Our First Weeks in Paradise
We finished our training on Thursday, October 19th and left for Hawaii the next afternoon. We arrived at Kona about 8:30 PM and the "then" Temple President and his wife (President and Sister Harris) picked us up at the airport and took us to our apartment.
We got unpacked that night, made our bed and went to sleep after a long day of preparation and travel!
The next day, we went grocery shopping and cleaned and settled into our apartment. We live in the Kona Koffee Villas (an appropriate name for missionary apartments) there are 2 other temple missionaries serving and they also live in this complex.
Here are a few pictures of the inside of our condo.
Our entry way
Our living room
Our kitchen
Our bedroom
Our apartment was basically furnished when we moved in, but we moved things around a bit and bought some picture frames (to frame the cute Hawaiian pictures we found on a calendar) and some extra dishes, pots and pans and silverware - all from second-hand stores.
Kona Temple Work
The temple was closed for remodeling for the first few days after we arrived. When the remodel was finally finished - October 25th, the cleaning began to make everything ready for the re-open on October 31st. We helped with that thorough cleaning, as every surface in the temple was cleaned! We also had some training during that time.
The temple re-opened as scheduled and we began our assignment as ordinance workers. We also help with the laundry and cleaning. Part of our responsibility is to take charge of the weekly "deep/clean" each Saturday after the last session. Hal notifies and reminds the ward that is responsible to provide 10 - 12 volunteers to help each week. The wards thus far have been great and we truly appreciate their help! Kona Temple is the second smallest temple (with Colonial Juarez being the smallest temple) in the church. That means there are no paid employees (except the temple engineer) and all needed work is provided by member volunteers and missionaries. We enjoy the variety of things that we do each day but we do feel a BIG responsibility to keep our temple clean.
We love doing the ordinance work and most of all working with the wonderful people who work with us and the patrons that come each day. We serve on the morning shift - Tuesday through Friday there are two sessions - 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM followed by a light clean of the temple. There are also baptisms, sealings and initiatory work going on each day Monday through Saturday. We get up at 5:00 AM to be ready for prayer meeting at 7:00 AM each morning - we have a 15 to 20 minute drive from our apartment. Then on Saturdays, there are 3 and once a month, 4 sessions (when the Maui saints come to the temple). After the sessions, we head up a thorough clean of the temple. Our days off are Sunday and Monday.
Hal's Birthday
To celebrate Hal's birthday, we went to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for dinner. The food was delicious!!
The birthday boy getting ready to enjoy his dessert - white chocolate bread pudding with creme anglaise sauce - so yummy!
Our Ward
We attend the Kealakekua Ward in a brand new meetinghouse in nearby Honalo. From our church, we have a gorgeous view of the sea!
On the Saturday before Halloween, our ward ,and the other ward that meets in our building, joined together for a "Trunk or Treat" party. Dinner was served and the menu was: Rice, macaroni, chili, hot dogs, salads and lots of desserts! I made a pot of chili and we attended and enjoyed eating and meeting the members that came that evening.
The kids were cute in their costumes!
And of course, the elders attended!
Hawaii is Paradise!
Beautiful sunset views from our backyard
A view from a Scenic Point near our condo
Here are a few pictures of the inside of our condo.
Our kitchen
Our bedroom
Our apartment was basically furnished when we moved in, but we moved things around a bit and bought some picture frames (to frame the cute Hawaiian pictures we found on a calendar) and some extra dishes, pots and pans and silverware - all from second-hand stores.
The temple was closed for remodeling for the first few days after we arrived. When the remodel was finally finished - October 25th, the cleaning began to make everything ready for the re-open on October 31st. We helped with that thorough cleaning, as every surface in the temple was cleaned! We also had some training during that time.
The temple re-opened as scheduled and we began our assignment as ordinance workers. We also help with the laundry and cleaning. Part of our responsibility is to take charge of the weekly "deep/clean" each Saturday after the last session. Hal notifies and reminds the ward that is responsible to provide 10 - 12 volunteers to help each week. The wards thus far have been great and we truly appreciate their help! Kona Temple is the second smallest temple (with Colonial Juarez being the smallest temple) in the church. That means there are no paid employees (except the temple engineer) and all needed work is provided by member volunteers and missionaries. We enjoy the variety of things that we do each day but we do feel a BIG responsibility to keep our temple clean.
We love doing the ordinance work and most of all working with the wonderful people who work with us and the patrons that come each day. We serve on the morning shift - Tuesday through Friday there are two sessions - 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM followed by a light clean of the temple. There are also baptisms, sealings and initiatory work going on each day Monday through Saturday. We get up at 5:00 AM to be ready for prayer meeting at 7:00 AM each morning - we have a 15 to 20 minute drive from our apartment. Then on Saturdays, there are 3 and once a month, 4 sessions (when the Maui saints come to the temple). After the sessions, we head up a thorough clean of the temple. Our days off are Sunday and Monday.
Hal's Birthday
To celebrate Hal's birthday, we went to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for dinner. The food was delicious!!
The birthday boy getting ready to enjoy his dessert - white chocolate bread pudding with creme anglaise sauce - so yummy!
Our Ward
We attend the Kealakekua Ward in a brand new meetinghouse in nearby Honalo. From our church, we have a gorgeous view of the sea!
On the Saturday before Halloween, our ward ,and the other ward that meets in our building, joined together for a "Trunk or Treat" party. Dinner was served and the menu was: Rice, macaroni, chili, hot dogs, salads and lots of desserts! I made a pot of chili and we attended and enjoyed eating and meeting the members that came that evening.
Hawaii is Paradise!
Beautiful sunset views from our backyard
I love seeing where you live and serve! It does look like paradise.
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