughed and talked. The photo above shows three of the very best translators. On the left is Daniel Trujillo. Seated is Daniel's novia (they plan to marry in December) Anna Maria Rodriguez, and standing on the right is Ma. Paula Alvarez, creator of the power point presentation and our point of contact on the ship.

This photo shows the food, very delicious and typical fourth of July picnic food Colombia style. Standing at the left is Patricia Cubillo who works in the church offices and who, with her mother, catered the dinner. On the right is Angie Sanches, one of the senior missionaries.

Carolyn and Royal with Carlos Fernandez, our good friend and mentor.

Pretty obviously, the people eating.

Four of the handsome (and pretty) translators showing off their certificates.

USNS Comfort hospital ship project in Tumaco

2009-06-20T15:20:00.000-07:00

Crowd waiting outside to enter the school for medical treatment.

An example of Tumaco housing in the poor neighborhoods.

Waiting to see one of the pediatrics doctors

The first phase of the optometry treatment. Royal is translating.

Royal speaking at the new school unvailing ceremony presenting the school with church-donated desks and school kits. Carlos Vives is standing at left.

The crowd at the new school ceremony. Between 1,000 and 2,000 in the audience.

The ten Cali missionary translators with their mission president and his wife

Royal talking with Mayor Correa of Tumaco at the ceremon

The famous MRE (Meals Ready to Eat) lunches -- designed for warriors.

Royal examining the church-donated desks and school kits in one of the new class rooms.

Lorena Ostos, a sweet LDS girl, translating for a pediatrics examination.

Royal translating for a CPR demonstration. The Project Hope volunteer has lived in Sugar House in SLC for 25 years, never joined the church, and is a nurse at St. Marks Hospital.

Colombian military guards with their assault rifles at the ready.

Carolyn with Linia, a joyful little 10-year old girl with only one leg. She prefers only one crutch because she can run faster.

Carolyn and Royal with Carlos Vives, the famous Colombian singer who said, upon meeting us in broken English, that he is the Colombian Donny Osmond.

Bucaramanga, Colombia

2009-05-24T12:39:00.000-07:00

Last Monday and Tuesday we traveled to Bucaramanga for the purpose of meeting with government and hospital officials to discuss the Neonatal recusistation training which will take place in October. We accompanied Dr. Jeff Zollinger and his wife Mary. We met with Health deparatment people from the state and the city as well as toured three hospitals that will participate in the training. We also went on a little tour of the city. Bucaramanga is famous for its shoes, leather, gold and silver and even baby clothes. There are two stakes in Bucaramanga and the NRT training will be held in a beautiful new stake center that opened its doors last week. These photos show us with the Zollingers in a city park in the colonial part of the city, including the cathedral. The other two photos show us meeting with city and Department (State) people. We took long tours of three hospitals (every hospital director wants to show you all of his facilities). All the health people in Bucaramanga are very excited about the NRT project. In the photo on the right of the top row, the young man standing next to Royal is a Department of Health executive and one of those overly-busy administrators who walk around with a blackberry in one hand and a cell phone in the other, both of which are ringing at all times.

Life in Bogota

2009-05-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

These are a few fotos that give a little insight into how we live our life in Bogota. I think we have said before that either we take a taxi or we walk. We always take a taxi to work. The first foto is of the office building where we work. It's taken from a fancy new mall across the street. We go there to eat lunch at a nice food court there. The other fotos are taken near our apartment. Within a block of the apartment, we have a grocery store, a drug store (called drogeria here although most Latino countries call it a farmacia), a beauty shop (peluqueria) a bakery (panaderia) a cleaner (lavanderia), a hardware store (fereteria), plus restaurants. A little farther (about a five to 10 minute walk) is a really nice book store where Royal could spend a lot of time, although he hasn't yet. In fact, there are two book stores and next to them a larger grocery store. The other fotos show Carolyn in front of the larger grocery store with her little bags for carrying groceries, one with wheels, and Royal standing in front of the drogeria and in front of the book store (libreria).

