Squire Uganda Missionary Blog: Shifting

We are shifting as they say in Africa when you move to a new area. We have been serving as an office specialist and the mission nurse for the last 8 months and will continue through October until our new mission doctor arrived at the end of October. Having a doctor arriving allowed President Chatfield to move us behind Elder and Sister Casperson, from Riverton Utah, who have been serving as 2nd Counselor in the Mission Presidency and as Member Leader Support (MLS) for the Jinja District in Uganda. They have been so humble in their service, they are loved and will be missed. We will now be responsible for 34 missionaries (10 sisters and 24 elders) and 14 rentals. I think we will stay busy :). Sister Squire will still continue to be a medical adviser for the missionaries in the Jinja area.

We also went out and visited all the missionary homes that house the sisters and the elders. We will be doing inspections on them all every transfer. Lo and behold we found an Elder from Kaysville, our neighboring town back home. He is also in my brother, MJ's ward. Here is Elder Allred whose dress pants were being dried but we wanted a picture anyway. These missionaries in this branch had a goal to baptize 24 people this year and they reached this goal quickly, so they made a new goal of baptizing 48 people this year. I think they are only 2 baptisms away from making this goal. The missionaries and members are so awesome and the joy of the gospel is spreading in this Bugembe Branch!

This week we have been staying with the Caspersons and being trained in their assignments. We have been visiting each of the 7 branches in the district and interviewing the Presidents and their counselors on the work. What wonderful men and we love the support in the Branch from their spouse. We were so amazed at the love and dedication they have for their members. They have to be strong because the Church has only been here in Uganda for 20 years and there is much to learn. They are doing it with humble dedication to the Lord.

Elder Casperson is the 2nd Counselor in the Mission Presidency so he has even more responsibilities than I will have as only MLS. The goal is to have the Jinja District become the Jinja Stake soon. Soon, may be this year or it may be some time early next year. The numbers are getting close so that is why they wanted to have the Senior Couple support to continue. We have not had any new senior couples come to Uganda since we arrived in February. All the other senior couples in Kampala drive a couple of hours every Sunday to the different branches in Jinja to help train and support the leadership. That support has been a real blessing for each Branch.

We have loved what we have been doing since we arrived here in Uganda and I know the missionaries will miss Sister Squire. She is their mom away from home and she treats each elder or sister that way. They love her. October will have us filling both callings and so we will be doing a lot of driving between Jinja and Kampala. Once November arrives we will have the new medical adviser trained and will shift full-time to Jinja. November will make our half way mark and we will welcome two of our daughters that will visit us for a week. Is life good or what? We are called as missionaries for the Lord Jesus Christ and so where we serve is really not a problem.

Of callings, President Eyring said in a 2002 conference talk: "you are called of God. The Lord knows you. He knows whom He would have serve in every position in His Church. He chose you. He has prepared a way so that He could issue your call. He restored the keys of the priesthood to Joseph Smith. Those keys have been passed down in an unbroken line to President Hinckley. Through those keys, other priesthood servants were given keys to preside in stakes and wards, in districts and branches. It was through those keys that the Lord called you. Those keys confer a right to revelation. And revelation comes in answer to prayer. The person who was inspired to recommend you for this call didn’t do it because they liked you or because they needed someone to do a particular task. They prayed and felt an answer that you were the one to be called." The unbroken line now goes to President Monson, I know each of us have the opportunity to serve where we can learn and grow and more importantly, make a difference in someone else s life.

Jinja had a district primary activity and Sister Squire was able to work with all the leaders for a wonderful primary activity.

Solving the worlds problems...

President Mbiro (the District President) with President and Sister Casperson.

If you need a bread delivery it is much cheaper to get it delivered on a bodaboda. We saw him pull over an give some to the guards on the dam over the Nile River.

Side view, not much room for the driver.

We had another baptism in Lugazi last week. Love how the Branch is growing.

We wanted to get a picture in front of the baptism font because we have another wonderful grandaughter getting baptized this next month. Ada was baptized this month and now Sophie will be baptized in October. She turned 8 last week.

I usually post a couple of pictures our our beautiful birthday girls and boys but we were out all that day and did not get it done. Here she is, Happy Birthday Sophie!

Our daughter Rachelle was going to come in November but put her plans on hold when she found out we were shifting to Jinja. We learned she was only coming because we have avocado trees outside our apartment. Luckily we found this tree outside our NEW apartment and hopefully her plans are back on.

When we visited Robert and his family this past week (the hairdresser that we are teaching English to), Betty was warming something up that looked like beans. Later we found she was making us a treat and we had Fanta strawberry soda and warm peanuts. They were so kind to think of something they could do for us for helping the family with English. We later took them over to see where the closest ward meets. She was going to try and go there on Sunday.