Random Questions #23

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her email correspondence and Elder Brenchley answers them.

1. Tell me about your new companion...?  Elder Braxton Johnson is 6' 3."  He's from Spanish Fork, UT and went to Maple Mountain High School.  He graduated May 31, 2014, then left on his mission June 4, 2014.  So, he's two transfers ahead of me, and I guess I could have left that day, too, if I would've put my date of eligibility earlier.

2. What kind of car do you have now?  a Toyota Corolla.  What did you have in C-Town?  a Chevy Cruze.  Is it automatic or stick-shift?  All cars in the mission are automatic.  Good thing, too - I've talked to a lot of missionaries, and they wouldn't know how to drive a manual, if we did have them.


3. Do locals attend Southern Virginia University, or is it mostly out-of-state LDS kids?  Locals do attend SVU, usually for free because their parents work there!  :) 

4. Are your basketball shoes worn out because of all the Thursday night basketball you played in Floyd?  That was some of the wear & tear.  We did play a good chunk of basketball in Charleston, too! 

5. Why are there so many members of The Church in that little area of the state?  Because J. Golden Kimball came in the early 1900's and baptized half the town.  Then SVU came...

Random Questions #22

Note:  Mom makes a list of questions in her email correspondence and Elder Brenchley answers them.

1. I did NOT see this transfer coming!....So, I guess the longest-in-the-area is not always the first missionary to transfer?  Nope, it's all in the Lord's hands.

2. What about other missionaries in your Charleston district/zone?  Many transfers?  Not too many getting transfered in the Charleston Zone!  With six missionaries training, usually that doesn't happen.

3. Transferring to Buena Vista, will you be serving on the college campus?  Nope, not a campus area, but I'm sure I'll be there a ton!  The church buildings are really close to one another.

4. LDS maps show your new apartment will be very close to a church...is that your church building?  No, that will house the 6 YSA wards.  We share the building with the Rockbridge ward which meets in a church further away from our apartment, but still really close compared to everywhere else I've served - everything's close due to my small area.

5. Who is your new companion?  Elder Brendon Johnson, he's been out on his mission since June 2014.  How long has he been in the Buena Vista area serving as ZL?  He's been in BV ZL for just one transfer (where he was companion to VHS' Elder Numbers).

6. What areas are in your zone?  The entire Buena Vista, VA Stake: Gretna, Lynchburg, Buena Vista, Rockbridge, Lexington, Covington (all Virginia) and White Sulphur Springs, WV.

7. Did the insoles already wear out? (that wasn’t very long!) Yes, we've been walking a lot!

8. Will you be getting to Buena Vista in the "transfer van?"  Will it be quite a long drive?  It will be a very long drive!  BV is at the end of the line!  I'll get there around 5 p.m.!

9. What are your feelings about transferring?  Did you feel like you got as many close connections in Charleston as you did in your other areas?  I wasn't here too long, and there were so many people!  I still didn't learn/meet everyone at the church, and members didn't have us over for dinner that often.  But, yeah, Brother Cottrel (Ward Mission Leader), Brother Thomas (from Bountiful, UT), Brother Collett, and Brother Hawes are probably some of my favorite members in Charleston ward.

10. Why is it called SOUTHERN Virginia University when it is really more in the middle of the state, not at the most southern point?!?  It is funny....... I'm not sure what to think.

Random Questions #21

Note:  Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them.

1. Where was your Stake Conference/Regional Conference held?  At the Pembroke Stake Center?  No, it was a Broadcast, so we watched the Stake Conference portion and the Regional Conference portion all via Internet @ the Floyd Branch building.

 

2. How often do you do exchanges?  How do you determine who goes where?  It is encouraged to do exchanges once a transfer with every ELDER in the district.  I pray, as the District Leader, who should go where.  For example: we will be going on exchanges tomorrow.  I will be going with Elder Ballard, but I haven't decided where yet.

 

3. Do you know the details of your Mother’s Day “phone call” (Skype) yet?   Where/What time/How long?  So, we will be @ the Light's for Mother's Day lunch.  We will Skype there.  We can coordinate when we call around when your church time is.  We hope to keep the call under an hour, around 45 minutes.

4. What are you doing for P-Days lately?  We are going to play tennis with the district this afternoon!  Fun, Fun!

 

5. How are all your potentials/investigators/less-actives that you are working with doing?
Jodie?  He hasn't called or texted us back all week, and he didn't come to church.

Taylor?  He said he was coming to church, but when Bro. "B" went to go pick him up, he didn't answer.  :(

Mike Fizer & Katrina Clark?   They cancelled every appointment with us, but we're going there Tuesday night.

Alec?  He was busy with work all week.  He came to church, of course, though.

Sister Guthrie?  She just barely texted us this morning, (after 3 weeks of no contact) so we're going over there Wednesday.

Jim & Molly?  They are "fine" in their current religion - they dropped us.  I probz didn't mention them, because I was in Radford when they dropped Elder Olsen and Elder Ballard. 

When are Johnny Brown and Sister Horne getting married?  June 6th  Will you be able to be there for it?  Yes, if I stay here at least one more transfer.

Random Questions #20

Note:  Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them.

1.  How many districts/missionaries are in the Blacksburg zone?  There are two districts in Blacksburg Zone; so three sets of missionaries in each district (4 Elders, 2 Sisters a piece).

2.  When you said you went to the Virginia Tech campus, I was reminded that was where there was a big campus shooting back in 2007.  Did you see the Memorial for the 32 victims when you went there?  I have not seen the memorial, yet - next time I'll look for it!

3. [A question from Brookelle] How is your next door neighbor, the horse, doing?  She (the horse) gets excited a lot!  She runs around and bucks and always comes over when we get her carrots or apples!

