Luck of the Draw

 We zoomed right past our 3 month mark.  We can't believe our mission is already 1/4 over.  Wow!

We feel so lucky, actually blessed, to be able to serve a mission at this time in our lives. Our family is all in a good place taking care of themselves, and our home.  We feel so blessed to be here in this mission, serving as we do. It is all so wonderful. To confirm how lucky we are, they pulled our “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" business card out of the fishbowl at Kinders Meats and BBQ …. again!  We won a tray of sandwiches just two weeks ago so maybe they wouldn’t want to give them to us again but they said they pull cards out a couple times a week (usually about 100 cards in the fishbowl) and it is just up to the luck of the draw to whoever wins and they don't keep track.  So we picked up a tray of sandwiches worth $175.00!  We happily shared them with the service missionaries at the Bishops storehouse and with the young sister missionaries at the Visitor Center. 

     

This week we went to Zone Conference and then on to serve at the Visitor Center.  We love our time there as we get to know the darling sister missionaries and listen to them share the gospel.  

     

Tulips are already blooming amongst other flowers on the temple grounds! 

   We helped at the Food Bank on Friday, then again served at the Visitor Center.  The sister missionaries had put together a program called "The Redeemer" and asked local members to share musical numbers and testimonies about their conversions.  

     Saturday we enjoyed the day to catch up on a few things, went on an Ebike ride together, then got to go for dinner and games at another Senior Missionary's apartment.  It was interesting to see the differences between our quiet gated community in a nice, modern apartment and their 1950's house on a busy street corner in Oakland.             

     With our call to serve as coordinators of the Employment Center, we have a more unique opportunity to visit different wards each week to share about our services.  We see a direct result of visitors to our center in response to our visits. The other senior missionaries are assigned to a ward, with young missionaries to support. We love traveling around and seeing lots of different areas here and meeting a variety of people. Often we make connections to our relatives, or friends back home.   

     A couple weeks ago we were able to manage to get to 4 wards back and forth between 2 buildings.  We attended 2 sacrament meetings and visited Elders Quorum and Relief Society classes to introduce ourselves and our services.  Last week we managed 3 sacrament meetings between 2 buildings.  Roger enjoys and understands the Spanish branches and I love singing along with the Tongan wards as no other congregation sings with such fervor.  

     Today we went to 3 wards.   At the Richmond ward, there were 6 Elders all standing in the back of the chapel as people arrived. 6! They are all assigned  to this ward and after the meeting as we visited with them, we learned this is the biggest ward in the church in the world as it has over 1000 members on record.  The problem is, less than 200 come to church.  

     Since this ward was out by the upper San Francisco Bay, we packed a picnic lunch and drove to a nature park to enjoy the 68 degree weather. 

      We continue to love what we are doing.  I never tire of the view of San Francisco, (seen in the distance of this last picture at the park today), or being at the Oakland Temple.  

Sending our love,

Elder and Sister Jerman

Swimmingly Engaged

 Just so you will understand, E​lder Jerman calls the Visitor Center the VC.  He also mentioned naps... Hmm...while he naps, I log our miles for the week, write to our missionary, update our photos, write daily in my journal, ya know, just some basics.  :)

This past week we've had so much rain and been so anxiously engaged that we have had to force ourselves to "Just Keep Swimming," as best we could. Monday we got to go visit Jay, Tay, Haven and Tillie. We took a really fun nature walk with our Grandkids and noticed how green everything is getting. Even the brown hills around us are turning green already after a short, mild winter- Spring is just around the corner!  

We love teaching with the Elders and Sisters at the English Connect class and practicing English one-on-one with Native Spanish Speakers. Wednesday through Saturday was kind of a blur because we helped out each night at the Temple Visitors Center after working at the Employment Center Tues and Wed. 

We are asked to check in with our job seekers about every 2-3 weeks to monitor their progress. Once in a while they call us to let us know that they were eventually hired - sometimes despite our help. Haha. It's been reported that about 80% of every job out there is filled by just word of mouth, and a whopping 70% of jobs are never even publicly listed. So a large part of what we do is to try and teach job hunters about networking. Usually we just call and check in to see how their journey towards a job is going. We both have had people find success who have been previously meeting for months with the couple we replaced, but then sometimes it takes only a few weeks to find a job. It is so random, but rewarding when someone reports that they've been hired.

So the next 4 days, Wednesday through Saturday we worked at the VC. Thursday was fun because we got to go to the Temple with about 100 missionaries and then went to a mission devotional with Pres and Sister Lash. On Friday during our shift at the VC, we got to meet the new Visitor Center Directors from Provo, Elder and Sister Childs. They have recently returned as mission presidents from Russia. Elder Childs told us that despite the fact that they could not proselyte in their mission, the Russian Saints stepped up and baptisms increased over the time they served their mission.

