Ape Caves

Well well well, we have had a good week here in Vancouver. We're kind of getting gipped on our sunny season in Vancouver. There are 10 months of rain and 2 months of summer in vancouver. Right now we're in the summer months, but its been pretty cloudy the last couple of days. Anyways, we're going hiking today and I just hope it doesn't rain on our parade. We're hiking the Ape Caves in Mt. St. Helens, so that will be quite an experience. We'll actually be going through the Lava tubes. I wonder why they call them ape caves and I speculated to Elder Hundley that they are infested with wild apes that will rip your arms off if you make them mad. I hope that isn't the case. Anyways we're pretty excited to go to that.

This week we had a class with President Alder, he is the Employment specialist for the branch. He served as a mission president in one of the Chile missions. So he has a class for the spanish missionaries every so often just kind of coaching us on language learning, and making a study plan to improve our spanish. It was pretty good, he taught some good stuff. We found out at this meeting that one of the spanish elders in Longview is going home because of health problems, and that Elder Barton, a zone leader who went home for surgery like a month and a half ago, will be returning to take his place. So we're sad to see Elder Marroquin go but happy to see Elder Barton return.

We had the Branch picnic on saturday, it was a big success. Its fun to see the fellowship of the branch and how involved investigators and Recent Converts already are. Daniela and Salvador, a couple who joined the church several months ago, brought a grill and cooked carne asada for everyone. Carlos was there and he was talking with everyone and joining in with the games and sports that we played, It was really a cool activity. We have a very strong Branch here in Vancouver.

Speaking of Carlos, we met with him during the week and taught him about the Restoration of the Gospel. He took it really well and said he'd pray about it. On Sunday night an older couple in the Branch, the Rodriguez' had Anna Laura, Carlos, and us over for dinner. She made us Mole, which is a special type of sauce poured over chicken usually. After all these months of eating Mole, I found out yesterday, that it has Chocolate in it. That was an interesting discovery. Nonetheless It does taste good! Before I come home I need to learn how to make these things so I can cook la comida mexicana para todos uds. I'd say my favorite food by far is still Carne Asada.

Anyway in church yesterday the announced the 5th sunday fireside again. I think I told you all about it last week, but they're going to cut sacrament meeting a  bit short. Go into the cultural hall and serve sandwiches and then we will be back in the chapel for the special fireside where they will make the special announcement, that the branch will be doing a Pioneer trek next summer. Well at dinner that night with the Rodriguez family they were speculating that they were going to announce they were making the Branch into a spanish ward. We kind of feel bad that they have their hopes up, we hope they'll be happy with the pioneer trek announcement. Hahaha.

So with all that its been a great week. We are looking forward to Zone Conference this Thursday and district exchanges on tuesday. It should be a good week!

Well thats about it! Que tengan una buena semana!

Los Amo!

-Elder Derek Partridge

Couver Town

Hey! Its been a good week here in couver town! Investigators are awesome, except in some cases. One of our investigator's boyfriends told her she can't meet with us anymore so that was kind of a bummer. She was progressing and doing good! Sometimes significant others are the greatest enemy to missionary work. Other than that everyone is doing pretty well. We've been trying to set up a time to teach Carlos, this guy thats dating a woman in the branch. He has come to church with her 3 sundays in a row now, he's just been busy with work so its been hard to set up a day to come by. But we think we've finally got him nailed down, and they're going to have dinner with us at the house of another lady in the branch this next sunday, and we'll teach him there. He is very interested in learning about the church, so this will be good! In Branch council yesterday, President Ross told us they're going to have a special 5th sunday program, to kick off preparation for the Branch Pioneer trek next Summer! I think that is so cool. This branch has a lot of really cool activities so that makes it fun and provides a lot of missionary opportunities! This Saturday we're going to have a Branch Picnic, thats going to be a lot of fun. Elder hundley and I signed up to bring a dessert. So I'll let you know how that turns out next week.

We had a zone meeting on wednesday. Its basically like a zone conference but President and Sister Greer, and the AP's don't come, just the Zone leaders teach. The theme was kind of tied into what we need to do to have the most success in our missions and how to become converted. The answer lies in the phrase "Leave your nets, and follow me" For missionaries we have certain nets. Things that distract us from the work, like whats going on with friends at home, or in the world, sleeping in, listening to music, watching movies, but as we put those aside to follow the savior we become converted and become entitled to the spirit. Same as after the mission, whenever we put anything above keeping the commandments those are like our "Nets" If we love Him, we will "feed [His] Sheep." So what they taught really hit home, I really liked it and it really strenghtened my desires to be better missionary than I am. Well thats about all for this week, Love y'all! Echale Ganas!
-Elder Partridge

Portland Temple

Hey everybody! We've had a good week 2 in Vancouver! Today was actually temple day so thats why I'm emailing on tuesday. We got to go down to the Portland Temple! Portland was really beautiful! I got some pretty good pictures, which I'll send in a later email. It was really cool driving through Portland this morning though, and the temple there is quite beautiful.