4.  Do you need a fishing license to fish in Floyd?  Did you get one?  No fishing license - it's on the Church's property.

5.  How far is it from Floyd to Radford (the other part of your district where you go for meetings sometimes)?  About 33 miles.

6.  Is there a Subway restaurant in Floyd?  Yes!

7.  Where do you go to play basketball?  The church or a Rec. Center?  WE play basketball Thursday nights @ a Rec. court.  Who's in your group?  Just a random group of guys show up to play.  Who invited your new investigators to play with you?  The 1st time we saw Ricky and Dustin was last Thursday; they just happened to be at the Rec. Center that night.

8.  When you have a member Sister go with you to teach a lesson, can she ride with you to the appt. or does she have to drive herself in her own car?  The Sisters drive in separate cars, unless another male is in the car, then we can all drive together.

9.  You mentioned you blessed the Sacrament; do you have very many Priests in your Branch?  The Branch only has one active ordained Priest; there are some more Priest-age Young Men, they just haven't been ordained.

10.  Who is going to be your new companion now that Elder Olsen is returning home?   Elder Boyd!

Random Questions #19

Note:  Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them.

1. In Floyd, is there a library?  Yes.  Where do you go to email? 
Floyd has it's own library, and we email there!

2. Do you have a washer/dryer in your trailer? or Do you have to go to a laundromat/somewhere else to do your laundry in Floyd?  We have a washer and dryer in the trailer, they both suck, though.  They stained one of my white shirt collars.  :(

3. Are you in a trailer court, or just a trailer on a piece of land? 
Just a trailer all by itself.

4. What are some of the other cities in Floyd County where you will work?  Willis, Check, Copper Hill, Meadows of Dan, Buffalo Mountain, Pilot (Montgomery County)

5. In Floyd, which college team are they for? Virginia or West Virginia? (West Virginia is #5 in Midwest region, Virginia is #2 in the East for March Madness bracket)  Neither!  It's all about Virginia Tech!  Go HOKIES!  They probably didn't make March Madness, did they?  Virginia got a #2 seed?  People have been telling me Virginia was ranked #2 all year.  WVU getting the same seed as Utah?  Utes got robbed!

Random Questions #18

Note:  Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them.
(She had a gazillion questions with this latest change!)  ;)

1. Have you received our Birthday package to YOU that I sent to the Mission Home?  I have still not received a Birthday package.  Maybe it'll come today!

2. How are you doing in your new area?  I'm settling into the area all right.  I'm doing good, doing good!   What's it like?  It's a pretty rural countryside area - not a whole lot like Beckley 2, where it was mostly houses or suburbs.

3. Where do you live?  Apartment or house?  We have a cute little trailer, that is kinda trash. :(  But, it could be worse!  We have two bathrooms, so that's nice; we each get our own!  Only one closet, so that makes things kinda tight.

4. How did you get to Floyd?  Got to Floyd on the Transfer Van, I got dropped off in Blacksburg, and Elder Olsen came and picked me up. How long of a drive was that? Probably like a 3 and half hour drive from Charleston.

 

5. Wikipedia says that Floyd, VA had 424 people in the 2010 Census – that’s the same number that was in my High School graduating class!  The city of Floyd, itself, is pretty small - we cover all of Floyd County, though!  So, there will be a lot more people than 424, hopefully.

6. Where is your companion, Elder Olsen, from?  Huntington, Utah. 
Graduated, Class of 2012, from Emery High School.  Is he one of the first missionaries who got to go at age 18 after the change?  He gets home in April, and turns 21 in May, so he was barely still 18 when he left.

7. Where else has Elder Olsen served?  Served in Barbersville, WV,  Elkins, WV,  Paintsville, KY,  Mannington, WV and Floyd, VA

8. Is Blacksburg Zone the one that your MTC companion is/was in?  Elder Williams served in Radford (which is in my district).  He trained Elder Ballard for one transfer, then Elder Williams got transferred and Elder Hewlett went home because of back pain.  So, Elder Hewlett's old companion, Elder Higgins, and Elder Ballard are now companions.  So, they combined the Radford YSA area and Radford family area into one area.

9. If Floyd is a Branch, do they meet in a regular church building?  Other building?  Or just a smaller chapel?  Floyd is a Branch, and they do meet in a regular church building, just recently built in 2013.  It's in only Phase 1, so they do not have a gym.  The Chapel is the multipurpose room with portable chairs, podium, rostrum, etc. 

10. Do you still have a car?  Yes! Very excited, we have a truck!  A Nissan Frontier. Much needed with all these dirt roads!

11. Is Floyd as hilly with curvy roads as WV?  It has lots of curvy roads, however it is more flat, and you can see quite a ways in any direction.

12. Is Floyd all covered in snow, as well?  The snow is melting and it hasn't snowed since I got here!

13. Do the returning missionaries have a “Farewell Testimony Meeting” at the Mission Home before leaving?  Are others welcome to attend?  The departing missionaries will do departing testimonies at the last Zone Conference before they leave. So, not in front of the whole mission, just the zone they are serving in. 

14. Are you able to communicate with other missionaries in your mission?  Will you be able to get word about happenings in Beckley?  We're not allowed to email missionaries in our mission. So we can just correspond through handwritten, mailed letters.  I asked President if I could come up for the Baptism when it happens, and will get a response next week in my email.

15. Were you able to see/visit all your investigators/people you were working with/favorite members between the time you got the call from President and before you transferred?  I did get to go say goodbye to some of the investigators.  We taught Tom Poe Wednesday night - that was the last thing I did in Beckley.  So, got a pic with him.  Some people live too far away - I had to just call Matt & Jasmine on the phone, as well as Sister Cline.  And I couldn't get a hold of the Snuffer's.  :(

16. Where are weddings (like Matt & Rebecca's) held in WV?  Matt & Rebecca were going to have it at our L.D.S. church.

17. Was Steve able to reschedule his baptism (after it had to be cancelled due to the snow)?  I got word from Josh Spencer (formerly Elder Spencer) that the Baptism did happen on Saturday, 2/28!  He's able to email any missionary or any ward members, now that he's returned home!

