Bennett's In Palmyra

Palmyra Elder's - Site meeting Aug. 11, 2009

2009-08-12T07:46:00.006-04:00

I just had to add this! This was a special number by our Senior Brothers at the site meeting last night. They had only 1 practice - which was the performance itself. It is a little washed out in the middle & my first attempt at recording on my camera, so I have also included a still shot so you can see everyone. From left to right: Elders Hamblin 2, Slack, Weston, Clark, Hill, Kinghorn, Wright, Tolman, Griffin, Semadeni (hiding), Hamblin 1, Denison, Bennett & Davis. I think they did wonderfully well! Elder Bennett said that some of the young sisters in the front were giggling but I am sure that it was because they didn't know we had so much talent in our group. We are going to miss this elete group of friends!

Pageant is over - what next???

2009-08-11T08:03:00.007-04:00

I am slothful at getting this blog up dated. Things keep coming up that needs care & I just keep pushing the blog further back on the list. Summer finally arrived a couple of weeks ago. We had a week of truly beautiful weather. Since then it has been cooler & very wet - a lot of rain! The weather man said (on a beautiful Saturday) "Today is summer, get out & enjoy it!" I guess he was right as about that last week of July as the leaves are starting to turn already. We have not had even 1 day in the 90's as yet & very few in the upper 80's. This has been a VERY COOL summer.

The pageant is over & things are slowing down. Tour groups have almost quit & we get excited over anyone that appears - even the Gardner. It took a week or so to get things back to normal but the Hill Cumorah is pretty much cleared & the "walk ways" between the rows of seats are almost grown back to green again. It is sad that this is our last pageant. We love the family, visitors & volunteers. We see the missionaries in "full glory" at pageant time. They do such a great job. It truly is beautiful here!!!

We will be leaving the mission in about 6 weeks now. I told Elder Bennett that I wouldn't think about it until after pageant - & now after pageant is here. We are planning to visit NYC & DC & hope to go see L'Erin before we head home but do not know yet of exact release times so can't make too many plans. It's coming up soooooooo fast! Fall is such a beautiful time here. I think we will enjoy every minuite we can.

2009-07-05T13:00:00.003-04:00

OK! OK! I have come to the conclusion that if I do not get these winter pictures off this blog that summer will never come to Palmyra! Yesterday was the 4th of July & the high for the day never reached 70 degrees all day. Now what were you saying about global warming???? Right now I have put a sweat shirt on over my Sunday clothes to help warm me up.

The pageant begins this week starting with the Volunteer Orientation on Wednesday. We have our schedule for the week & we will be at the Grandin Press from now until after pageant. All the schedules are done, assignments made & I thing we are ready to go. The pageant crew has been here for a week & the staging is up already. The cast arrived on Friday & were rehearsing yesterday. We are getting bus tours on a regular basis at the sites & are VERY busy (just like we like it!). I decided that if I didn't get this done today......I might not get it done at all.

One bad note is that Donna got a call from Skip yesterday morning. They were on their way out to help again this year - assigned to the Whitmer Farm but he was calling from Omaha, NB. He said that they were at the hospital there & that Roberta had emergency surgery. Some how her stomach or bowl got twisted. They stopped at an emergency room & they did the surgery early that next morning. He says she is doing OK but that they would have to cancel their trip because she is going to be there for a week. Our prayers go out to them!! We hope they can get home OK. Elder Tolman got on the phone & called his brother about working in their place. They were excited, booked their flight & will be here Tuesday. Some how things seem to work out.

March 2009

2009-02-27T17:09:00.003-05:00

I can't believe how fast the time goes by when you are busy. It's March already & the weather is responding accordingly. We have had a day or two of really good weather, in the 40's, mixed with rain, snow & cold. Most of February was COLD!!! Lots of snow & ice with wind that would cut right through. It felt good to leave my heavy wool coat at home & wear a jacket the other day.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

2008-12-31T06:40:00.020-05:00

I can hardily believe that a new year is beginning already. We are now half way through our mission & starting the down hill slide. I keep wanting to slow it down a bit! 2008 has been one of the best years of my life. The whole year has been filled with anticipation, new experiences & many wonderful new friends. What a fun filled year this has been! We are looking forward to the New Year and the experiences that lie ahead.

