The big news for this week is that Vanessa got baptized! We received a text on Wednesday from Elder Hagler that said she was going to be baptized this week, and then another text from him on Friday telling us what time the baptism was going to be. I was really surprised because I expected it to be a much longer process before she was able to be baptized. I think that maybe part of Elder Paxton's purpose in being transferred to Riverside was to make it easier to communicate with Vanessa's family. So I was able to go back for her baptism, and she asked me to baptize her, so that was pretty cool. It's become sort of an embarrassing trend though, just like all the other baptisms that I have performed, it took two tries to get her baptized. She was really afraid of the water, so the first time I tried, she locked her legs up. But the second time went smoothly and everything was good.
Norco is kind of strange. There are horse trails instead of sidewalks. It smells like the kind of place that would have horse trails instead of sidewalks, especially after it rains. A lot of people have lived here for a really long time, and there are some parts that are pretty nice. But like all areas it has good places and bad places. The Auburndale Ward is awesome at missionary work. We had an investigator family come to the Halloween Party, and the Ward practically mobbed them trying to help them feel welcome, and they are working on their own to keep in contact with them and invite them to church. The Ward has quite a few older families/couples, but it doesn't feel like an old ward. There are also several families carrying around newborn babies so it's a pretty good mix overall. The Corona YSA Ward really is a lot smaller than the Riverside YSA Ward though. There were maybe 30 people there on Sunday, though Elder Anderson did say it was sort of a sparse week as far as attendance goes. They don't have very many activities, and FHE was just a lesson and hanging out at the bishop's house. But it seems like it is a very close-knit group and everybody is friends with everybody.
Currently we are working with several different people. In the Auburndale Ward, our most solid investigator is a 9 year old boy. He wants to be baptized, and his mom wants him to be baptized, but she's not willing to come to church with him. It seems like that is a problem that happens a lot around here. There is also the family that came to the ward party, the Espinozas. They just had triplets like 3 or 4 months ago, so they got really busy right when the missionaries found them so meeting with them can be a struggle, but they have made good friends with some of the ward members and I see a lot of potential for them, even if it is a slow process. In the YSA Ward, our most solid investigator is a young man named Tyler. He was a referral from the Corona Sister's, and he seems to absorb everything pretty well. He is kind of quiet so we're never quite sure exactly how much he understands unless we ask him pointblank. But he seems to know a lot. He wasn't able to make it to church this week because he got sick. We have a few other names and potentials to work with, as well as plenty of houses to tract out. This week was kind of disappointing because every single person we talked to was really nice it seemed, but none of them were interested at all. I think we maybe got one potential this week, and it was the kind where they say, "I'll reach out to you when I'm ready."
The Ward Halloween party was on Saturday. It was decently fun, but I feel like it would have been more fun if I actually knew all the people who were there. Here's a tip, when a new missionary comes up and introduces themselves, that's the polite way of admitting they don't know who you are. PLEASE tell them your name! It was the most frustrating thing to introduce ourselves to 30 or 40 people at the party and on Sunday, and only have 10 of them tell us their names in return.
Here is a little bit of information on my two companions. Elder Anderson is from the middle of nowhere in Utah. He played pretty much every sport in high school, partly because he was talented and partly because there weren't very many people in his high school. He plans on going to Dixie State when he goes home and he has a combination academic and golf scholarship there. He likes country music and working hard. He's served in Hemet(Fruitvale), Riverside(Woodcrest), and now in Norco. He's been a Zone Leader for 3 transfers now, one less than me. Elder Brown is from one of the most densely populated Mormon areas in Arizona. He lives about 10 minutes from Gilbert and the temple there. He played basketball in high school and they went to state. He plans on going to ASU when he gets home. He likes politics, sports, and country music. He served in Jurupa(Foothill) for his first 6 months and then came here to Norco.
From the West Side . . .
Elder Cornaby
Currently we are working with several different people. In the Auburndale Ward, our most solid investigator is a 9 year old boy. He wants to be baptized, and his mom wants him to be baptized, but she's not willing to come to church with him. It seems like that is a problem that happens a lot around here. There is also the family that came to the ward party, the Espinozas. They just had triplets like 3 or 4 months ago, so they got really busy right when the missionaries found them so meeting with them can be a struggle, but they have made good friends with some of the ward members and I see a lot of potential for them, even if it is a slow process. In the YSA Ward, our most solid investigator is a young man named Tyler. He was a referral from the Corona Sister's, and he seems to absorb everything pretty well. He is kind of quiet so we're never quite sure exactly how much he understands unless we ask him pointblank. But he seems to know a lot. He wasn't able to make it to church this week because he got sick. We have a few other names and potentials to work with, as well as plenty of houses to tract out. This week was kind of disappointing because every single person we talked to was really nice it seemed, but none of them were interested at all. I think we maybe got one potential this week, and it was the kind where they say, "I'll reach out to you when I'm ready."
The Ward Halloween party was on Saturday. It was decently fun, but I feel like it would have been more fun if I actually knew all the people who were there. Here's a tip, when a new missionary comes up and introduces themselves, that's the polite way of admitting they don't know who you are. PLEASE tell them your name! It was the most frustrating thing to introduce ourselves to 30 or 40 people at the party and on Sunday, and only have 10 of them tell us their names in return.
Here is a little bit of information on my two companions. Elder Anderson is from the middle of nowhere in Utah. He played pretty much every sport in high school, partly because he was talented and partly because there weren't very many people in his high school. He plans on going to Dixie State when he goes home and he has a combination academic and golf scholarship there. He likes country music and working hard. He's served in Hemet(Fruitvale), Riverside(Woodcrest), and now in Norco. He's been a Zone Leader for 3 transfers now, one less than me. Elder Brown is from one of the most densely populated Mormon areas in Arizona. He lives about 10 minutes from Gilbert and the temple there. He played basketball in high school and they went to state. He plans on going to ASU when he gets home. He likes politics, sports, and country music. He served in Jurupa(Foothill) for his first 6 months and then came here to Norco.
From the West Side . . .
Elder Cornaby