Saturday we were helping with a performance and reception the church sponsored with an Interfaith Council including VIP's from local churches and leaders from the NAACP which met at the VC. It's wonderful to see how much effort the church is putting on collaboration and friendship between other religions here in the Bay Area, as well as World Wide. We enjoyed listening to a Gospel Interfaith Choir and a local singing star in the area who performed nearby at the Inter Stake Center Auditorium. 

We are so glad when Sunday afternoon rolls around and we get a little time to ourselves. One of our favorite things to recharge our batteries is to just sit by the fire in our little apartment and stare at the Digital Picture frame our kids gave us for Christmas. We chuckle, or ooh and ahh at the latest thing our Grandkids have said or done and sometimes take an afternoon nap to prepare for the next week. Here's hoping each of you take a moment out of your busy week to relax and do something for yourselves to make the coming few days "Swimmable." 

With Love, 

Elder and Sister Jerman

Our busiest week!

 We had a big, big week last week.  Monday after serving at the Employment Center, we went to the Family Search Center to host a dinner with the senior missionaries, about 30.  I decorated the tables with Dollar Tree snowflakes and Elder Jerman passed out the booklets he made with all the senior missionary's pictures and a little life sketch and testimony they had written.  They turned out awesome!   It was potluck so I told everyone to add to our Rice-A-Roni, "the San Francisco Treat!"  

Our senior missionary couples serve all over the mission in a variety of assignments. 

           

     Tuesday we had a busier day than usual at the Employment Center with 2 meetings, phone calls and several people coming in for help.  We worked right through lunch then got a fun phone call. A business called Kinder's Meats-Deli & BBQ called to say they had pulled our business card,  "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" out from the fish bowl and we had won sandwiches.  (The couple we replaced had been there.) They asked if we could come right now to pick up a tray of sandwiches but Elder Jerman said we had several people there and wouldn't be able to come yet so they said, "Oh, you have a lot of people, OK, we'll give you 2 trays of sandwiches."  When we got there, they handed over what we learned to be $400.00 worth of sandwiches plus a jar of BBQ sauce!  We sat right down at 3:30 to finally eat our lunch -  YUM!   We've had sandwiches every day since, besides sharing sandwiches with missionaries at the English Connect class, the Bishop Storehouse, and the Visitor Center.  

     Wednesday was an even busier with 2 people there right as we opened the doors, then half an hour later, 6 friends all walked in together!  They were almost solely Spanish speaking so I wasn't able to help much and we didn't have enough computers for everyone.  I brought out Elder Jerman's laptop and even had someone sitting at my office desk computer.  Elder Jerman bounced around for the next several hours helping them get resumes done before closing time.   Whew!  Again no time for lunch but we had a sandwich waiting  for us as soon as we got to the Visitor Center to serve for the rest of the night.     

    We had the wonderful opportunity to serve 3 times at the Visitor Center this week.  It is always a pleasure to be there to serve with the young sister missionaries and have the chance to meet so many interesting people. We love our conversations with the many different people who come in.   Elder Jerman met a guy from Eritrea (Africa) who spent months getting from there to here and now needs a job.  I met a cute gal from India named Dimple who was recently baptized and she is also in need of a job.   Interesting how it all works. 

     We try to feed different sets of missionaries each week but this week, we got invited to someone's home for dinner.  It was nice to be treated, and spend the evening with 3 other couples.  The host couple had recently returned from serving a year in Spain and she made a Spanish dish called paella that Roger remembers from his days as a young missionary there.  It was delicious!  She also made Burnt Basque Cheesecake.  I told my kids I have a new title from now on for any of my cooking hazards.  I'll just call it "Burnt Basque Toast" or "Burnt Basque...." 

This paella pan covered all 4 burners! 

Burnt Basque Cheesecake

     Instead of being assigned one ward to attend and support, we are invited to travel all around our mission and visit different wards each week with the intent to meet bishops, Elders Quorum presidents and Relief Society presidents to let them know about our services.  Yesterday, on Sunday,  we figured out how to go to 4 wards between 2 buildings.  We sat through 2 sacrament meetings, then met the bishop, and then visited the Elders Quorum and Relief Society classes to introduce ourselves and our services. Then we would pop over to a different building then pop back.   Last week we managed 3 sacrament meetings between 2 buildings.  Roger enjoys and understands the Spanish wards and I love singing along with the Tongan wards as no other congregation sings with such fervor.  It is so fun to meet a lot of new people and always amazing to make connections with someone back home - a friend or a relative.  The church is just so AMAZING! 

Sunday visits to 4 wards in Livermore, CA (this is January!)

Today we had some time off to enjoy the holiday and visit Jason, Taya and 2 little granddaughters before starting back into our week.  

We have a lot of catch-up to do at the Employment Center and then since the Visitor Center directors have been released and the new ones aren't here yet, we will serve 4 evenings (3:00-9:00) at the Visitor Center.  It will be a great week!  We love that we don't have to try to fill up our schedule! 

