Transfers and Releases

Transfer time is a crazy time.  A week of missionaries coming into Nairobi and going out with different companions to different places.  Missionaries going home.  Missionaries coming.  It's exhausting but so much fun.  Because the mission home has room for 14 missionaries to stay, Sister Msane, our mission president's wife, has a big job taking care of so many of her adopted children!  So much cooking and cleaning.  She's a great hostess and a wonderful cook.  And Elder Torrie and I get to be involved for the whole process.  We help with food and with whatever needs to be done.  So fun.

Here's our amazing Elder Wafula, ready to go home after two years of hard work.  He's holding the newsletter that Sister Colemere put together and I printed.  There's a picture of him with his bike in the rain.  Missionaries are kind of like what they used to say about mailmen:  neither rain nor sleet nor snow . . . can stop the missionaries from doing missionary work.

Elder Shongwe, Elder Kyomya, and Elder Jameson are here for transfers.

And Sister Ndong'a (left) is going home after a year and a half of service.  Young sister missionaries serve for 18 months whereas young men missionaries (called Elders even though they are young) serve for 24 months.  Sister Gondwe (on right) has been Sister Ndong'a's companion and now she will train a missionary who will come in tomorrow.

Elder Torrie loves to talk with all the missionaries.  He's here with Elder Agesa who has been transferred to Nairobi from Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania.

Elder Jameson with Elder Apuoyo and Elder Kyomya (pronounced Choem-ya).

Elder Wilson (from Canada -- yeah!!!) and Elder Jameson

Elder Ellis and Elder Wilson

Elder Zingoni, Elder Jameson, Elder Wafula

Elder Zingoni and Elder Wafula having a little chat.

Elder Zingoni and Elder Tucker have been companions but are both being transferred.

Elder Zingoni and Elder Muzwenje.  Elder Muzwenje is going home after serving for 2 years.

Elder Wafula, Elder Otika, Elder Wilson, Elder Tucker

Elder Wafula and Elder Otika

Many of the transferring missionaries are staying with the Assistants (Elder Hales and Elder Ellis) so Sister Msane made food for them too and Elder Tucker and Elder Wilson are happy to take it.

Elder Tucker and Elder Wilson.  Elder Tucker said to please say that his mother is a terrible cook.  I think that's really rude to say but he said that his mom would laugh.  So . . . Elder Tucker's Mom:  I hope you are laughing!

I don't get many pictures of Elder Hales because he's always helping in the kitchen or running errands for President Msane, which is what an Assistant to the President does.

Sister Ndong'a (left) loves to make faces while she's eating (at least for the camera).  Aren't she and Sister Gondwe cute?  Sister Ndong'a is from Kenya and Sister Gondwe is from Zimbabwe.  Or is it Zambia?

President and Sister Msane give returning missionaries a plaque with their name on it.  Here's Elder Muzwenje with his plaque.  A former missionary in the KNM, Elder (now Brother) Musasia, carves the plaques out of ebony wood, which is really hard to carve but he does a good job.

Here's Sister Ndong'a with her plaque

And Elder Wafula with his plaque.  I love his smile.  He's got a great sense of humor.

Elder Ngabonziza with his plaque.  He is from Rwanda and has been a great missionary too.

And we all love Elder Kyuvi (pronounced chew-vee).

"I have fought a good fight . . . "  These missionaries can definitely say that as they return to their homes.

Along with plaques, they also get KNM T-shirts.

You will be missed.

Elder Hales and Elder Hales with the departing missionaries.