Blessings and Zion's Camp

     There have been so many blessings in my life lately, I just have to try and catch up a bit. It is very unusual to be able to have a baptism outside of a church here, and within a month, we had two. I didn't get to participate in the first one, but this picture is from the second, which was in our ward. Both were performed at this place on the Little Blue River, fairly close to where it empties into the Missouri river. What a fun thing to be a part of!

     Other blessings: a big part of our job is to check the addresses etc. for the less active members on our rolls. Many haven't lived at the address we have for a long time, so a lot is "clean up", but occasionally we'll find someone who is really glad to see us. We found two such people this last week, and we took our wonderful Relief Society President Hermana Moctazuma with us to visit with them. It's nice to feel like you're bringing a bit of light into someone's life.
     We also had the opportunity to dress in our best "pioneer" outfits and help out with Independence's Santa CaliGon Days Festival. It celebrates that Independence was the head of three migration trails: The Santa Fe, California, and Oregon trails.

I  got to help kids do a small embroidery project, and Hna Mayberry help teach a bit of crocheting. There was also knitting, rug and rope making, and knife sharpening. It was a lot of fun! And we were rewarded when a gentleman dropped off a couple racks of ribs as well as bread and chips. Who said voluntary work doesn't pay?
    Our ward is also really big on service opportunities, and we have had several of those. We average about a baptism a week, and they like to put on a feast afterwards. My offering is usually brownies, but my companion, Hna Mayberry is an excellent cook and spends a lot of time in the kitchen with delicious results. We've also helped with cleaning and yard work, a wedding, and we do a lot of hauling people around (mostly investigators to various activities and places). We also get to help the younger missionaries with their work, which is a lot of fun. Can you believe we have FOUR sets of missionaries in our ward now??? (1 Sister companionship, 2 sets of Elders, and us). Pretty wild, but we need it. Our ward boundaries are HUGE, east to west about 150 miles, north to south averaging about 35 miles, and includes parts of 2 states and at least parts of 5 stakes.  We're mostly concentrated in the Independence Stake right now, but come January we're going to start

Santa Fe Ward 

 adding everyone else in.

Independence Stake (same magnif'n)

Eventually (when areas have been strengthened), they want to break off branches to become wards, and eventually have a Spanish stake. Come January every missionary companionship will be responsible for one of the added on stakes, searching for and adding in Spanish speaking families. What a great thing to be a part of! 
     One last thing I want to talk about. Being here in the Missouri Independence Mission is such a blessing in as far as opportunities to see and feel the Spirit of places where so many significant events in church history took place. A week or two ago I was able to go on a tour guided by a local history buff with a group of other senior missionaries to sites of Zion's Camp. If you'll remember, this was a group of about 200 men, with a few women and children, led by Joseph Smith that marched almost 1,000 miles from Kirkland, Ohio, to Independence, Missouri. The purpose was to try and get back the property taken by the mobs when they drove the Saints out of

A branch of the Fishing River. 

Independence. The government was supposed to send troops to help, but changed their minds This, as well as dissension, disobedience, and a refusal to help the poor as they should led to a revelation disbanding Zion's camp. The picture to the left shows a branch of the Fishing River, which was the site of quite a remarkable story. The 200 men, weary after a long, arduous journey, camped on a hill between two branches of the Fishing River. While there 5 armed men rode up and swore that they would

The site Zion's Camp camped near Independence

"see hell before morning". They told them a mob of nearly 400 was ready to cross the river (easy to do at that time) and "utterly destroy the Mormons".  Some wanted to fight, but Joseph said, "Stand still and see the salvation of God". Then in the clear sky appeared a small black cloud, which grew and moved until there was a towering storm about them. The heavens opened, and a 30 to 40 foot wall of water rushed into the area, keeping the mob away. The man who took us around said that he had actually seen a huge storm funneling water in the area, causing huge flooding (including a huge culvert being carried over the bridge shown above)

Bank where the cholera victims were found

and said that he totally believed the account. Near the time the camp disbanded there was a cholera outbreak in the area, and 15 men died. They were buried in a bank, and in 1958, cows walking up and down a nearby trail uncovered the remains of some of the men. They were dug up and eventually reburied in a local cemetery. To the left is the bank they were found in, with the trail about where it had been. And yes, they have been positively identified by DNA.


    I was also able to see stone from the Nauvoo temple, and blocks of stone from the Hans Mill foundation, which was especially significant for me. If you haven't been on a church history tour, I highly recommend it. It brings the modern scriptures alive, and the Spirit is palpable. I feel so fortunate to be able to serve here! As always, though, one of the best things about serving a mission is being able to get to know so many wonderful people. Below is our group near the bank where the cholera victims were originally buried. Some of the BEST!

Kim