18.  When are the McGrady's going to the temple?  They are going to the temple in July (exactly one year after he was baptized!)  (Good thing his health is better!)

19. Is there a Café Rio in WV?  No Cafe Rio's in WV! :(  But, Sister Young just made a similar recipe for my birthday party.

20. Was church cancelled for a 3rd week in a row on March 1st, also?  Church was cancelled in Floyd, for a 3rd week in the row here!  Me and Elder Olsen drove up to Radford and attended there!

Random Questions #17

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Monday is President’s Day – does that mean no email from you due to libraries being closed?  You did email us on Columbus Day, so you must have found a different computer  to use somewhere else? The library is closed, but we are using the computer (me on the desk top, Elder Caldwell on their laptop) at the Heller's -- while they feed us a Nachos lunch, they're the best!  

2.  What's your weather like?  Are these big Winter Storms in the Northeast affecting WV at all?    Actually, school is closed because it is a "Snow Day."

3.  Is the Matt & Rebecca wedding still on?  Yes.  Are you just going to wear your regular missionary suit for the “Best Man” duties?  Yes.  I will look like a missionary up there.

4. Why is Oak Hill a tough area?  The attitude/morale of missionaries there has been low ever since I have been here; it's just a tough area - not a whole lot of reaping right now, just sowing.  But, the Oak Hill's hard efforts are bringing success somewhere else in the mission! 
(Oak Hill got two brand new missionaries to come in a couple transfers ago ("doubling in"), to start fresh and just get the past attitudes/influence outta there).

5.  Why does Steve, your investigator, give everyone knives as gifts?  Does he make them?  Is it related to his work/business?  He lives in an small camper, and lives off welfare, and uses all his money to buy knives. :)

6.  Are missionaries returning home each & every transfer? 
Yes, 18 missionaries (10 Elders, 6 Sisters) returned home in January. 

7.  Are you still getting new missionaries from the MTC each & every transfer?  Yes, 16 missionaries (11 Elders, 5 Sisters) arrived in our mission in January.

8.  Since Elder Williams (your MTC comp) is one of your zone leaders now, will he be the one calling you to tell you if you’re transferring?  Yes, he will be!

9.  (Elder Brenchley informed us he & his companion sent a joint package to his companion's family and we'd need to go pick up his things that were included in that package)  Why did you & your companion send both your stuff together in a package to Caldwell’s address?  We were just doing that to motivate Ya'll to get together!

10.  I’m reading this new John Grisham book, and it all takes place in YOUR mission boundaries!  (Beckley, WV was even specifically mentioned).  The hot topics are black lung disease, strip mining, contaminated water from the sludge, areas that have “cancer clusters” that are suspected to be caused by the environment, wrongful deaths from illegal activities of the coal mining companies.  Is this all fiction?  Do you hear about any of this?  Is your area a healthy, safe place to be/live?  We heard about this from Bro. Bowman on our long drive (45 min.) up to our appointment.  He has his own law agency and he sues the mines if they are having their workers do unsafe things, etc.  Don't worry, Mom, we are far from the mines.

11.  Questions about all your meetings:  How often do you have Zone Meetings?  Once a month?  Some meetings you write about, it seems like they include way more missionaries/areas than just your zone.  Is that still considered “zone meeting” or is that an additional “special meeting” you had that month?   

Zone Meeting is every month. Then Specialized Training, Interviews, & Zone Conference cycle every 3 months.  ST =December, Intrvw = Jan., Zone Conference = February. Mission Tour (when General Authority comes) = once in a while.  ST and ZC include the Charleston and Parkersburg (near Ohio) zone.

Are District Meetings once a week on the same day of the week?  District Meeting every week (random days, except when we have a bigger meeting)  And Mission Correlation meeting is on Sundays with all the missionaries, the ward mission leader, Bishopric member, etc? 

Missionary Correlation is every Sunday@ the church.  Bro Geisler, the mission leader, hears from all of us, and then gives a summary in Ward Council.  Who is planning meeting with?  Just your companion?  The whole district?  Is it part of District meeting?  Is it held in your house?  At the church?  Weekly Planning is between companions every week (usually Thursday) @ our house.

12. Why did they have to have a “No Weapons” talk at zone conference?  Is there a weapons problem in your mission?  It's probably done for the fact, it doesn't look good for Missionaries to be wielding around knives and stuff!

13.  Do you wear your dress shoes in the snow?  How are they holding up?  I wear dress shoes, and they are doing good. What are you wearing on your feet when you do service at the Jackson farm?  There’s snow all over up there, right?  I wear my Nike running shoes.  I was thinking about buying some black boots, that my pant leg can cover, so I can do service, and have some sturdy shoes for walking out in the snow. Do you wear the coat you took?  Or just the one Sis. Jackson gave you?   I mostly just wear the Jackson's coat.

14. Out of all the missionaries who came out with you.....are you the only missionary still in his/her original area?  Has everyone else transferred at least once?  As far as I know (and this is just talking with other missionaries and such), I am the only Elder still in his first area. The 2 sisters that came out, are training so they are still in their first area. 
14 1/2. Do Sisters have to train longer?  No, they got trained (2 transfers) Then they are now training (2 more transfers).

15.  Also, I'm wondering if all the Beckley public librarians know you missionaries, since they see so much of you? Are they LDS?  None of the librarians are LDS, but we are always talking with them!

