Miracle in Frankfurt



LDS Temple in Frankfurt Germany
and site of Welfare Services Conference

Even before we left the USA for Cape Verde we expected to have one opportunity to visit Frankfurt Germany during our mission. Frankfurt is the seat for the European Area of the Church, including Welfare Services. Our supervising couple. Elder and Sister Leonard, sit there along with John Mulligan our Welfare manager.

The Leonards started planning a welfare services missionary conference last summer and gradually put together all the plans and preparations for the 10 welfare services missionary couples to come together in March.

The conference in Frankfurt was a long awaited experience for us. As it approached, the greatest anticipation for us was the opportunity to attend the temple again after 9 months away, the longest absence in over 40 years.

Couples serving all over Eastern and Southern Europe,

and Cape Verde

in LDS Humanitarian Services

About a week before leaving for Germany we were visiting with Maria Rodrigues as home teachers and asked her about the work for her husband who had passed away the end of January 2011. The impression came to us to offer to do the temple work for her husband while we were in Germany. She immediately accepted our offer, almost without belief, and we began laying plans to gather the information to submit his name. She would need to do their sealing at a later date when she could get back to the temple herself. She is one of the few endowed members of our branch.

We agreed to meet Sunday after church to input the necessary information and submit to New FamilySearch to get clearance to do his temple work. By Sunday she had his birth, death, and their marriage certificates. We set her up with an LDS account and looked in to see what was there. We found her husband already there and entered his death date. Unfortunately FamilySearch would not allow us to submit his temple work since it still listed him as living. Why, we didn’t know.

It's hard to describe the joy of the temple.

The Leonards rescued us from the Frankfurt cool

with winter coats ready at the airport.

We successfully brought lots of sunshine from

Cape Verde rendering the coats only needed at night.

That began a search for the problem and a request for help from the FamilySearch support team. They immediately sensed the urgency of the opportunity and seemed willing to do whatever was necessary to help resolve the problem. We involved our branch president to see what could be done through the church membership record system. Janet handled all the communication and did a superb job.

It looked like the problems centered around the fact that when Maria was baptized they created a membership record for João also, and that membership record still showed him alive. We now had two problems, a membership record showing him as a member, which he was not, and also showing him as alive, which he was not.

The date for our departure was rapidly approaching with no solution in sight. At the last minute FamilySearch support asked for proof of his death. To make sure we didn’t miss anything, we made a last minute hike to Maria’s to make photocopies of all the documents she had. We also had her sign a statement we wrote out for her declaring that her husband had never been baptized.

With these roadblocks still unresolved we left for Germany. At the time we felt like a miracle would come and somehow we would be blessed to do the work for him, but FamilySearch still said NO.

Participants taking a break to get

better acquainted during the conference

As soon as we arrived at the temple, we went to the family history library next door. The German staff didn’t seem to understand our anxiety (or our English) and none of their computers were going to let us check FamilySearch. Finally Dennis commandeered a directors computer and we managed to login to FamilySearch. What was the answer? When we saw the blinking green arrow we knew that the miracle had been granted and the work was ready for us to do.

Entrance to Frankfurt Germany Temple

We immediately paused to offer a prayer of thanks to the Lord and for the FamilySearch support team who had sensed the importance of this work. Our prayers the days leading up to this point had communicated a quiet assurance that a miracle was forthcoming.

Guess who celebrated a birthday

during our time in Frankfurt.

Janet felt very loved by the

other Sisters at the Conference.

60 years and young.

Our need for help was not over yet. Thanks to sister Jennifer Laird, an English-speaking worker in the Frankfurt temple, we were able to understand the temple limitations and to schedule the baptism and confirmation for the next morning and the initiatory the next afternoon, right before the conference scheduled endowment session. We allowed a ward group doing baptisms to do those first ordinances. How sweet it was to enter the initiatory room with João de Deus Rodrigues’ name on a blue card and begin his endowment.

João's temple ordinances have been
completed and recorded, on Janet's birthday

The rest of the conference was wonderful too, but this was the miracle and the icing on the cake. The next part of the story was equally as wonderful, sharing the full story of this miracle with Maria back in Mindelo.

