Category: Alameda

Okay, I will try to get out a better letter this week, for those of you that still read haha. First of all, we received transfer news last night and Hermana Rollins and I are both staying in Aibonito for at least another 6 weeks! Yay!!!

We have been finding a lot of solid people this week, many of whom have been prepared by meeting with missionaries a long time ago. We have also been finding a lot at the casa of a member named Ivetter by reading the Book of Mormon with her. Another thing that has helped us is that we have been walking a TON. We have barely any miles after all of things that have already happened this month, so September is going to involve a lot of walking for us.

We also had a fabulous zone conference this week! We got up super early and got ready in the dark because the power went out the night before, and then we drove all the way to Carolina which is about 2 hours away. We had a general authority come! Elder and Hermana Gonzalez taught us lots, and I got to talk to Hermana Cordova who finally got here in the middle of last transfer! That night, we also had a huge miracle. We have been trying to meet Irelyn’s mom because she doesn’t let her come to church anymore and won’t let her get baptized. Well, all 4 of our appointments canceled on Friday night so we ended up grabbing dinner in Wendy’s, and Irelyn was there! We talked for a while and then we got to meet her mom when she picked her up! That night we also taught some amazing teenagers, a brother and a sister. It is so cool because Elder Gonzalez told us we really need to focus on finding youth here in PR.

Yesterday we had stake conference in Caguas and it was super spiritual. They focused on a lot of basics like keeping the Sabbath day holy and paying your tithing, and then President Smart spoke and it was really interesting. He talked about how God created everything spiritually before he created it physically, and that’s what we need to do here with a temple. Basically, they need to be more spiritually prepared before they can receive a temple here in PR. One suggestion he had was to make your homes mini temples. I really liked that, so I want to invite each of you to first, make your home a mini temple, and second, attend the temple as often as possible! I promise that these things will bless and unite your families like never before! You will know God better and have more peace in your lives as you focus on the temple and having the Spirit in your homes. I love all of you! Never stop smiling and pressing forward!

Hermana O’Barr

So this will be quick again, I am sorry!

This week we put Anangeli on-date for baptism, she is the cutest and I love her! She and her boyfriend both came to church this week!

We had interviews, which were good. We ate at a lot of yummy panaderias. Everyone is freaking out about a hurricane but I think we will be fine. I ate fish cooked by Hermana Cartagena and I actually liked it *gasp* I think it’s just because Hermana Cartagena is such an amazing cook haha. Ummm yeah, sorry for this trash email. I think I have finally reached the point where I am lacking in motivation to write a weekly haha. I love you all, and I will do my best to write more next week!

Love,
Emma

The first person we found this week was so awesome! Karina already loves reading the Bible and told us how she understands the importance of making time for scripture study every day. We asked her to incorporate the Book of Mormon into that awesome study time she already has each day and she said she would!

We also finally had a lesson with a new person we’ve been trying to meet with for quite a while, and it was amazing!! We taught Esmerelda the whole Restoration of the gospel and she was really interested in learning more. But, she told us she will be moving to California in about 2 weeks! We are going to teach Esmerelda again this week and invite her to be baptized, then make sure to send the missionaries in CA over to teach her!

We also had a ward game night this week that we’ve been wanting to start. And there were a ton of non-members there! It was so great and I am excited to see what more will come of it. Another fun moment this week was doing a zone service for this hippie who has a ton of turkeys and plays electric guitar. It was quite the experience haha.

The second person we found this week was a huge miracle! We started off power hour in an apartment complex that we had prayed about and felt that we should visit. After knocking a few doors, though, we both felt that we shouldn’t be there and that there was somewhere else we needed to go. We prayed again and picked somewhere a few minutes away. When we got out of the car again and walked towards one of the apartment buildings, I saw a huge no trespassing sign and almost just turned around to head back to the car again. But just as I was about to do so, a bunch of little girls came around the corner of the building and asked us what we were doing. We told them we teach people about Jesus, and they immediately exclaimed that their parents would love that and ran upstairs to get their dad. He came and out and didn’t appear to be that interested at first. But as we offered him a Book of Mormon, his face lit up and he said, “That’s the book I’ve been wanting!” We handed him the copy and explained a little about the book and about how much our message was going to bless his family. We prayed together with him and his little girls, and set up a return appointment! It’s crazy how often we get to see the Lord blessing and guiding us to his children who are searching for the truth. I am so grateful for experiences like these.

