Senior Missionary Luncheon in SLC

December 6, 2016


Sister Sutton was visiting in Salt Lake City from Canada so all the senior missionaries from the area who were available met at Settibello for lunch.  It's fun--and uplifting--to see everyone again.

New Senior Couple

June 21, 2016


A new senior couple arrived this morning.  They will be serving in Palermo.  What a wonderful opportunity they will have as they serve the Lord. 

Senior Potluck Dinner

June 19, 2016

Once a month the senior couples serving in Rome, as well as some of the temple construction workers and mission volunteers, get together at the villa for a potluck dinner.

Pot Luck with Senior Missionaries

Elder Sears and Elder Waddoups were in the same MTC Group in January 1968.  Now they are serving together again.

New Missionary Couple

May 24, 2016


One set of Military Relations missionaries are returning home and a new set just arrived to take their place.  We're excited to have them here.

New Senior Couple

May 4, 2016


A new senior missionary couple arrived and will be overseeing the Pathway Program in Rome.  We are excited to have them back.  They have already served in this mission twice before. 

Easter Potluck

March 27, 2016


The senior missionaries serving in Rome and some of the temple workers got together at the end of the day for a potluck dinner.

New Senior Couple

March 1, 2016


We have a new senior couple who are filling a military relations mission.  We are excited to have them.  They seem wonderful, excited, and willing to serve the Lord.  That's the best kind of missionary.

New Senior Couple

February 29, 2016


A new couple arrived in the Italy Rome Mission.  We're so excited to have them.  They will be helping in the office doing scheduling for transfers, referrals, Rome Forum, etc., etc., etc.  Maybe we will just refer to them as Coppia Friday (as in Boy Friday who does everything).

Valentine's Dinner

February 14, 2016

Potluck Dinner with Senior Missionaries and Temple Workers

New Senior Couple

January 12, 2016

A new senior couple arrived today from Canada.  They are wonderful!

New Years Day - January 2016

January 1, 2016

Each Year on New Year's Day, the senior missionaries living in Rome come to the villa for a potluck dinner.

New Senior Couple - November 2015

Welcome to the new senior couple who will be serving with the GANS (Young Single Adults).

“The goal of every physically able couple in the Church, just as it is for every 

nineteen-year-old young man in the Church, should be to serve a mission.  

 No finer example can be given, no finer testimony can be borne 

by parents to children or grandchildren, than through 

missionary service in their mature years”.   

(Ensign, May 1987)

Leaving a Legacy - Senior Missionaries - October 2015

Senior Missionaries Leave a Legacy

October 2015

When missionaries complete their missions, one of the things they are asked to do is leave a legacy for new missionaries who will be coming to the mission.  They are given a form that says:

           "As you finish this wonderful chapter of missionary service, you have the chance to help those that follow.  Think back to the first days of your mission.  You were full of new missionary energy but maybe not quite sure how to use it.  Take some time and contemplate about all the many lessons and great experiences that you experienced during these two years of service.  What knowledge would you have wanted in order to enhance your experiences?  What great tips of obedience or endurance would you like the next generation to know?  Now is your chance.  Please write  a short letter speaking to all those that will follow."

With permission from the departing missionaries, here are some of the comments they made.

*  *  *  *  *

 

Remember you are called of God and act in a way that reflects you are a representative of Jesus Christ.

It is a privilege to be called to work in the vineyard of the Lord.

Remember to get up on time then study the word of the Lord.  Mosiah 3:3  …awake and hear the words which I shall tell thee.

Remember to work hard to find those the Lord has prepared for you to teach.

Remember to be obedient and to work hard.  2 Timothy 1:17  When he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently and found me.

There may never be another time in your life where you will be able to dedicate all your time and energy to serving the Lord.  Take advantage of this.

Eat right and exercise.  Having a healthy mind and body is needed to keep up with the heavy load of missionary life.

Accepting that you will not always have success will help you face rejection and disappointment. 

Not everyone will be as excited to earn about the gospel as you are. 

Always learn to look for the good in others, especially your companion.

It does no good to pray for direction if you do not believe and expect to receive revelation from God.

Remember to smile.  No one wants to listen or talk to someone that does not appear happy.

Be faithful in all things.

Departing Senior Missionaries

October 17, 2015

Alma 29:17

And now may God grant unto these, 

my brethren, 

that they may sit down 

in the 

kingdom of God; 

yea, and also all those who are the 

fruit of their labors 

that they may go no more out, but that they may 

praise him forever. 

And may God grant that it may be done

 according to my words,

 even as I have spoken. 

Amen.

Ten senior missionaries are departing within ten days of each other.  Wow!  It's time to take a deep breath and pray for inspiration to fill the vacancies.  The miracle is that no matter how much we loved those missionaries and no matter what they did, the Lord provides individuals to fill the vacancies.  We continue to pray and the Lord continues to deliver.  We are in the midst of The Hastening and the work of salvation must move forward.

We extend our love and appreciation for the service they have rendered in the Italy Rome Mission.  Testimonies have been strengthened, challenges overcome, and new friendships established.

To each of you we say "Grazie"!

