A BAPTISM AND THE WIESES GO HOME

We wrote last time about going to choir practice at our ward building before Christmas. Some of those practices were on weeknights and we would run into the young missionaries assigned to our ward who were teaching investigators at the church. One evening, we were just leaving choir practice when the sisters, who at that time, were Sister Singleton and Sister Collado, had just finished giving the first discussion to a man named Juan Jose Borjes and we stopped to meet him. There was an instant connection with this good man and his story is very interesting.

Juan Jose comes from a Catholic family but had become dissatisfied and was looking elsewhere. He joined the Seventh-Day-Adventists but was still not satisfied and was still looking. He was viewing The Piano Guys web site and he saw that they are members of the LDS Church. He read what they wrote about their beliefs and was impressed, so he clicked the link to mormon.org, and ended up calling Church headquarters in Salt Lake to find out more. He was referred to the Buenos Aires North Mission, who sent Sisters Singleton and Collado to contact him because he lives in the Villa Crespo Ward boundaries. By the time they met him, he had downloaded the Gospel Library smart phone app and was reading the Book of Mormon and other Church literature. He was anxious to be baptized and really, the sisters just needed to be sure he knew about the Church and the commitments he would be making. At church, we attend the Gospel Principles class, where the investigators go, and we had an opportunity to get to know him, along with other investigators and newly baptized members. He set his baptism for January 8 and he asked Elder Love to baptize him, which he was honored to do.

The Villa Crespo Gospel Principles Class

Elder Love, Juan Jose Borjes, Sister Fraga (replaced Sis. Singleton), & Sister Collado

The following week, he also asked Elder Love to confirm him, and the week after that, he received a calling and also received the Aaronic Priesthood. Elder Love was also privileged to participate in his setting apart and his ordination to the office of priest. Juan Jose has been faithful in fulfilling his assignments, blessing the sacrament and attending his meetings. Yesterday, we attended the evening session of stake conference and learned that he has been doing family history. He is fulfilling his goal to index names and he already has 7 names from his family ready to submit for temple ordinances. We introduced him to the manager for family history for the South America South area, who later indicated that they would love to do a video of his story for the area. He is a great example for us all.

The Wieses Go Home

Although the senior couples really don’t have trainers like the young missionaries do, the closest thing for many of the senior couples here has been the Wieses, from Farmington, Utah, whose assignment was Public Relations, working closely with area seventy, Elder Salas. Because they were assigned to the La Boca ward, which is quite a long way from Palermo, where we all live, they would check out a car on weekends to go to church. When new couples were arriving, usually on Fridays, they would also do the long drive to the airport to pick them up and deliver them to their apartment. Then, they would show them around the neighborhood – where to buy groceries, where to get the subway card, where to catch the subway or bus to get to work and to church, etc. They would feed the young proselyting missionaries from La Boca nearly every Sunday, often 6 missionaries, and Sister Wiese was the unofficial social coordinator who kept track of interesting activities for the senior couples on the weekends. In the days before their mission was coming to an end on February 2, we enjoyed having them for dinner, as did most of the senior couples. We also took one Friday evening and all went with them to their favorite restaurant, Lai Lai, in Barrio Chino (the Chinese neighborhood). It was a wonderful evening with great food and great company.

The senior couples in front of Lai Lai in Barrio Chino

After dinner, we strolled to Barrancas de Belgrano park, which is not far from Lai Lai. There is a small pavilion in the park where people go on weekend evenings to dance the tango. There are old and young, who all put their purses, backpacks, etc., in the middle of the floor for security and then they dance. It was a little like a stake dance, sometimes, with the men on one side and the women on the other, but there were still a lot of people dancing, and it was rather sweet. It is very traditional here. Typically, a man would approach a woman and ask her to dance, and they would take the floor. Many of them are very good dancers. Then, after that dance, he would accompany her back to her place. We enjoyed watching them for quite some time before we had to go catch our bus. 

Dance pavilion in Barrancas de Belgrano Park

Couples dancing the tango in Barrancas de Belgrano Park pavilion

A few days later, all the senior couples had a wonderful pot luck dinner with the Wieses, where we celebrated Elder Wiese’s birthday, and the Williams did a photo presentation of them, the activities they had been involved in, and their favorite pastime, going out to dinner. 

View from the top of Wiese's building where we had our pot luck dinner - you can see the Rio Plata and a ship if you look closely

A few days later, they were on their way back to Farmington to get new phones, a new car, a new home, and see their wonderful family. We truly miss them and we wish them all the best.

The Loves and the Wieses

A Beautiful Place to Work

Buenos Aires is a beautiful place with wonderful old homes and classic architecture. Here are a few miscellaneous photos of houses near our office in Begrano.

Beautiful restored courtyard at the LDS Institute in Belgrano

A home near the office in Belgrano - notice the lovely carved faces

Diverse architecture on a street near the office in Belgrano

Hamburger Fest

As we have mentioned before, there are frequently food fairs at the race track hear our apartment. We went to a hamburger fest a few weeks ago and got a chuckle out of the menu item at one of the food stands:

We both had the "Combo Trump"

Stake Conference

We attended our stake conference today in the Belgrano stake. Our old stake president has been called to serve as a mission president in the Salta, Argentine mission so a new stake presidency was called and sustained today.  Elder Alan Packer, of the Seventy, and a member of the area presidency and of the Belgrano stake, and Elder Batalla, area seventy, were the assigned authorities. The Belgrano stake has excellent leadership. Many of the area managers live in the stake so the list of Melchizedek priesthood holders who would be capable of being called as stake president was longer than many in the area. The brother who was called as stake president was the stake executive secretary and he works in the area planning department. The first counselor was the former second counselor and the second counselor is the area finance manager, whom Elder Love knows rather well. The Belgrano stake will be in good hands.

We know this is the Lord’s work and His hand is in it. We love you all. Until next time,

The Loves