Random Questions #16

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1. Was the Christmas food the same out there?  Was anything “unique” served?  We had ham, ham, and ham at all the places we went to eat for Christmas Eve/Day.

2. Did Elder Carter, from upstairs, get transferred?  Yes.  Where’s he going?  Elder Carter got shipped off to Portsmith, OH.  Elder Ence replaced him.  He was in my group who came out to WV in September and was my "companion for a day" in the mission home at that time.  Elder Ence is from St. George and just came from his first area in Lynchburg.

3. Do you have Senior & Junior companions?  Or after you’ve been trained, are you just “co-companions?”  We do have Jr & Sr. Companions.  Elder Caldwell has been out longer, but I have been in the area longer, making me the senior companion.
 

4. Are you going to be able to email on your usual P-day since it will be Martin Luther King day (a holiday when libraries are closed)?  This time, we will have to email on Tuesday.  Due to MLK Jr. day, all the libraries were closed and the Young's and Heller's were up partying in Charleston.  I'm sorry, I love being a part of Family Home Evening agenda: "A letter from Elder Brenchley" on Monday nights.
 

5. Who’s in the new Beckley ward Bishopric?  Anyone we know/you’ve mentioned to us?  The new Bishopric is Bishop Barnett (That's the second Bishop Barnett I've had!) 1st Counselor is Brother Heller, and 2nd Counselor is Brother Brooks (our former ward Mission Leader).  Bro. Geisler, the previous bishop, will be our new ward Mission Leader.
 

6. You have a lot of investigators with the last name, “Wood.”  Tom Wood, Michael Wood, Kim Wood, Rob Wood....Are they all related? :)  Yes we do!  We actually knocked into another Tom Wood once, and none of them are related to one another.
 

7. When you’re teaching all these lessons to men, is it during the day?  What about their jobs?  Do they have them?  We usually teach lessons during the evenings because  a) people usually work  b) members usually work  c) people get a little nervous when someone's knocking on their door when it's dark.  There's only one person I can think of who doesn't work.

8. Is Liberty University Christian College (where M & K attend) the one which makes their students take a mandatory Anti-Mormon class?  Liberty University has a history of mandatory Anti-Mormon classes.  I don't know if they still do, and that might have been why those two girls were investigating.  But, their campus is actually identical to BYU's (honor code/dress standards, etc)!  They even have an "LU" on the mountain.

9. I have been asked to be a speaker at an upcoming Relief Society meeting with the theme of, "Hastening the Work of the Lord."   They want me to talk about how I and my family are "Hastening The Work of The Lord."   What should I say?  ;)  Any thoughts?  So, as far as Hastening the Work of the Lord, just express on points such as befriending non-member neighbors & social media.  You could easily bring up the Church by indicating that you are from Utah, or have a son on an LDS mission.  Mention the importance of not being afraid to share the greatest message in the world!  It's blessed you and your family, so don't be selfish! ;)  When you have a great gift (ie: new phone, TV, car), you want to show/share with others!  It's the same with the work of the Lord!   Just pray for guidance and you'll be fine.

10.  I was at Dick's Market this week and they have a same-day MTC delivery drop off at their service desk - I saw a package to Megee Layton, your friend from High School, on the counter.  Do you know of very many VHS girls going on missions?   Haha, I did know that!  I guess I forgot to tell you!  I'm so excited for her!  Yes! There are a lot of girls from Viewmont going on missions now!  Keep an ear out for others who are going, as well!

Random Questions #15

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  How do all the missionaries get to their new areas?  Especially when it’s in a different state?  The "Transfer Train."  It is two 15 passenger vans and a big box truck that goes from Roanoke to Charleston and every missionary gets on it to go up to Charleston.

2.  That's crazy that your cousin, Maddie, is in one of the pictures with your new D.L.!  Small World!  What year did he graduate from BHS?  Class of 2011.  What makes it an even SMALLER WORLD is that he is the nephew of Bishop & Sister Bullock from our Farmington ward!  He showed me a family picture of them, too.

3.  What are your plans for Christmas?  District Leader Spencer had the great idea to have all us missionaries have breakfast together Christmas morning and open presents together - should be fun!  I also really want to share Aunt Louise's song, "Waiting for the Child" with everyone!  As part of our little missionary get-together Christmas morning, we were asked to share our favorite Christmas tradition!  Will you send me the lyrics/music to the song, "Christmas Shoes?"  I'm going to share that tradition.  :)  The Laxton's, a less-active family, is having us over for a meal.

4.  Are you going to be able to call home or Skype on Christmas?  I don't know if we will be able to Skype with the Laxton's, but we may have to talk to the Heller's about that.  The Young's would have let us, but they are in Texas for the holidays.  We've been given special permission to let you know (email, text) as to when and where we are going to call/Skype.  In the meantime, could ya'll set up a Skype account for me?

5.  Did you receive our package of Christmas presents to you?  I received y'alls presents package on Friday, the 19th!  Thank You, Thank You!  All the other missionaries are jealous of all the gifts I got!  :)  Dianne & Scott, Eric & Julie, Phil & Nicole, G-ma & G-pa, and Nana & Papa all sent something, too!  So, it seems like I'm getting more presents out on the mission, than back home!  :)  Should have come on a mission sooner!  :)

6.  From the picture of your ward party, the inside of the church looks similar to ours.  Is your church building the same size as ours at home?  Yes, it's a good sized church building; that was the gym you saw in the photo.

7.  Also, from the pictures.....Is your companion shorter than you are?  Lucky you -- you get to feel TALL [for once]!  Elder Caldwell is way smaller than me!  I'm about 4 inches taller, and 50 lbs. heavier!  I do enjoy it!

8.  Is that duct tape on your walls, holding up your Christmas lights?  ;)  Yes, the duct tape you sent is the most handiest thing!

