More of What We do

We started teaching a Conversational English class on Thursday night.  We have spoken English our whole lives but we have never thought much about how to say the sounds. What shape your mouth should be, where to put your tongue, etc. It is different when we try to explain this to people who sometimes do not even have these sounds in their language. I usually teach the sounds and Anna teaches the grammar. They seem interested in the sounds, almost like a game to them. The Filipinos really like group games but the grammar is pretty boring. We are making an effort to keep everything interesting but grammar seems to be pretty boring no matter what you do. We had 16 students at times tonight (January 23rd). Sometimes they come and go depending on what other classes are being taught in the building. We keep getting different people to attend. We have now had a total of 28 different students attend at least one lesson.

There are many call centers here in the Philippines.  If you have ever called 1-800 Flowers, you talked to someone in the Philippines.  If people can speak English well, they can get a job in the call centers.  These jobs pay better than being a nurse.  So, it's good to learn to speak English better.

Here's a picture of the poster we put up to advertise our class:

  



 In January we started training for Priesthood leaders and teachers about the new Self-Reliance Services initiative.  Dale has been busy setting up the training and inviting people to attend.  We are training teachers to teach the Planning For Success Workshop which is a required course for anyone wanting to apply for a Perpetual Education Fund loan.  The Priesthood leaders are receiving training on setting up Self-Reliance Centers in their areas which will help the church members with education (PEF is included here), employment, and self-employment.

On Saturday, January 18th, we got up early and drove down to Dasmariñas, a town in the Cavite Province south of Manila, to participate in a training session.  People attending the training were coming from all over the Cavite Province.  Some had to ride jeepneys for over two hours just to get to the building.  When we arrived at the building we were greeted by the stake clerk and he had already set up tables for our meeting. He had also made a delicious porridge for us to eat. Dale had worked hard all week to make sure that the Dasma building would be open and ready for us. The stake president promised it would be ready.

The turn out for the meeting was great. There were about 20 people in the PFS training and another 11 or so who were in the SRS training with Jomel Villanueva, the SRS Manager for our area. Franco Advincula, the Operations Manager for the PEF in the Philippines, trained the teachers.  He explained all of the new directions for 2014 and encouraged the teachers to be dream makers and success planners. I hope they understand the importance of their calling to help these students plan and prepare for their future. Franco expressed how important it is for them to follow up with the students and encourage them. The teachers had several questions about the new incentives and how the new program will work.

It was a very good day.  Here's a picture taken during the training.  (We're the two gray-haired ones.)

  



 



We handed out training materials to all of the teachers and Priesthood leaders to take back with them to their stakes, wards, and branches (Mormon congregations).  We had people from four stakes and one district come for the training.  Below are pictures of the training materials:

Our Visit to Beautiful Tagaytay

Here's our group at one of the gardens

 

On Saturday, December 21st we met the PEF Office workers and went down to Tagaytay. We first drove to the Area Office and got in a van with Elder and Sister Tenney and Sister Doig. We picked up Jib at Market Market Mall and then drove to SM Bicutan Mall to pick up Franco, his wife, and his mother. We continued on down the SLEX toward Tagaytay. It was a very nice day and we really enjoyed the scenery. We drove up into the mountains and saw pineapple farms and we even saw a carabao right beside the road.

 

An encounter with a Carabao beside the road.

 We drove through Tagaytay and were able to see Taal Lake and the Taal volcano.

 

View from Tagaytay, up in the mountains, to Taal Lake and Taal Volcano (island in the lake)

 We went to Sonia's Bed and Breakfast to have breakfast. It was a buffet with small omelets, fruits, bacon and sausage, fish, and a few other things. They served us hot chocolate. The bed and breakfast has beautiful gardens around it. After we ate we walked around the gardens. It was a lovely place.

 

 Us in the gardens

 

We left there and then drove to another garden that had a church up on a hillside. The view across the hills was very nice. We walked around these gardens and then walked around a koi pond. The weather was somewhat cooler up in the mountains, so we didn't get sweaty walking around. It was so nice to get outside and enjoy the views.

 

Dale and others on the swinging bridge across a ravine.

 

This is what we thought the Philippines should look like and we're glad we were able to go on this trip.

Christmas in the Philippines

Christmas Season in the Philippines actually started back in September when they started putting up decorations and playing Christmas music in the Mall.  We have listened to Christmas music for four months now.  There are some lights up around the city.  Below is a picture of one of the lights with the words "Maligayang Pasko," Merry Christmas in Tagalog:

We were able to purchase a wood carved Nativity Set from a Filipino wood carver.  It is unique because it has an animal that is found in the Philippines, a carabao.  It is a cross between a cow and a water buffalo.  We have seen them out in the countryside.  The set also has the wise men bringing gifts of mangos, bananas, and a sack of rice, very typical foods here.  The stable is carved to look like the bamboo huts that can be found around the Philippines.  I love the coconut tree.