Trip to Venezuela

2009-05-03T12:07:00.000-07:00

We returned from our five day trip to Venezuela Friday afternoon. We visited six hospitals in the two cities of Caracas and Valencia. We traveled with Jose (the young man in the picture with Royal) and the Ducettes, a doctor and his wife from the states. We had meetings in each hospital with the administration discussing the neo-natal training the church does. This will take place probably in October. We have posted several pictures. The picture to the right was taken while drivcing in Caracas. It is hard to see but the houses are all on a mountain. It worries me that should there be a mud slide they all would be destroyed. The one just below the writing is dad with Jose our driver for the 5 days we were there. Jose is over security for the church throughout Venezuela. He is bright, articulate and he and dad had some great visits. There is also posted a picture of the small temple there in Caracas. It is next to the church office building and is utilized as we were told to its maximum potential. The other picture was from the top of a long windy road that looks down on the city of Caracas. We felt it was a very successful trip. We learned a lot and by in large had very nice hotels and always good company on our travels.

2009-04-25T18:31:00.000-07:00

Sorry about publishing the post before I finished!!! Pictures are President of Colombias house, underneath is the plaza and of course the painting is from the art museum. The paintng is by Botero.

Some tourist sights in Bogota

2009-04-25T18:12:00.000-07:00

Today was our preparation day. We had hired a driver to pick us up along with the Crooks and take us into the heart of the city of Bogota. The traffic was a nightmare. Apparently Saturdays are worse than weekdays in terms of gridlock and we hit it all. It took us about an hour to get into the downtown area. The driver let us off at the Gold museum. It is amazing and so well done. We spent at least an hour there. Then he drove us a few blocks which took forever and let us off and we walked towards the plaza. On our way we stopped at several museums including an exhibition of the art work of Botero. (He likes to paint fat people). We also peeked into several other museums on our walk down to the plaza. The plaza is amazing. Hundreds of people and merchants. We went into a very old and gigantic cathedral located right on the plaza. We also drove past the President of Bogotas house. We went to the office and picked up the neo natal maniquens we have to take with us tomorrow to Venezuela and went to lunch at our favorite restaurant, Sopa y

A visit from a dear friend

2009-04-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

One of the many miracles of our mission was the news that my dear friend of over 40 years was coming to Bogota on business. She was able to bring a suitcase of supplies to me and she is staying within walking distance of our apartment. This is a BIG city and we were stunned when we reallized how close she was to us. We had a wonderful time together on Sunday. The picture was taken at our Stake Center; a beautiful building with spanish architecture featuring an open air passage way in the center and with classrooms on one side and the chapel on the other. We have been able to meet her for dinner and Saturday her husband Fred and Royal and I are going to go sight seeing through the city of Bogota.

Santa Marta, Simon Bolivar, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez

2009-04-22T17:40:00.000-07:00

We left early Saturday morning for Santa Marta for a 10:00 session to present our presentations to District andBranch and Relief Society presidencies. As was our practice on this trip, we arrived late, got things set up, gave the presentations, and were finished before noon. We went to a nice shopping center with a nice food court (Terraza de Comida) and had lunch with the District President, his wife, and a counselor. Santa Marta is a smaller city with the best beaches with the whitest sand in Colombia , mostly relying on tourist trade. Santa Marta is really Gabriel Garcia Marquez country. His boyhood home town (not Macondo but Aracataca) is nearby as is the Magdalena River, featured in many of his novels. The wife of the district president had read a lot of Garcia Marquez's works and we had a good conversation about them. After lunch we drove to the estate where Simon Bolivar, the Great Liberator, after having been exiled from Bogota, was living when he died in 1830. He actually was on his way to Spain but never made it. He stayed at an estate called the Quinta de San Pedro Alejandrino which has been very well preserved and restored. Most of the furniture, etc. were those actually used by Bolivar, except his sword which actually is owned by the Venezuelans and frequently brandished by our new best friend, Hugo Chavez. A sweet young high school junior was our guide, pointing out such things as 400 year old trees and large iguanas on the lawn. By the time we left the Quinta, we barely had time to make our flight back to Bogota, literally running the whole way to the airplane after arriving at the air port.