Hermana Capron and I had the privilege of playing a musical number together in our sacrament meeting this week, and I’m really grateful we were able to do that together before I leave. She is doing awesome and we have been working really hard. We’ve achieved a lot of our goals this transfer, personally, as a companionship, and for the area. And even though things aren’t nearly as hopping as they were before, we’ve been able to find satisfaction in the work because we are working together and by the Spirit. I am happy and ready for one last week in this area!

I still don’t have my exact flight plans but I know that I will be flying out with another elder at around 7 in the morning on Monday. It’s so trippy to think that I’ll be in PR in less than a week! I have been so grateful for my time here in the WVM! I’m a little bit nervous for what is ahead, but I know it’s the Lord’s will that I go to PR at this time and that there are people there I need to meet!

Love,
Hermana O’Barr

P.S. Sorry my email is so late, we took a zone hike today!!!

These pictures are all from today’s hike, sorry I’m so bad at taking pictures, mom!

Time for yet another weekly email haha. We have had such a great week and I have lots of miracle stories to share with all of you! But first, a little update on our person who was on-date for baptism, Teresa. She has not been in contact with us since we went to the temple visitors center with her like 2 weeks ago, so we decided to take her off date. We were hoping to meet with her and just change the date instead of taking her off, but we haven’t been able to see her so that is pretty disappointing. However, it was very exciting to find a bunch of new people this week because I’ve definitely seen how that continual finding leads to having more solid people to teach.

I hit my 9-month mark, which is a strange day because it’s another time when I get smacked over the head and realize just how much I need to make all of this time count! It was an awesome blessing to be able to go to the temple and celebrate though, the mission temple trip couldn’t have had better timing. I am so grateful for the past 9 months and the many things I’ve learned during that time. Even though I still have so much progress to make, it’s such a blessing to be able to look back and see that Heavenly Father truly has been shaping me into a better person, day by day. I only hope I can keep progressing and learning as much or more during this second half of my mission!

We had an incredible lesson with a lady named Yoanna on Friday. The elders came and gave her son a blessing because he has severe disabilities and recently got sick on top of all of that. Yoanna was so touched by it and we reviewed what we had taught her about the Restoration, and then felt prompted to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. We applied the training we received from the assistants about asking questions and using the scriptures. It went so well that she was practically begging for more information, and committed herself to praying about baptism and reading and studying the Book of Mormon more! It was so cool! Hopefully the next time we see Yoanna we will be able to teach her the Plan of Salvation and put her on-date for baptism.

Saturday was also a day full of miracles! Our neighbor Allen came to the stake picnic we had and we found 3 new people to teach during power hour!!! One of them asked exactly how he could come to know that the Book of Mormon is true and said he was going to call and tell us how it’s going! We also got tracked down by the daughter of a potential we were going to visit before we could even get to her door. They were in a hurry to leave so we couldn’t pray, but she and her mom told us how excited they are for us to visit and that we can come any day!

I have felt recently that my ability to be guided by the Spirit has grown and I am so grateful for that! I want to keep working to develop that skill of having my ear closely tuned into the Spirit and being brave enough to follow it. It isn’t always easy, but it does lead to blessings and miracles!

I am grateful for Hermana Capron and her hard work. We have been having a good transfer together even though it has been very very difficult at times. We also have a sweet youth who has been loving coming out with us! I feel like the work with all of the people we’re teaching is moving in a good direction and that we will see at least two or more baptisms within August and September.

Other interesting things of note about this week:
-We got scammed by a sex offender who is targeting sister missionaries.
-My district needs to stop going out to eat because wow it was hard to buy groceries today!!
-I can’t go to the temple with Ali because he didn’t have time this week and the temple closed on Saturday for 2 weeks. Sad face.
-While we were tracting we decided to follow some really loud music we heard. It took us to the most lit block party ever, complete with a band that was entirely comprised of these marimba-type instruments made of giant pvc pipes. It was pretty legit. You never know what to expect next, my friends.
-Wild blackberries are everywhere here and the locals hate it, but wow they are AMAZING.
-We knocked on the door of a salesman and he gave us kudos because apparently the salespeople think we’re even more hardcore than them ahahaha.

