Water Project Approved and Chapel Fire

Looking for Frangos

Dear Family and Friends

Last week we went to Chegutu, a small village south of Harare, to participate in a handover of school supplies for 400 students ranging in age from primary to grade 8.  The Church had provided them with a grinding mill for grinding maize into flour and so far they have earned $700.00, which is a considerable amount of money for them.  With this money they bought school supplies for the children in the nearby school.  They asked us to come and help them pass out the supplies.  It was so much fun.  

Delivering School Tablets

When we arrived they greeted us with African dancing, singing and drumming  The kids were all sitting either on the ground or behind  small tables outside.  It is always very colorful, cattle wandering by, chickens walking around, mud huts in the background. plus a beautiful bright pink blossomed tree adding to the picture...We spoke for a few minutes, enjoyed some more dancing and then the kids lined up to receive their school supplies.  The young ones received one pencil and four small writing tablets.  The older ones received one pen and four writing tablets.  This was really exciting for them. It is still a cause of wonderment to us on how relatively small things mean so much to the children here.  We hand out sweets that we carry in our car or balloons along the way and the children love it.

We then checked out the grinding mill and when we got back to Harare we bought some ear plugs and a mouth and nose shield for the miller.  The sound of a motor and maize being ground was very loud in the mill, and we are sure the miller will be deaf within a month, and breathing in the maize chaff and dust was also a health concern.  It was a fun and rewarding day.  The African people are such great hosts and always provide us with a drink or a biscuit or something to eat where ever we go.  We then met with the headmaster and school teachers and looked at their accounting books to see how they are keeping track of their money and expenses from the mill.  Elder Bean gave them some good advice on how to account for the money received and how to figure their expenses and what to charge per bucket of maize. They are charging 50 cents a bucket and he thinks they should charge a dollar.  If the people cannot pay in money, then the mill should take a portion of their maize to sell.  This money will then can go to feed the kids. They listened very intently and really appreciated the help and asked many questions on running a business. It is always fun to actually hand over the merchandise that has been purchased with the proceeds from a fairly successful project.

We had a few problems getting the final approval from South Africa for the water project in Muzarabani.  But HOORAY! We finally received approval on Friday, Sept. 10, 2010.  We have most everything in place ready to go, just waiting for the go ahead.  We wanted to get started before the rainy season sets in.  This is an area that has major flooding problems when the rain comes the roads and areas where the boreholes will be drilled, would be made impossible to get the drilling rig in.  It would also make the hygiene and sanitation training impossible, because the training is done outside under trees. We also have arranged to provide, with the villagers help, two latrines per borehole.  We just want to get started and beat the rain.

Children at Water Project Site

First Water Project and Beads!!!!!

Note:  The Blogmaster received this e-mail and pictures a couple of weeks ago, but I am only posting it today due to the technical difficulties.  Look for a follow up blog soon!

Dear Family and Friends:

We are so excited, it took a lot of planning, organization and thought and talking to many people, but we just sent our first large water project to South Africa for approval, This project is located in the northeast district of Zimbabwe where we will drill 24 boreholes, construct 48 latrines and train 2,400 families in sanitation and hygiene and reward them with mosquito nets, hygiene kits, and washing soap for attending the classes. We will hire a water monitor, a sanitation supervisor, and three trainers to train 48 volunteer trainers from the villages for this project.  It will really financially benefit those we hire and help them in future employment opportunities.  We have a wonderful group of people to work with. To show how much the Church is willing to spend to on water and sanitation, we have budgeted about $229, 175 for this one project.

Last week we visited the Goromonzi District, with a man called Pastor Wonder, to assess the water needs of 30 villages in that area. This district is about 20 miles north of Harare. The Pastor had visited us earlier in our office and asked us to accompany him to visit this area. He said they desperately needed clean water, latrines and sanitation/hygiene training. This is another extensive project involving many villages and many people this will be our second water project if we decide to do it. We met with four different groups representing about thirty villages. 

Tafirenyika Villagers

The first village we visited is called Tafirenyika.  The people are so very poor and there is a lot of sickness in this area. There are approximately 1,500 people in this village.  About 400 of them were waiting for us to come and talk with them.  They were sitting in the dirt under a tree; men sitting on one side and women and children on the other.  Men and women do not sit together, even at Church, and that is something the Church is trying to change. We had brought an interpreter, but they also supplied one of their own.