For P-Day on Saturday we visited

the Braunfels Castle

for a little Germanic culture

Throughout the conference we heard reports on water projects in Bosnia, winter relief success in Montenegro, wheelchairs in Slavakia and Czech Republic, and many other inspiring and instructive stories. We want to be better welfare services missionaries as a result of the conference and feel much gratitude to all who made it possible.

Acampamento em Ponta do Sol

Here is the encampment group

 Greetings from the Centro para Joven Adultos Solteiro,  

or in English, The Center for Young Single Adults. 

In addition to our assignment as humanitarian missionaries, we are the "mature" couple that supports the Centro. We have 2 activity nights - Wednesday is Family Night, Friday is Activity Night. Tuesdays & Thursdays are Institute nights which are taught by the Institute director.

To escape the negative influences of Carnival, the Center sponsored an encampment in Ponta do Sol, a small village on our neighboring island of Santo Antão. It was also an opportunity to build unity among the Young Adults of the district, which includes the 2 branches on Santo Αntão. This was proposed and planned by the youth themselves.

Beginning on Monday, Feb 21, the first leg of our journey was the ferry to Santo Antão. It was an early ride - be at the ferry by 6:30 a.m. But, of course, we had some dashing in after 7:30. The boat left at 8:00. Everyone was in high spirits. Tommy  brought his guitar and breath driven mini-keyboard and the group enjoyed singing and laughing!The tourists on the boat enjoyed it too, taking picture of the "locals".

 As we left the bay, the view back to Mindelo was beautiful with the clouds and haze. It was quite windy and notice the choppy waves. Soon the singing and laughing stopped - at least for half the youth who got a severe case of sea-sickness. Fortunately, the ferry personnel always hand out small plastic bags. Every one was used. I am fortunate that I don't get sea sick and I went to the lounge during the singing to get out of the wind. So I missed all the fun! Dennis did come find me to get the plastic bag I usually take - just in case.

Fortunately, the trip was only one hour or so. But, granted that is very long if you are sick.

Here we are - safely back on land - with all the suitcases, sound equipment and food. The youth were really good to help carry everything on and off the boat.

 The second leg of the trip was piling into a bus and a hiace (so named because nearly every van is a Toyota model named Hiace). There were about 34 of us from Mindelo. We stopped to pick up 6 or so YA in Porto Novo on Santo Antão and took off for Ponta do Sol, about a 45 minutes drive around the island. There, we met up with the 8 or so young adults from Ponta do Sol.

The bus is made to be very full. I am actually sitting in the aisle. They have fold-down seats for the aisles. So you always fill up the bus from back to front! Vera, sitting next to me, was the instigator for this encampment and is a member of the Center presidency.

The School where we stayed. It was the perfect size. Two classrooms had been emptied of chairs and tables for the dormitories. There was a central courtyard for games. And a sufficient kitchen! What more do you need.

Jamming in the courtyard.

As soon as we arrived at the school, I claimed my 4 inch foam rubber pad. But then, Sis. Pasquinha invited us to stay at their house. James, the 1st counselor in the district presidency, was also there and he stayed at the school. So, we felt it would be a service to the youth to free up 2 foam pads for them and go sleep on the Pasquinha’s warm and comfortable bed. We were a little uneasy because it was their own bed. But, they insisted and there wasn’t much we could do. So, we stayed warm and slept well. I did leave all my blankets (but one which I used) at the school for various young women to use. I was prepared for it to be really cold at night!!

Playing basketball in the courtyard. Volleyball, soccer, and frisbee were also popular activities

  The number one concern in this type of activity is FOOD!! Jovens are always hungry. Schools in Cape Verde prepare a lunch for the students, so every school has an equipped kitchen.

Here is the basic kitchen! Those are really big pans - probably at least 5 gallons. There is a big burner  that they sit on which is attached to a propane gas tank. The school had 2 burners and Sister Pasquinha brought her stove/oven from home. (Don't worry, the stove/oven, like all stoves here, is light weight and, like the burners, is fueled by a gas tank) It takes a LONG time to get that much water to boil, even on those big burners.

