Welcome!

Imagine what it would be like to add 194 members to your family overnight by traveling half way around the world, immersing yourself in a new culture and taking over the responsibly for the health, welfare and work assignments of almost 200 missionaries. Welcome President and Sister Maughan to the Philippines Cebu East Mission! Aside from a few minor issues with jet lag, adjusting to new food, learning to drive here, and the pressure of preparing for a transfer next week, they seem to be doing well, They are certainly doing better than we were one week in.

Sister Maughan

President Maughan

The Maughans held a series of four meetings this week over two days. Two meetings were on the island of Bohol and two in Cebu. The purpose of the meetings was for Maughans to introduce themselves to all 194 missionaries.

During the meeting held here in Lilo-an, the one we attended, President and Sister Maughan introduced each other. They are from Logan and have 4 children and 12 grand children. Sister Maughan advised the Elders against using the pick-up line that President used with her. According to her it was "How short are you?".  Maybe not great, but it must have worked. President Maughn was a teacher with the Cache County School District for 36 years and served in the Logan Stake Presidency for 18 years, including 9 years as Stake President.

Sister Maughan worked in the health care industry, most recently as office manager at a clinic in Logan.  President Maughan paid her a very moving tribute as he talked about an incident that happened in her clinic just last year. You can read the newspaper account here: HJnews Article

The pertinent paragraph from the article is:
"Richardson said Maughan was the final staff member to evacuate as she stayed with the subject in the waiting room, continuing to keep him calm until hostage negotiators and tactical officers from Logan and Cache County entered the building after securing the surrounding buildings in the area."

According to Sister Maughan, when the police officers came into the room she and the suspect were in, one officer immediately placed himself between her and the man with the gun until she could get out of the room. During the incident she was able to text that she was OK, but President Maughan didn't really know what had happened until she got home that night. Apparently she and the doctor stayed to finish out the work day because patients were still calling and coming in. When the time comes, these are the kind of people we'd like to have in our hand cart company.

For those who live along the Wasatch Front, President and Sister Tanner are reporting on their mission experience next Sunday in Brigham City. Here is the information on when and where.
Sunday 17 July 2016
Brigham City 4th Ward 9:00 A.M.
25 North 300 East 
Brigham City, Utah

Thought for the week: 

"On occasions, global or personal, we may feel we are distanced from God, shut out from heaven, lost, alone in dark and dreary places. Often enough that distress can be of our own making, but even then the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal.
May we all believe more readily in, and have more gratitude for, the Lord’s promise as contained in one of President Monson’s favorite scriptures: “I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, … my Spirit shall be in your [heart], and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.”  In the process of praying for those angels to attend us, may we all try to be a little more angelic ourselves—with a kind word, a strong arm, a declaration of faith and “the covenant wherewith [we] have covenanted.”
Jeffrey R. Holland, "The Ministry of Angels", October 2008 General Conference