Much love to you! Love, Elder and Sister Jerman

Meekness

 The Word of the week is “mansedumbre.” Each night during the week after Christmas, Kaleen and I have happily served in the Visitor’s Center at Temple Hill. It has been so much fun to talk to people from literally around the world. As new visitors drive into the parking lot, the first thing they see is the huge statue of Christ in the large glass windows overlooking the Oakland Temple grounds. 

As they walk through the doors and into the Center, people are drawn to the statue and immediately notice the wonderful spirit of peace and comfort as they gaze up at Jesus’s loving face and notice the prints of the nails in His hands and feet and the wounds in his side.

A narration in His own words from the scriptures that describe His Mission, His Character and His Love for each of us can be heard in over 20 different languages. In the Spanish version, a calming voice with beautiful music in the background describes the Greatest Story Ever Told:

“Behold the wounds that pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet ... for behold, I have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent. Learn of me, and listen to my words, walk in the “mansedumbre” of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me.”

Mansedumbre is Spanish for meekness. Jesus Christ was and is the most meek and humble of all of the Father’s spirits and yet He is Lord and master of us all. What an amazing act of charity he performed to condescend to come to earth and be born in a tabernacle of clay and endure unimaginable pain and suffering that we, his brothers and sisters might be able to partake of His precious offering and become eligible to return to our Heavenly Father and loved ones who have gone on before us. Oh, Hallelujah and God be praised for the life and sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Happy New Year!

 Hello All,

      It's been a wonderful Christmas week and now we head into the New Year - 2024. It just sounds like a good year, right?

     We had a wonderfully busy week.  We had the opportunity to serve at the Oakland Temple Visitor Center every day this week, Sunday - Saturday!  

We love serving there!  We were so happy to serve and fill in for the directors who had all their family in town before they get released in a couple weeks.           

  The Visitor Center is open every day of the year from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. - yes, every day!  We usually serve the later shift from 3:00-9:00 p.m.  A normal day of the year, we might see between 200-400 people come in.  Weekends and holidays bring in 500-700 guests.   This year, 925 people came in on Christmas Eve and 1008 came in on Christmas Day. The biggest day this year was 1150 guests on December 23rd.  

     Of course most people wouldn't think it is even open on Christmas Day, but the missionaries serve there and people come!  Many come to see the Christmas lights, or the light on the hill, which is referred to as the "beacon of Oakland" as the temple can be seen from afar.  The grounds and palm trees are all lit up and the weather is mild so people walk around the grounds and up around the 2nd story floor of the outside of the temple for a spectacular view of the San Francisco Bay.  Then many come wandering into the Visitor Center not sure what they will find. Well, they are greeted by beautiful young sister missionaries who speak a variety of languages.  Folks can sit and listen to a 90 second narration from the scriptures of words Jesus Christ spoke as they look up to the Christus statue.  Next they can walk around and look at different displays and enjoy some interactive activities.  Missionaries can follow along and teach them if they want or turn on a short movie about any topic they are interested in.  This month we love showing "The Christ Child".  I love to slip in at least once a day to feel the beautiful spirit there with that video.  Some accept a free copy of the Book of Mormon.  Remember how we can donate towards the Book of Mormon fund?  Well I see these books given away every day.  We have cupboards full of copies in 115 languages.  I've given away the Book of Mormon in Vietnamese, Hindi, Arabic, Armenian west and Armenian east.   Many of the  languages I've never heard of before and can't even pronounce.  Mostly we share books in Spanish and English but now almost daily, we have a group of visitors from Guatemala.  They speak Mam and seem to send their friends so we figure out how to speak with them as some either know a little English or a little Spanish.  I "speak" through admiring the beautiful stitching on the clothing the women all wear.  Then they want to take pictures with me, haha!  I ask if I can share their picture so they have given their permission.  They love receiving a book in their native language.  We share a little about what is in the book and invite them to read, ponder and pray.  We hope they do!

We come home sharing with each other who we were able to share the gospel with as that is a daily opportunity.  This has added such a wonderful blessing to our missionary week.  

     After serving at the Visitor Center on the morning of Christmas Eve, we got to shop for gifts for 31 residents at a local Care Center, then fed the Sister missionaries, and together bagged up those 31 gift bags.  On Christmas Day, we were up early to make pies and frost cookies, then loaded those 31 bags to take to the Care Center where 10 missionaries joined us to sing Christmas carols for the folks there.  We drove to another care center where we were able to perform for two more groups.  Then we got to feed those missionaries a Christmas dinner before going to serve at the Visitor Center.

     The next day we finally took the time to open our simple gifts to each other. At the end of the week we serve an hour at the Food Bank distribution in a nearby church parking lot, and then on to a nearby Methodist church for 2 more hours to help divide and distribute food to the folks who line up outside.  

     Like our missionary daughter Amy just said, "Let God love others, through you."

May we all daily find ways to serve God as we serve others.  

This fun salutation is also from Amy

Hugs and kisses and merry wishes

Love, Elder and Sister Jerman