Anyway, I always try really hard to think about what to share with all of you each week, and this week I want to encourage each of you to watch the 3-part video series that the church has just produced about Reyna I. Aburto, the new Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency. She has gone through so much in her life, and it’s very cool to see how she has applied the gospel to help her overcome these challenges, and now to help lead one of the biggest women’s organizations in the world. Even if you aren’t a member, give it a watch! Her story is amazing because she has succeeded despite really difficult challenges, and she still is able to find such great joy in her life! I love you all, and I know that the Savior is always waiting with open arms for the moment you decide to turn to Him!

Have a great week!
Hermana O’Barr

Happy Tuesday, everyone!!! A quick notice: If you are too busy or lazy to read my monstrous emails but want an update on Puerto Rico, skip to the bottom! Those that truly love me, keep reading hahaha.

Well, it’s been another great week back in Alameda. It has been pretty tough getting people to church, but we think there will definitely be some people there this week! I am also SO excited because one of my recent converts, Ali, just got his first temple recommend! What an amazing blessing it is to see him progressing so much in the gospel and preparing to extend the same blessings he’s received to his ancestors! That helps me see that we truly are helping to move the work forward on both sides of the veil. I can’t wait to go to the temple with him

I also felt very blessed to have been able to go to zone conference and receive so much revelation this week. The assistants gave a training about teaching by asking questions and using the Book of Mormon that has helped me improve my teaching skills so much in just a few days!

We did have some pretty rough power hours this past week. Power Hour is the time we take every day from 5-6 or 6-7 to be completely dedicated to finding new people to teach unless we already have a lesson planned during that time. It’s been nearly 100° every day (help, we don’t have AC or fans!) and most people’s reactions have been ranging from completely uninterested to bashing this week, but we’ve seen lots of cool little miracles! After our dinner yesterday, we had our member pray and pick a place for us to go for power hour, and we were able to find a lady who wants to come to church. We then told our member what happened and she got really excited!

We also had the privilege of going on exchanges this week! I got to go with Sister Rugg to her area, and we ended up finding a new person to teach for our area! Sister Rugg is so awesome and she did a lot to teach me, build me up, and motivate me. I’m grateful for the day we were able to spend together.

Another amazing privilege this week was being able to go back to Van West for the baptism of Lina!! She is an incredible 17-year-old who has one of the strongest testimonies I’ve ever seen. She is going to be a huge asset to that branch and an example and leader for the other youth.

Wow, it’s been an incredible week, like always! Hermana Capron and I are doing good together and we’ve developed a great friendship. She is fun, obedient, and hard-working. It has honestly been pretty frustrating to work with our tiny group so far this transfer because we haven’t been able to get any Hispanic members to come to lessons with us, but Hermana Capron has a positive attitude and a willingness to work hard and work together with me, which I really appreciate.

Anyway, I wanted to talk to all of you for a bit about the Holy Ghost because we got to hear some bomb talks in sacrament meeting about this very topic! I want to extend to you some of the same invitations we received. First of all, think about how the Spirit speaks to you! Is the Spirit your best friend? What source do you turn to first for guidance and answers? If the answer is Google, I totally feel you, but you might want to reevaluate! Also, don’t just pray for God to solve your problems–ask for the Spirit to inspire you and let you know how you can be part of the solution (see the talk, “Take the Holy Spirit as Your Guide)! Two of the best ways we can always have the Spirit with us is to be obedient (be pure and loyal to the Lord), and to repent (or turn/return to the Lord) the minute we realize we have made a mistake. These two things will allow you to have the Spirit guide you and comfort you in every moment! What an amazing blessing!