YEAR IN REVIEW!!

In January Trevan was baptized, a true highlight to begin a very good year.
In February we received our mission call to the New York Rochester Mission to serve in the Hill Cumorah Historical Sites. We also sold the motor home which was a miracle in itself (this time of year & with the gas prices so high). We could tell we were being blessed.
In March we entered the MTC, had our Farewell in the ward & our last family gathering, backyard picnic, on Easter before leaving for New York.
By April we were in Palmyra & settled into our apartment. We were being trained in the sites, giving tours & feeling the spirit of this beautiful area.
May was a settling in month. Learning about Palmyra, the sites & the people. We were so excited about our callings & all that we were experiencing. The weather was improving & flowers were blooming - a beautiful time of year in Upper State New York. Surprise!! Elder & Sister Hamblin arrived. What a joy to have family serving with you. We love being out here together!
In June Cami had her baby - a boy - Tanner Ashton Henrie. We loved the pictures they sent via cell phone but sure missed being there with mom & baby. It also brought preparations for the pageant. Elder Bennett was called as a “second in command” to Elder Crump at the Grandin Press Building. Elder Hamblin as Elder James “second in command” at the Whitmer Farm. They have that responsibility for the 2009 pageant.
July was THE MONTH! Pageant began on the 10th & ran through the 19th with no performance on either Sunday or Monday. Karyl Lee, RaNae, Skip & Roberta came out as volunteers for a couple of weeks & stayed with us. Some said we were having a family reunion. We love every minute!!!! Skip & Roberta are coming back this summer again. Can hardily wait.
August slowed down slightly. The weather was beautiful & we finally had some time to enjoy the wonderful couples we are serving with here at the Cumorah sites.
September brought the fall colors & more beautiful weather. The Smith Farm & all the sites were green, colorful & gorgeous.
October was especially fun for us as Cami, Scott, Parker, Conner & little Tanner flew out for a visit. How good it was to see Tanner for the 1st time & the rest as well. We loved every minute of the time we spent together!!! We love our work here but hated to see them leave to go home.
November brought a huge change in our mission assignment. President Hemingway call us to serve in the Mission Office for a while. Winter is the slow time at the sites so not so many couples are needed. Elder Bennett became “Papa Car-o” & was asked to take care of the mission cars & I was in charge of referrals, mail & keeping track of baptisms. Hours are long, we drive 24 miles round trip each day & work Monday through Friday each week. We are learning a lot - our jobs, all missionaries - personally & the area within the mission boundaries better as well.
December brought lots of snow, freezing weather & a lot of packages to the mission office. It also brought us a Mission Christmas which was both wonderful & very busy.
How special it was for me to have Donna & Ray here to share it with!! We love our mission & love sharing it with them!

2008-12-31T06:32:00.001-05:00

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Christmas is over for another year and what a strange and different Christmas this has been. Of course, being on a mission, it is very different from spending it with family. It means more of the birth of the Savior than of presents & Santa. It means more of love than the giving of gifts. Our resources are limited but our joy in the gift our Savior gave to us is full.

This now is the New Year week and the beginning again. Thankfulness for the blessings we received in 2008 and wondering what 2009 holds for us. It’s like opening a new gift each day.

On the Monday before Christmas Sister Froisland & myself help Sister Hemingway with the refreshments for the Christmas gathering in the 2 Rochester Zones of all the young Elders & Sisters that President Hemingway had planned in celebration of the season. Two other such gatherings were planned Tuesday in Buffalo & Wednesday, Christmas Eve, in Palmyra for each of the other Zones. Food was purchased, delivered & set out to provide a fun time for all. Christmas Eve was scheduled for caroling by Elder Weston. Each of us had assignments to carol within the area the companionships were assigned. It rained all evening, melting the snow that had accumulated during the heavy snows that week.

