End of May

Hi, dear loved ones,

It’s been a rather slow week at the Centre perhaps because of the rain downpours, also it was a school holiday and exam weeks for university students. Saturday we went to the London Temple, which is no small feat. We rode a bus, an overground train, and took a taxi to get there. It cost a total of about $44 and took most of the day but, of course, was worth it. When we arrived, many people in white were standing around outside because the fire alarm had gone off. As we stepped out of the taxi, we recognized a man, standing right where we alighted, who came to the Employment Centre some months ago. Because of the delay, there was time for him to ask us some questions that had been weighing on him regarding some big decisions. He, and we, felt that the timing of things may have been a tender mercy for him. In a short time, it was learned that the alarm had gone off because someone had sprayed an aerosol can! No problem. We all went into the temple and enjoyed a lovely session. 

We also took a 2-hour train ride to stake conference on Sunday. Two hours back. We are gaining an appreciation for how blessed we are in Provo to live close to the church and the temple.

We’d like to tell you about a couple more people who have come in to the Centre. One woman came to a workshop a few weeks ago who was one of the boat people who left Viet Nam. She was only 10 years old when she was put on a boat with her niece who was 8. They arrived in London knowing no one and were put in an orphanage. Her brother and his wife were supposed to be in London to take care of them and give them a home but they had gone to Canada and there was no one. On the way to London, this young 10-year-old had the chance to be adopted by a couple in Singapore but she would not leave her niece to come alone! Talk about Christ-like love and service! She has gained an education and has a good job but is worried that she may soon become redundant (be laid off) so came to the workshop.

A young man was referred to us by the senior missionaries serving in the Visitors’ Centre. We’ll call him Paul. He is from Pakistan and has a wealthy Muslim family. His uncle is the “patriarch” of the family and has sent him here to London to study business but he really wanted to study engineering. This young man has been studying with the missionaries and wants to be baptized but knows his family will cut him off entirely. The senior sister told us that President Jordan has not given him permission to be baptized. As long as there is the possibility that he must return to his family in Pakistan, he must not be a Christian or his life could be in danger. He needs to be able to support himself. This is huge because his family has always supported him financially and he has never worked a day in his life! He didn’t even have any idea what a CV (resumé) was and had no idea what he would like to work at and no job references! We talked to him for quite awhile about things he has done and what skills he has gained. He has been active in sports, helped rescue and train victims of flooding in Pakistan for a charity there, and he has gone to school. We came up with skills such as good communication, teamwork, seeing a project through to a good finish, etc. He thinks he can get a professor here to provide a character reference. So he now has a CV! He hasn’t been in for awhile and we were told it is because of the school break. He has great faith to want to join the church and change his entire life, cutting himself off from family and country. We will be anxious to see how things go for him. There are many stories of courage here.

We had a lovely visit with Kaye's niece, Mindy, during May and we also enjoyed a wonderful time with President and Sister Baughman who were traveling through London on their way back to Hungary for a visit. It just so happened that Bruce and Karen Haslem (Bruce is SueZann Kohler’s cousin), who served with us in Hungary, were in England visiting Bruce’s sister and her husband who are serving as Family History missionaries in our mission so we had a great mini reunion.

Haslems and Baughmans with us