Well this week has been pretty good. Its been kind of hard to find some of our investigators, but we did some tracting, and reached our goal for OYM's for the week. We found some good potential investigators up in Ridgefield. There's a trailer park up there and its managed by a member couple, so they told us which trailers the hispanics live in and we went and knocked all of their doors. Some seemed to have some pretty good potential and others, no. We had one guy say he was familiar with our church and he didn't like it so he didn't want to meet with us. I picked up a bit of courage from being with Elder Evans for a transfer to open my mouth more in these situations, so I asked, "Why don't you like our church?" and he told us it was because we read the Book of Mormon and not the bible. So we talked to him about how we use both and how we know that the Book of Mormon, is the word of God, equal with the Bible. So after all that I asked if he still didn't want to meet with us, he still said no, so that was that. I always get a feeling of satisfaction when I get to bear testimony in defense of the Gospel. We encountered another guy the other day. He was up on the second floor of an apartment complex and he kind of gestured like he was shooting us with a rifle as we walked into the parking lot. We kind of ignored him, so he started calling to us, so we asked if we could give him a pass along card. He said sure, so we went over, and he tried telling us there was no God. "There is no god because little children strap bombs to their chests and blow themselves up in the name of Allah." So we kind of talked about how while that was a pretty good indication that there is a devil, that was no indication that their was no God. And he wouldn't really listen and he was really drunk so we bid him good day and continued on our way. So those were two pretty interesting experiences. Other than those two we've found a lot of other pretty interested people, I'm really enjoying Vancouver. Its a very nice place!

Vancouver

 

Well its been a good week! I'm reporting to you live from the Downtown

Vancouver Library. Monday and Tuesday were spent saying goodbye to

everybody in Boardman, and I was up bright and early Wednesday to make

my way over to Vancouver, WA. We met up in Kennewick, and then I got

on the bus which took us back down into Oregon, past boardman, we

stopped in the Dalles, OR and dropped off some and picked up some.
Side note: I got to see Elder Bao at the Dalles transfer site. He was
making his way over to Yakima. Then from there we kept on going,

crossed the river just before Portland and here I am! Vancouver! Its

really pretty here. This side of the state is what you expect when
you're going to WA. Lots of trees and lots of Rain. Luckily I got here
when the rainy months ended.
Well its a really cool place! Kind of wierd to be in the big city
after being in rural areas for 7-8 months. Its kind of a change of
scenery. Its going to be difficult to learn my way around here. Well
there aren't as many hispanic people here as the other side of the
mission but there is a pretty good amount. The branch is strong. A lot
of the leadership is people that aren't hispanic but served Spanish
speaking missions and married hispanic women. So its a pretty good
back bone. We have an Awesome Branch mission leader, Bro. Mendoza. I
was really happy to have a Mission leader since the branch in
grandview didn't. It's a big help. So this week I've been meeting a
lot of people, and teaching some good lessons with Elder Hundley. I'm
finally sending pictures. Some of these are from boardman and some
from Vancouver. Well thats about it! Have a great week everyone!

Elder Hundley

Well I guess I'll start out with the biggest news first, Transfer calls came on Saturday night, and I'm being transferred to Vancouver to work in the Spanish Branch there. This will be good. I'll miss Boardman a lot but Transfers are transfers. I'll be serving there with Elder Hundley, whom I went to High school with and we came out on our missions the same day. So that will be fun. In other news, Elder Bao got called to be a Zone Leader in Yakima, so I'm excited for him! He's an Awesome missionary and was an Awesome Trainer. They've made some big changes in the mission as far as Spanish missionaries go. There used to be 2 companionships of 4. One in Pasco and one in Yakima, but they made those both back into regular Zone leader Companionships. They're also opening a new Spanish area in Benton City. Also one of our Office couples, The Wilsons are going home. We're going to miss them, they've been great.
This week has been pretty good. We made progress with lots of our investigators. Our ward had its monthly Pot luck on thursday and they got a really good turn out. Bishop Rogers brought some of his neighbors and introduced them to us. They were really nice and said the missionaries could come by and talk to them. There is also a lady who teaches piano here in boardman to a lot of member families and she is interested to meet with the missionaries.
I've been studying the topic of conversion lately. Elder Hallstrom talked in conference how conversion to the church and conversion to the Gospel are 2 different things. though they're both important, conversion to the gospel is the weightier matter. One could be converted to the church and fulfill there calling and go every sunday, but its a shaky foundation if they aren't converted to the Gospel. As we become converted to the gospel by developing faith, repenting, renewing baptismal and other covenants, keeping the holy ghost, and enduring to the end, we are built on a firm foundation and we cannot be shaken or fall away.
I'm really grateful for the opportunity to serve a mission and teach people about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and bring them knowledge of the Plan of Salvation. I know these things are true and can bring us more happiness than any other thing in life.
Well I wish a very Happy Birthday to Justin, and another Happy fathers day to Dad,
and a very very happy Birthday and Baptism to RACHEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love,
 Elder Partridge
8202 W. Quinault Ave. # D
Kennewick, WA 99336