9.  Are you "decorating" your house with Arizona drink cans on your bookshelf?  Yes!  I have started a Arizona can collection because they are only 75 cents at Wal-Mart and Dollar General.  The Squirt bottles were from Elder Johnson.

10.  I remember on my mission, it was easier to do missionary work at Christmas time; more reasons to contact people, etc.  Are you experiencing that, too?  This Christmas season has been so amazing!  It's so easy to talk to people!

Random Questions #14

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  How did the Young’s and the Heller’s “win out” over the other 5 families to get you for Thanksgiving?  They told us they were feeding us for Thanksgiving the 1st week I got here, so first come, first get the missionaries!

2.  Who’s headband/ear warmer were you wearing in the turkey bowl picture?  I didn’t know you had one....was it borrowed or did you get one?  That was Elder Johnson's!  He let me use it and boy,  was I grateful!    Was it cold that morning?  My ears would have fallen off without it.

3.  With both Elder Jacklin and Elder Bodily leaving.....does that leave Oak Hill area with NO missionaries?  No D.L.?  Or are two brand new ones coming in?   Two brand new ones came-in.  What do you call that?  Isn’t there a special term for that situation?  It's called "Doubling In."  They will have to work real hard and get as much info as they can.

4.  So, Elder Morse got transferred over to Blacksburg - that's where your MTC comp., Elder Williams, is.  Are they going to be companions now?  Elder Morse actually went up to the transfer meeting and picked up Elder Williams' new companion; he's a greenie.  Elder Williams will be his trainer in Radford! Elder Morse will be serving in Blacksburg 1. 

5.  Were there tears when Elder Johnson left?  Nope, I was sad, but it takes a lot for me to cry!

6.  Was there a waiting period between the time that Elder Johnson left you and Elder Caldwell arrived to your area?  Yes.  How long?  Whole day  Were you with someone?   Elder Johnson and Elder Morse went up to the transfer meeting, so Elder Carter (who lives upstairs at my house) & I stayed back at the house. What did you do?  We cleaned away while we waited for our new companions.

7.  How do all the missionaries get to their new areas?  Especially when it’s in a different state?  The "Transfer Train."  It is two 15 passenger vans and a big box truck that goes from Roanoke to Charleston and every missionary gets on it to go up to Charleston.

8.  Where is your new companion, Elder Caldwell, from?  Morgan, Utah  How long has he been out?  4 1/2 months.  He started his mission July 16, 2014, so just one transfer ahead of me.  What areas has he served in so far?  Clifton Forge, VA - that's it, only ONE!  What is he like? He's a really chill, plays soccer, he really likes skateboarding and snowboarding.

9.  How do you find most of your new investigators?  All the new investigators I've come in contact with have been from us finding them, through tracting or street contact.  (Except T.W. who was a media referral from missionaries down in Winchester)  

10.  Has anyone given you a Christmas tree or other decorations for your house?  Elder Caldwell's mom sent him some, including a Christmas stocking.  Sister Young gave me and Elder Johnson a stocking full of goodies, so basically we have two stockings hanging in our apartment.

Random Questions #13

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

 
1.  I saw your Thanksgiving group picture (thanks to a good Sister in the ward!), it looked like there was more than one set of adults – who all was there together with you on Thanksgiving?  We had dinner at the Young's and the Heller family joined us.  It was Brother & Sister Young and their two kids who still live at home; 15 yr. old. son and 14 yr. old daughter (Kyle's future wife).  Brother & Sister Heller were there with their three kids who were around; 24 yr. old daughter, 17 & 12 yr. old sons.  Then Elder Johnson & myself - 11 total.

2.  Do you ever cook for yourself?  Or do you always eat out or at people’s houses?  If I can cook it, eat it, and clean it in an hour or less, I do.  So I buy a lot of frozen food and we get a lot of boxed meals (Just add water) that we can just microwave or heat in oven.

3.  Are the strong, devout members in your ward native West Virginians or are they “Utah transplants?”  Most are true West Virginians!  Our ward is full of first generation converts!

4.  What’s your orthodontics situation?  My retainer has come loose.  I will look for an Orthodontist, now that I know I will still be here!

5.  Did Emily say, “Yes” to baptism!!??  What about her mom, Melissa?    Emily and Melissa both said, "yes!"  It's just hard to teach them, and they haven't come to church yet.

6.  Was Elder Numbers at that Stake Conference and got to see his “wardie,” Elder Baxter?  Probably not, if he’s still in Ohio area, huh?!?  Elder Numbers actually was at the Stake Conference (I guess the Stake is that big) and Elder Baxter gave him multiple shout-outs!  What were some of the things Elder Baxter spoke about?  He just recounted multiple stories of how the Church was the first one on the scene of natural disasters.

7.  Is your mall in Beckley, or do you have to travel to another city?  It is in Beckley.

8.  Do you rotate through all your clothes equally, or have you found “favorites” that you wear more than the others?  If so, what are they?  I like the golf pants the best!

9.  Is your companion talkative?  Or does he let you take care of that?  He has to be in a good mood to be talkative, otherwise he kind of shuts down.

10.  We should've measured you again right before you left (to see if you grow on your mission like dad did)....but, so far, do you think you've grown on your mission, at all?   I feel like I've maybe gotten a little taller.  But I've for sure put on some weight.

Random Questions #12

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Does your house have mice?  Or cockroaches, spiders, snakes, rodents of any kind?   I haven't seen any mice or cockroaches, just spiders here and there.

2.  Have the Young’s and the Heller’s ALWAYS been supportive of and involved with helping/taking care of the missionaries in Beckley 2 through the years?  I think so....  OR is it that they have a special fondness for you & Elder Johnson?  ...but we really have gotten along well with both of them! 

