End of June – Early July 2024
It was a poignant season. Comings, goings and life moving on. James, Jessee and kids passed through, moving from California to their new life in Alabama. Karin, Ronny and crew sent photos – glimpses as they left Kodiak for Hawaii. The Knight Family came for a final visit. First Ashley with four of her brood – then Hiram, Israel and Maverik joining us, after Israel finished with EFY (Especially for Youth).
On the Fourth of July, I rode with Ashley and kids up Logan Canyon to the Meg and Josh cabin – nay, lovely house – at Bear Lake. Where we enjoyed the day, then drove home over Monte Cristo to watch fireworks from our back deck.
A few scenes from those days:
MTC
Sunday Evening, 7 July 24, Stake President Chad Wilson set Doll and me apart. Then off we drove to Provo. Where the MTC told us a flood of new arrivals meant we would not lodge at the MTC (as we had on past missions), but at a hotel downtown. Which proved to be fine.
Next morning, 8 July, we arose. Enjoyed our continental breakfast at the Spring Hill Suites. Then returned to the MTC for Preach My Gospel Training – as they call the first (and sometimes only) week seniors spend in the MTC.
This Preach My Gospel week was repetitive of things we’d covered before at the MTC. Virtually, during COVID, before Alaska. And in-person, going to London. Our leaders now told us this sufficed. (We’d now “been there, done that.”) Next time, should we serve another mission, we might skip this phase. Still, on the whole, I was glad to be there again.
It’s inspiring to sit in an auditorium with the weekly batch of a hundred or so senior couples. To hear them tell of their scattering – to labor in the Great Gathering of these last days. Some headed no further than Salt Lake. Many across the United States. And others to Kenya, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Mongolia, and the furthest corners of the earth. Quite a thing to be an eyewitness to history, and even a tiny part of it all.
And the best part of the MTC – as with perhaps all such endeavors – was the people. The MTC Mission Presidency (all prior mission presidents) were loving and wise. The young RMs who led our classes were outstanding. We had firesides with general authorities. We felt the energy of the hundreds of young elders and sisters. And we made great friends among our fellow seniors.
After that Preach My Gospel week, some of us departed for the field. While others remained for specialized training. Our breakout included eight couples headed for Military Relations missions. Where folks from Church Headquarters gave us practical updates and instruction.
Our second “week” of training lasted four days actually. Monday through Wednesday we were at the Provo MTC. And Thursday we met in Salt Lake, at the Military Relations Division, on one of the top floors in the Church Office Building.
We had one evening free, and enjoyed a session at the Provo City Temple. On the Sunday between our MTC weeks, Doll and I drove to Heber City, and attended services at one of the Midway wards.
Oddly. As Doll and I were experiencing our own bit of personal history at the MTC, the history of our nation and the world managed to move along without us. At a Pennsylvania rally, a disturbed young man shot Donald Trump in the ear, killed one bystander, and seriously wounded another – before SWAT teams shot him dead.
Also, during those days, Joe Biden conceded he really was too old for another term – and tossed the candidate reigns to Kamala Harris.
Flight to Germany
This was fun. See the photo of Doll and me just below? Early Saturday morning, 20 July 2024. Day of Departure. Bags packed, waiting for our Lyft ride to the airport. Me in slacks and white shirt. Doll in her white dress with colored prints. Little did we imagine that, six days later, we’d still be wearing those same outfits – with no change. And that our baggage would still be somewhere in the bowels of the airline system. A dull tale to others perhaps. But one of some interest to Doll and me.
On Friday, the day before our departure, there was a meltdown of computer software across the airline industry. Delta – with whom we were booked – was one of the worst hit. And, according to several news reports, the very worst at dealing with the problem.
Saturday morning we sallied forth, hoping we’d be okay. We checked our bags at the Salt Lake airport, and boarded our plane for Atlanta – first leg of our flight – amid terminals packed with victims of the software meltdown sleeping on floors, waiting in massive lines, etc. We counted ourselves lucky to have boarded so smoothly.
