Elder Pack

Hey everyone! Ethan called Sunday night to wish Bryan a Happy Father's Day.  We didn't chat long because we wanted something to talk about on Monday but it was fun to see his cute face.  And it was fun to talk to him 2 days in a row! Last night, Ethan was locked out of Facebook so we couldn't use Messenger this morning to talk to him.  He set up a Zoom meeting so we were still able to talk.  He was a bit annoyed that it wasn't working though.  He had to send me a text with the meeting info and sent a picture of him being annoyed. The missionary work is going well.  Dale, the man who they have been teaching whose girlfriend is a less active member, came to church again and really liked it.  They have been teaching him and have another appointment with him tomorrow.  Dale had a man who was against the Church talk to him last week and he was confident enough in what he has been learning to dispute what the man was telling him.  One of the things...

Hey everybody! Ethan's p-day was switched to Monday so we got to talk to him last night.  He said that the Church is trying to standardize p-days across the world so all missionaries will have p-day on Monday.  He doesn't know exactly why or how this will affect transfers or incoming missionaries but...he doesn't have to worry about that anymore.  He said they could start mailing greenies to the mission.  haha! Ethan's District went to Estes Park with his mission president to go on some hikes and enjoy the great weather.  They got to drive the transfer van so they went all in one van and got to talk and ask questions of their mission president.  He is finishing his time as president on July 1 st  so they asked him questions about the incoming mission president (President Sorenson) and how the transition of keys works.  It is interesting. They hiked the Emerald Lake trail.  This was the hike they did the last time they went but it wasn't as sn...

Hey everyone! We got to talk to Ethan and he is doing really well.  It has been a busy week for him.  They had transfers last Wednesday.  He is staying in Windsor but half of his zone had changes so he and his companion were up at 4:45 to get ready and get to the transfer bus.  They are in charge of making sure all the missionaries in their zone are on the transfer bus with their stuff in the morning and then off the transfer bus in the afternoon with all their stuff.  Ethan earned his name because he was in charge of packing all the stuff into one of the compartments under the bus.  Ethan called it Tetris.  He said many mentioned that he lived up to his name.  Along with transfers, Ethan and Elder Nichols had to move furniture for missionaries.  One area has a trio of sisters, so they had to get them another bed.  Another elder has a weight set he uses for rehab (he must have an injury) and so Ethan and his companion had to move a bunch...

Hey everyone! Thanks for the emails, packages, and letters for Ethan's birthday last week.  He said he was spoiled and appreciated being thought of. The last transfer in Ethan's mission (minus the one home) happened this week!  He stays in Windsor, CO, continuing with Elder Nichols, and continuing as a Zone Leader.  There are quite a lot of changes in their Zone but Ethan said that change is really good and he is looking forward to a shake-up of things. They had some success last week finding people to teach.  Ethan and Elder Nichols have been driving to parts of their area and then walking around.  They don't knock on doors, they just walk around and talk to whoever is outside.  They were blessed to find people to teach on Sunday and Monday just walking around.  One of them let him borrow an umbrella because it was starting to sprinkle.  When Ethan protested, the man told them that he would get it back from them at Church on Sunday.  They ar...

Hey everybody! We got to talk to Ethan for a little while on Mother's Day.  He didn't want to tell us all that had happened over the past week because he needed to save something for Tuesday, but it was fun to chat with him. When we talked to him on p-day, he filled us in on his adventure to Martin's Cove.  They woke up at 4:30 am in order to get ready and drive from Windsor, CO, to Martin's Cove in Wyoming.  It was a long drive.  Once they got there, they were split into groups to do service projects around the area.  Ethan's group put up signs in the camping area.  When they were finished they ate lunch (sloppy joes and brownies) then they went on a hike. Ethan said it was fun to hang out but most of the missionaries he knows well have gone home.  The district went to Laramie for dinner and then drove home.  Ethan said it was the scariest drive of his mission.  It was raining slush and they hydroplaned a few times.  I'm glad I was hear...