They opened the meeting with prayer and then introduced us in Shona (the local language) and then again in English.  I spoke for a few minutes and then Elder Bean explained the project and the training sessions.  He also explained the incentives offered to attend the hygiene training.  If their representatives would come to all or most of the training sessions, they would receive hygiene kits, and soap, as well as a special certificate of completion with their name of it. The plan is to train a few people from their village and then they will go back to their villages and train the people in what they have learned. The villagers liked the plan and clapped their approval. We are always a little worried, about what is being said, since we don’t speak the language, and their interpreter is promising them more than we are willing to provide.

We then left to meet with the next village – where we explained the project again  We are also asking each village to organize a committee that will take charge and maintain the boreholes, plus build the latrines or “squat holes” as they are called here.  We provide the cement and wire for the latrines and they supply the labor and some sort of a structure.

As we traveled to the next village, we saw women and children washing clothes in the small rivers/streams along the way.  These are the same small streams where they get their drinking water and their animals come to drink and do other things.  This is the dry season so the water is very scarce and only small streams exist. These are also areas that just a few months ago were hit hard with an epidemic of cholera and diarrhea.  It is a prime area to start helping with some water projects and sanitation training.  We also intend to monitor how many illnesses and deaths occurred before we drilled boreholes and started the water and sanitation project and if there is less sickness and deaths after the project is put in place. The roads were terrible and you have to be careful not to hit your head on the roof of the car, because some of the pot holes are so deep. 

After we visited all of the villages, we were told we should, as a courtesy, pay a visit to the “Headman” or chief in that area.  He is not a political leader and does not really have any power or authority, but is a traditional chief, over all the people in this area, and it is a sign of respect to ask his permission to work in his area.  This is part of the culture of the old ways. We drove to his hut and it was a very interesting experience.  He was not in attendance, but his number one wife was in the hut cooking sudza which is flour and maize boiled like porridge and is the staple food in Zimbabwe.  This headman is a polygamist and has two or three other wives, and many many children. The hut we were ushered into was the typical cone shaped hut with a thatched roof.  It had an opening in the roof for the smoke to go out.  The hut was very smoky as the No. one wife had a large fire built in the middle of the hut and was stirring the sudza with a wooden spoon.  She was traditionally built, had bare feet and just a few teeth.  She was sitting on the floor, and was very friendly and offered us a dish of sudza.  We declined very respectfully. There were various pans and containers setting around and a few wooden benches to sit on, actually the hut was larger inside than I expected, but so filled with smoke that I kept coughing and wiping my eyes.  There was another hut close by for the second wife – interesting.  We still will have to go back and inform him of our plans and receive his blessing to work in his area. 

We then visited the head of the government water district whose permission really matters.  He was delighted to have us provide water in his area and even offered to have some of his people assist us, which we are happy to have their support.  There are many layers of political people that have to be consulted before starting any projects. 

Friday evening we met with the stake presidents, counselors, and mission president for the Zimbabwe Coordinating Council – three flew in from Zambia to attend.  I think they also wanted to meet us and also find out what projects we might be doing in their areas.  That is why we were invited.  . We spoke about some of the projects we had done in Uganda and then talked about projects we have already sent in and are awaiting approval. We answered some questions and then we were dismissed to go home. 

The presidents from Zambia were particularly interested. In what projects they wanted us to do.  We will be going shortly to their area to do some investigative work.  They will be invaluable to us.  The area president from South Africa conducted the meeting.  His name is Elder Colin H. Bricknell. 

We were also informed that there will be a Priesthood Leadership Conference with Elder Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve and Elder Steven E. Snow of the Presidency of the Seventy on October 22 thru the 24^th. They will also be accompanied by Elder Paul H Koelliker of the Seventy held in Harare, Zimbabwe.  We are all very excited. The senior couples are invited to meet with them and their wives at a special dinner at the mission home on the 22^nd.  .  While the men are in their priesthood meeting on Saturday, the mission president’s wife will take the wives to visit craft markets.  That will be a lot of fun.

Joseph Smith?