 



 



On Christmas Eve we invited the missionaries in our district to come over to our apartment for dinner.  We made our traditional waffles and ham dinner.  We then had the missionaries share some of their family Christmas traditions with us.  We had four American missionaries and four Filipinos.  The Filipino missionaries told us about a special feast they have after midnight on Christmas Eve.  It is called "Noche Buena."  Very few Filiinos include Santa Claus in their celebration.  We shared more of the Jenson Family traditions by reading, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Cajun Night Before Christmas."  We then read the real Christmas story from the scriptures.  We enjoyed being able to share our Christmas Eve with these fine young men.  (See below)

 

 

We were even able to have Christmas music and a  fire via you-tube on the internet.  Our air conditioner was also running, no freezing temps in this part of the world.

 

 

We missed being with our family, but we really enjoyed being able to Skype with them and actually see them.  It was especially nice to see our grandchildren and watch them open some presents.  It gave us a chance to share some of Christmas with them from far, far away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 





 





A Description of What We Do

Our mission here in the Philippines is to help young members of our church prepare for their future. We teach a class called "Planning For Success." This class helps them make plans for their future by having them create a work plan, an education plan, and a financial plan. We just started teaching this class to some potential students. After they take the class they can apply for a Perpetual Education Fund loan from the church. The Perpetual Education Fund (PEF) has been established to provide worthy young adults of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with the support and resources necessary to improve their lives through education and better employment to better serve their family, the Church, and their community. We help them with the application process as well.


Getting ready to teach

We also keep track of the students who are in our assigned area. We try to contact them each month by texting them or sending them messages on Facebook. We had never really sent texts very much until we came to the Philippines. Now we text every day. That is one of the preferred methods of communication here. We also learned recently that most of our students are on Facebook and use it regularly. So we are now contacting them via Facebook and have more than 200 Filipino Facebook friends. One other way that we contact them is meeting with them individually. Every Sunday we go to church at different meetinghouses and meet with PEF participants. Some of them are current students and others have graduated. We get to ask them about school or their jobs and we encourage them in any way we can. It is the most fun part of our assignment! We have now met personally with over 100 participants.

Anna and one of our participants

 

Another part of our assignment is to train PEF Specialists.  These Specialists are called to work with students who live in their Wards (Individual Congregations) and Stakes (Groups of Wards).   We train them on how to teach the "Planning for Success" class and how to help students with their loans.  We also meet with leaders in the Wards and Stakes to help them get Specialists called and to update them on how the PEF participants in their Wards or Stakes are doing.

 

We have met so many wonderful people here.  They are always happy to meet us and we shake hands with every one of them.  We love meeting the little children in the congregations.  They seem to think that it is a great honor to shake our hands.  And we love it!

 

To close our blog today I am including a beautiful sunset picture taken from our apartment looking out on Manila Bay.  We have just recently been able to see the sun actually sink into the water.  It was too cloudy when we first got here, and now that the rainy season is over we are delighted by the sunsets.

 



                                                                                         Breathtaking!





The American Cemetery

The Entrance

We visited the American Cemetery here in Manila about two weeks ago. It is on a hill just south of Makati. The grounds are very well kept and there are 17,000 crosses representing the Americans and Filipinos who gave their lives defending our freedoms during World War II in the Philippines. Their names are inscribed on the walls of the monument. There are also historical descriptions of the American involvement during the war in the Philippines. Here are a few pictures:



Supply Routes Description

The Crosses

Typhoon Yolanda

Typhoon Yolanda had very little effect on Manila, but major damage in the islands about 300 to 400 miles south of Manila.  Relief efforts are on-going here in Manila by many different groups.  The church members in Manila have been part of those efforts.  Below are pictures of the food bags and hygiene kits that have been assembled at a church building in Quezon City:



Assembly line for loading

At our meetings on Wednesday Elder Pajaro, an Area Seventy, told us about what has been happening with locating all of the missionaries in the typhoon damaged areas. We heard some stories this morning about how the missionaries (the 22 missing ones) were located and were able to get on flights back to Manila. A priesthood leader who had been helping care for 3,000 members who were taking refuge in a church building went out and located the missionaries. He did this after losing his home and all of his possessions. The missionaries were able to get to the airport in Tacloban by walking more than 30 kilometers. Even though they had electronic tickets they were not able to get on their flights in all the confusion. A US marine saw the missionaries at the airport and asked how he could help. He was a member, Brother Clark. He was able to get them on flights to Manila. He later told the leaders there that he was wondering why he was here, but he knew after he was able to help the missionaries.



Assembly Line down the stairs

There are 400 missionaries who have been evacuated from the storm damaged mission areas to the Mission Training Center here in Metro Manila. You have probably seen pictures of the devastation. We have heard several more stories about the survival of missionaries during the storm. Two missionaries were in their apartment and tied their mattresses together to cover themselves because they were worried about the winds. Water started coming into their apartment. A little later the ceiling in their kitchen fell down.

They decided to get under the dining table because they wanted to be safer. Under the table they were praying and the water kept rising. It was up to their chests. After their prayers they noticed that a picture of Christ on the wall fell down. It floated over to them. They took this as a sign that they were being watched over and everything would be alright. They spent about 2 hours under the table.