Hey everyone! This week we had a funny phone conversation with Ethan.  He and his companion rearranged the furniture in their apartment.  They put some chairs in one of the corner and it turned into a little chatting area.  So they started making videos "In the Corner with Elder Pack."  Ethan shared a couple with us.  He is a funny kid and I'm so glad his personality comes through in his missionary work and that others see it too.  He said they share these in the chats and that people think they are funny.   The missionary work has been going well.  They found some new people to teach last week and one even came to church.  Ethan said that was a welcome change.  It was a mom and her daughter.  The little girl was cute because she left Primary and said she loved Primary and wanted to come again tomorrow.  She had a little cup with sunflower seeds in it and told Ethan that if she put dirt on the seeds they would grow.  ...

Everyone! Ethan had an exciting day and has been busy so he didn't write but we got to chat with him for a little bit so I'll pass along what he told us.  His mission president took the district to Rocky Mountain National Park.  They met at the mission office at 7:30 am and loaded into one of the transfer vans.  They were going to do a hike and hang out together.  There was snow/ice but the mission president went prepared.  They went on a hike and he had crampons for all the missionaries so they could hike on the ice.   They did the Dream Lake hike which was about 3 miles round trip.  Ethan said it was really pretty and they had a lot of fun.  He took his nice camera and had the opportunity to take some pictures.  He said it was very nice of these birds to fly down and let them take pictures. They spent about 4-5 hours there before coming home.  He said they had a great time and I'm so glad they got to do that with their mission pre...

Everyone! Here I am again, letting you know what Ethan told us about during his phone call (although he sends a lot of pictures afterward and has to explain them a bit).   It's transfer time and Ethan is staying put in Windsor, CO.  He is excited because he has really enjoyed it.  The only bummer is that Elder Ray (the newest member of their trio) is being transferred.  Ethan and Elder Howard will continue on as Zone Leaders in Windsor but Elder Ray is going back to Wyoming.  They are sad to see him go because the three of them had a lot of fun together.  There were only 13 missionaries (8 sisters and 5 elders) coming into the mission this transfer so Ethan and his companion weren't needed to go to the airport to pick up missionaries.  He was hoping they would be needed but thinks they may be needed next month.   But they did have to do one more stupid thing together as a companionship before the transfer.  I guess they played a gam...

Everyone! Ethan didn't write a letter this week so I'll let you know what we chatted about this morning.  Ethan is in a trio of missionaries right now.  A missionary went to his original assignment so his companion was transferred from Laramie, WY, to be in a trio with Ethan and Elder Howard.  Elder Ray was Ethan's district leader when he was in Wyoming. So they are having a party.  Ethan said it has been really good and they are getting along great. Last p-day they went to Estes Park.  Ethan was really excited to go there.  He and Elder Howard wanted to leave at 4 am so they could watch the sunrise but everyone else wanted to leave at 10 am.  So they left at 10 am.  They got to go inside a haunted hotel where the movie Dumb and Dumber was filmed and also the Shining.  They got to watch taffy being pulled by a machine and they hiked (and fell while hiking) for a little bit.  They had a great time. Today they got up early so they could ge...

Hey everyone! It was a good week. Went on some good exchanges, taught some good people, had zone conference. We were in charge of getting the projector screen down, but we didn't have a key to the mechanism that controls it. So, the morning of, we got an elder who's basically an electrician to take apart the panel and hotwire it. So basically, the lesson learned is that the Lord always provides a way for us to accomplish things.  We're going up to Estes Park today. It's gonna be a lot of fun. We have a good group going today. Well, like I said, it's been a good week. Thanks for all of your support! From, Elder Pack PS;  I don't have a ton of add to Ethan's email.  We talked about them going to Estes Park.  He and Elder Howard wanted to leave at 4 am but the rest of the group wasn't up for that.  So they are going around noon.  I think it would have been fun to see the sunrise but missionaries don't want to get up too early.  Ethan and his companion a...