Christmas itself did not feel much like a day off as there was a brunch at 10 am for all missionaries in our area at the Palmyra Stake Center. It was fun greeting everyone with a Merry Christmas & having such good food available. All of the senior sisters provided the food so the assignments were a little heavy, especially for Sister Slack & myself, but food was abundant & we didn’t run out. That evening we had a gift exchange party for the Senior Couples only & that was fun but again, I was assigned to help with refreshments along with Sister Belliston - it just happened that way, somehow. By the time we got home, cleanup & ready to rest - the day was over. It was very busy but a fun day. We did find time to visit with family on the phone between activities. All seem to have had a wonderful Christmas.

We are finding that our mission is full of activities and assignments. We are in the mission office right now, during the slow times at the sites. There is plenty to do with Christmas packages still arriving for missionaries all over the mission and new missionaries coming in tomorrow that need to be trained and oriented. Life is busy!!

It's almost Christmas!

2008-12-16T23:07:00.012-05:00

I can't believe how fast time flies! It's almost Christmas! It's snowing tonight & the weather is cold - 'tis the season. The pictures this time are of our Christmas Tree. It's just a small one, in front of the window. The next picture is what we see each night out our kitchen window in back. The Facility Management missionaries decorated everything & it feels like they did it just for us, in our own yard. The next picture is of the trees that line the driveway into the Welcome Center, right next to our house, and the 4th picture is looking from our house over to the fence & trees next to the Welcome Center on the Smith farm. As you can see, everything is decorated beautifully! (& we didn't have to even get out in the cold!) ha.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

2008-11-30T09:54:00.012-05:00

The sites are looking rather festive lately. Each site has a tree decorated without lights on them & with popcorn, cookies &/or apples along with other festive frills. The first picture is of the Welcome Center on the Smith farm. You can see they took the large "Face to Face" statue & shipped it to Salt Lake but we have a small one in front of the window.

The second & other pictures are of the decorations in the Grandin building. The first one is on the main floor at the entrance - beautifully done! One is of the display in the window - the nativity & one is of the beautiful poinsettia under the Moroni 10:4 scripture on the 2nd floor.

We haven't had much time to get around to the other sites to take pictures but hope to do that this next week. Everything is looking like Christmas, even the weather - It's snowing at this very minute. However, the snow melted rather fast as warmer temperatures prevailed this last week.

We enjoy our work at the mission office. We associate constantly with the young Elder's & Sister's. We love their dedication & enthusiasm. Zone Conferences are this week so we will be busy!

We miss being at the sites & testifying of our Savior, the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon & what a blessing the gospel is in the lives of our Father's Children. We love the Gospel of Jesus Christ!!!

'Tis the Season!!!

2008-11-22T10:41:00.005-05:00

It has been snowing here for the past week. We have had beautiful but treacherous snow. We awoke this morning with what you see in the pictures I have attached. We have the day off so we are inside, warm & comfy. It is soooooo beautiful this morning & so peaceful. What a fun beginning to a holiday season. What you are looking at: 1) What we saw out our kitchen window this morning, 2) Our house, 3) Smith Farm & Welcome Center, 4) Another back yard picture & 5) Elder & Sister Hamblin's house across the way from us. Enjoy!!

Transfer Week Is Here!!

2008-11-16T08:44:00.010-05:00

Sunday, November 16, 2008

What a strange week we have had! Elder Bennett got a kidney stone (so we think) on Tuesday night & struggled with it all day Wednesday. We finally got him to Dr. Nickell, then home to rest. He had a rough night but was free of pain by Thursday morning, sore but no pain. We took Thursday off, not knowing if he would be ok. It appears that he is going to be just fine now-yaaaaahh.

We are preparing for transfers this week & new arrivals tomorrow. We will meet with the new arrivals tomorrow night. We both have presentations - short & sweet (hopefully) - although, Elder Bennett‘s presentation is longer than mine as he needs to show a driver’s safety DVD (not hard). He is so worried about it that he was up at 4 a.m. Elder Sumptner will still be here & will help him, I hope. Elder Sumptner will be going home Tuesday so we had a “special ceremony” on Friday to turn the car job over to Elder Bennett. We even had our contact in Salt Lake on the speaker phone to witness it all. Elder Sumptner is so funny! He is an excellent Elder & we will miss him - especially Elder Bennett. We have gotten to know him well in a very short time & what a delightful pleasure that has been. Elder Sumptner named him “Papacaro” meaning father of the cars. Now I am not sure whether he came by that name because Elder Bennett is older than he is, a Senior Elder or just old but that’s his title now.