But then things began to unravel. Once we scheduled passengers boarded our plane, there was a delay as Delta began filling the seats with those stranded from other flights. Okay. Fair enough. But we had only an hour between this and our connecting flight to Frankfurt. Then more delay, as they rounded up and added the new passengers’ baggage to our plane. Followed by this announcement: Delta had miscalculated. Having loaded the stranded and their bags, our plane was now overweight. More delay. Delta was now tossing bags from our plane. Including – as we suspected, but did not yet know – our own. (First in, first out. Is that how it works?)
Our plane to Atlanta took off two hours late. Luckily for us, our flight to Germany too had been delayed. We and our new friends from the MTC – Clayton and Cheryl Chun – dashed as well as hobbling old people could. Through the terminals and over underground rails. To catch our overnight flight to Frankfurt and arrive, about on schedule, Sunday morning.
Where we and the Chuns cleared passport control, and then spent another 2-3 hours in the claims area. Going through piles of stranded baggage. And watching conveyer belts cough up occasional hostages. Before Delta finally conceded that ours and the Chuns’ bags were now on a flight to Atlanta. Or perhaps still in Salt Lake.
Two senior missionaries had come to pick us up at the airport. And they too enjoyed the wait and non-arrival of our luggage. Before giving us and the Chuns a ride to the mission office. Where we had lunch with our Mission Leaders – President Douglas Cropper and Sister Lynne Cropper. And were then put to bed in the high-rise apartment next to the Frankfurt Stake Center.
On Monday morning office couples gave us instruction on obtaining visas and drivers licenses and a host of other matters. By noon they’d given us keys to the Hyundai hatchback assigned to us. And we were on the Autobahn, making the three-hour drive to our apartment. In the wee village of Hollerstetten. Belonging to the somewhat larger village of Velburg. In southeastern Germany, between Regensburg (where our branch meets) and Nürnberg (our stake center) – and about an hour from the Czech border.
I shall say no more of our baggage woes. Nor of my many phone calls, grovelings and empty demands in trying to extract it from the uncaring corporate monster. Only this summary. We left on Saturday morning and it was Thursday afternoon – which adds up to six days, I think – before we saw a change of clothes, the meds we were running out of, etc.
One of the special events during the Karin and Ronny visit of March 2024 was the blessing of Oliver Ray Flores in our home.
Settling In
We whine about our delayed bags. But our trip to Germany could have been worse. We ourselves made it just fine – not stranded for days like some of our fellow travelers. Indeed, we reached our village right on schedule. And were delighted to be here.
Last September, when visiting Paul, we had inklings the Church might assign us to serve in this very place. So we scoped out the area, and saw our future apartment from the outside. We liked it all then. And we like it even better as it begins to feel like home.
We occupy the upper two floors of the house pictured below. Another tenant (an American working for the Army) lives on the main floor. And our landlord lives in the basement.
Our landlord, Stefan Forster, is a sweet fellow – well-liked by missionary couples who lived here before us. At the time of our arrival, Landlord Stefan had his cheery girlfriend visiting from China. They invited us to an authentic and delicious Chinese dinner, cooked by her, on one of our first nights here. (Notice Doll in still her patterned dress – on about Day 5 of our luggage saga.)
Landlord Stefan owns several acres around us. He grows fruits and vegetables. And he urges us to pick whatever we like. We’ve enjoyed the ripening plums and cherry tomatoes. Along with grapes, cucumbers and other fresh produce.
Doll and I get out walking about three times a week. There are castle ruins less than a mile away. And we’re surrounded by lovely forests, farmland and villages.
Our second weekend here we paid Paul a visit in his town of Weiden about an hour from where we live.
Army Garrison (USAG) Hohenfels
To understand our current mission, it’s worth knowing a bit about the mission of the garrison we’re assigned to. This is a unique place – Hohenfels. Quite unlike anything we knew in our Air Force days.
