New Companion & Converts

Photos from the Zone Leader Conference held on March 12, 2010 in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Elder Curtis Goode is on the back row, as always, just left of the center window.

Week 3 Babahoyo

Did you have your baptism?
Yes, we had another baptism on Saturday. Linyker Arturo Cabezas Peñafiel

Do you have any more baptisms lined up?
We have a couple baptisms, but they aren´t as set as the last four that we had.

How did your Zone do last week on baptisms?
We had five baptisms as a zone this last weekend. That means that we have had eight baptisms as a zone this month so far.

How are the couples you are teaching coming along?
We are having a few problems with the couples. They just aren´t keeping the commitments that we are giving them. It is hard. We want to help them, but our advice isn´t any good if they don´t do anything with what we tell them.

Tell us more about each of the people you have baptized these past two weeks. What are their names and stories?

Wendy and Sandy Alvarez, they are two girls. Wendy is seventeen, I think and Sandy, thirteen. They have an aunt that is a member and we are trying to work with the mom and dad. The dad doesn´t want anything to do with the church and the mom wants to get baptized, but they aren´t married so they have to get married and the dad doesn´t want to get married either.

Jessenia Parraga, her kids are members, but she couldn´t get baptized because she was living with the father of her kids and they weren´t married and he had another family, too, so she told him if he wanted to be with her he would marry her and leave the other family. And he said no, so she told him to get lost and get out of the house and he left. He still visits his kids, but she doesn´t want anything to do with him.

Linyker Arturo Cabezas Peñafiel, he is the brother of a recent convert. She told us the first day we were here in the sector that she was going to bring her brother to church, so she did and we set a date to visit him and we went and taught the first lesson and left him with the commitment to pray. When we visited him again we asked if he had prayed and he said si that he knew it was true and that he wanted to share what he now knew with everybody (That is cool). So we told him that he could he could become like us and be a missionary, but he needed to be baptized first. So we committed him to be baptized for the 27th, but his sister said that on the 27th they were going to be going to the temple. And then the sister asked if Linyker could go to the temple, too, and we thought about it for a minute and decided that it is possible that if he was baptized on the 20th he could go to the temple on the 27th. So we put the date and then we started to see how hard it was going to be. We had taught the first lesson and we had a week to teach the rest of the lessons so that he could get baptized. So what we did is sent a pair of ward missionaries to visit and teach the Plan of Salvation and then we left the sister in charge to teach him the law of chastity, word of wisdom, tithing and the Sabbath day. We then visited him and went over all of the lessons again and taught lesson three and a few other commandments and then asked him the baptism interview questions and set the time for his interview and that was all we taught him. He passed the interview without a problem. Now he is baptized and confirmed and he should be getting the priesthood this week some time so that he can go to the temple on Saturday. He was so ready! I am so glad that we found him when we did!

Tell us about the people you are teaching now.

We are teaching a few other people but we don´t have a whole lot right now who are progressing.

Are you getting along well with your companion?

Well about the whole companion thing, guess what? I have a new companion. His name is Elder de Leon from Guatemala. Elder Alvarez got his last change in the mission. He is going to Bolivia. He finished the mission. I don´t know why, but he had to go today, so I took him to Guayaquil and got my new companion and now we are back in Babahoyo now doing our pday.

Send us a photo or two if you can of you, your companion and your zone.

I will have to see what I can do about the photo as for the one with my companion. It is a little late now.

So is it raining a ton and getting your feet wet all the time?

It rains, but at night so it isn´t too bad right now. I will see what I can do about finding shoes ok. I looked my shoes over and I have a pair that are still in really good condition. I thought they were a lot worse than they really are. I forgot why I put them away and didn´t like to use them but now using them I remembered. They squeak when I walk, but besides that they are really good shoes so I will see how long these will last and if I need to buy, I will let you know.

Are you wearing the other two pair of shoes at all?

I still have all three pairs of shoes and I wear the ones that I fixed in the conferences and stuff like that but not much the thing is even though they are patched up the water still enters when I am stepping in water so that makes it kinda hard.