Our Thanksgiving is shaping up to be very different this year. We had a site meeting on Wednesday where President Hemingway spoke to us about being on the Lord errand & holding to the iron rod. Basically it was about obedience & obeying council. He is desirous of ALL missionaries - including the senior couples - going out into the community, helping in soup kitchens where possible, contacting shut-ins & meeting with new contacts, less active & part member families for both Thanksgiving & Christmas. We are desirous of obeying the council given so are now exploring possibilities of activity. Cami mentioned that that was how she spent her Thanksgiving on her mission & had a great experience doing so. The Lord never gives direction without providing the opportunity. We are looking forward in anticipation.

The weather has turned off cold. This week is predicted to be in the 30’s as a high & 20’s as the lows. It has rained all weekend & looks very much like winter. We know it’s coming but I am not looking forward to the cold. All is well here. We are healthy (finally) & happy in the service of our Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ. How thankful we are to be in His service, to have His spirit to be with us and to have the MANY BLESSINGS He pours out upon us each day.

Love you all,

Elder & Sister Bennett

New assignment this week!

2008-11-09T11:09:00.003-05:00

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Well, this week has been an eventful one for us. On Monday, Elder Weston called us & asked if we could meet with Pres. Hemingway for our interview at noon instead of Saturday when it had been scheduled earlier. Of course, we said yes & met with him at that time. He asked us to go to the mission office for a while - who knows how long. Jokingly I commented that Willard Bean had been asked to come to the Smith Farm for an indefinite period of time & it had ended up to be 25 years. He assured me that it would not be that long. He said they needed us there so we agreed and started on Tuesday, (which was supposed to be our p-day). We work 9 to 5 each day with Saturday & Sunday off and we drive to Fariport each day - about 12 miles one way. We work in the Temple Saturday morning & Elder Weston wants us to work at least 1 day at the sites (so we don't get too rusty) - so we take a site shift on Sunday. That leaves O p-days - I am not sure just how we are going to work it out. It felt good to have the afternoon off yesterday (haven't had a day off since Oct. 30th). I got some cleaning & cooking done finally. I hope I get use to these longer hours because at the sites we had either a morning (9-1) or afternoon (1-6) shift with a p-day & sometimes an on call day each week. I almost feel like I have gone back to work-ha. I take care of the referrals & missionary stuff and Elder Bennett takes care of the cars. We have learned a lot & are doing some things all by our selves already. It's not hard, just busy. Elder & Sister Froisland are in charge of the office & have the brunt of the office work so we help them sometimes if we can. They are a great couple! There are 2 Elders assigned there also but we are being trained to take their place as one is going home & the other, out in the field, thus - that's why we are needed there. I guess the President requested a couple for the office but they got a call to the Florida mission instead - so he is still waiting. We will work there until they get someone on a permanent basis.

The weather has been fairly good but we have had a skiff of snow already. Today is supposed to be cold & rainy but so far it is fairly nice. It freezes at night sometime thought and promises to be cold later this week. We have boots, earmuffs & scarves so I guess we are prepared. I am not looking forward to winter!

Cami & Scott's Family Visit

2008-10-26T23:44:00.004-04:00

Cami, Scott, Parker, Conner & Tanner arrived on Oct. 15th. We were so excited to see them!
After their arrival they were absolutely bushed as you can see here by Scott & Tanner.

We visited Niagra Falls on Friday, Oct. 17th. It was COLD but really beautiful with all the colored leaves & water. Scott, Cami & Parker went into the underground tunnel call the hurricane deck. They loved it!

We went on a cruise on the Erie Canal. Again the fall colors were beautiful but it also was a very cold boat ride.

Visiting all the sites was the highlight of their trip. It was so fun to tell them all about the area & the history that is here. Gary told them about the Smith Farm, the Log Home & Frame Home and I gave them the tour of the Book of Mormon Publication Site, Grandin Press. The Hill Cumorah & the Whitmer Farm we shared the tours. We loved having Tenessa, Jake & Addie with us when we could all get together.

