Alec's new adventures in Devonshire 15

So here are some random pictures that chronicle my new life as a BYU student staying in Devonshire 15:

just to show a little bit of the people and the apartment

I am Alec

This is Tanner Jones, my apart-mate

This is Bennett Forbes, Tanner's room-mate and my other apart-mate

This is not my room-mate, (don't worry mom) I don't have a new picture of Trammell Cox yet, 

but i'll post one later

This is Erin Griffey jokingly crossing our infamous Dev 15 "chastity line"

 In Devonshire 15, WE COOK LIKE MEN!

 (for those that are curious that is creamy corn and potato soup - Thanks Ben for the cookbook[s]!)

 Here are two parts of our apartment - we have a Colorado flag (the 3 others are from Denver)

and a garden statue saint to hold our keys and change

So now you have a taste of Dev 15!

I'm back!!!

so i'm back - i'll post some of my last part of my mission pictures

From Alec: June 8, 2010 It's in the 100's!

Hello from AZ,

Hope everything is going well. As always, thanks for the emails and letters. I like what you said about thoughts, Mom. I know for Christmas one year I got that book As A Man Thinketh by James Allen. It is a recommendation by President Kimball in a book. I really liked it and felt what it taught about thoughts is very true.

Well this last week was a very tiring one. Lots of service and activities. I don't remember any special things to speak of for last week except for: Wednesday we went with Patty to the Visitors' Center to watch the Joseph Smith movie. It is always good to go and watch that. They also have a very neat exhibit there with the original art of the ones that won the LDS competitions. They've featured all of them in the ensigns and I recognized many because of that.

We talked with this guy, Bro Kennedy that day too - and him sharing his experiences taught me two things; don't gossip, don't jump to conclusions. His story is a pretty sad one, he was in a car accident and some bad talk about him went around in his ward and really hurt him. He is not active because of that, which is not good because it was people, not the church that did that. It hasn't been easy for him though - he's got PTSD so it wears on him. It is wonderful to know, however, that the Savior can bring peace to his heart and heal his wounds.

Last week wasn't the best one but we do have lots to look forward to because of some promising leads. We just met a part-member family last night (a referral from the RS president in one of our wards - who actually served a mission in Idaho) who have been taught alot. Their names are J. & E., and they aren't married so perhaps that could have been the only thing keeping them from progressing - we'll see on Thursday. Also we are very excited to teach C., this other lady in a part member family. She is awesome and has never taken the missionary lessons we found out, even though the missionaries taught and baptized the 11 year old daughter last year.

It's a good thing this is the Lord's work and he watches over it/his children. I don't think there would be any other way you could get 19-25 year old kids to be successful trying to talk to people and get them to change the way they live their lives (which is many times a very difficult struggle), sacrifice time and money to enter a group that has such different vocabulary (we could probably make that list longer even). It truly is all such a miracle.

"...my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased? Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither have angels ceased to minister unto the children of men." (Moroni 7:29)

That is Mormon's testimony of miracles, and mine as well.

Elder A. Hoopes

From Alec: June 11, 2010

Hello,

Glad to hear the exciting new things going on, glad it's all going well up there.

Things are going alright down here in hot Arizona. We had a pretty good last Wednesday - a couple lessons that went well, but it is frustrating because both of them (C. & L.) just won't commit to anything but reading material. We teach and testify and do everything we can to bring the Spirit, but for different reasons each (doesn't like to commit at all, and is shy/Sunday is day to sleep, respectively) they won't commit themselves to action. We'll see. We also had a lesson with a part-member family, the mom is not LDS and the dad told us to ask her to be taught by us. The lesson went well but for kid craziness (they have 5 all around the same ages) and another reason we felt to ask a different time.

Thursday we had a great lesson with D. (our RC 9 year old kid) that was very good. I don't think they've been to church in a while and it had a part about the sacrament and we committed Damian to come to church and partake of the sacrament. It was good.

Friday was good - just doing what we can to help the Hunts. J. is struggling with w.o.w. issues, and M. (their son) has been kind of a little bit of an attitude problem (at 4, almost 5 - so it's hard not to laugh sometimes). So we gave M. a blessing and taught him very simply about the plan of salvation. What a wonderful thing it is that we have a knowledge of this plan! It is so vital and so sweet.

Well I (and especially my companion) are out of time on the computer.

I am so grateful for this mission experience. I love you all soo much - just follow what is right even if it isn't advantageous for you, follow the Spirit of God and you will be led aright.

Elder Hoopes

From Alec: May 2, 1020

Hello everyone,

Thank you for the letters and emails. Things are going well here in County Island - the weather has been nice (we had a 75 day yesterday and today isn't too bad either), but will from now on probably just get hotter.

We had zone conference on Wednesday - it is always good to hear from President and Sister Bassett. Though the later day was a little upsetting - we had all of our appointments fall through, but we still got some good things done. One thing - the assistants were doing a training on planning and they had a name as a fellowshipper for one of their investigators as "Bro Drzayich". That of course rung a bell, so is there an LDS relative down here to the Drzayich's up in Eagle?

Saturday was a great day - we had R. get baptized. It went very smoothly and was a good Spirit-filled service. We couldn't get any investigators there but we did have the H. come - they really liked it.

Sunday was the amazing day, and the reason for my subject title. The Gila Valley Temple dedications were being broadcast to all of the Arizona stake centers for the saints to watch in the place of church meetings. The stake presidency asked us to help with the doors and so we were there for the whole day almost. It was neat though - because we got to hear the first and last session of dedication (they were all live and not rebroadcasted) and watch the 12:00 middle session. President Monson is a wonderful man, and also inspired. President Eyring was there too as well as Elder Holland and other general authorities. You got to hear some amazing talks, stories, testimonies and also to see the brethren as human beings who like to laugh and joke and be with children. Of course there was a wonderful spirit there as well.