Baranquilla

2009-04-22T17:18:00.000-07:00

We spent last Friday in the lovely town of Baranquilla. We stayed at a beautiful hotel with a revolving restaurant on top. We ate dinner in the restaurant Friday night at 10:00. We were very busy!! Earlier in the day, we visited a brand new school that was funded by a foundation called Piesdescalzos. The foundation was started by a famous Colombian singer who grew up in Baranquilla. The children attending the school are by in large from lower income families. They are so happy and thriving and learning. It was such a joy to visit there. Due to the fact that we were so obviously Americans (especially me with my white hair and only speaking english) and that President Clinton had visited the school last month, we were quite intriguing to the children. They laughed at my spanish and were delighted to tell me their names, age and grade. They even asked us for our autographs.

trip to the cities of the mar caribe

2009-04-21T18:15:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed our trip to the famous Colombian city of Cartegena, especially walking through the old walled colonial city. The streets are narrow and the buildings very old, some of which have been restored and renovated for business and government use. The streets were filled with lots of North American looking people from two cruise ships anchored nearby. US dollars were accepted. We walked through the narrow streets, sat in the inevitable plaza with the statue of the gran libertador, Simon Bolivar. We had our picture taken with native-dressed women, and with a statue of a black man, which was an actual man. We walked on the wall with its canons and guard outposts. We were told two interesting but unsubstantiated facts about the wall, one that it was made from coral reefs, thus destroying this spectacular under water treasure, and the other that the blood of black slaves was used as mortar.

Temple Session

2009-04-10T12:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the first day of a two day holiday here in Colombia. We spent some of the day working on my presentation (what I am saying in Spanish) and then we got dressed and went to the 4:30 session at the temple. We were suppose to meet the Stulls there but they had an emergency so we went without them. The temple here is much smaller than the D.C. temple but the spirit and the ceremonies are the same. It was a bit intimidating for me, NO ONE spoke english except one dear sister who was a big help to me. It was so nice sitting in the session with all those sweet hispanic saints. It was a huge group with several people going through for their own endowments. We were worried about getting a taxi after dark for the ride home but coincidentally there was a very nice taxi driver waiting at the gate who turned out to be a bishop in one of the wards. We got home safe and sound and felt like it was well worth the effort. We look forward to going again soon.

Conference pot luck dinner

2009-04-05T12:13:00.000-07:00

Carolyn came up with the idea of inviting the other four sets of senior missionaries to come to our apartment for a pot luck dinner (she prepared her famous western meal in one) and the other folks brought salads, desserts, bread, etc.) The idea was for people to come after the saturday PM session, eat, and then the brethren would all go off to the Priesthood session at the stake center while the hermanas would stay and visit. My initial thought was that this would never work for a variety of reasons I imagined but it was clear that Carolyn's was determined so I did what I could to support the idea. And it actually worked very well. The group of senior missionaries are diverse and interesting people, all doing different kind of missionary work -- including our welfare and humanitarian services, the perpetual education fund, auditing, medical and psychological support to mission presidents, and family history. Here is a photo of the group (minus a good sister who took the photo).

Fundacion Integrar de Jenesano

2009-04-05T11:58:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, we traveled to a little town named Jenesano, about a 3 hour drive north of Bogota. As part of its humanitarian services, the Church supports a a small organization set up to provide services to severely disabled children/adults. About 75 children/adults participate in this important, but poor facility. The Church's support (a new stove, a fancy saw for the workshop, a sewing machine, etc.) has been very imporant and we went to Jenesano to officially present the Church's contribution. There was a very long tour of the facility (the director made certain we saw every room and heard an account of what it was for), a sort of official ceremony with the signing of documents, photographs, and a fine lunch featuring trucha (trout). The little town of Jenesano is surrounded by beautiful rural mountain scenery. We have attached a couple of photographs.

temple and distribution center

2009-04-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

We went out to the temple last week to buy some oxygen absorbers for Carolyn's home storage presentation. It's a very modest little distribution center, next to the temple. The distribution center has one attendant, no cash register, no access to the shelves and materials. There were boxes of Church CDs and DVDs littering the floor throughout the little room. There must have been a special sale going on because a long line of people were buying lots of the CDs and DVDs and temple garments for $1,000 pesos (less than $1 american). We finally got our modest purchases and went out to look at the lovely Bogota temple. Here are a couple of photographs.