Departing Missionaries

Departing Missionaries with President and Sister Waddoups

Departing Missionaries with other Rome Senior Missionaries

Senior Missionary Potluck Dinner

October 11, 2015

Once a month as senior missionaries, we get together for a potluck dinner.  We invite the couples who are here supervising the work on the Rome Temple.  It's a good time for everyone to get together, have a good meal, and a spiritual thought.  Ten of the senior missionaries will be returning home during the net two weeks and this is the last time we will get together with them.  They have been an integral part of this group for the past 23 months and we will miss them dearly.

King Benjamin and Bees

June 3, 2015


(Here are some of the thoughts I shared at the Senior Missionary Conference.)

“Bee the best you can bee!”

Because our mission theme is “Bee the best you can bee!”, I want to share some thoughts about some “B” things. 

First, King Benjamin was a prophet whose name begins with “B”.  I hope my service is like that of King Benjamin.

Mosiah 2:9-17

9  And these are the words which he spake and caused to be written, saying: My brethren, all ye that have assembled yourselves together, you that can hear my words which I shall speak unto you this day; for I have not commanded you to come up hither to trifle with the words which I shall speak, but that you should hearken unto me, and open your ears that ye may hear, and your hearts that ye may understand, and your minds that the mysteries of God may be unfolded to your view.

10  I have not commanded you to come up hither that ye should fear me, or that ye should think that I of myself am more than a mortal man.

11  But I am like as yourselves, subject to all manner of infirmities in body and mind; yet I have been chosen by this people, and consecrated by my father, and was suffered by the hand of the Lord that I should be a ruler and a king over this people; and have been kept and preserved by his matchless power, to serve you with all the might, mind and strength which the Lord hath granted unto me.

12  I say unto you that as I have been suffered to spend my days in your service, even up to this time, and have not sought gold nor silver nor any manner of riches of you;

13  Neither have I suffered that ye should be confined in dungeons, nor that ye should make slaves one of another, nor that ye should murder, or plunder, or steal, or commit adultery; nor even have I suffered that ye should commit any manner of wickedness, and have taught you that ye should keep the commandments of the Lord, in all things which he hath commanded you—

14  And even I, myself, have labored with mine own hands that I might serve you, and that ye should not be laden with taxes, and that there should nothing come upon you which was grievous to be borne—and of all these things which I have spoken, ye yourselves are witnesses this day.

15  Yet, my brethren, I have not done these things that I might boast, neither do I tell these things that thereby I might accuse you; but I tell you these things that ye may know that I can answer a clear conscience before God this day.

16  Behold, I say unto you that because I said unto you that I had spent my days in your service, I do not desire to boast, for I have only been in the service of God.

17  And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

The life and service of a missionary is much like that of a bee.

Bees

*Spend all day collecting pollen.

         Pollen is sticky and stains clothes and hands.

         Produces the most perfect food on earth.

*Work hard to build the hive.

*Leave the hive every day.

*Work hard looking for perfect flower with pollen.

*Go from flower to flower pollenating trees and flowers that later produce fruit and beautiful things.

*Some people acknowledge the good things they do and other’s hate them and try to kill them.

*Know the Queen Bee is awaiting their return.

*Only live for a season.

*Others will benefit from their efforts.

Just like bees, because of the busy time we spend in the mission field, we and our families will receive eternal blessings

Senior Missionary Conference

June 2-3, 2015

Senior Missionaries - June 2015

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All the senior missionaries serving in the Italy Rome Mission attended a Senior Missionary Conference in Rome.  It's the first time in the nearly two years we have served here that we have been successful in getting all the senior missionaries together.  It was an awesome, inspiring event.  

We started out with some of the senior missionaries doing reports on medical, Pathways (evening classes taught in English to help Italian members attain higher education), and GANS (Young Single Adults).  We then had a guest speaker, Dr. Ugo A. Perego, who has a doctorate in Genetics and Biomolecular Studies, is the director of the Rome Institute Campus, and also a Bishop in Rome.  We ended the first night with a meal of green salad, squash ravioli with tomato and basil sauce, and then sauntered down the street to a gelateria for gelato.  After all, gelato is our motto.

The following morning we had presentations and training from the senior missionaries who serve in the mission office.  We also talked about ways to improve our mission by being good examples to the young missionaries and ways to assist with teaching them correct principles.  Each senior couple had the opportunity to talk about something they have done that has been very successful or something that has happened to strengthen their testimonies.  

Special musical numbers were presented by our extraordinarily gifted missionaries. 

*  *  *  *  *

About Ugo A. Perego

Dr. Ugo A. Perego has a PhD in Genetics and Biomolecular Studies from the University of Pavia in Italy, where he studied under the mentorship of Professor Antonio Torroni, who was part of the team of scientists to first identify genetic diversity among Native American populations in the early 1990s. Dr. Perego was a senior researcher for the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation for 12 years, where he contributed to the building of one of the world’s largest repositories of combined genealogical and genetic data. He has published and presented extensively on DNA and its application in populations, forensic, ancestry, historical, and genealogical studies. He currently resides in Italy, where he is the director of the Rome Institute Campus and a visiting scientist at the University of Perugia.

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Sorelle who helped in kitchen