Warsaw Zone conference...November 2011

THE WARSAW ZONE: Our biggest Zone and too many names to write here. So I will introduce them to you by Districts.

The Warsaw l District: Elders Krzyminski & Sorn (Zone Leaders), Elders Sheridan, Hannemann (Bialystok), Elders Myler (District Leader) & Walter. Sisters Briggs and Sheets (Family History Center), Sisters Mann & Garcia.

The Warsaw ll District: Elders Murphey (District Leader) and Dopp, Elders Hillyard and Dabrowski (Assistants), Elders Marsing and Roberts (Lublin), Elders Johnson and Curtis (Office Elders). Sisters Jones and Bailey, Sister and Elder Peck (Office Couple).

The Lodz District: Elders Smith, Bode, Basha, Leimer and Gladun (District Leader). Sister Allen and Ellis, Sister and Elder Tarasevich. Before the Conference started, the Sisters got together for a picture! Sisters Bailey, Jones, Mann, Allen, Ellis and Garcia. We have wonderful Sisters in this Mission! Missionaries were mingling in the foyer of the Wolska chapel as they arrived. They were soon sitting in the chapel listening intently...being instructed and edified! Elders Walter, Johnson, Smith, Curtis, Marsing and Roberts.

When it was time for lunch, the Elders were gentlemen as usual and let the Sisters go first.

The sandwiches were huge and delicious! Elders Hannemann, Sheridan, Dopp and Smith.

Sisters Garcia, Jones, Bailey, Allen, Ellis, and Mann.

Elders Dabrowski, Murphey, Curtis, Hannemann, Sheridan, Dopp, Smith, Hillyard, Marsing and Johnson.

Elders Leimer and Myler......and Dominik??? Yes, Dominik attended Zone Conference today! He is a bright young man, and he is going to be a great missionary soon!

While lots of visiting was being done during lunch break, there was mission business being conducted also. Here Elder Gladun, a new District Leader in Lodz, is getting some questions answered from his Zone Leader, Elder Sorn and Elder Dabrowski, one of our Assistants.

Meanwhile, President Nielson and his 1st Counselor in the Mission Presidency, President Jarosz, are discussing some important mission matters. President Jarosz is such a big help to President Nielson. We love him, and appreciate all he does.

We got our great Senior Missionaries together for a group photo: (Back Row): Elder and Sister Tarasevich (serving in Lodz), Sisters Briggs and Sheets (serving in the Family History Center), Sister and Elder Peck (our great office couple) and Elder Simons (CES:Seminary and Institute). Sister Simons was home sick. We missed her and hope she is doing better. Get better soon! We need you!

A big THANK YOU to the Warsaw Zone Leaders, Elder Krzyminski and Elder Sorn, for all they did to make this Zone Conference run smoothly. Great job, Elders!

Now, it was time to celebrate birthdays that had come and gone since the last Zone Conference. As I was calling up the names...

...and handing out the bags filled with homemade M&M birthday cookies....

....it was brought to my attention that we had forgotten one birthday!

President Nielson! Having run out of 'birthday bags' he made due with a 'birthday buka! And we started to sing the traditional Polish Birthday Song....Sto Lat!

A big STO LAT to President Nielson, Elders Marsing, Smith, Johnson, Tarasevich, Myler, Peck and Sister Garcia!

After lunch it was back on task with 'break out sessions where the Missionaries reviewed Using Time Wisely and the Key Indicators.

It was a great Conference. Missionary spirits are high. We are teaching great people. We are baptizing strong new converts. The members are being so supportive in helping with the Missionary effort here in Poland. The church is growing and building strength. It is an honor to serve in this great country with these wonderful Missionaries. We love them all!

At the end of Zone Conference as everyone was packing up scriptures, Preach My Gospel manuals and putting on coats, guess who the most popular person in the room was? Elder Peck! The man responsible for all the reinbursements for travel expenses.

Bydgoszcz Zone Conference...November 2011

It's time for our quarterly Zone Conferences held throughout the country. This time, since we were in Bydgoszcz for Sunday, we decided to start with this great Zone.