Have the patches worn through on the pair you had fixed?

No, but yes.

Are your feet having problems with cracking and bleeding?

No, my feet are really good. I am not having any problems right now with cracking and bleeding.

What advice can you give dad for his talk? What blessings have you received for serving a mission?

I would talk a lot about the example that I am setting for Clain and Braxton and how your example of going on the mission helped me to want to go and serve. I know that the example that I have set has helped a lot of the youth in the ward to go or to help them go on their missions. Just look at how many missionaries there are right now in the ward that have left after I left on my mission.

What advice would you give me about getting Clain ready to go?

Well a lot will depend where he goes and what sort of stuff he will need in his area. You know him, right? Send him with about ten bottles of the anti-diarrhea stuff, ok? Mission food kills you, especially foreign mission food!

Have you received your St. Patrick’s Day package yet?

No, I haven´t gotten it yet, but maybe this week.

Did they take a photo at the Zone Leaders’ Conference?

Yes, see the letter from Sister Gamboa.

Are you healthy and happy?

Yes, very happy and very healthy.

I love you so very much and I am very proud of you and all you are doing. Keep working hard and always be obedient so you will be blessed and protected from harm and sickness.
Love always and forever,
Mom

Three Baptisms plus one More!!!

Have you gotten the Valentines packages yet?

Yes, I got the valentines packages the Wednesday before I got transferred.

Have you given many blessings? Tell us about some of them, please.

I have given a few. The last ones that I gave were, one for my companion, Elder Alvarez. He has just about the same problem that dad had a while back. His knee is pretty beat up and he needs to have surgery, but he wants to wait until after the mission and since this is his last change that will be ok. So he was hurting and asked if we could give him a blessing. I sealed the anointing and gave the blessing. After, another Elder that lives in the house with us, wanted a blessing and he asked me to give the blessing. He was having chills and he had a fever, so I gave the blessing and after two hours he was feeling better. Blessings work.

Did you have your three baptisms?

Yes, we had three baptisms this week. That was pretty cool.

Did your zone have all eight baptisms?

No, we ended up having three baptisms as a zone.

What are some of the new things you do as a Zone Leader?

I am now in charge of a zone instead of a district. I have to make sure that everything goes good here as a zone and take care of any problems that there are here. I am the eyes and ears of President now, here in Babahoyo.

What is the best part about being a Zone Leader?

It really isn´t much different than being a district leader, just that I have more responsibility. I guess it would be that I got to eat McDonald’s when I went to Guayaquil last Friday for the Zone Leader Conference.

When do you get to go to a Zone Leader Conference?

I went last Friday and I learned a lot. We talked about the stuff that President and Sister Gamboa want us to make sure that all of the missionaries know about.

When is your next Zone Conference?

The Zone Conference will be later in the change, I think the fifth week of the change.

Tell us more about your companion.

He is from Bolivia. He is going to finish the mission this change, so I will for the first time kill a missionary. He has spent just about all of his mission in Guayaquil.

He was in Quevedo for a few changes and now this is his third change in Babahoyo.

Tell us about the sector you are working in. What part of Babahoyo is your sector in?

I have the entrance to Babahoyo and I have part of the road toward Guayaquil. I have to a city that is called Jujan (who han).

I can’t see a lot on Google Earth because it sits underneath the big white cloud, the same one that blocked out Balzar and Valencia. But I can see it on the map and there are a few photos of the city that come up. Are you in the city part or out on the outskirts of the city?

I live somewhat in the center of the city and my sector is part of the city, but not the center just houses and then I have all of the outside parts, too, till Jujan.

Is it cooler there than Portoviejo?

No, it is way, way hot here. I am sweating like crazy here.

Are you in a ward or branch?

I am in a ward. The ward is called Barrio Lindo, ( Barrio also means ward).

Do you meet with the stake leaders now?

Yep, we had a meeting with the Stake President and all of the Bishops last week.

Do you have more investigators you are working with? Tell us about them.