A kitchen crew peeling potatoes. We went through about 50 pounds of potatoes. This is the other side of the kitchen with the sink and storage space under the counter. You can see Sis. P's stove in the foreground.

More kitchen crew. Our head cook, Sister Pasquinha, is in the orange shirt on the left.  Katy on the right is one of our Mindelo YA. The sister missionaries came each day to help and to eat! This is the 3rd day in Cape Verde for the sister missionary in the blue shirt!

Dinner is ready!

Dinner is being eaten!

Please, may I have some more?

 We had plenty of food and it all was very Cape Verdean and very good! We did go through quantities - like 60 kilos of rice (that's before cooked) which is over 120 pounds. Left-overs were available for between meal snacks and everything got eaten!

One of the clean-up crews!! These are the school dishes and Anderson took great care to make it beautiful!! The pan has holes in the bottom and is not only the dish drainer for the plates, but the storage container as well. Once full, you just cover it with a towel until the next meal.

 On Tuesday, the second day of the encampment the first activity was a beach clean-up service project. The beach was just down the street, so everyone donned on the "Mãos que ajuda" (or Helping Hands) vests and went to work. One important area to be cleaned was where baptisms are performed!

Working hard!

Here is the baptismal font for the local branch,
and a very beautiful place to tidy up for a baptism on Saturday

The clean-up crew.

 Fishing is an important industry for Ponta do Sol. Just above the beach where we were working, there was a fishing boat under construction. Getting materials is a big challenge. A boat can be made in 2-3 months, if there are no delays in getting the needed materials.

A real fisherman's wharf!
The fishing boats are resting for the day but will be out later!
Fredson is one of our future missionaries.

 After the service activity (and lunch) we went on a hike. We started out as a group, but Dennis and I aren't that fastest of walkers. First, we have to enjoy the scenery. And, second, Dennis has to take pictures! Both are essential. The hike was supposed to take 1 1/2 hours. We took a lot longer!

Here we are going up the road. Cars can and do travel on the road, but it is a narrow, one lane road and few places to pass. Ponta do Sol in in the background. And the steep cliff down to the ocean is right next to the road. Fortunately, in places like this, they build stone walls so I didn't feel threatened with sure death by fall.

Believe it or not, this is a pig condominium. Each of the little stalls houses one pig that belongs to a family in the village. It is an important source of meat for them. It is also great  for recycling kitchen left overs and scraps! The Pasquinha's pig had some great feasts during our encampment! We carefully separated the food scraps from the other garbage.

We are getting a little higher. Ponta do Sol is that little village. You can see the road as it winds around the mountain.

Picture time! The scenery was incredible!

We went around a corner, and there was this little village,
Fontainha, hanging on the edge of a cliff.
You can see the road leading into the village. We will be there soon.

Getting a little closer.

Here we are in the town. Not much road! In fact, the road stops at this village. But a great, cobblestoned trail goes on and begs us to continue! We will go back this summer with our daughter, Elizabeth, to explore the next village!

More of our YA hikers! (L-R)  Elvis, Saturmino, Igor, and Danilson. Igor is president of the Center and since we were gone to Praia the week before the encampment, he had to shoulder much of the work. 

Also, look very carefully at the houses in the background. And then look at the next picture.

These are the same houses -- just their back yard, or lack of it. The houses are built with the back wall an extension of the cliff below. And they only finished and painted the front of the house. I am sure I would not worry about painting the back.

More beautiful scenery.
You can see the road wall at the bottom left corner.
They do leave gaps in the wall about every 6 - 10 feet to let rain run-off exit the road.

We arrived back at the school in time to help prepare dinner. I spent most of my time in the kitchen. First, it was warm and the weather outside unusually cool and windy. I wore my sweater every day, all day! So, the warmth from the burners was welcome. Also, cutting onions, peeling garlic and other activities do not require Portuguese!! I actually felt like I was contributing to the event.