Nuevo Amanacer

2009-03-29T13:51:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we visited a home for abandoned/abused young girls that the Church supports with food and other things. On Friday we took pajamas and tennis shoes for the girls and large quantities of food. We went with Carlos Fernandez and a man who is the head of the purchasing department for the Area. The girls, from 20 to 25, are ages 4 to 16, some of whom have been in the home for several years. The name of the home is Nuevo Amanacer (roughly a new dawning). The girls go to nearby schools and then come to the home to live. Their parents have abandoned or abused them, or can't take care of them because they are too poor, drug adicts, prostitutes, etc. The home has arranged for medical care, social workers, psychologists, etc. to work with the girls and their parents (if they are known). We met the girls, had a tour of the home, and ate a very typical and very good Colombian lunch. The girls are charming and lovely.

Family Park

2009-03-23T11:31:00.000-07:00

About two blocks from our apartment is a lovely little family park with gardens, fountains, swing sets for children, etc. Usually on warm days, the park is filled with children, parents, and teenagers, enjoying the outdoors and the beauty. Signs all around say no drinking and clean up after your dog. On the streets surrounding the park are restaurants of all types, featuring Colombian food, a TGIF, Subway, and a very expensive sea food restaurant. The non-missionary attire is because it's our P Day.
Not too many people around because the day is cloudy and quite cold for Bogota. This is the winter season here, which lasts until mid-April we're told. It rained all day Sunday -- a cold rain. As the houses have no central heat (nor air conditioning) we put on lots of layers of clothing.

Pico y Placa

2009-03-14T14:43:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I hit the wrong button. This is the street next to our aparment. This is Saturday, so the traffic doesn't look so bad. On week days, it's very bad. So bad that they have a system in place here, very controversial, called "Pico y Placa". Under this system, if the last number on your license plate (the placa) is, say 5, you can't drive your car on the street on Mondays. In other word the last numbers on your license plate determine which days of the week you can drive your car on the street. I believe you can drive three days and are prohibited the other two days. There have been demonstrations against this. You can see the yellow cab. There are thousands of these and they are our main transportation. The drivers seem like they are going to crash at any moment, but they don't. Pedestrians have to be very alert as the cars go very fast and don't seem to worry too much about pedestrians.

2009-03-14T14:32:00.000-07:00

The Office

2009-03-10T18:01:00.000-07:00

The office where we go to work every day. It's small but adequate, with a computer for each of us and a religious painting on the wall. Royal is composing a presenation. Carolyn is taking the photo with her new camera whose memory card is stuck up in the bowels of the computer and no longer available for storing pictures. We'll buy a new one. The Area offices of the Church are on the third and fourth floors (we're on the third floor). Included are the area presidency offices, the welfare services, PEF, employment services and all the overhead administrative offices (financial management, IT support, personnel, etc.) The mission headquarters for the two Bogota missions are on the 9th and 10th floors.

Grocery shopping

2009-03-10T17:55:00.000-07:00

Standing in front of the Carulla grocery store that is just up the street from our apartment on Carerra 11 (streets that run north and south are called Carerras). This is a Carulla express, a small store. There medium sized Carullas, and then there are large Carullas. They have most of the things we need to eat, and also things like soap, tooth paste, etc. But no good hair spray, which concerns Carolyn.

Sites and people in Bogota

2009-03-10T17:46:00.000-07:00

Carolyn standing in front of our apartment building. The address is Calle 92 (which is the street right behind Carolyn. The little yellow car is a taxi and we live much of our lives in them. The office is on Calle 72, 20 blocks south. The one way cost is usually a little less than $2. The bus would be cheaper, but is pretty inaccessible to us. After we're well adjusted to the altitude, we may try to walk at least part way.

Early days in Bogota

2009-03-05T13:30:00.000-08:00

We have been in Bogota nearly three weeks now and are gradually becoming accustomed to our new life. We flew into the Bogota airport late at night with four huge suitcases, four slightly smaller ones, and a big box with Carolyn's sleeping mattress, after a long hard day flying. We were met by Carlos Fernandez, the Area Welfare Manager, and the person we will be working most closely with. Carlos had keys to our new apartment and so he drove us directly there, tired but at least in a place where we would be living for a while. The next day, Carlos and his wife, Beatriz, picked us up, showed us the offices, helped us with the first grocery shopping, and took us to lunch at a very typical Colombian restaurant called Sopas y Pastres. This is a photograph, taken outside the restaurant.