3.  Sister Cline has now come to church 3 times now, hasn’t she?!?  Is she the first one who has made it the required amount of times in order to be eligible for baptism?  Sister Cline would be the first one who has been to church 3 times on my mission!  She's still praying about getting baptized

4.  Besides when it snows, do you get to drive the car much?  How do you decide who’s turn it is?  I usually drive 5 out of 7 days of the week.  Elder Johnson doesn't really like to drive, or maybe he just likes to be in charge of the phone.

5.  Does your house keep warm enough?  Heater works?  Our house is warm, we like to keep it cool though.

6.  Do you have a certain number of minutes per month on your cell phone or is it unlimited? Unlimited, that doesn't mean you can call me! ;)

7.  Will you do any regular missionary work/stuff on Thanksgiving, or are you just spending it with the families in your ward?  As much as I'd like to just kick back on the couch and watch football with the Young's and Heller's, we will definitely be doing lots of proselyting on Thanksgiving.  Holidays are PRIME TIME to find families at home.  By doing that, maybe we will get even more invites from strangers to come in and enjoy some turkey! 

8.  Do you think Elder Johnson will get transferred next week since he will have been in Beckley for 24 weeks by then?  Elder Johnson is more likely to be transferred than I am, but you never know.  After Elder Johnson's 12 weeks of training, HE was the one who was transferred (to be companions with Elder Maxwell in Lexington, VA) and his trainer stayed.

9.  How’s your complexion/acne doing in WV?  Have you noticed a difference? I need to probably buy more acne cream.  It's not getting any better.

10.  Do you knock on doors every single day?  Do you still find houses that no missionary has never tracted out yet?  Yeah, we find doors all the time where they've never even heard of the Church!

Random Questions #11

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Are you still wearing short sleeves? Yep, still wearing short sleeves.  It's 55 degrees - that's short sleeve weather.

2.  Does your mission use iPads &/or Facebook as part of your missionary work?  We have gotten word that ipads will be coming in Feb. and we can use Facebook on them.

3.  Do the members get to go to the temple?  Which one will the M's go to? Yes, they just had a temple trip on election day.  They went to the Columbus, OH temple.  The M's still haven't decided, but they think they'll need the temple with the biggest sealing room because everyone and their dog will want to take part in this special sealing.

4.  Do the other district elders get packages from anyone?  Yeah!  Not as much as I have recently.  In the last two weeks, I received a Halloween package from Phil and Nicole, a "month 2" care package from y'all, and then a little trick or treat goodies pkg. from the Page's!

5.  Is it easy for you to wake up in the morning, yet?!?  I am able to wake up every morning since I have been on a mission.  I started praying for that before the mission - have you been praying, too?  We have 2 alarms set.

6.  Who speaks in your Sacrament meetings?  Members or guest visitors?  Are there enough members to fill up all the weeks without repeating too often?  There are quite a few members that usually speak; they even have a youth speaker every now and then.  They've had two stake high councilmen speak since I've been here - we'll see!

7.  Did Elder Hewlett go back out into the field last transfer?  Elder Hewlett is no longer one of the AP's and is now serving down in the Blacksburg Zone.

8.  Does your companion snore?  ;).  He does snore, and can fall asleep just about anywhere! (Sitting in a chair, the bathroom floor, and once on Elder Morse's lap because they were playing "Santa.")  You do share a bedroom, right?  Mission rules are we have to sleep in the same room.

9.  What other rooms are in your house?  A study room?  Our downstairs consist of a bathroom, kitchen, closets, study room/eating room.

10.  Do you have senior couple missionaries in you mission?  Are they proselyting?  I believe there a quite a few throughout the whole mission.  Some work in the mission office, some are proselyting.

Random Questions #10

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Do you share your care packages with the other Elders?  (You mentioned all the other elders are jealous of your packages)  I have shared the contents of my care package! The other elders appreciate it!

2.  How are the baptisms out there different from “Utah” baptisms?  We had the program, itself, in the gym, and then went to the Baptism font (that room was really small).  We all stood and watched the baptism (no chairs).

3.  When you hit the deer....did it die?  (That others then picked up for dinner? haha)  The deer ran into our car.  We were going about 10 m.p.h.  It ran away and there was no damage to car!  Yeah, we don't have to file another incident report.
 
4.  If Elder Bodily’s Visa comes in before or in between your mission’s transfer dates, what does he do?  Leave for Brazil immediately or wait to leave until next transfer day?  Elder Bodily actually got his visa after one week of being here in WV.  He will finish out the transfer and then head down there!
 
5.  Do you have guidelines about when you should “drop” an investigator? (Like if they’re not progressing or if they just want to “talk,” but no lesson)  I emailed President Salisbury about dropping an investigator, and he emailed me back some inspiring words/guidelines!

Random Questions #9

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1. Did any of the elders in your district transfer?  Yes. 
Elder Kamauu, from Oak Hill, got transferred.  Elder Bodily (Murray, UT), a visa waiter originally called to Brazil, took his place.

2.  Are you going trick-or-treating dressed up as missionaries? Ha ha.  Or will you pass out candy from your house?  For Halloween, I think we have to go in early.  But we can probably hand out some candy!

3. How do you pay for gas for the car?  Each missionary just takes turns?  Does that come out of your monthly missionary budget debit card?  We have a gas card assigned to each car that the church provides.

4. Are the missionaries doing a good job budgeting their money so it lasts the whole month long?  We are doing pretty good - sounds like the Beckley Elders are having problems near the end of the month.

5. Do you buy your food together as a companionship, or separately?  Usually separate, unless we will share it. (ie bread, eggs)

6. Do members just randomly invite you for dinner or is there an official “sign up” volunteer sheet?  There is a sign-up sheet, but often members will just call and ask us when we can come over for dinner.