Alright, now that I’m through with my spiel, I’ll tell you the juicy news you’ve all been waiting for–I’M GOING TO PUERTO RICO ON AUGUST 6TH!!! 🇵🇷🇵🇷🇵🇷 WOOT WOOT!!! I hit my halfway mark TOMORROW (HOLY COW) so that means I’ll spend roughly half of my mission here, and the other half on the island! What a wild ride this has been haha. I can hardly believe that I’ve been out for 9 months, and I can hardly believe how much I’ve come to love this mission that I didn’t even know I’d be coming to. I’m incredibly grateful that the Lord allowed me to work in this part of the vineyard and have so many experiences and friends. I never thought it was possible for so much to happen in such a short amount of time. Now I know, I have so much to look forward to in Pt. 2 of the mish! Also, how perfect is it that I get to end my time here where I started, and see the progress of so many people I love? The Lord is truly in the details of our lives, folks. Never forget how much He loves you!

Love,
Hermana O’Barr

I don’t have pics from the baptism yet!

Hola todos!

We have been trying to find in more creative ways this week, so went to a rose garden and practiced our street contacting skills, which was a lot of fun! We also have been getting good at following up on dinner commitments, so we ended up doing indexing and family history with a member that we invited to do so, and it was super great! It also helped us build more of a relationship with the member.

Saturday was probably one of the best days of this past week. We went to the temple visitors center with Teresa (our on-date) and her grandson Alex. We also brought a youth along with us who wants to experience more of missionary work! It was a very spiritual experience and helped Teresa understand even better the importance of her goals to get baptized and enter the temple. We also found a new investigator on Saturday while we were trying to contact another one of the people we teach. Her name is Mia, and she immediately took an interest in the Book of Mormon and in the special spirit she could feel around us.

While we were at her complex, we also had a man try to bash us. We were walking past the bottom floor apartments and he flung open his top floor door to yell at us and ask why the heck we were doing what we were doing. We were very polite and just bore our testimonies to him boldly. Even though this man was rudely disparaging my beliefs I didn’t feel any fear or anger, just a need to stand up for what I believe in and give the Spirit a chance to touch this his heart. And you know what? I think he actually started to soften up a bit by the end of the conversation. If anything, I hope we left with him knowing that we’re just out here doing what we’re doing out of a love for the Savior and for other people.

Anyway, Sunday was really good too because our bishop’s son came back from his mission and gave his homecoming talk. We got to see the chapel a little more full than usual and hear some good insights from someone who’s already been through the whole shebang, which is always nice because I’m still trying to figure out what I’m doing hahaha.

We also received some really great revelation for our area this week, and specifically for how we are going to get the members to help us even more in the work, so we’ve been so pumped about that and we are going to implement our plans this week! We have been thinking so much about how sharing the gospel has strengthened our own testimonies, and so that’s what we want for the members!

I think Hermana Capron and I are doing great together. This is the first companionship I’ve been in where I have the most experience, which is a little stressful at times but a lot of fun, because I’ve gotten to help Hermana Capron work on some skills that I’ve already developed and then see her progress! I am learning plenty from her as well. Anyway, I hope you have a fantastic week, thanks for everything!

I finally get to go to the temple after more than 6 months, and we are on our way there right now! I am so happy!!! We are also going to play sand volleyball with our zone today, so it’s gonna be a bomb p-day. I miss you all, have a fabulous week!!!

Love,
Hermana O’Barr

WoWw! We have been blessed to see so many miracles during this 1/2 transfer together. On Sunday we had a meeting with our mission president and the stake president to talk about some of the struggles of the branch and how we could help them. It was a big deal but it went well, and I’m excited to hear about the continued success of the branch, even though I’m leaving. Yep, you read that right–I am moving once again! I hate packing and leaving again, but I know this is what the Lord wants. I’m so grateful that He allowed me to be here for these past three weeks. My companions and I formed an amazing friendship and I learned SO much from these two hermanas. It was a privilege to come serve here with such great missionaries! Now I’m headed back to my baby area (where I started), which is Alameda, and my companion is going to be Hermana Capron.

So, now you get to hear about our last week of miracles together! This week I have really felt the guidance of the Spirit as we’ve sought it more in our small decisions and I have seen that bless us and the people we teach so much more! Sometimes it’s so easy to forget how much guidance is readily available to us. It’s especially available to us as missionaries because we are usually asking for guidance so we can help other people. My companions and I have worked together really well this week and we have come so much closer as we have sought revelation for our area.