Hohenfels is one of the world’s largest training installations. It covers more than 60 square miles – not far from the old Iron Curtain – and hosts the US and our Allies in battle exercises meant to simulate our next war. However and wherever it might occur.
Between these exercises Hohenfels is a backwater. A ghost town almost. With facilities found on other bases – post exchange, commissary, clinic, etc. – small to non-existent. And a scant population of permanent personnel and their families.
But then comes an exercise! And it’s boom town! Hohenfels explodes with troops by the thousands. Literally. (We had 5,000 at the first exercise Doll and I experienced.) US troops. Brits. French, Italian, Polish, Montenegrin, Bosnian, Georgian. Troops from countries we barely knew existed – let alone thought to be our allies. They descend in lines of trucks, personnel carriers, tanks, and choppers. Wearing their battle fatigues, handguns and semi-automatic weapons. They build runways in the forest. They drop strings of paratroopers from C-130s. Squads and battalions maneuver over hills and fields, fighting supposed enemies. It all goes crazy for two or three weeks.
Then it winds down. Over a couple of days the hoards drag their tired butts out of here. Things go quiet. And we’re back to ghost town. For a week or two. Til the next exercise rolls in.
An die Arbeit! (Getting to work!)
So Hohenfels. That’s where we’ve landed. And the center of where we’re to serve our mission.
But unlike our German missions when we were young, we don’t have senior companions, structure, and a load of duties awaiting us. No. We are told, essentially, “Go forth and do good. You figure it out. Learn where you and your talents fit in. And what the Lord wants to do with you.” No small challenge really.
Fortunately, we replaced an outstanding couple – David and Valerie Becker. Who themselves did great good. Paved the way for us. And gave us great ideas for how we might proceed.
VBS – A Foot in the Door. One thing the Beckers recommended – and helped line up for us – was Vacation Bible School (VBS). With its summer session at Hohenfels starting the week after we arrived.
If our world truly is reeling with hate and contention, and the destruction therefrom only getting worse – which many of us fear it is --, then VBS is the kind of thing we need more of. At Hohenfels, we had a week with roughly a hundred kids – of German, African, Hispanic, Anglo, Asian and of other descent – all taught by parents and good folk to follow the Bible, love one another, and live as Jesus lived.
Mornings, from 29 July to 2 August, Doll and I manned the VBS registration desk. We signed children in. We got them safely returned to parents at the end of each day. We assisted in other ways. And in the process, we met families from our own LDS Branch (active and less active). We got to know chaplains and other base personnel. And we connected with the community in ways that would otherwise have taken a long time, or might never have occurred.
VBS itself had a sweet spirit of goodwill. Our modest service was received with more gratitude than we deserved. We were welcomed warmly by evangelicals and others who might sometimes seem our foes. And there was a light and goodness that made us – as representatives of the Lord and His Church – glad to be part of such a thing.
Our connections with Chaplains and folks at Vacation Bible School led to other opportunities to serve and get involved with the religious community on base.
PWOC. One such opportunity was the Protestant Women of the Chapel (PWOC). Every Tuesday morning, while I go to the gym, Doll meets with the PWOC for about two hours. And here is some of what she has to say about that:
“It’s actually Bible Study I go to with the Protestant women, and I love it. These are wonderful women who believe in God and Jesus Christ and are trying to follow him. Most of them are not very well versed in the scriptures. That’s why their president and her staff are trying to get them to actually read the Bible, not a commentary on it. Each week we take a different Bible story assigned to us and look for what it teaches us about God’s character and how it foretells or leads us to Christ. They sing Christian songs and say a lot of prayers, I mean a lot of prayers! Different women take turns giving a talk at the beginning on subjects like hope or letting God direct our lives or the importance of scripture study. Any one of these could have been given in our Church and they would have helped teach and uplift and inspire the congregation. It reminds me of what Kristen would say about The Bridge’s women’s group in Woods Cross. I am careful not to correct them when they get some doctrinal things wrong, but bear my testimony of Christ whenever I get a chance.”