Sunday – August 29, 2010 – Drove to Kadoma for church at our branch – it is about a 2 hour drive.  It was a beautiful drive. We attended church and only had one person ask us for assistance. This is very unusual because usually there are quite a few that ask.  It is always difficult to refuse, as everyone needs help.  The Church is well organized there and all the meetings were excellent. They do a very unique thing.  In between Sacrament and Gospel Doctrine classes, they take a break and everyone goes outside to visit and stretch their legs for about 10 minutes, then a cowbell is rung many times and that means to go to class.  When class is finished the cowbell is rung again and people go outside for a small break, then the cowbell is rung again and we all go back for Relief Society and Priesthood, then they ring it again, which means class is over.  It actually is quite funny and we liked it. On the way back we took a picture of a small hut along the roadside with sacks of oranges hanging outside and a woman with a baby on her back selling them.  When we arrived home we had power, which is so nice and appreciated.

These entrepreneurs had a VERY good day.

Yesterday we visited our assigned second branch. This is the branch that takes four plus hours to drive to.  We always go on Saturday, spend the night and then go to Church at 9:00 the next morning.  When we arrived on Saturday afternoon, we asked the people at the Inn if there was something interesting we could do for the afternoon.  They suggested we drive to the Lake in the area and cross the dam and see the black rock cliffs on the other side.  We drove to the dam and had to stop before crossing because there is only one narrow lane across this very high dam and two cars cannot cross at the same time.  It is a perfect spot for little local kids to storm your truck and try to sell you necklaces and baskets.  So while we waited to cross the dam, about 7 or 8 young boys with necklaces and baskets threaded all up their arms ran to our truck to try and sell us something.  I said to Elder Bean, we should buy a few necklaces from them and help them out.  I rolled the window down, which was a mistake, and about 8 to ten little black arms thrust themselves into my open window.  They were dropping necklaces inside our truck, in my lap and everywhere. in their frenzy to get me to buy from them.  I kept saying wait, wait I can’t even see them.  How much? They said $2.00 each and were fighting each other to make a sale.  I only had four one dollar bills and so I said I will take two. I hardly knew who I gave the money to.  I finally had to roll up the window and it was our turn to cross the dam. 

On the other side we parked and hiked down the overlook to see the Lake, two of the young boys had followed us across the dam and were standing on the rocks waiting for us with necklaces to sell.  We actually thought it was pretty cute that they were such little relentless salesmen.  I told them I did not have any more dollar bills.  I asked Elder Bean to check his wallet again and the boys saw a ten dollar bill in his wallet.  They talked among themselves in Shona, and then came up with the plan that they would sell us 10 necklaces for $10.00.  How could we refuse?  We told them they had a deal, gave them $10.00 and they threw in an extra necklace and a pick for my hair.  We then invited them to come to our truck and gave them some sweets (candy).  We were impressed, what little smart business men.  The necklaces are made of local seeds that they gather and string, but pretty cute.  It was at the end of the day and they had sold all their necklaces for the day, I think to us. They then said, thank you now we have money so we can eat, that made us feel very sad.

We feel so sorry that we could not attend Torri and Rex’s wedding day last Saturday.  I felt sad all day on Saturday.  The sad thing about being so far away is that you miss wonderful important things that happen back home and wonderful family events. . We are so proud of them and so happy for them and we would love to have been at their ceremony in the Seattle temple.  The whole family on both sides attended the temple as well as a very nice luncheon at the Palisades restaurant in Seattle after the ceremony.  We love them both very much and if thoughts could be conveyed from so far away, they knew that we were thinking of them all day on Saturday.  We are anxiously awaiting pictures and information.

Thanks for your prayers on our behalf.  Love to all of you.  Elder and Sister Bean. 

PS.  I am typing this blog in our office and the biggest spider I have ever seen came walking down the hall.  It is huge and very tall with very long legs.   Elder Bean sprayed bug spray on it and it didn’t even phase it.  It just keeps coming.  I was ready to stand on a desk.  Finally, he swept it outside.  This is the first one I have seen since being here.  Yuk!!!!

The Great Zimbabwe, Church and Projects

(Written by Sister Bean with Elder Bean’s input)

Dear Family and Friends:

We have had an interesting two weeks in Zimbabwe. We are responsible for two branches of the Church; one is located approximately two hours away in a town called Kadoma, which is a little south west of Harare. The church building is very nice and looks like a regular LDS church. There were 121 in attendance and the meeting was well organized. Last Saturday we left Harare to attend the Masvingo branch, which is our second branch to visit. It is located approximately four hours away. We had to leave on Saturday in order to be there at 9:00 am on Sunday, since we do not want to drive at night. We arrived in the town of Masvingo early afternoon Saturday and went on a tour of a very interesting world historical site called “The Great Zimbabwe.”