One miracle was a hand-off lesson we had with Elder Finley and Elder Grant!! One of their member families have a caretaker named Erendira who was so impressed with their examples even though they have health issues that usually prevent them from coming to church. She has felt the Spirit so strongly in their home and wants to have such a gospel-centered home for her family! All 5 of us taught the Restoration and it was one of the most spiritual lessons I’ve ever had. Erendira is so sweet and accepted everything we had to say with enthusiasm, even asking for a Book of Mormon and for extra pamphlets to bring home and read with her family.

That same day, we also got to see Isaiah get baptized!!! He is 17 and wants to serve a mission! He asked me to give the talk on the Holy Ghost and I was so honored that I got to be a part of his baptism. And the next day, Adriana got baptized! Her whole family had already gotten baptized and she was taught for a LONG time, so it was a really exciting day for lots of missionaries who taught her and her family. She looked so so happy after she was baptized, she’s going to the temple on Wednesday, and is now working with her family so that they can be together for eternity!

We also made a new investigator at church this week! And we had such a good lesson with one of our on-dates, Lina. She’s only 17, like Isaiah, but she is AMAZING. She retains and accepts everything we teach her right away. We taught her the gospel of Jesus Christ this week and she was so excited to learn that she will receive the Holy Ghost after she is baptized!! WoWw!! I love her and hope I can make it back here for her baptism. She is going to be a very strong member of the Church and is already sharing the gospel with her friends.

The past 6 weeks have been crazy, but I am so grateful for them. This has probably been the best transfer of my mission so far, and I have been very, very blessed. I have learned a lot on my mission and I’m excited to go back to my baby area and apply what I’ve learned. I don’t know much about Hermana Capron but I hope we will have a good time together!

ALSO, if you have gospel library on your devices, you should check out the new 2018 Preach My Gospel! It’s so cool!!! Remember to be bold this week in standing up for what you know is right and sharing the gospel with others!

Love,
Hermana O’Barr

The power trio continues! This week has been so incredible! I got sick but I’m feeling a lot better. I also hit my 8-month mark yesterday! I’m sad, though, because we found out that our mission president was going to do everything he could to keep us together next transfer, then he found out that we are getting 4 hermanas who are visa-waiting for Ecuador. So instead of staying together, some of us may be training this next transfer. We will find out what’s happening this Saturday.

We had a huge miracle at English class last Tuesday! A new family of 4 showed up and they were so sweet! While we were going around helping people in the class, the husband, Marino, asked me a question about prophets and the Book of Mormon. I started talking more with him and found out that his brother and his whole family are members and returned missionaries! He showed me pictures of them, and pictures of him going to church with the missionaries when he was 15!! He ended up talking to us more after the class and we exchanged info with him. Marino also told us that earlier that day he had come across a copy of the Book of Mormon, and that he was taking that as a sign that he needs to meet with us. We all felt the Spirit so strongly and see a lot of potential in him and his family. They are going to meet with us as soon as him and his wife decide when would be the best time to do so.

Another awesome milagro (miracle) came on Saturday night. We were supposed to have a lesson but when we got to the apartment, nobody answered. However, Hnas Jessop, Hindmarsh and I felt like we still had another reason for being there, even though it was too late to tract. When had we first gotten there, we saw a woman walk into the laundry room in the middle of the apartment complex. We peeked in to see if she was still there, and she was! We said hi and asked for her name, and she immediately started telling us about how she raised an amazing family of 9 kids and how much she loves her husband! She then picked up her laundry basket and invited us to follow her straight into her home without us having to say a thing! We got to meet her husband who picked up his guitar and asked if he could play and sing his alabanzas for us (hymns that he wrote). It was so sweet! After that he bore his testimony to us of the Holy Ghost and asked us to teach him something new so we taught them the Restoration and we couldn’t stop smiling the whole time because the Spirit was strong in their home.

Also, two of our on-dates passed their baptismal interviews and will be baptized on Friday and on Saturday! We are SO excited!!! I love you all! PLEASE continue or start reading the scriptures and praying individually and as a family every day. It will bless your lives immensely and I promise you will just continue to grow stronger and happier every day! Have a great week!

Love,
Hermana O’Barr

I’m still waiting on some people to send me pics, so sorry I don’t have very many. I should definitely have a lot more next week.