AWANA is an international evangelical Christian organization of child and youth discipleship. Its name is a curious acronym. It stands for “Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed.” (Based upon 2 Timothy 2:15. Which reads in our King James Bible, “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”)
The Hohenfels AWANA chapter is headed by Robin Rembert, a sweet young military wife and born-again Baptist. Robin eagerly welcomed two LDS missionaries in helping to run the program. And now we serve at AWANA every Wednesday evening.
Of our AWANA service, Doll has this to say:
“It’s kind of like our Monday afternoon Primary back when I was a kid. They sing songs and say a prayer. They study scriptures and try to memorize them, they have a lesson and an activity, a closing prayer; and it all lasts an hour. Robin has volunteers to take care of the youngest set—3-5 years old, but none for the other two sets, so she and I run those kind of together and sometimes separated. Mark works with kids to pass off their memorized scriptures and whatever else needs doing. They have a book they are working through that has the scriptures they are to memorize, and in some way it is like scouts where they get badges and jewels for the things they do and pass off. I really enjoy working with the kids and with Robin. I’m glad we are here or she would be trying to do everything herself.”
USO. One of our missionary duties is to help others follow Christ, by serving military singles and families of our Church, those of other faiths, and those of no particular faith. Temporally and spiritually. As He would serve. And a great place for such service – as we learned in Alaska – is the USO (United Service Organization).
Most Americans know the USO, at least somewhat. This body authorized by Congress (while funded by private donations) that’s been around since before World War II. Created to show national support and build the morale of our troops, the USO is famous for its radio shows and tours of combat zones by the likes of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. In our day, the USO lifted the spirits of me and our family with live performances by the Beach Boys, the Lt Dan Band (of Gary Sinise), Kristin Chenoweth, and others. With USO airport lounges – quiet oases in many of our long travels. And through a variety of other means.
And now a couple afternoons a week Doll and I try to give back, and let our light shine, by helping run the Hohenfels USO. Where exercise-weary troops can enjoy snacks, some R&R and perhaps most importantly, access to computers and free Wi-Fi.
No one who knows Doll will be surprised to know that she lets her light and love shine by constantly baking for the troops.
Services for Deployed Troops. Getting to know the Chaplains and the Hohenfels lay of the land was vital when it came to one of our most important duties. That of providing spiritual support to troops temporarily deployed here. Also helpful was the fact that we had worked with Chaplains to display on post – at approved locations – flyers for our Church.
In late September, for example, troops from the 41st Brigade of the Oregon National Guard, arrived for a big military exercise known as “KFOR 34.” Among those Oregon troops were two LDS women on their way to a 9-month deployment in Kosovo, and longing for the Spirit and a chance to take the Sacrament. A supportive chaplain (not LDS) contacted us and helped us meet in a small chapel in the combat training area.
On this occasion, we and the two sisters held a combined Sacrament Meeting and Sunday School. We sang hymns. I blessed and passed the Sacrament. And Doll led us in a Come Follow Me discussion of 3 Nephi, Chapters 8-11. The Spirit was about as strong as I’ve ever felt in any meeting. As the Lord promised, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
Regensburg Branch of the Nürnberg Stake
As MRM missionaries, we are assigned to USAG Hohenfels and have our duties there. And Hohenfels belongs to the Regensburg LDS Branch. Which is theoretically a German unit within a German (Nürnberg) stake. But, because many branch members are American or English speaking, we are more of a hybrid. With meetings conducted in both English and German.
Branch Military Members. At the time of our arrival, our Regensburg Branch had about 15 military families, couples and singles. Which we thought of as our own special flock to minister to. One of our first duties was to get out knocking on doors, inviting our flock to dinner, and getting them in whatever ways we could.
Two families were stalwarts and much of the backbone of our little branch. Jason and Cathy Cooley were our Elders Quorum and Primary Presidents, respectively. Drew and Kirsten Wilkinson were Counselors in the Branch Presidency and Primary. The children of these two families were about half of the Primary and Youth in the branch.