Conner & Addie became quite good friends & Addie just loved Parker. He was a really good buddie to her and OH! how she loved little Tanner. How fun it is to have family around!!

October 2008

2008-10-05T18:30:00.017-04:00

We have loved Conference this weekend. We have had both Saturday & Sunday off so got to see all sessions plus accomplish some tasks that have needed doing for a long time. I can’t believe that it is October already! Time goes really fast here. We are looking forward to Cami, Scott, Parker, Conner & Tanner coming out on the 15th. They will be here until the 21st & I hope that the time slows down so we can really enjoy having them here.

We have a host of birthday’s in October beginning with Cami’s. Then there is Tyler’s, Sarin’s, Sabra’s & Carrie’s. These grandparent’s wish all of you a fun day!!

The leaves are turning & they are beautiful! I have taken some pictures for you to enjoy! We love being in such a beautiful and spiritual place.

Love you all,

Mom, Dad,
Grandma & Papa,
Linda & Gary
Elder & Sister Bennett

Seasons are changing in Palmyra

2008-09-15T15:42:00.007-04:00

September 15, 2008

I am working on updating our blog page. There are several birthday’s this month - Lexie’s, Merak’s, Valerie’s & Becky’s. There are a LOT next month too so I had better get this up & going.

Today is Merak’s Birthday. I talked with him on the webcam yesterday so wished him a happy day - early.

Cami called & said that they have their fights to come out on Oct. 14th. We are EXCITED about that! They blessed the baby yesterday so you might want to check out her blog page because I hope she will have pictures.

We are filling our assignments each day at the sites. It has been slow but with the leaves turning they say it will get busier - also with the UEA coming up in Oct. in Utah it should get busy then too. We are getting time to fulfill our assignment from Pres. Hemingway to read the full Book of Mormon by next zone conference (6 weeks) - middle of Oct. It averages out 20 pages a day. So far we are right on schedule. We were in 3rd Nephi when the challenge was issued so we just continued, finished the book a week ago & started over to catch up to where we were when challenged. We are nearly finished with 2nd Nephi as of this morning. It’s amazing how much continuity you get out of reading this way. It DOES take some time & is a real push but interesting. We don’t have time to ponder, study or mark scriptures but we are keeping up & actually accomplishing it.

There is never much leisure time on a mission. We have been able to watch the BYU play football though. Elder Hamblin (Ray) along with some other Elders has persuaded Elder Weston to get & set up the Mt. Network at the Visitors Center so we can record all the games & either go see them there or see them later in the day or night if we are on shift. So far it’s working out great. Talk about a football party - lol!!!

We love the work & the sister’s we work with. It’s wonderful to be here where it all began!

September 7, 2008

We can not believe how fast this summer has passed! The leaves are turning color here in Palmyra. It is still more green than color but it looks as if the fall will be absolutely gorgeous. This is such a lush area with groves of trees & farms stretching for miles. The beauty is breath taking & will be ever so enhanced as the leaves change. We love the weather lately - upper 70’s most of the time with sunshine most every day. We have had very little rain lately where as we were getting rain almost every day in July & August. This is really NICE!

The pictures I have included here are fall leaves at the Whitmer Farm & fog over the Welcome Center & Smith Farm depicting some of the weather changes which occur each day in NY.

We are happy, well, busy & thrilled to be on this mission. We love giving the tours at the different sites. There is such a peaceful feeling here. Even the seasons change quietly.

Love ya all,

Linda & Gary (Elder & Sister Bennett)

Grandkids

2008-08-13T12:50:00.006-04:00

These are Darrin's Kids. Going clock wise from the top: Merak, Headi, Sarin, Spica, and last but definately not least, Altas! They are an awesome bunch of kids and I miss them terribly!!

This is Conner and Tanner, a few of my other wonderful grandchildren!!
Then there is Parker...... what can I say about that kid!! He and Merak are 3 months apart. Merak is the older.

Well, that's some of my grandkids. Now, I just need a picture of Sabra! Joe and L'Erin are on my previous post! I have 11 grandkids in all! And .... I have it on insider information, they miss me the same as I miss them! (WE LOVE YOU GRANDMA AND PAPA!!)