One cooking project I helped with was making cakes. This is not at all like cakes in the US. And it is all by hand with wooden spoon. You beat it (by hand) until all the large crystal sugar is dissolved. It can take an hour or more to mix up a cake. We made (2) 2-kilo batches - each batch with 2 Kilo of flour & sugar, ½ kilo butter and 24 eggs. It took all Monday afternoon and night and we had to save the dough and finish cooking cake Tuesday morning.

After the hike and dinner on Tuesday, Dennis and I searched out and visited the grandmother of a brother in the Church who lived in Ponta do Sul. She gladly invited us, total strangers, into her one room home. Even though small, it was very clean and dinner was ready on the table, covered with a clean dish cloth. She spoke Kriol, Dennis spoke Portuguese and I got a word or 2 here and there. But we were able to communicate sufficiently so she understood we knew her grandson and she told us about the rest of her 7 children.

Sister Broderick with Antonia Maria 

 The final event of Tuesday was the Baile - or dance. The sound system we brought from Mindelo worked really well. It was too loud for Dennis or I. But everyone else enjoyed it.

Bela making decorations for the dance.

Decorations are up. The food -- including 4 kilos of cake -- is ready to eat.
It was Manuel's birthday, which made a good reason to make cake!! 
Ready, set, ... Dance & eat.

The YA crowd! The girls were always dancing as there were a lot more young men.

Introducing some of our Young Adults! We enjoy working with them and truly love them and desire their happiness. There are many challenges they face, but the church gives them direction and hope. Every morning, as we returned to the school, all the youth were in the cafeteria, quietly studying their scriptures for about an hour. There was a sweet spirit of reverence!

Left to right: Mila, Jodi, Alcidia, Vera, Loriana

Emanuel & Elton (Elton is the president of our Branch - just called last December)

L-R: Anisia, Odair, Valdir, João (ready for baptism), Marlino

Danilson, Eva (from Ponta do Sol), Flavio

Wednesday morning came. The activities between breakfast and lunch were cleaning (and they worked hard) and a testimony meeting.

Then Lunch and goodbyes!

The youth either had a book to sign - or their shirts. We felt that the unity between the youth from the 3 different places was greatly enhanced! The man in the background is President James Tavares, 1st counselor in the district presidency who was there the whole 3 days.

The bus and hiace arrived, we piled all our stuff on top - but no food. We ate it all!

The ride on the bus was largely uneventful before and after Paúl, but in Paúl we found Carnaval in full swing. There is only one road way through town and you can see below that it was not open.

We had not missed Carnaval afterall.
Question: How do you get through this throng of people filling the roadway completely?
Answer: Very carefully, driving up on the sidewalk to the left.

Carnaval includes lots of dance and musical performance, so we are told, but it also includes the King and Queen and all their attendance. Something was going on up on the stand and this must be the royalty. There has to be more to the story, but it remains a mystery to us for now.

The King, Queen, and their attendants
play some unknown part in Carnaval.
You may know the answer, but we don't.

We finally made it back to the boat landing and our ferry ride home.

On the boat, ready to return. I have half a mind to stay, but the other half says that a warm shower is worth the trip home!

We were ready to go! Or were we. Oh, no! Where was Jodi?? We had arrived 45 minutes early, given each their return ticket and said, "BE BACK BY 4:30!" The boat left at 5:00. Well, Jodi wasn't back. We waited, and looked. Finally, about 4:55 or later, a taxi rushes to a stop, some people get out and start running! Yes, it was Jody and her Porto Novo friends that lost track of time!!

Even though we teased her, we were VERY thankful Jodi arrived safely. I wondered if she had to leap over a gap onto the boat, as we were underway before she rushed up the stairs.

There was more singing and fun on the way back but those that got sea sick took precautions (lay down and sleep). Despite the heavy waves and tossing of the boat, we arrived all in good health.

It was a good encampment. We were all tired, but also thankful that we didn't need the first aid kit. We were thankful for the good spirit and camaraderie among the youth.  All is well!