What a great group- The Bydgoszcz Zone. Elders Kennedy, Vreeken, Lundin, Tanner, Ball, Sisters Steadman and McAdams, Elders Berry, Waits, Rogers, Buckner and Fletcher. Seated are Elder and Sister Richards and Sisters Sheahan and Leppanen.

The Poznan District- Elders Buckner and Rogers in Poznan, Elders Fletcher and Kennedy in Szczecin. Elder and Sister Richards and Sisters Sheahan and Leppanen also serve in Poznan.

Gdansk District- Sisters Steadman and McAdams with Elders Waits and Berry.

The Bydgoszcz District- Elders Ball, Tanner, with Zone Leaders Elder Vreeken and Elder Lundin.

Zone Conference started at 11:00am and by 1:00pm everyone was ready for lunch. They all lined up and were ready...

but the Sisters went first. Here Sister Steadman is selecting one of the favorites of Bydgoszcz... the mini Pizzas and desserts. They are great.

With all the room in the building, for some reason we all huddle together in just the Kitchen. The food and the company were the best.

Those that had birthdays in the last months were Sister Sheahan and Elders Vreeken and Fletcher. Sto Lat!!!

For the afternoon session, we started off with a wonderful musical number by Sister Sheahan ( she has a fabulous voice!) and accompanied by Elder Rogers. It put our Zone Conference back in the right spirit after an energetic lunch.

The Zone Leaders (Elders Vreeken and Lundin) lead one of the afternoon sessions discussing the importance of the Key Indicators...why we have them and how to use them. They did a great job explaining what we need to do to help investigators progress.

In the other session, the Assistants discussed Planning and Accountability. Here again, a great presentation and discussion. A great day for missionaries starts the night before in planning.

It was time to close so everyone could head to the trains and back to their cities. The Sisters all got together for one last photo. Sisters Richards, Sheahan, McAdams, Steadman and Leppanen. A great day. We are all grateful to be in Poland.

Wonderful things happening in the Bydgoszcz Branch!

Coming into the Bydgoszcz Branch Sunday morning we are met by these great men...

The Bydgoszcz Branch Presidency: Jerzy, President Isaac and Leszek.

The Skurzynski family is there bright and early....there is an exciting event happening in their family today!

Conrad is 12 years old today...Sto Lat!...and received the Aaronic Priesthood. He was ordained by his father to the office of a deacon today in Priesthood meeting.

It was a special day for Renata (shown with her son, Adam). Renata was interviewed for a temple recommend and will be going to the temple in December.

It was a special day for another great family...the Wencels! Adam was given a name and a blessing today by his father, Andrzej.

This is the Gospel Essentials class where the basic teachings of the gospel are taught. It is for new members and investigators attend. Artur did a great job teaching about the gathering of Israel.

Primary! The children love Renata. She does a great job teaching them about Jesus, how we are all children of our Heavenly Father and that they love us. This a wonderful group of children.

Ewa is in the nursery teaching our youngest members (18 months to 3 years) about their Heavenly Father and the principles of the Gospel. Ewa can do anything! She is the best.

Oskar is 18 years old, and he does a wonderful job teaching the 3 deacon aged boys in the Branch. You are looking at 4 potential Missionaries right now!

In Relief Society, Ewa (center)gave a lesson on our Post Earthly Life...the Spirit world (Lesson 41 Gospel Principles). Because Alicja (holding baby) was gone tending to Adam, Jasmin (far right) and I had our own private lesson in the corner on the same subject. Jasmin is an investigator with a great spirit.

The Zalewski family....another great family in the Bydgoszcz Branch. Oliwia was no where to be found.....I will catch her next time!

And of course, our hard-working Bydgoszcz Elders...Elders Ball, Vreeken, Lundin and Tanner. They are teaching those that want to know the truth about the gospel in Bydgoszcz. Elders Ball and Vreeken were introduced at Church today and welcomed into the Branch.

This was our destination. The bridge by the Opera House in downtown Bydgoszcz.

This was what we were planning to leave behind. (A big THANK YOU to a certain YSA from Warsaw who shall remain nameless who helped us find someone to engrave a lock) Our lock was engraved with "Stan & Judi" and "1976 - Eternity" and we will leave it behind, locked on the bridge.