Entering the MTC

2009-03-05T13:24:00.000-08:00

Humanitarian efforts

2009-02-09T16:04:00.000-08:00

This picture was taken at the Humanitarian Center of huge bundles of clothes waiting to be sealed and shipped all over the world wherever there is a need.

MTC

2009-02-09T15:37:00.000-08:00

Here we are in the MTC, pointing on the famous map at our mission destination! It's been a very intense and tiring week -- they don't cut much slack for Senior missionaries. We received a bunch of training on Preach My Gospel and were impressed. The more we learn about our mission the more enthusiastic we become and the more anxious we are to actually get to Bogota. Unfortunately, we still don't have visas and are hoping they come soon. The food in the MTC is plentiful and not very good. Fortunately, people come and take us out to dinner. We went up to SLC today for a tour of welfare square and the humanitarian services building. Very impressive. The rest of the week we get trained on welfare and humanitarian services. Carolyn is hoping I'm better able to stay awake. She had her eagle eye on me during the PMG sessions, ready to poke me when necessary.

more single adults

2009-01-30T18:33:00.001-08:00

Young Adults farewell party

2009-01-30T17:22:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture from our Young Adults farewell party. We love them and will miss them.

Mission Farewell Songs

2009-01-25T13:13:00.000-08:00

Here are our 4 oldest Virginia grandchildren singing the songs they performed in our mission farewells in the Great Falls and Bella Vista Wards.

Obama r Inaguration

2009-01-18T17:47:00.000-08:00

When we got our mission call, I noted that one thing I would regret was missing Brack Obama's inauguration (this was back in the summer and people laughted at me). But here we are. The picture at the left is during the Sunday concert at the Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool. I think the Obama presidency is important for many reasons. As they sang "Your land is my land" I couldn't help thinking that back in the 1960s this was essentially a song of protest and when they sang it today, it was to celebrate America.

Old mission picture

2009-01-18T16:43:00.000-08:00

I left the Uruguayan mission field for home in 1958 -- more than 50 years ago. I tell people now that when in the mission field as a young man, I fell in love with the Latino people and the Spanish language. The photograph at the left shows some of my good friends who taught me to love Uruguayan and the Uruguayan people. These 50 years later, Carolyn and I look forward to meeting and falling in love with a new group of Latinos -- in the Northern countries of South America. We leave for the MTC in just two weeks and still have many preparativos.

2009-01-16T15:52:00.000-08:00

The House passed and the Finance Committee in the Senate voted out the S-Chip bill (which provides health insurance to uninsured children). Essentially this same bill was enacted by the House and Senate in the last Congress -- and President Bush vetoed it both times for reasons that no one could understand. This Congress, with larger Democratic majorities and with the assurance that the new president will sign it, the Congress will likely enact it easily. Becky, who had been a key player and driver in the last Congress (she was largely responsible for crafting a bill that passed the Senate and the House, operating in the minority). She takes some pride in the fact that her bill will be enacted, but at the same time would like to be more involved in pushing the final bill, now taken over more completely by the Democrats. In the photograph, she is sitting behing and "staffing" her boss, Senator Grassley, minority leader of the Senate Committee on Finance.

Bella Vista Ward Young Single Adults

2009-01-11T15:44:00.000-08:00

For the past 18 months or so, we have worked with the Young Single Adults in the Bella Vista. This has been a great calling for us and we have enjoyed so much working with and teaching this wonderful group of young people. They all have become important parts of our lives. The group has even attracted a few gringos from other parts of the stake who like attending a Latino ward and speaking the language of the angels. We will miss them.

2009-01-09T12:58:00.000-08:00

Beautiful Flowers

2009-01-09T12:47:00.000-08:00

A hundred beautiful roses were sent to us by a friend. These flowers came from Ecuador.

We're on our way!

2009-01-09T11:46:00.000-08:00

We enter the MTC on February 2. We are there two weeks and then fly directly to Bogota on February 13. We hope they have kept the apartment because we paid a ton of money for it.