Small town/country life has a certain pace and feel that I could get used to.  It's hard to put a finger on it, but there is a certain relaxed openness and interest in others that is really feels nice.  This post attempts to capture some of the personality of the people and place.

Given that we need to wait approximately a month for a new visa to be issued, we were given the option to propose a temporary mission assignment somewhere in the USA.  So we reached out to John Quereto, a former member of the my home stake (Danville CA). He and his wife Cory are serving as mission leaders of the Washington Kennewick Mission.  He responded right away that he would love to have us!  

On Monday Feb 10, my brother Keith picked us up from the SLC airport and dropped us off at the Mission Training Center (MTC) in Provo.  We were one of about 40 missionary couples to arrive that day.  The onboarding process was amazingly smooth, including  young missionaries lined up to take our bags to our room, followed by  orientation and a tour of the campus.

Sunday, Feb 11, 2025 was as special day for us.  

Chris and I are super excited to begin our missionary service for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Porto Portugal Mission!  We catch an early morning flight Monday, February 10 to Salt Lake, where my brother Keith will meet us and drive us to the Mission Training Center in Provo. There, we enjoy a week with other young and "mature" missionaries in training, focused on the wonderful church publication "Preach My Gospel".