Cody

Happy Fathers day! Glad to hear from everybody. Sounds like its been a good week. Things are going great in Boardman. Inez Romero is back working day shift, so we're meeting with them regularly again. On Tuesday, our zone leaders and District leaders and trainers all went to Kennewick for leadership training. So that left me working in Hermiston working with 2 other elders that day. Things are going good with Carolyn, our 80 year old investigator. Yesterday was her 2nd time coming to church, and she has the Gospel Principles manual and Relief Society manual to study from. She's a real nice lady, and she has lived in Boardman since 1947. We had the Young men do some service in the yard of one of our new investigators, Melissa. And we started teaching another new investigator through youth friendship in the ward. We've also set up an appointment to teach a friend of Bishop Rogers and he'll be joining us, so things are going great. On Saturday night we met with our Ward Missionary A-team and Sunday morning we started teaching our Preach my Gospel class to the Ward missionaries and prospective elders. So lots of exciting things are happening.
One cool experience in particular, is we were tracting through some apartments a week and a half ago and bumped into a guy named Cody. He said he goes to a christian Church in tricities. We talked to him a bit longer and he said we could come by that saturday afternoon. We went by then, but he wasn't home. We tried the next week and he answered and said he had to go somewhere that saturday but if we'd come the next one he'd be home all day and he even gave us his phone number to check back with him.  On Saturday we decided to leave the car home and get by with walking and getting rides, so we got a ride with Tory, one of the ward missionaries, over to our appointment with Cody, and found a note on the door that said "Mormons: I'm not interested, Thank you" So a bit disheartened, we left a note on the door that said "Thanks for the note, let us know if you ever need anything" with our phone number. That evening, we were walking, and we had 2 appointments cancel on us so we didn't know what to do. Elder Evans got the thought that we should go to Cody's, (He lived pretty close, and get some water) I wanted to just head back to the church and get ready for correlation. We decided to stop and pray about it, and we both felt like we should go to Cody's house. So we did and he let us in! We talked for a bit, had some water and, we'll probably end up being able to go back and teach him! I'm grateful the spirit directed us back there, and I know that something good we'll come out of it!
Well I'll close with a cool scripture I ran into the other day.
 1 Peter 3:15 But ^asanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give ^ban answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the ^chope that is in you with ^dmeekness and ^efear:

Have a great week everyone!
Elder Derek S. Partridge
8202 W. Quinault Ave. # D
Kennewick, WA 99336

referrals

Hey its been a really good week. The ward has been great, we've been getting all kinds of referrals and the members are awesome. We've been receiving a lot of referrals, Its actually become a challenge to keep up with contacting them all. We're hoping to be able to contact all the ones we haven't contacted yet within this coming week, and also to receive 10 more to replace those ones! For one reason or another we've been teaching the Plan of Salvation a lot this week. It seems like either friday or Saturday we ended up teaching it to 3 or 4 people in one day, and to top it off, Elder Evans gave a talk in Sacrament meeting about it yesterday. I see the reason behind it though, I personally love the Plan of Salvation. Although it is kind of lengthy to teach it is one of the most just, fair, and merciful doctrines. I enjoy teaching people about it. I don't think there is anyone who doesn't love the Plan of Salvation.
Well some exciting things have happened in Boardman this week. We're still visiting Humberto. He's still going strong and his Mother is starting to show more interest. We didn't find our 5 investigators last week but I believe we have the potential to get 10 this week, with the referrals and try backs we have lined up. We got a new Elders quorum President and 3 new Ward Missionaries, including a recent convert of a few months. I'm excited for him, I know it will strengthen him and might even motivate him to put in his papers and serve a Full time mission. The work is on fire here and I'm excited to see more miracles happen.
We've been teaching this Older Lady named Carolyn for about a week. She's been making good progress and came to church this Sunday. The Romeros are back on the map. The mom started working day shift again so she'll be less tired now.
Well Glad to hear from everyone Have a great week!

Sincerely Elder Derek Partridge