Two other Elders were in their apartment. They also had water coming into their house. It kept rising and they thought that maybe they should get out. When they tried to get out of the door they found they could not get out because of a metal gate covering their door and because of the water pressing against it. Now they had to figure out how to get higher out of the water. They broke through the ceiling and climbed into the rafters. The water kept rising. They eventually broke a hole through the roof and got out on the roof. They stayed up on the roof for 3 hours until the water started going down.

 

 

Relief Supplies

 

It is wonderful to see all of the people who are coming together to help their devastated countrymen.  The missionaries who were in the heaviest storm damaged areas are now being reassigned to other areas here in the Philippines.  Others are helping with relief efforts in their areas of assignment.





We really appreciate the opportunity we have of being here to serve and witness this great out-pouring of love.

 

 

Scenes Around Manila

Today (Monday, October 15th) we decided to have a P-day because the schools are closed in Manila and there is a big meeting for the Iglesia Ni Cristo in the area by the Institute building. We were able to find out about it by checking our Twitter account on my phone. We get updates of traffic and weather reports for Manila. That saved us from being stuck in a bunch of traffic.

We took a cab to the Intramuros area of Manila. It is the old walled city that was built by the Spanish back in the late 1500s. We walked around and saw the old churches, San Augustin and the Manila Cathedral. The Manila Cathedral was being repaired, so we were not able to go inside. We also saw a building built by the Spanish as a Customs House that was destroyed by bombing during World War II. The outside wall is still standing, but the roof is gone. There were buses parked all around this building with signs on them saying Iglesia Ni Cristo Evangelical Mission. We thought we had escaped the big activity, but ended up being in the middle of it. We walked over to the Pasig River and watched as two men paddled small crafts that looked like small rafts. We stopped at Jollibee

One of the entrances to Intramuros.

After getting refreshed, we walked to Fort Santiago. The Spanish built it a long time ago. It was the place where Jose Rizal was imprisoned for causing an uprising against the Spanish. There were some artifacts displayed there about Jose Rizal. He was later hanged in what is known as Rizal Park today. He is considered the Father of the Philippines independence. The Fort was nice to visit and the grounds are very well kept.

 

Entrance to Fort Santiago.

 

 

When we finished there we walked out of the fort and were asked if we wanted to buy hats. I was all for the idea because the sun was beating down on us. Dale didn't really want one, but the vendor insisted he try it on.  We then of course bought two hats.
 

Aren't we a pair!

We continued our walk and saw more of the wall around the city. We hoped we could go out a gate there, but it led to a golf course and was off limits. We walked on top of the wall back in the direction of our apartment and found another exit to get out of Intramuros. We then continued walking toward the Ocean Park and saw that there was an aquarium there. We were pretty hot and tired of walking by then and decided to take a cab back to our apartment. It was nice to get out and actually see more of the city.

While walking in Intramuros we came upon a rooster who had a rope attached to his leg.  We think he was a fighting rooster.  Here he is:

 

We got up today (Saturday,Oct. 19th) and went for a run along the bay and down by the Cultural Center of the Philippines. There were lots of people out early (7:00 am). We had to dodge people as we ran down the sidewalks. There are always so many vendors with their carts on the sidewalks. During the run we went up the ramp in front of the Cultural Center which we had seen other joggers doing. It took us about 40 minutes and it wasn't as hot going early in the day. We came back to the apartment and I did some cleaning and washing. I also went into the mall and bought some candy and little bags so we can give Halloween candy to the Primary in our ward. I decorated the bags by drawing jack-o-lanterns and writing "Happy Halloween" on them. I don't know if the children here do anything for Halloween, but they do sell costumes and decorations here. I sent a text to the Bishop to make sure it was okay to give them candy at church. He said we could give it to them during Primary. Dale and I will be visiting some other Wards the Sunday before Halloween, so I will have to give the bags to the missionaries to distribute for us.

 

 

 Here are some of the candy bags along with cookies I made for the missionaries.

 

 



 

 Here's a picture of our apartment building from the Yacht Club. 

Our building is in the middle in the background.

 

 

This afternoon (Wednesday, October 23rd) at the office a man and his daughter showed up. They had come to Manila to go to the doctor because the daughter has some sort of eye problem. The man told us that he was willing to give one of his eyes to his daughter so she could see better. That really floored me. I could hardly believe that he would be willing to do that. They showed up at the church building looking for someone to give them blessings. Dale went out to find someone to help him. While he was gone I talked to the father some more and found out that they didn't have money for food and would be getting on a boat to take them back to Bicol at 4:00. Dale couldn't find anyone to assist so he came back and did the blessings himself without consecrated oil. He first blessed the father and then had the father help him bless the daughter. After they finished the father mentioned again how their stomachs hurt. I whispered to Dale that we needed to give them some money. Dale got out 200 pesos to give them for food. I thought that we should give them a little more, so I got out another 250 pesos. The father looked at Dale kind of asking if it was okay for me to give him some more money. I told him that it was fine, we have enough to share. We wished them well. I hope that they will be okay getting back home and also in arranging for the surgery they need. I felt so sorry for them and also awed by the father's willingness to give his daughter one of his eyes.

 

 Another view of Manila from the Yacht Club.