This bridge is home to hundreds of locks that are engraved with couples names on them and the date of their marriage.

This looks like a perfect spot to me! We want to blend in with the crowd.

We hope we can remember where we locked it on the bridge the next time we visit Bydgoszcz.

Say goodbye to the keys...

They're off into the cold water below. So our lock is on the bridge and we have a great memory in Bydgoszcz (along with the hundreds of other wonderful memories and things about these great people, members and this branch). We love the Church here and all the good things these members are doing.

Tomorrow we start Zone Conferences and I have the first 30 minutes.....I better get on it.

MORE Great things keep happening in Katowice!!!

Two more baptisms AND a new Branch Presidency are bringing a lot of great changes to the Branch in Katowice.

Robert was baptized by Adrian. Here they are shown with Elder Jensen and one of our newest missionaries who just arrived last week, Elder Van Bakel.

Adam was baptized by Rafal. Elder Seibert and newly transferred Elder Klosowiak are also pictured.

On Sunday, the Branch Presidency was reorganized.

(L to R): Grzegorz (Clerk), Marek (1st Counselor), Elder McGrath (Branch President), Adrian (2nd Counselor), and Rafal (Executive Secretary). Brethren growing in the priesthood and in leadership. This is a tremendous thing to watch. This branch is being taken over by active Polish Melchizedek Priesthood men who are leading and accomplishing great things.

Someone in Poland had a birthday!

One of the great men in Poland is Michael Isaac. He had a birthday on the 11th and we all went out to dinner to celebrate. He is currently serving as the Branch President in Bydgoszcz. We love he and Renata, his wife, for all they do and their examples. Sto Lat!

A baby shower!

Some of the sisters in the Warsaw I Branch got together tonight to celebrate the soon-to-be born baby of my good friend, Agnieszka, and her husband, Rafal. Little Maria is supposed to make her entrance into the world on December 25th! Both mother and father are doing well! We got the Zone Leaders off and then I ran over to this fun get together. It was so good to have so many join this happy occasion. Pictured L toR: (Standing) Erin, Kasia, Magda, Sylwia, Beata and Sister Briggs. (Sitting): Liz, Beata (Isaac), Agnieszka, and Sister Sheets.

Zone Leader Council brings lots of changes...

Four hours after saying goodbye to our departing Elders, we had our 6 Zone Leaders coming in from Bydgoszcz, Katowice and Warsaw for our monthly Zone Leader Council. With the recent transfer came many changes in our mission leadership...including our Zone Leaders.

Pictured above are our current Zone Leaders along with our great Assistants, Elders Dabrowski and Hillyard.

Elder Sorn and Elder Krzyminski will be serving together as the Warsaw Zone Leaders. Elder Sorn remains a Zone Leader, but Elder Krzyminski came in from Gdansk and was serving as a District Leader.

Elder Lundin and Elder Vreeken are the Zone Leaders in Bydgoszcz. Elder Lundin remains in Bydgoszcz as Elder Vreeken transfers in from Warsaw l.

Elder Siebert remains in Katowice and Elder Klosowiak leaves Krakow as a District Leader and joins Elder Siebert as Zone Leaders of the Katowice Zone.

The Zone Leaders set goals for December and for the end of the year. They spent time reviewing the definitions of the Key Indicators. Also plans were made for Zone Conferences starting Monday in Bydgoszcz. Tuesday will be a travel day and conferences in Warsaw on Wednesday and Thursday in Katowice.

During a break, they all had a chance to review the final draft of the Dobra Strona before it went to press and will be distributed next week during the meetings.

Our office staff, Elders Johnson and Curtis, play a big part in keeping everything going, answering and distributing referrals plus so much more. They also help put out a monthly mission newsletter that keeps the mission informed. Thanks so much.

Today was November 11th so it was Independance Day in Poland. There wasn't much traffic on the roads so by 5:00pm when the Zone Leader Council ended it was pretty easy sailing back to the train station for everyone to catch their rides home. It was a great day with new wonderful and strong Zone Leaders. The mission is in great hands with these leaders.

Now, on to the next activity.....