Transfer week, the easy way, involves a few new missionaries joining us followed by a few old missionaries going home. We didn't do it that way this time. Elder 'Atuake's flight home to Tonga left two days before the rest of his group (and many of them still made it home before him). So, he came to the mission home on Monday.
He was joined by three missionaries who were called to serve in Liberia, but were trained for three months in the Cape Coast Mission. Their flight to Liberia was on Tuesday. These three were great. They fully immersed themselves as missionaries in Ghana, even though some of their experiences here will not transfer fully to Liberia (like Twi and Fufu). I am proud of them.
I didn't test them on their Twi, but they clearly nailed Fufu!
My Assistants and Office Elders took that group to Accra on Monday afternoon for Tuesday flights.
On Tuesday, we welcomed 17 of our 18 new missionaries (remember, we are doing this the hard way).
These 17 attended the Ghana Missionary Training Center, which was filled to capacity. As a result, our eighteenth missionary, Elder Lopez, received his training in Provo, Utah and arrived to us a day after the rest of his group. So, one assistant and one office elder stayed in Accra to collect Elder Lopez and the their companions returned with the 17.
Wednesday morning, we met Elder Lopez, gave him a sandwich and a crash course in Ghana and sent him to serve in Assin Foso.
With the hard part behind us, the rest of the transfer was pretty normal. The missionaries who were completing their service arrived at our home on Wednesday afternoon.
We introduced them to air conditioning.
Fed them Fufu and ice cream.
We had a testimony meeting and then just visited.
Thursday morning, the Hanlons were the only ones on time for 6 a.m. breakfast.
Elder Larsen got honorable mention.
We enjoyed a nice session in the Temple and then they were off to KFC and the airport.
Next month, I may look back and think this transfer wasn't so hard. Our mission boundary is being adjusted in January so that the area surrounding the Winneba Stake will become part of the Ghana Accra West Mission. So, next transfer, we will move 32 of our missionaries out of that area and they will be replaced by missionaries from the other mission. We will need to open up thirteen new proselyting areas and find appropriate housing for them between now and then.
Saturday, we held leadership training for four of the mission branches in the Western Region.
They were a great group. Very eager to learn. We will repeat the training in Cape Coast next Saturday for the other seven branches.
Other Random Pictures:
The bull outside the Bakano Chapel.
Elder Jones and Elder Hodson magnifying their supply responsibility.
A traveling bead bazaar hits Cape Coast.
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