Aaronic Priesthood Restoration Celebrated at Outdoor Event

   In commemoration of the restoration of the Aaronic Priesthood on May 15, 1829, an evening of enjoyable camaraderie was had at Mark and Vicki Kidd's home by men and boys of the Mokelumne River Ward.

   Opening and closing prayers bookended a rousing song "Called to Serve" directed by Evan Webb, a spiritual thought by Joseph Stringer; and a lot of fun fellowshipping by all.

   The young and middle-aged kids had fun swimming, throwing the football, swinging, playing basketball, and just enjoying one another's company. Lots of great food topped off the evening.

New Mokelumne River Ward Elders' Quorum Presidency.  R to L: Don Daley, President; Adam Sroufe, First Counselor; and Eric Fairbanks, Secretary.  Not pictured: Neil Anderson, Second Counselor.

   Bishop Holden and President Daley both expressed feelings of gratitude for this opportunity to come together as a new ward and to get to know each other better.  Thanks were expressed to all who made this wonderful evening possible.

Family History Strong in Mokelumne River Ward

   Nearly 100 people attended the combination taco dinner/ family research event held recently in the Ham Lane Building where the Stake Family History Center is located. The event was themed with a clever play-on-words since it was held on May 4.

   Shawn and Liz Kirkley, who are over the ward temple and family history consultants, chaired the evening.  Before dinner Liz showed a PowerPoint with Eric VerSteeg and his children Gillian and Jackson participating.  Eric spoke about the importance of family history, Gillian expressed her happiness in participating in FH work, and Jackson told how he enjoyed his Eagle Scout project "Find A Grave" at the Woodbridge Cemetery. Sister Kirkley showed a short video called "Will I Do My Part?" that she would like everyone in the ward to see.  You can watch it here:

    "It was fun, exciting, we felt the spirit," commented Cathy Leonard who coordinated the taco meal. She also said the youth consultants were wonderful, and worked well with adults. "The spirit of Elijah took hold, and when that happens you can't stop it," she explained. Sixteen computers in three rooms were used, as well as laptops and mobile devices. The pictures below are of some of the participants.  

(Photography by Brant Moon)

Robert Stanley, center gets help from Mark Wilcox and Betty McOmber (right) while Mark and Nancy Stoltenberg  (left) work on research for their families.

Upper left: Olivia Currington and Samantha McGhie; Upper right: Andie Stewart, Conner Weight, and Wendy Weight; Lower left: Andi Stewart and Caden Webb; Lower right: Steven Aberle and Marcia Ramos

Ward Historians Explain Importance of Keeping A History

 

   Bishop Eric Holden asked ward historians, Cliff and Ann Kerr, to use the fifth Sunday in April to educate and inform members about the importance of keeping a ward history.  The Kerrs were trained by Ward Andrus who is the Area History Specialist.
   Brother Andrus explained that ward histories (1) Bring members closer to Christ, (2) Document continually the history of the Church, and (3) Present leaders and missionaries with an opportunity to reflect on the work they are doing. The slide in the picture above explains how the ward history consisting of words and images is saved as a .pdf file and sent to church headquarters in SLC on a flash drive.

   Bishop Holden wanted to bring the ward history to another level, one that would unite the ward, help members have an appreciation for each other, grow in spirituality and in particular enhance missionary and family history work. Thus it was decided to have a blog containing the stories that were going to be sent to Salt Lake.  That way everyone could be up-to-date on what's happening in the ward, and enjoy the experiences and testimonies of others.

Elders Quorum Works to Ready Guy Condor's House for Sale

  Guy Condor recently passed away (see previous blog post) and Kitty Tippets, who cared for him before his death, needed some help cleaning up the house and garden so the house could be sold.  Cliff Kerr called new Elder's Quorum President Don Daley and he took it from there.
   Several of the Elders responded and Don brought his son Owen to help as well. The basement was cleaned of very old food storage, some dating back to 1979.  Old weeds and fallen fruit were removed from the back yard. "Shade from the lemon, cherries, and grapefruit trees, along with beautiful poppies made a pleasant scene," Cliff observed. "We all worked hard and in the process gained a better appreciation of each other."

Piling up a truck load of garbage to take to the dump are Owen Daley, Stephen Parker, and Don Daley.

Left picture: Brad Parker
Right picture: Ted, Goodsell, Owen Daley, Tyler Burton, and Don Daley.
 Not pictured: Kitty Tippets and Cliff Kerr (who is taking the pictures.)

Travis and Cathy Leonard Enjoy "Ministering" in Palo Alto

   When Travis and Cathy saw a need, they stepped in to fill it. Cindy and Glenn Franks live in the Vintage Ward.  Cindy and Cathy both work in the Family History Center, so the Leonards were aware that Glenn had had a double lung transplant at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto.  After the surgery he was required to live in the city for 90 days to have close contact with the doctors, necessary tests, help with an emergency, etc.

   After a few weeks of them being confined to an apartment, Cathy saw that Cindy needed a break to come back to Lodi, get some rest, and take care of things at home.  So she and Travis volunteered to go to Palo Alto and stay with Glenn for a few days.  They enjoyed their stay, and the Franks were very appreciative of it.  This is what ministering is all about.

   

Left:  Travis makes some soup for lunch. He also took Glenn to the hospital when he needed tests.
Right:  Cathy spends some time giving Glenn a few family history tips.