Annie Jones 1985-2009

Yesterday morning I received the very sad news that Annie Jones, who served in our mission from January 16, 2007 - May 15, 2008, died in an automobile accident near Price, Utah.

The accident occurred around 12:35AM.

Our deepest sympathies and prayers are extended to her large family, including her father Jonathan and his wife Kylene, her mother Laurie and her husband Jim, and all her siblings and step-siblings.

Annie was a gem of a young woman. She had a pure heart and a very inquisitive mind. At some point in her mission it was necessary to transport her from one location to another. We had about an hour long conversation about actuarial sciences as we drove.

In her missionary application, which she filled out prior to receiving her missionary call, she lists her interests as "hiking, climbing, rafting, and other activities. I also enjoy studying subjects such as philosophy (especially from an LDS perspective), biology, geology, astronomy, oceanography, and other areas of natural science."

From the Deseret Morning News:

WELLINGTON, Carbon County — A woman died after the vehicle she was riding in rolled early Saturday.

A driver and two passengers were traveling west on U.S. 6 at mile marker 258 when their vehicle drifted into oncoming traffic around 12:35 a.m., the Utah Highway Patrol reported. The vehicle hit an embankment on the eastbound shoulder of the road, where it came to rest.

The passenger in the rear seat, Deanne Jones, 24, of Provo, was killed from the impact. The driver sustained minor injuries and the other passenger was unharmed, according to the UHP.

The accident is under investigation, however, there is no evidence of drugs or alcohol being present, troopers reported. All occupants were wearing seatbelts.

The driver, 18, was transported by ambulance to Castleview Hospital with minor injuries. He admitted to officers that he had fallen asleep, the UHP said.

Jim Thorpe Hears Amazing Grace

Following the 1953 death of renowned athlete and Olympic medal winner Jim Thorpe, the boroughs of Mauch Chunk and East Mauch Chunk merged and adopted the name of Jim Thorpe in hopes of attracting attention and tourism to bolster the local post-industrial economy. The township bought the athlete's remains from his third wife and erected a monument to the Oklahoma native, who began his sports career as a student in Carlisle, Pennsylvania (2 hours southwest, near Harrisburg).



On the corner of Race and Susquehanna Streets in Jim Thorpe is St. Mark's Episcopal Church, built in 1887. This beautiful gem is set in the side of a hill. Commissioned by the philanthopist, Asa Packer, one of America's richest men of the time, the church is beautifully appointed and maintained in this picturesque Pennsylvania village on the Lehigh River. It is listed as a National Historical Landmark.

Last week Elders Ulrich and Jensen, on their P-day (eg day off), visited Jim Thorpe and toured this old church. Enjoy reading Elder Ulrich's report:

"When we walked in, there were 2 ladies sitting in the foyer. We explained who we were and then one of the lady's offered to take us on a tour of the whole place.

We went up 3 floors and walked out and into the main worship hall. It was gorgeous. There were stained glass windows all over and lots of gold and white marble statues of different bible characters. There was a huge pipe organ at the front and the floor tiles created lavish designs that reflected the colors of the stained glass windows in the sun. I loved it! We asked lots of questions and got lots of pictures. We ended up talking for about 15 minutes about this awesome structure and then she began asking us about the Mormon church. This lady was super curious and we ended up teaching her a 45 minute lesson.....in this awesome place. It was really neat.

As we were speaking with her, I got this great desire to ask if I could sing a song. You know how much I love music and I didn't dare ask to play the organ so I picked up their hymn book and started flipping through it to see if there were any familiar songs. I finally mustered up the courage to ask the tour guide if I could share a song and she said, "As long as you can sing well!" I chuckled and explained how I had professional voice lessons for years and that music was "my thing." She gladly obliged and then I asked her what her favorite hymn was and she answered "Amazing Grace." I flipped to the song and then asked if I could go up front and sing. She said of course and promised me that I was going to love the acoustics. YES!

I went to the front, climbed over the rope barrier and stood, looking out at this beautiful venue. I found my note and began singing. She was right, the acoustics were to die for! I just soaked in the moment and was amazed to hear how well my voice carried through the rafters and echoed off of the thick stone pillars. My goal was to bring the Spirit into that church and it came with great force. The woman began to get teary as I bore my testimony through song. When I finished the final verse, the last note seemed to hover in the air for decades before escaping through the roof and leaving us in utter silence. She thanked me and we talked for a few more minutes about the beauty of the spirit that we felt. We gave her a pass-along-card and she escorted us out of the building.

This was such a neat experience! I know that we were able to touch her life and that the spirit was definitely present at St. Mark's Episcopal Church that afternoon."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads. (Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Harmony, Pennsylvania, July 1830 -- found in Doctrine and Covenants 25:12)

Please Release Me!

When a missionary has completed his or her mission, they are officially released from their service as a missionary. Missionaries will sometimes talk about their "release date" with a mix of emotions.

Elder Clint Hales and his wife, Sister Carol Hales, have been serving as Family History (Genealogy) Missionaries for the past 18 months. They came here from Torrance, California, which is in the Los Angeles area. They will be going home on July 25. We love them and are so very grateful for their wonderful service.