Well that night we were scrambling at 6:40 to get someone to be able to give a less-active (N.) a ride a musical fireside at 7:00 at the stakecenter. I REALLY wanted to go because it was Clyde Bawden (pianist) and Freddy Ashby (singer) doing it. They have been touring around the U.S. and Canada doing these firesides (partially as missionaries, I think the church was helping it happen). They are two of the performers who have done the Reflections of Christ music that goes with the photography of actors portraying Christ and His ministry. I love those CDs and everything about Reflections of Christ, and so I naturally wanted to go as I said. We had been unable to find a ride for N. and she was the only one who had held through on saying she would go. So we decided to put faith forward, and we were able to get someone to pick her up. She wasn't ready when we got there but Elder Hadley didn't give her a chance to say no - when she opened the door wearing PJ bottoms he said "Come on, get ready - throw on some jeans, hurry!" so we eventually got there and it was such an amazing event. I don't think I have ever felt the Spirit so much and so constantly as I did when they were singing and playing. Music is wonderful, and so is the Lord - He just asks that we put our Faith in him and don't worry about our fears and concerns. I'm grateful for this church so that I can have the Faith necessary.

17 Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
18 And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets—
19 The weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh—
20 But that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;
21 That faith also might increase in the earth;
22 That mine everlasting covenant might be established;
23 That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed...
(D&C 1)

Elder A. Hoopes

From Alec: May 11, 2010

May 11 Hey,

This will be a shorter one most likely because I just talked to you'all on Sunday. I wasn't super talkative I do know - partially because we woke up at 5:40 to be able to make it to mission prep in the morning and we had been in church for a long time. You get kinda tired, but it was good to hear everyone just for a little while.

Just a few things to mention - Elder Hadley and I are both excited about this thing that we are doing - I might have mentioned it, I got the idea in Heber - to make some special pass-along cards of our own. Mine is on President Monson/a living prophet - Elder Hadley's is on temples. We've got a member here working on getting them made for us, so we'll see how that goes.

Monday was a great day - we got to talk to a lot of people. Something not cool was the fact that D. & T. weren't home for our set up lesson with them, they're the couple we taught last week. But we'll catch them later. Later that night though we did have a lesson with this not-active convert named Jim. He's a funny guy, and has been working at this T-shirt thing at a swap meet on weekends, so he has not been to church in a long time. But at the end of this lesson with him he announced he stopped that job and will be coming to church this Sunday! We were both very excited, because he really really needs it (we all do but you know what I am saying).


At this point we'll just have to see who are the pure in heart and ready to accept the gospel - especially that they'll be willing to come to church.

This is God's work, and we're excited to step it up a notch and endure (triumph) to the end.

Elder A. Hoopes

From Alec: May 4, 2010

Hello everyone,

Hope everything is going well - thank you for the emails, and also the package, Mom.

I am pretty tired again - we tried to hike Scarface Mtn today - which is the one just behind our trailer. You can see it in the background of the pictures I sent home - the vulture ones. The score is 3 to 1 because I've hiked Superstition twice, and now this time we did get to a part of the mountain - a sort of peak. You could still see pretty dang far around, but we decided to not go all the way up - so I gave the mountain a point too.

That is so crazy that Matt is getting home today. I imagine he (as we all will) will be a very different person that when he left. That will probably be the neatest thing - is to see how much we all have changed.

This last week was an alright one. The last week of the transfer you’re always on edge because you don't know what will become of either of you for the next while. This time Elder Hadley and I felt we could both easily leave - my guess was staying, his guess was that I left. It turned out we are both staying, which we're both perfectly alright with. There are some good things going on - we got two new investigators last week. One is a guy named Bob - and that's even in the ward that has never had anything in it while Elder Hadley has been here. I didn't teach Bob, we were on splits and Elder Hadley got to ride in the fellowshippers’ white '09 Camaro to and from the lesson.

We also taught C. on Wednesday morning again. She actually asked us a question to start. She basically asked what the difference was between the Bible and the Book of Mormon, besides the names of the books in them. My first thought was "and how long have you been meeting with missionaries...?" (I think over 6 months easy, fall of '09, I think) but we taught her briefly what the Bible is (because truly almost everyone we talk to really doesn't know the background to the Bible) and then the Book of Mormon. It was a great lesson - the Spirit was there testifying very powerfully, then we were able to give her the BOM on CD so she can listen to it (she says she can't read for long at all). We're hoping that will make a big difference in her very slow progression.

Saturday we helped with the groundbreaking ceremony at a new church building in our area. Pretty neat because they spraypainted everyone's shovels gold. We got one of the cans and had some fun making things gold. I have two gold pens - a golden soccerball, my last journal is gold and part of my planner for this transfer.

Yesterday was neat - we taught this guy named D. and the lesson was very different, but we did feel like we were teaching a person more than a 'lesson', which is the whole goal of PMG. He's a cool guy - and even invited us to his BBQ on Saturday! Hehe I love being a missionary.

Well, yesterday I hit my 20 month mark. That makes me feel so old - mission time goes by pretty fast, if you don't stop and ponder once and a while - you could miss it.

I can't wait for the Conference Ensign to come out...Love you all and I'll talk with you soon! We're thinking that we will call at 6:00 pm our time, 7:00 pm Idaho time. I know Elder Hadley is planning to do it then, and if we can I'll do it at the same time, but if not probably the next hour. So hopefully that will work. (I'm talking about Mother's Day, of course) I look forward to hearing your voices again. Oh by the way, President Bassett says to limit our calls to 5 minutes.

Just kidding - 1 hour still.

love you,

Elder Hoopes