We have lots of investigators that we are working with. We received the reference of an investigator when we first got here and he came to church the first Sunday and yesterday, too. He wants to get baptized. So he is going to get baptized this Saturday, so it will be like two weeks to the day that we found him until he gets baptized. He is the brother of a recent convert and his aunt and some cousins are members of the church. We have about five couples that we are working with and preparing them to get married and then get baptized, so sometimes when we are teaching, I feel more like a marriage counselor than a missionary.

How many missionaries are in your Zone?

We have a very small zone. We are 12 missionaries here in Babahoyo.

Do you live with four missionaries or just two?

Here there are three houses and in the three houses live four missionaries, so three times four is twelve, so it works out pretty good, right?

You said you were in Barrio Lindo. I searched for that and it shows it way down near Guayaquil. Is that correct?

NO!

I thought you would be closer to the City of Babahoyo. I also searched for Barrio Olmedo and it was close to where Barrio Lindo was on the map. Does the Babahoyo Zone cover a really big area?

No, we are in Babahoyo and we do cover some big area but my sector is here in Babahoyo.

The translation for Barrio Lindo says it means Pretty Neighborhood. Is it a pretty place?

Not really, but the people are awesome.

The translation for Barrio Olmedo is Neighborhood with Elm Grove. Is that because there are Elm trees there?

I haven´t seen many trees here, so I don´t know about that translation.

Are you back to eating all chicken again?

Yes.

Is there anything you need?

If you feel up to it, I could use a new pair of shoes. I found out that if you have holes in the soles of your shoes that means that water can enter and get your feet wet. Who would have thought? If you want to send shoes, the pair that we bought in Logan, but the ones that we only bought one pair of, the Rockports, that are waterproof.

Are you happy and healthy?

Yeah, I am doing ok. I miss my fish and seafood diet, but I will live.

Hi Curtis,

Thanks for the answers. Tell us more about the people you baptized on Saturday. What are their names and a little about each of them.

Tell us more about your investigators. What are their names? Do they have kids? What do they do for a living? What are they like? How are your lessons going with them?

Being a marriage counselor might be a nice career for you in the future. There certainly is a lot of need for it right now with divorce rates as high as they are. Hopefully you are learning lots of things about marriage that will help you avoid all of the problems in your own marriage someday.

I am grateful you were able to perform these priesthood blessings and that the elders felt comfortable in asking you to give them. I hope you wrote about the experiences in your journal. I know without any doubt that Priesthood Blessings work. They may not always heal, but they always provide comfort.

Are you walking a lot in your new area?

Are the members helping you a lot with the work?

I am glad you got your packages. Are all of your shoes worn through the bottom? I will see what I can do about another pair of Rockports.

Which other elders live with you in your apartment.

How come the other five baptisms fell through?

What food did you eat at McDonalds? Did they have French Fries or beans and rice?

Tell us more about your companion, besides the fact you get to kill him. Guns? Is that all you think of? Ha! Ha! How many in his family? Has he been a member all his life? Girlfriend? Plans for after the mission? Is he funny? Happy? He isn't smiling in any of the photos I have of him. Take a photo of him smiling and email it to us.

When are you going to send me some more photos? I want to see more of your happy smiling face!

The other missionaries that live in the house with me besides my companion are Elder Amaya and his kid, Elder Merchan. Elder Amaya is from Colombia and Elder Merchan is from Ecuador. He is not the Elder Merchan that I lived with in Portoviejo. I don’t know for sure why the baptisms fell through, but they did.
I ate a Big Mac with fries and a little apple pie thingy for desert with orange soda to drink.

Elder Alvarez has I think, four years as a member. He has a girlfriend waiting for him. He is from Santa Cruz, Bolivia, the southern part of Bolivia. I would send you more pictures, but this computer doesn’t have a USB drive that I can get to. I am sorry.

Okay on the photos today, but find a better computer next week. And, please send me a disk of photos like you promised.

Are the hamburgers as good as in the states?

The hamburger was good, not quite like in the states, but still good.

I am glad you enjoyed it and got to eat a few French Fries, too.

