Ned & Mary in Guatemala

Tour of Guatemala City Sites - December 23, 2022 Mary put in a lot of effort arranging a tour of noteworthy sites in Guatemala City. We took that tour with some other senior missionary couples and it was impressive. Our first stop was The Berlin Park which had been decorated for Christmas. We understand that the park was developed under the influence of German refugees as an expression of gratitude for being taken in by the people of Guatemala. Here are just a few of the many decorations. A pyramid with animals to the side. Three sections of the Berlin wall. On the main plaza, there was leopard with background decorations,  and a decorated salute to Guatemala (Guate for short). He we are by the decorated "Guate" with the other two couples who joined us for the tour.  Next we went to an ancient Mayan City that had been abandoned a very long time ago and ended up being covered over by jungle growth and soil. Here are some photos with comments. I think the guide said this was ki

Vista Hermosa Ward Christmas Party All of the senior couples in our building were invited to the Christmas party put on by the ward where two of the couples attend. I must say that I don't remember attending a Christmas party in the U.S. that was better done than this one. The bell players were there again and did an excellent job. One girl sang several carols in English and did a great job. We found out her father was the former McAllen, Texas mission president by whom we sat at the dinner for the RootsTech seminar.                            The nativity scene was well done.  Here are the children posing for a photo.                         The nativity scene was well done. Here are the children posing for a photo.                      The dinner was excellent and was provided by the bishop's catering company.                                   We understand that he gave them a great deal at only his cost.

    December in Guatemala City    Highs in the 70s and lows in the 50s           Yes, serving missions can involve great sacrifice. However, in our case, weather is not one of them.

. Christmas 2022 The largest beer company in Guatemala provides a very impressive Christmas tree in one of the busiest intersections in town. The people and cars in front give you some perspective as to the size. The rooster on top of the star is the logo of the beer company.   The Area Presidency put on a Christmas devotional which was very nice. A group of young people performed playing bells and another instrument.  They did an amazing job.  The Executive Secretary to the Area Presidency and his wife, Wayne and Kathy Gelder, are finishing their service and returning home. Here he and his wife are slicing a good-bye cake purchased for them.           

Fun Things in Guatemala First, this is a very common mode of transportation for families of up to five people. This family has only four. You can't see the toddler the mom is carrying. It is very common to see motorcycles carrying multiple people. This family belongs to the branch where we serve. His name is Nefi - one of few second generation members. While attending to the Giving Machine in a local mall, I noticed several families taking advantage of featured entertainment. The little boy is riding in a four-wheeler which is being remotely controlled by his dad. The mall had many people walking around but nobody seemed to be bothered by this as I saw several families do it. The branch where we serve had their Christmas party yesterday. We volunteered to provide a piñata with candy inside. You can't see from this angle but Mrs. Claus is the object of our attention. They don't blindfold the kids, but rather, ropes are used to move the piñata around to increase the challenge

Family Search Dinner Family Search is holding an event in our city and they have invited people responsible for retaining and making available critical records in the Central American countries. The event started with a dinner. The Communications Department was in charge of the dinner and held it at a nice restaurant that served authentic Guatemalan dishes. The gentleman next to Mary is the president of Family Search. Across the table from him (over one) is Elder Hamilton of the Seventy, who is Chairman of Family Search. There were a couple of other people from Family Search there as well. The couple across from Mary are from Costa Rica. The Family Search people have done a great job of nurturing important relationships throughout Central America.

Guatemala Miraflores Temple Groundbreaking Ceremony The Communications Department was mainly in charge of the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Miraflores Temple on December 3, 2022. It was well-attended and everything seemed to go smoothly. Mary and I were assigned to help greet opinion leaders from government and other faith systems who had been invited. We enjoyed greeting these people and all seemed pleased to have been invited. The first lady of Honduras was among them and she stopped to tell us about her family members who are members of the Church. We turned a shovel after everyone else was done.                              Here is a photo of the first wave of dignitaries who participated. The youth choir you see in the back ground, with their accompanists, did a wonderful job with "I Know that My Redeemer Lives".                        Here we are standing by the artist's rendition of what the temple will look like.                                The event went

Light the World Giving Machines Guatemala and Mexico City were chosen to host the the first ever Giving Machines in Latin America. An Area Seventy and two people from the organization that treats children with cancer, at no cost to their families, were the speakers.  We had a pretty good turnout between church members and people from AYUVI (the child cancer group).  AYUVI was supposed to man the giving machines the rest of the day but somehow that fell apart. I received an emotional call from one of the ladies in charge for help, so Mary and I went back. I attended to the machine on the lower level for a couple of hours.                                           Here is a sample of the cards held in the machine and dispensed according to the donation a person made.  Each contains a picture of one of the children AYUVI has treated for cancer along with the service to the child for which the person is donating. The last total I saw said that roughly $7500 were donated. (I inserted this l