7. Do you missionaries exercise daily as part of your morning routine?  Yes, 30 minutes every morning - except Sunday.

8. What time is your church?  Is there more than just the Beckley ward that uses your church building?  Oak Hill?  Only one ward for everyone!  Our 3 areas (Beckley, Beckley 2, & Oak Hill) all go to the same ward.

9. Have you noticed an accent with the people?  Are some accents too strong to understand?  Is it rubbing off on you?  I use, "Ya'll" like none other.  Besides that, a little here and there.

10. Do you stay at your house on P-Day (except for library time?)  We do whatever.  Last week we went to the mall to get Elder Johnson a sweater for the cold weather.  So, where does this California kid go to get his Sweater.......?!?
Pac-Sun!

Random Questions #8

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1. Do you get emails or letters from anyone else except for us?  Who from?  Mainly just from family.  I got the ward newsletter from Sis. Lozano!  Other missionaries' weekly emails are forwarded to me by their families, but I don't have enough time to read all them. :( 

2. Did R officially ACCEPT the baptism invitation?  (I couldn’t tell)  Or did she just say, “It sounds like I need to be....”  The next time we taught R, she OFFICIALLY accepted the invitation to be baptized, no date for her yet, though.  We will need to pray further on that.

3. What are the baptism dates for everyone?

Twins: Nov. 16 (They need to come to church 2 more times)
David Lily: Nov. 23 (Come to church at least 3 times and quit smoking)

Joyce Young: Nov. 30 (Church 3 times,)

Civi: Moved, and no longer on date.

4. Are there “nice” neighborhoods in the towns you are serving in right now?  It sounds like you mention a lot of just trailer courts.  A few nice neighborhoods, but they are actually mostly in gated-off communities.

5. Does everyone who comes to church have their own white shirt & tie?  Do they need to borrow from the missionaries?  Do we need to round up [new & gently used] white shirts & ties and sent them out there for the people?  People mostly have decent clothes to go to church in.

6. Does most everybody smoke?  (Sounds like it.)  Most people do smoke

7.  Are all the people who feed the missionaries members of the church?  Not all.  Duwayne is not, but he just feeds missionaries

8. Are you going to have to get permission from the twins’ parents for them to be baptized (because they are minors)?  The twins' mom is a less-active member, and she is fine with them getting baptized. 

9.  Since it’s transfer week, is your P-Day on a different day?  What day are we going to get your email?  On transfer week, P-Day's are moved to Wednesday.

10. How do you know you/your companion are not being transferred?  How far in advance are you notified?  Neither me or Elder Johnson are being transferred because we are still in the training process (it's at least 12 weeks).

Random Questions #7

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Are you flossing your teeth?  Yes, I am flossing, brushing, and mouth-washing, but I will need to get more of that at the store.

2.  How much longer does the A.P. [fellow Viewmont Viking, Elder Hewlett] have on his mission?  I believe he has about 1-2 transfers as the AP, and then gets to go back out into the field before going home around February (so about 4-5 months).  He really enjoys the fact that me and Elder Numbers  are Viking,s too!

3.  Are you going to start teaching Civi's new boyfriend, now?  Not sure about Nick.  It's been really hard to even teach Civi lately.  We go over to their house (trailer) and Civi isn't there or she's not feeling well, so she doesn't come out when we're there.  So, we just talk with her mother, Kay, who was baptized a long time ago.  Civi is no longer on date for baptism since you have to come 3 times to church first, and she needed to come yesterday and the next 2 Sundays to be baptized on her date - and she didn't.  So, we are at the point that we need to determine if she is still interested, or not.

4.  Are car break-ins/stealing common in your area?  Not really.  Have the other elders been robbed before?  No other elders have ever been robbed.

5.  Isn’t Elder Carter the junior companion of that other companionship?  Yes, Elder Carter is the Junior Companion.

  So, when you did your exchanges, the two seniors went together and the two juniors went together?   Temporary exchanges happen quite a lot if they have two dinner appointments and such.

6.  What happened to your investigators coming to watch Conference with you at the church?  The ones who were going to come don't have a car and we've been trying to get someone over there to meet them and give them rides to church, but it's been to no avail. 

7.  Is your companion's family members of the church/supportive of him serving a mission? Elder Johnson's family is very supportive of his mission.  His oldest brother also served a mission.

8.  Did you get the idea of escorting people out to their cars from the grocery store, while holding your umbrellas over them in the rain, from that one time we saw the employees doing it at Chick-Fil-A right before you left?  I actually might have.  I didn't think about that experience 'til now.  But that was way fun!

9.  How did you get the info/quotes for your sacrament meeting talk?  The particular quote I wrote in your letter is from a talk from Elder Bednar, which was given to us to read in preparation for Elder Dale G. Renlund, of the Seventy, to come speak to us on October 31 (Halloween)  Do you have access to lds.org?  We do have an hour a week of Mormon.org study.  We are allowed to go to any church site and study.  We are also allowed to check our email, but not respond to it at that time.  So, I could see an email, say on Thursday, during my 1-hour of Mormon.org study, but I'd have to wait 'til Monday to write back.

10.  Are you finding you need to share scriptures from the Bible so that the people out there can relate?  (That’s what they know, not the Book of Mormon, yet.)  It's definitely more relevant to share Bible scriptures to people out here because they are basically all Christian, and they tend to relate better.  Luckily, most people are heart and soul about the KJV (or King James Version) of the Bible, so when we are studying, we look for those scriptures first, then Book of Mormon and D & C.

Random Questions #6

Note: Mom makes a list of questions (things she thinks about when she's awake in the middle of the night) in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Do you have a cell phone?  How do you call all your peeps? 

Yes, we have a cell phone.
 