Are there any other missionaries that have been in your previous zones that are serving with you in Babahoyo? I didn't have photos of any of the elders you mentioned last week, except for Elder Alvarez. I probably do have some of them in photos, but don't know the names to go with the faces in earlier photos. If you can, take a fun Zone Photo and send it home by email. Tell us who everyone is.

Did they take photos at the Zone Leader Conference?

Did you get to see Elder Bartolomei there? Where is he serving now?

Are any of the other missionaries from your MTC District serving as Zone Leaders?

I did see Elder Bartolomei in the Consejo. He is in Zona Orquidias with Elder Carlos and Elder Machuca. Elder Felt is a Zone Leader and Elder Williams is in the office. Elder Fewkes is in the mission Charlotte North Carolina and Elder Smith, I don’t know where he is. Elder Adamsom and Elder Walke weren’t in my district, but they are Zone Leaders, too. I haven’t served with any of these elders before, so I am getting to know new elders here.

That is great that you got to see so many of the elders you came out with. Do you know Elder Thomas Hall? He came out with you also, but I never hear anything about him. What is Elder Frye doing? He started his mission the same day you did, but got to Ecuador earlier because he must have already known some Spanish.

Did you take photos of you with your original MTC district? I sure hope so. You need to take advantage of opportunities like that. If you did not, please do it next time.

Yeah, I know Elder Hall. I forgot about him. He trained last change and I am pretty sure that he got changed this change, so I don´t know where he is. Elder Frye is a District Leader in Duran Sur. I forgot to take pics, but there will be a next time, don´t worry.

Okay, just remember to take advantage of those moments because you can't ever go back and do them again. Someday you will look back and think, "Wow, I am grateful to have that photo of all of us together."

Have a really great week, son. Keep working hard and being great. I know the Lord will bless you and be with you. I love you so very much.

Love,
Mom

Don't Worry, ok?

Week 24 Valencia

Hey! How are things going? I am doing good. Today we are in Quevedo. Today we got permission to play soccer as a zone, so we played today on an astroturf field. It was really cool and fun. After we played, we went to a restaurant that is called Quality, where we can buy American food, hamburgers, hotdogs and tacos. And now we are in a cyber here in Quevedo writing before we go back to Valencia to get ready for the day.

This week we don´t have any baptisms planned, but we still have hope that we could have one this week. We had a lot of investigators in the church this week, so now we have five investigators that have been to the church at least two times, so any one of them could progress to baptism. We have plans to put a lot of baptism dates this week, but let’s see what happens. If I don´t baptise them then the next elder is going to have about ten baptisms when he gets here, but let’s see how it goes.

I am doing good, getting ready to leave Valencia. I hope I don´t have to go, but if I go, Ya, I won´t be too sad. Well I hope everything is going good. Tell Dad Happy Birthday for me. Tell him we celebrated it here with a dinner called Cerviche de Camaron or Shrimp Cerviche. It is one of my favorites and I am learning how to make it, so everything is going good. I love you all. Bye!

Hey! I forgot to put it in the other email, but I have gotten all of the packages that you have sent me. I received my glasses and the contact solution and I also got the oil vials, so I think that is all of them. If you haven’t sent the next package, can you send me a small bottle of lemon pepper? I am thinking about having a barbeque, but I can´t do it without lemon pepper. Thank you for the packages. They were great!

About the shoes, I have three pair of Rockport shoes. I have been using just one pair for a year and they are still going! In the MTC and before, I was using another different pair of Rockports and I put them away, but they are still good. I just need insoles. Other than that, my shoes are doing good and holding up great. The pair that I am using, about two months ago, I took them to a place and had them fixed. I had walked a hole in the sole, but they don´t have soles here in Quevedo big enough for my shoes, so they added rubber and then put another piece of special rubber and fixed them up and they are doing good now. I am pretty sure that they will last another six or seven months before I will have to fix them up again, so don´t worry about the shoes.

The rest of my clothes are doing good. My favorite pair of pants ripped in the crotch, so I had to send them to get fixed, but they are back and doing good. I think they will last the two years, but let’s see what happens. All is going well with my clothes, so don´t worry, ok? Thanks Again!

Elder Goode