Joyce and I had a farewell lunch with them today. As we bid them farewell, with handshakes, hugs and kisses, they suddenly stopped and said, "Do you mind if we sing to you?" And then they sang a lovely duet, with new words, to "Please Release Me":



Please Release Us

Please release us let us go --
We've become extremely slow --
We can't stay here anymore.
And we don't want to be a bore.

The Murray's are the very best --
We know because we've been a test.
We are fond of old PA
Please release us, to go home to our LA.

Passages

It’s been a period of passages, resulting in personal reflection on the way I am living, thinking and being.

On July 9, 2008 – just one year ago -- my dear mother passed away in my hometown of Klamath Falls, Oregon, over 2,800 miles from the mission home in Media, Pennsylvania. All who have lost a parent or close loved one know of the emotions, memories and heavenly hopes that such a passing presents. This first anniversary reminds me that I am one year closer to seeing her again.


On June 23, 2009, Robb Adkins, the 48 year old father of Sister Ashley Adkins, one of our fulltime missionaries, died as he was riding his motorcycle in Henrieville, Utah. A car cut in front of him and he was unable to stop. Henrieville is a very small town in southern Utah with a population of about 200. It feels even smaller now. Sister Adkins went home for the funeral and has returned to Philadelphia to complete her mission.







On June 25, 2009 our nephew Michael took his life. He was just 22 and was a wonderful, loving young man. Anxiety and emotional pressures of a kind I have never experienced enveloped his mind for many years. He loved his family, but desired to go home to his Father in Heaven. Although this loss is too great for words, his family has great hope because of Jesus Christ’s atonement.








On July 10, 2009 a friend named Sitaram Rao died of a heart attack in Hyderabad, India. He was 52. I first met Sitaram in January 2004 at an early morning breakfast meeting in a Hyderabad hotel. Sitaram was an exceptionally gifted man who helped lead and guide many NGOs in India. His impact on the lives of millions of poor people will become legendary. He took no credit for his success and sought nothing in return.







If this life on earth is “all there is” then I would be very depressed. The sense of loss is amplified when we love those who are now gone. The pain can overwhelm the pleasure. We are taught in the scriptures that “God is love”. What does this mean? One interpretation is that this intense emotion is a gift given to mankind, from God, so that we can create relationships that matter and have eternal potential.

I know that there is life beyond the grave -- that these painful passings will be replaced, in God’s time, with resplendent reunions. I know that families can be forever. And the love that seems lost, is in fact being preserved on both sides of the veil and will have no end. What happiness and hope this gives me. I am not depressed -- I am eternally optimistic.

I believe that the spirits, or souls, of these four good people are now in heaven. They are learning more about God’s eternal plan of happiness. They are having all the missing pieces filled in. They know, as do I, that eventually their spirits will be reunited with their resurrected bodies. And they will continue to thrive through the eternities, for "God is love".

Our ultimate peace and happiness comes when we align our thoughts, actions and lives around the teachings and commandments of Jesus Christ. We choose to believe that His way is the only way. And we re-focus our priorities on our most important relationships, knowing that time is the ultimate gift and the scarcest resource.

Visit to Harmony, PA

On Friday I had the opportunity to spend about 30 minutes in Harmony, PA. This is where Joseph Smith and his wife Emma lived on her parent's property when they were first married. It is where the translation of the Book of Mormon commenced. And it is where the priesthood was restored. I made a very short movie of the area:



For those with an interest -- here's how the movie was made:

1. Recorded movie with a Flip camcorder (www.theflip.com)
2. Movie downloaded to iMovie on my Mac laptop
3. Edited movie in iMovie and uploaded to my YouTube account
4. Movie file copied from YouTube into my blog using YouTube's embedded code feature

Roadtrip

I'm heading north early tomorrow morning to meet the 22 missionaries who serve in the Scranton PA Zone. They are now "our" missionaries. I want to get to know each missionary, so I'll be having personal interviews with each of them in their apartments.

I'll be traveling to Easton, Nazareth, Stroudsburg, Wilkes-Barre, West Pittson, Scranton, Tunkhannock, Montrose, Susquehanna and Honesdale. I'll have the opportunity of spending about 30 minutes at the Church Historical Site at Harmony, PA. I have included some important historical information about Harmony below the map.


View Larger Map

The priesthood of God was restored to the earth near Harmony (now Oakland), Pennsylvania, in 1829. Joseph and Emma Smith had moved here in December 1827 to escape persecution. Here Joseph began translating the plates that had been delivered to him by the angel Moroni. Martin Harris came from New York and served as a scribe to the Prophet for the first 116 pages of the translation from April to June 1828. Those pages were lost due to disobedience and were never retranslated.

In early April 1829, Oliver Cowdery came to meet the Prophet and soon became his new scribe. During the translation, Joseph and Oliver went into the woods and prayed for guidance on the subject of baptism. In reply, the resurrected John the Baptist visited them on May 15, 1829, and ordained them to the Aaronic Priesthood. He then commanded Joseph and Oliver to baptize each other in the nearby Susquehanna River.

Most of the Book of Mormon was translated at Harmony. Here, the Lord also gave the Prophet 15 revelations later published in the Doctrine and Covenants.

Joseph and Emma moved from Harmony in August 1830. The home they lived in burned down in 1919. From 1947 to 1959, the Church acquired the land where Joseph and Emma lived and about 6 acres of riverfront property where the Aaronic Priesthood was restored.