2.  Are you going to be able to get a flu shot?  
I hope so.

 

3.  Do you have a separate debit card that your mission monthly allotment goes into? 

Yes, $150/month.
 

4.  Are you going to start teaching Bryan Snuffer, wife, & daughter after that experience in the hospital? 

They are in the other elders' area, so hopefully they jump on that.
 

5.  Did you get your tetanus shot before leaving?  (To protect against that dog bite you got)

I bet I did.
 

6.  Are you cleaning your room/house? 

Not as much as we should.
 

7.  Is your kitchen stocked with pots/pans, dishes/bowls, & measuring cups?  

Yes!  If we don't have something, we use the upstairs' elders' inventory.
 

8.  Do you have district meeting every week? 

Pretty much every week  What day?  Where is it held?
 

9.  How old are the elders in your house?  Were they the ones who left at 19 yrs. old or 18? 

Elder Johnson, my trainer is 20, Elder Carter is 19, Elder Morse is 20, almost 21. All of them left at age 19 after work or school.
 

10.  Do you have your lessons in people’s homes, or do they meet you at the church?

We teach lessons in people's houses.  The church is completely out of our area and out of the way.  And most people we are teaching don't have cars!  :(

Random Questions #5

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1.  Did you have to buy bedding/pillow for your place?  Yes

2.  What are your [specific to your mission] rules?  Pretty basic rules.Trading card games, in any form, are not allowed in the mission.  I have not heard about caffeine rules like mom had in her mission.

3.  Do you use church videos to show potential/current investigators?   I, personally, have not.  We have had plans to, and then the lesson fell through, but we hope and plan to!  We also will get to see a pre-showing of the new movie coming out, "Meet The Mormons."

4.  Did you just decide to take your basketball shoes with you from the MTC into the mission field?   Yes, I did.  They didn't put my bags overweight, so I decided to bring them - good thing, too!  We got invited by one of the less-active members in the ward to play basketball with him and his co-workers.  This will be a great opportunity to play some ball, and meet some new potential investigators!

5.  Have you had to get a hair cut yet?  Going to get a haircut today.  Where do you go for that?  I think we are going to Beaver barber shop.

6.  Did you have Fast Sunday today (9/28) due to General Conference next week?  No.  Fast Sunday will be the week after G.C.  How is the Testimony meeting in the Beckley ward?  We will see.....

7.  What are you going to do for General Conference?  Where do you go to see it?  Will you see all 5 sessions?  On the internet?  Broadcast at a Stake Center?  At a member’s home?
All 5 sessions will be at the church.  If "D" and "J" come, we will have to be at the church with them. If not, Elder Johnson wants to go the Young family's house (they are the family whose son is serving in Tokyo South Mission. They thought it was cool that you and dad served in that same country.)

8.  How large is your area (in miles)?   Very big - I couldn't tell you.

9.  Have you seen Justin Maxwell? (the son of Matt's best childhood friend, who is serving in the same mission)  Are you ever going to have contact with him?  Have not seen Elder Maxwell yet, we will see.Will your zone conferences ever involve your zone and his zone?  What about Christmas – does the whole mission get together for a special conference?  I don't know! Fun Fact: My current companion, Elder Johnson, who's been out 8 months, had Justin as his second companion in Lexington, Virginia!

10.  Are there only you 4 Elders (you, Johnson, Morse, Carter) in your district?  Two other elders are in our district; they serve in Oak Hill, about 20 miles outta our area. They are Elder Kamaau (Hawaii) and Elder Jacklin (Payson, Utah).  Any Sisters in your district/zone?  Nope.  Editor's/Mom's Note:  That's too bad, Beckley District, Sisters always make it a good district/zone!

Random Questions #4

Note: Mom makes a list of questions in her letters and Elder Brenchley answers them:

1. Where is the computer that you use on P-day?  We go to the

library in Beckley for computer time. How many times do you have a chance to check email on P-day? We are here from 10 am-12pm, so send emails by then!   

2. How did you get to Beckley?  (WV probably doesn’t have a big train system like my mission did!?)  I got to Beckley in this huge 15 passenger van - with all the other missionaries going south of Charleston.

3. Does your house have two separate entrances (upstairs & downstairs) or do all 4 of you elders use the same entrance?  No, same entrance.

  Do you interact with/see the other companionship at home ever?  We sometimes talk at night and we carpool to church and the library.

4. What’s the weather like there?  Still hot & humid?  It's pretty cool out here - sometimes cloud cover, sometimes sunny days. It only rained once this last week (Sunday).

Or has Fall started?  The leaves are starting to change colors.

5. Are you going through any culture shock?  Not a complete culture shock, but some of the folks out here are pretty interesting! 

6. What kinds of meals are the people feeding you?  Good Meals! I've only had 3 meals with members (Chicken, Pot Roast, and a very good Mexican Restaurant)

7. What kind of car do you drive?  2013 Chevy Cruze.  This week the car went over 20,000 miles. Apparently at 50,000 miles the church sells the car and buys a new one.

8. What restaurants are in your town?  (It seems like all the towns you’re serving in have small populations!)  All kinds of fast-food joints!  Carl's Jr. is called, "Hardee's" out here!  On Thursday we went to Olive Garden for $6.99 unlimited soup/salad/breadsticks after zone conference.

9. What do the people out there do for a living?  Are they “living off the land” like Pres. Pitt described?  Coal miners, Truck Drivers, Repair shop owners, retired/non-employed.

10. Do the [non-LDS] people you meet have a different religion or NO religion in their lives?  Usually they have a religion they were raised in, which we ask about.

  If so, what religion?  A LOT of Baptist, Pentecostal, & Methodist.  There is a church on every block it seems like - so many different churches, including some that look like a garage.  Whatever works!