Pageant is over for another year

2008-07-27T22:03:00.022-04:00

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Today is L’Erin’s 20th Birthday. I want to wish her a fun & Happy Day.

She had her tonsils out recently so is recuperating form that. I hear that she is on the mend -
so that’s good!

Anenn (Joe) Steele's birthday was this month also. I haven't heard from him lately but look forward to hearing from him soon. His summer is a really busy one!

Well, the pageant is over & we are recuperating for that. We had over 50,800 visitors this year. It was fun having Karyl Lee & RaNae and Skip & Roberta here as pageant volunteers. We didn’t have as much time to visit as we had hoped but loved what time we could spend together. We were able to work in a trip to Wal-Mart each day - lol! Skip & Roberta were assigned to the Whitmer Farm with Elder & Sister Hamblin (aka: Donna & Ray) so had to travel 2 extra hours each day to accomplish their service. Needless to say they just fell into bed each night, exhausted! RaNae & Karyl Lee were assigned with us at the Grandin Press, the Book of Mormon Publication Site. We were able to enjoy each other at dinner time & during the evening hours. We kept the neighbors awake late into the evening laughing & giggling at Skip & each other. We were dead tired when we finally call it a night but loved every minute. We did enjoy a night out on the Columbia Bell on the 21st. It was a dinner cruise (15 miles on the Erie Canal) & also Skip & Robert’s wedding anniversary. It was a good way to end our time together. Sure hated to see ever one leave!! It’s so quiet now!

Elder Bennett (aka: Gary) wrote this for our letter:
The pageant went really well even though the numbers that attended were down about a third from last year. Our responsibility was the Grandin Building. This is the place were the Book Of Mormon was printed and bound. We averaged a little over a 1000 visitors a day. Thank goodness for the Sisters and the voluntary senior couples we could not have take care of so many people with out their help.
Things went quite smoothly except for a couple of incidents . Friday, the next to the last day of the pageant, we were awaken by our neighbor at 5:30 AM telling us that our license plates on our car had been stolen. We hurried, got dressed and went out to look. Out of 6 cars that was parked out front 5 were missing their plates. Only the car that had New York Plates still had their plates. We thought that some one had taken them so that they could put them on their car and go into a gas station and full up then skip with out paying. But the next night over at the Palmyra Inn any car that had Utah plates were stolen. So we decided that is must have been the protesters of the Pageant that had taken them to harass us. The same people that protest at General Conference. In New York you can't drive your car with out having a plate on your car. We had to send for new plates and received them yesterday so now we can drive with our fear of getting pull over. The second thing that happened was one of our senior volunteers, on the last day, had a heart attack wile out in the Grove. Since we live by the Grove they brought him to our house and Linda called 911 so with in a matter of a few days we had the police and ambulance here causing the people in the neighborhood to wonder what was going on at our home. Brother Herbert ended up having two stints put in and all turned out well.
The Pageant was really great, and we were able to get over 6000 referrals compared to the 600 they got last year. So you can guess that we are going to be busy doing for the next few weeks - calling them on the phone. Hope all is going well with you and looking forward to hearing from you.
Elder Bennett

We also had some excitement when Bridger (RaNae’s grandson) was here with his family. Little Hailey, while playing with the keys, managed to lock the doors. Bridger took them away, tossing them in the front seat & shutting the door - which locked her in -with the keys. It was 90 degrees that day so we called 911 to get her out. It took over a half hour, her hair was wet & she was really HOT. We were getting ready to break the window but finally got her out & she is OK! The emergency people here in Palmyra now know our address!
The pageant truly was an exciting time for all of us. We were able to go to the performance twice & enjoyed seeing people we knew & making friends with others. They have a huge cast & spectacular effects. I have included some pictures that I hope you can see & enjoy. Email us when you get a chance.

Love Ya,

Elder & Sister Bennett

The Pageant is Over! Great Success! 50,800 visitors this year. Average visitors to the Grandin Press was 1000 per day.

Nephi's Ship

Pageant Begins

King Noah & Abinadi

Christ & the Nephites

Appearance of Jesus