The Wilkinsons invited us to dinner at their home the first Sunday we arrived. And shortly thereafter, we had a Branch Picnic in the Cooley’s backyard.
German Members. There are roughly 40,000 members of the Church living in Germany today, about 10,000 of whom are active. I don’t know what the number was in the 1970s, when Doll and I served our first missions here, but it was probably about the same. There has been very little growth in German membership in the past fifty years. A fact that might have broken our hearts had we known it back then.
On the other hand, that LDS membership is holding its own might be viewed positively. Across Germany and Europe other churches are shrinking and dying out as members are leaving in droves. I don’t know the Lord’s timetable and precise plan for His great Gathering of these Last Days. But I do know this. In the half century or so since our missions, the Church in Germany has been held together by a relatively small number of valiant families and individual saints. Whom the Lord must love more than we can imagine. And some of whom are right here in our Regensburg Branch.
Our Branch President Jeremia Auras, for example, is one of the brightest and sweetest young guys you will ever meet. He served a mission in Portugal and Brazil. He is currently finishing his university studies to become a high school teacher. And works for the Church as a supervisor of language training at the England MTC.
For decades Jeremia’s extended family have been anchors of the Church in this part of Bavaria. His parents, for example, have six children – pretty crazy by German standards. His father, Michael Auras, was the President of the Munich Stake. And he is currently serving as President of the Albania Tirana Mission.
Jeremia’s mother, Johanna Reisinger Auras, is described by Church News as “a ward Young Women president and former stake Young Women presidency counselor, ward Primary president, ward Young Women president, branch Relief Society president, ward Primary presidency counselor, ward Young Women presidency counselor, branch Relief Society presidency counselor, Primary activity leader, seminary teacher and FSY session director.”
Jeremia’s uncle, Daniel Auras, is presently the First Counselor in the Presidency of our Nürnberg Stake.
And Jeremia’s wife, Jael, served a mission to Paris France. She is the Branch Young Women President. She comes from a family in Austria of similar valiance to her husband’s. And she’s “not one whit behind him as to things pertaining to righteousness.”
To be a faithful disciple of Christ in modern Europe is hard. Very hard. And the foregoing gives some idea why the Auras family is much revered and loved in this part of the vineyard.
Other German Saints in our Branch are valiant in their own ways. Sister Margit Kiehl joined the Church in 1993 (31 years ago). On her own, with no support of husband or family, she has remained faithful and active ever since. Among other things – through self-study and online – she has taught herself excellent English. At the time of our arrival in the branch, Sister Kiehl was the Gospel Doctrine Instructor, where her lessons were as inspiring as you’ll find anywhere. She also helped with beautiful translations during our meetings.
Other great German members shall be discussed later on.
Hark All Ye Nations!
Today’s Germany is far different from the mostly homogenous culture Doll and I knew on our missions long ago. And now, I’d have to say, a far more dynamic and exciting place to serve as a missionary.
As with our recent London mission, Germany has become a melting pot of immigrants from across the globe. Eastern Europeans, Latinos, Asians, Muslims from the Middle East – you name it. They’re all here. And, as our sisters and elders go about the streets inviting them to “come see,” they come to our chapels across Germany. Eager to know about Jesus Christ and this Church claiming to be His.
Every week five or six people we’ve never met – most often wearing dark skins – walk into our Regensburg Branch. Some come only once. Some a few times. While others remain. No more strangers and foreigners. But fellow citizens and saints in the household of God.
One of these fellow citizens – one of these our brothers – is Jose Andrade (pictured above). Single. On his own. Always dressed casually. Never wearing a suit, nor shirt and tie. He’s been coming faithfully for about three years. From Venezuela, Jose speaks native Spanish and fluent Portuguese. And he has taught himself such excellent German and English that he has been called as translator for the branch. Every Sunday he stands at the podium in Sacrament meeting – in his jeans and t-shirt, or hoody, or whatever – translating for the speakers. Then he helps translate during second-hour Priesthood or Sunday School class. He also serves in the Young Men Presidency. We love our brother Jose.