This is the site of some very ancient ruins thought to be at least 800 years old or older. It is the site of an ancient civilization that appears to be fairly sophisticated. The country of Zimbabwe received its name from this site. In 1980 when Rhodesia gained its independence from Britain, the country was then renamed Zimbabwe, which name was taken from this ancient site. The symbol of the bird on the Zimbabwean flag was also taken from an ancient soapstone carving found in these ruins.

Elder Bean checks out the Flora

We hired a guide and she took just the two of us on the tour. It was fascinating. We climbed on ancient flat topped stone steps laid in regular patterns that wound up to the top of a very very very high structure built on the top of a cliff. The walls of this ancient structure were stones placed one on top of each other in a very systematic order without the use of mortar. We can’t imagine how they have withstood the test of time without toppling over. We climbed what seemed to be forever, sometimes through very narrow passages that only one person could barely get through. I was worried about climbing down after reaching the top, as the steps were very hard to stand on and very uneven and some loose and broken. The guide said not to worry that she would take us down the “modern steps” on the other side, which were very easy. On climbing down I asked, “When do we get to the modern steps? The guide said, “Oh, we are there”. I then asked, which I shouldn’t have, are there any snakes here? The guide said, "oh yes, the black mamba, the cobra and the python, and the python is considered sacred by our people and we do not like to kill it. They are all here."

"The Great Zimbabwe"

The site is very large and covers many hectares. We went to the huge round coliseum like structure where the king and queen lived and it was also very large, high, very thick walls and made with these same stones placed one on top of each other. The guide said this was the second largest structure in Africa, only second to the Egyptian pyramids. We really enjoyed this site and want to read more about it.

We stayed at an inn called The Inn of the Great Zimbabwe, and it was very lovely. The gardens were beautiful and it was situated above a beautiful lake. The dinner was served very elegantly and properly with waiters in uniforms, white gloves and we dined in a beautiful room. There was just one other couple and their little six year old boy staying there. The man was in charge of a big game park on the border between Zimbabwe and Mozambique and we had an interesting conversation with them. The child was delightful and very intelligent. He is being exposed to a very interesting life style. The only trouble with our stay was there was no heat or power. We went back to our very nice cold room, lit a candle and brushed our teeth in a cold bathroom and crawled into bed for warmth.

We attended the Masvingo branch the next day, which is another very nice church building. Around the exterior of the church, the members had planted a well kept vegetable garden with onions, carrots, tomatoes, etc. The interior of the church was very clean and the branch president is a very intelligent, impressive man. The congregation was singing as we entered and it was beautiful harmony. We didn’t sing because we just wanted to listen to the beautiful music. The African’s sing the same hymns that we do, but they have a different cadence, kind of lilting –different and very beautiful. Since there was no power, everything was sung without the keyboard. We were asked to speak and share our testimonies. The branch president taught Relief Society and the lesson was about the organization of the priesthood. He did a wonderful job. The members were very friendly and loving and wanted their pictures taken with us before we left. We really enjoyed it. We of course were the only white couple in church, but felt very comfortable. This is the area where they make the beautiful baskets and we want to buy a few the next time we visit the Church.

It took a long time to drive back to Harare, with a lot of big trucks on the road transporting fuel and goods from Johannesburg, which made driving slow and passing tough. There were several toll stations along the way and many policemen standing along the road. They may motion you to pull over, which might be a problem or might not. They waved us through.

The country side is very dry, since the rains don’t come until November. There are hundreds and hundreds of acres of empty fields full of tall yellow grass; some have been burned to keep the grass down. These are the sites where the Dutch farmers once had their farms. There are acacias trees dotted here and there or in groups all over the fields. These are the trees that we always associate with the landscape of Africa, trees that you see in books and movies about Africa. We are sure that at one time long ago these fields and savannahs were filled with elephants, giraffes, etc. The wind blows a lot and so far it has been very sunny, but cool. I am very grateful that a coat was left behind for me by the departing senior couple.

A latrine? Or someone's house?

