The Week of July 4th

The weeks seem to fly by and each week gets busier and busier. The week following July 4th was a very busy week. After church, we went over to the Schouten's apartment and had a wonderful dinner with six great missionaries. We enjoyed ham, funeral potatoes, broccoli salad, fruit, four kinds of vegetables , bread, pie and ice cream. It was very yummy. Then, we played some games with the missionaries and had a fun time learning the games that younger people play. It was a different 4th of July but a fun one.

On Wednesday, July 7th, we had a mission-wide social with all the young missionaries in the mission (about 130) and a few of the senior missionaries. As you can see below, the Schouten's made homemade root beer. It was a big hit, especially because it was 100 degrees outside, and it was much needed. Sister Schouten and I cut up fruit for three hours in the morning. We were very glad there were also some missionaries to help us or we would never had gotten everything done before the party.

Dick and Elder Schouten cooked all the hamburgers and hotdogs. Phew! IT WAS HOT!!!!!!!!

Elder Schouten, Sister Miller and I sit and relax a little. As you can see, I wasn't wearing a lei. The party was a luau with American food.

For our entertainment, several of the Tongan and Hawaiian missionaries, including some howly missionaries dance the "Shaka."

Some of the sister missionaries dance the hula. I kept feeling like I was back in Hawaii. It was really fun to watch them, and I certainly got nostalgic.

Here, the missionaries try to get some relief from the sun by sitting in the shade. Can you see Elder Dalebout in the middle of all of them?

President Smith and his wife, along with one of the AP's (Elder Raymond) were persuaded to get up and try the Tahitian hula. President wasn't to excited about that, but he was a good sport.

Here are four of the senior missionaries: l-r: Sister Cropper, Sister Miller, Sister Schouten, Sister Dalebout.

Some of the missionaries tried the limbo.

It was a fun party and lasted four hours. The missionaries were sunburned but full and happy.

One of the fun things we do every Thursday night is attend a community band concert in the park here in Scarsdale. The band is composed of old, middle-aged, younger-aged, and high schol students. They do a terrific job and play tons of great music. The week before the 4th, the whole program was patriotic. Last week, we heard a medley of Glenn Miller songs, dixieland, jazz, and some highbrow music. It is very enjoyable and we love being able to attend these concerts. When you work all day in the office, it's a nice break to listen to great music. Also, we are able to meet people. We have talked to a couple of people who knew a little about the church, and that was fun.