Marzieh Jafar Sabounchi is from Iran. She has been very active since she joined the Church a few years ago. Marzieh is a radiant gem! She brings Iranian friends to Church almost every week. And when strangers – male or female – walk through the door, she greets them smiling and lovingly. She sits by them and – if they speak Persian – translates for them. We love our sister Marzieh.
Another convert of a few years is Sonali Arachige Elabada from Sri Lanka. She too is a radiant gem. She serves in the Young Women Presidency. She is faithful. We love our sister Sonali.
As I say, I don’t know all the timing of the Lord’s great plan for the Last Days. And it’s a small piece of the picture. But come to the Regensburg Branch, and you will we be a witness to history. The literal Gathering of Israel taking place before your eyes.
3 Nephi 5:
24 And as surely as the Lord liveth, will he gather in from the four quarters of the earth all the remnant of the seed of Jacob, who are scattered abroad upon all the face of the earth.
26 And then shall they know their Redeemer, who is Jesus Christ, the Son of God; and then shall they be gathered in from the four quarters of the earth unto their own lands, from whence they have been dispersed; yea, as the Lord liveth so shall it be. Amen.
Out and About (Goofing Off?)
Let’s be honest. One of the joys of serving a senior mission – whether it be London, Alaska, or Germany – has been the opportunity to live in a cool place. And (as the work schedule allows) to get out and enjoy it all.
As senior missionaries there are a few rules we must obey. (We cannot, for example, leave our mission boundaries without permission from our president.) But most restrictions for junior missionaries don’t apply to us. The Guidelines from our Mission President include, for example, the following:
“Senior missionaries are not required to follow the same work schedule as young full-time missionaries. They may need breaks during the day. You are encouraged to set your schedule based on the demands of your assignments in-light of your personal needs.
“Senior missionaries may use any day of the week to meet personal needs including communicating with family and friends, exercising, resting and participating in recreational and social activities as your schedule allows. You may swim, golf, go to the movies, use public gyms, and do any other activity that is appropriate for a member of the Church.”
Doll and I like this freedom. Because there’s a ton of great stuff to see and experience in our area. Like the town of Amberg, a gem, about forty minutes away. Where in August we joined their medieval, mid-summer night fest.
Bayreuth, about an hour away, is a mecca of history and culture. Renowned particularly for its classical music and opera. Richard Wagner lived his latter years in Bayreuth, and Franz Liszt died here.
Regensburg and our area lie along the Danube River. One P-Day we picked up the local elders (Knickerbocker and Grisel) in our car, and we went on a cruise through the Danube Gorge. Our tour began at Kelheim and took us the Weltenburg Abbey, founded in 600 AD. Back in Kelheim we visited the Freiheitshalle (Freedom Hall) celebrating the Germanic victory over Napoleon’s forces.
It seemed that we ourselves were young missionaries not so long ago. We paid for the elders’ cruise and bought them lunch and treats.
Afterward we helped them teach a Nigerian family living in Kelheim, in a hostel for immigrants.
Our Stake Center is in Nürnberg. We go there about weekly for District Meetings, Baptisms, etc. It is one of the great cities of Europe. And one Doll and I had never visited before this mission. It has quickly joined the short list of our most favorite places.
Nuernberg is so rich and beauty and German culture that Hitler made it his great capital of Nazism. And now – embarrassingly for those who live here – Nuernberg’s Nazi past and rally sites are main attractions.
In September, son-in-law Hiram came to Germany to visit Paul. And together, mainly, hike about in the Alps. The adventures where hampered a bit by record early snowfalls and flooding. But still they apparently had a fine time.
A few minutes from where we live are some wonderful caves. Which Doll and I were inside touring, when we got word from Paul and Hiram that, winding up their hiking trip, they had arrived at our place.
So we rushed home to see them.
In the true spirit of goofing off, for a date night in September, Doll and I attended the opening of the new Beetlejuice at the Hohenfels Post Theater.
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