We are scheduled all this week and next to look for sites to drill for boreholes or bush pumps as they are called here and build latrines, so we will be spending much of our time in the truck. I made a terrible foot-in-the mouth comment a few days ago when we visited a village up north to check out existing sites of latrines and boreholes and where new ones might be needed. We had two of the men from the village in our truck and they were taking us around showing us the locations. We came to a very small narrow structure made with old brick and I said “Oh is this the community latrine”? The man then said: “No this is my mother’s house”. It was terrible and I apologized over and over, while Elder Bean was almost splitting his sides trying not to laugh. Then a woman came to the car and I said to her “Oh are you his mother?” and she said, “no I am his sister”. So in just a few moments I managed to offend the whole family. You can imagine when we returned to our apartment, Elder Bean practically fell on the floor with laughter and he hasn’t let me forget it since.

We are busy and happy, but we miss all our family. We are very sad to not be there for Torri’s wedding in the Seattle Temple and the gathering of the family, but I know it will be wonderful and I will be with her in my heart and thoughts, but would rather be there in body.

New things to buy!

This is a very interesting and fascinating mission and we have met some very interesting people in our travels. We can’t wait to visit Zambia and Malawi to assess their needs and understand we might even be going to Botswana. We are still adjusting to driving, weather and culture, but feel we are really needed here. The new term we have learned here is: traffic lights are called “robots” So we should turn left at the next robot… Pretty cute I think.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers.

Love Elder and Sister Bean

First Week in Zimbabwe

Dear Family and Friends:

We have been in Zimbabwe for almost a week. We left early Saturday morning on July 31st from the MTC and arrived in Harare, Zimbabwe Monday, August 2. It was a 24 hour travel endurance test. We changed planes five different times. We were very tired when we finally arrived. We were met by President Dube, the mission president. He is the first African to be called as mission president in this mission. He is very nice and wanted to make us feel welcome and comfortable. He drove us to the mission office where we met the people we are replacing, the mission office couple and the CES couple. We had hoped to look a little better when meeting the group, but guess they had all gone through the travel endurance test and understood. The mission office and meeting house are next to one another and are quite nice. They both have a great security system with guards and gates. We were then taken to our apartment/duplex to get briefed on how things work and to finally get some sleep.

Our new residence is a duplex with a very pretty fenced in yard. The grounds are very nice and well maintained. It turns out that we pay for that well maintained look. There is one man who mows and another who weeds. We also have a housekeeper, who not only cleans on Wednesday, but washes and irons or whatever you want her to do. Her name is Beauty. The apartment is nice enough, but does not have any heating system. The power has been off each day since we have been here for at least 8 hours or so, so even the small stand alone heater does not provide much warmth. We were surprised at how cold it still is here. We have been told that summer will be coming soon and then it will be very warm. We also have a wood burning fireplace, which we haven’t used yet, but it is nice to know it is there. We have two bathrooms, two bedrooms, a large front room and a kitchen. The other side of the duplex is occupied by the CES couple, who are originally from SLC.

Zimbabwe is not as tropical as Uganda, and it is still quite dry on the sides of the roads and the fields. We are told when the rains come that it will green up and we will see a lot of beautiful flowering trees and bushes. Harare, the capital, is a little more modern than Kampala with paved streets, stop lights, two way traffic and quite a few cars on the road. However, when the power is out, the traffic lights do not work and you proceed at your own risk. As in Uganda, they drive on the left side of the road, with the steering wheel on the right. We will have to get used to that again. Elder Bean is handling it quite well though.
We have hit the road running. We haven’t had time to recover from jet lag, so we are trying to ignore it.

The humanitarian couple we are replacing are Elder and Sister Bullock from Calgary, Canada. They have lined up many things for us to do before they leave. On Tuesday we did project reviews in their/our office at the mission office, met people, had lunch at a place called Blue Banana, did some grocery shopping and were treated to dinner by the Mission president, his wife and the Bullocks that evening at a restaurant called Leonardo’s. We were pretty tired upon arrival at our place and found that the power was out.

We went to a handover on Wednesday at a school called Danangwe, outside the village of Chegutu. This project consisted of providing the school and the village with a grinding mill. One of the chief crops here is maize and in order to turn it into flour they need to grind it. They have been walking great distances to have their maize ground and paying a big sum of money as well. We enjoyed seeing the people and the children and also watching the first sack of maize ground. We were introduced as the replacements for the Bullocks, and as is the custom, given a gift, of two giraffes eating on the top of an acacia tree. This is a statue made out of some sort of soapstone. It is so generous of them. We heard all the speeches, witnessed African dancing by the school children and heard poems of thanks and gratitude from them. We then enjoyed a meal of squash, chicken, greens, sudza, which is like porridge made from corn and a soft drink. The little children are wonderful and Brother Bullock is wonderful with the kids. He played all kinds of games with them and they loved it.

We are planning on doing a large water project on the border of Mozambique, so on Thursday we went to the office and interviewed people to help with the drilling of the boreholes, the site monitors and people to head up sanitation committees. We have met so many interesting and great people. We are driving next Thursday to the area these boreholes will be located in to check out the potential sites. We understand it is quite desolate and very poor. We are taking two men from this area with us and are considering them for our site monitors.

We spent some time on Friday finding out where the market is, the bank, and other necessary things and we have again shopped for a few things we forgot to get and have spent the rest of the day at the office. Our next door neighbors came for a short visit on Friday night and it was great to get better acquainted.
We attended church on Sunday. It was a two and a half hour drive from our apartment, and we will be responsible for helping out there, along with another branch in the opposite direction. The church building was very nice and quite large. There were about 120 people in attendance and the teachers that taught were very well prepared. We were asked to say a few words and give the opening and closing prayer, and Elder Bean spoke again in Priesthood meeting. That evening we had a nice Sunday meal at our neighbor’s apartment and the four couples that are serving here got together and found out about each other. We really enjoyed it.

A fun thing happened today in front of the mission office. We were returning from lunch and there was a young African woman sitting on the grass. As we got closer we could see that it was a girl that had been in our branch in Uganda. Her name is Faith and she led the singing while I played the keyboard. She is now serving a mission in Zimbabwe. We hugged and chatted and Sister Bean noticed that she was wearing one of her skirts that she had left in Uganda. That made her so happy that it again was on a mission, but this time on a pretty African woman. Small world.

We miss everyone and were so happy to hear that Kami and Brent’s little daughter, Sarah Kate, at long last legally belongs to them. It has been a 13 month wait and worry, but it is finally done. There have been a lot of prayers and fasting regarding this event. We feel so blessed, relieved and thankful that it had the desired conclusion. We miss all of our children and pray for them always. We thank all of you for the prayers on our behalf and ask that you continue to remember us in your prayers.

Love, Elder and Sister Bean

Arrival in Zimbabwe!

Hi Family:

We arrived Monday afternoon in Harare.  The flight from Johannesburg to Harare was 10 and a half hours.  It was brutal, but we made it.  We have met the Bullocks, the couple we are replacing.  They are very nice and we have spent the day with them.  We have been grocery shopping and working in their/our office.  We are getting up to speed and finding out about water projects among other things.  Our apartment is interesting, but has a very nice yard with a patio.  It is quite cool here and the apartment doesn't have heat, but they assure us summer is on the way.  Zimbabwe is quitte a bit drier than Uganda, but is still quite pretty.  So far all is well, except we are suffering from a little bit of jet lag.  We will be doing some projects in Malawi and Zambia so this should be intersting and fun.  We miss you guys TERRIBLY!!!  We will send more information when we get set up with our computer.  We just wanted you to know we arrived safely and miss you.

Bean Mission (Part Deux)

Elder and Sister Bean are off again on another mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  They will serve 18 months in the Zimbabwe Harare mission as Country Directors for the Church's Humanitarian Program.  As with their mission to Uganda, the Beans will be responsible for assessing humanitarian needs, overseeing humanitarian projects such as well-digging, wheelchair distribution, sanitation, etc., and working with local government and non-governmental agencies in improving the living conditions in their region.  The mission area covers Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi and the primary language is English, although several native dialects are there as well.

This blog has been established to include postings on their adventures and keep friends and family updated on their experiences.  I will try to update it frequently with pictures and e-mails.  If you would like to be on the notification list, please e-mail me at mattlatimer@me.com, and I'll put you on.   Please feel free to send this link to others you think may be interested.

Elder and Sister Bean enter the MTC on Saturday the 24th (Pioneer Day in Utah).  They will leave the following Friday for a 24+ hour trip to Zimbabwe.  We love and pray for them!  They will be great!