August 2 to August 7, 2022

 

Elder Black snapped this picture of the welcoming line while he was down in front directing traffic - vehicles with trailers go into the far right lane, cars in the middle lane and if any buses they go in the far left lane.  We start with a devotional at 6:00 am then the gates open at 6:30 with leaders starting to arrive to get things ready.  Cars, trucks, buses, etc start arriving from 8 to about 10:30.   

Just some interesting numbers of cars that came through the Welcome Center.

Saturday, May 21^st – Open House  461 cars

Tuesday, May 31^st ---- 586 cars

Monday, June 6^th -----576 cars

Monday, June 13^th ----503 cars

Monday, June 20^th ----605 cars

Monday, June 27^th ----462 cars

Tuesday, July 5^th -----514 cars

Monday, July 11th -----578 cars

Monday, July 18th -----478 cars

Monday, July 25th -----552 cars

Monday, August 1st -----489 cars

(These numbers do not include buses - which are not very many.  Most weeks there are none and the most we have had are 6)

We have one very special missionary couple here at Heber Valley Camp.  Elder & Sister Bones.  They appear in some very usual places.  At the Welcome Center, in the Lake floating with life jackets on, in the crow nest on Challenge Course 4, sitting in someone's side by side, or sitting at someone's campsite.  They just disappear and reappear where they like!

Tuesday was Elder McQuivey's birthday and the zone gave him this shirt.  It never fails - he and Sister McQuivey will go and visit different camps and he is always invited to join the group for a meal.  He was the one that could have touch "Sister Flash" when she came running through Camp Rebekah while they were sitting around their campsite earlier this spring.  So it reminded us of Yogi the Bear and this shirt was made up just for him! Plus he was given a big bag chocolate covered cinnamon bears.

While we in Guest Services Bldg, they had these cards from a group from Escalante.  This group touched many of the missionaries when they were in camp.

Saturday, like normal, we are assigned to help at Challenge Course 4 and do the Life Line.  They had two small groups of 12 or so and they had already done a Life Line.  So we just stayed and helped with the zip line.  Elder Black saw a young man, Aaron.  He was a special needs young man, his mother was a ward leader and he didn't want to participate in any of the activity.  So Elder Black sat next to him, asking questions to him and when Elder Black started to whistle, Aaron said I like to whistle.  

He got Aaron talking to him and they had a good conversation.  We left a little early for were able to watch via Zoom Steven and Ashton's wedding in Pennsylvania at 11:00.  So we left about 10 of and drove to the Welcome Center to get a wifi signal so we could watch it.  A beautiful ceremony!  It was great to see Daisy and Dan's family.

Later that evening we were assigned to check the upper gates.  Elder Black wanted to leave later in the day so he could look for wildlife.  We invited the McQuiveys to go with us and they also invited the Currys and Howes to join us.  About 30 minutes into the ride, the McQuiveys and Currys started to smell something.  Sister McQuivey called on the radio to tell us (who were leading) that there is problem.

The Howe's buggy was smoking and we all stopped and lifted the hood.  

After several bottles of water being put on the fire, we pushed the buggy around, put a tow rope on it and the McQuiveys towed them back to camp.
But a group picture first!

So we and the Currys continued our ride.  As we were headed us to Crows Nest Lake we spotted::::

Four Bull Elk!  Just what Elder Black was looking for!!

 Then over to Wasatch Panorama Lookout.  Elder Black pulled out his spotting scope and found 5 black objects that turned out to be beef cows.

The clouds were just rolling up from the valley!  Just beautiful!

So in all we saw:

30 does/fawns

1 buck

4 bull elk

3 cow elk

2 beaver

5 beef cows

A very enjoyable evening ride.

Sunday, August 7th was Fast Sunday and then our Mission Conference that evening.  In the afternoons we join a study group to go over the next week's lesson - so we are always a week ahead.  We meet at the laundromat's pavilion for about an hour.  We are the studying the Psalms and Sister Parker was leading the discussion.  What a wonderful lesson and how we should consider the book of Psalms as a hymnbook of the Israelites.

Going clockwise - bottom left:  Elder & Sister Taylor, Elder & Sister Parker, Elder & Sister Black, Elder & Sister Foxley, Elder & Sister McDonald, Elder & Sister Fenton and Elder & Sister Daniels.  We all then enjoyed some ice cream afterwards.

Then on to Mission Conference.  Announcements of the new zone leaders for 2023.

            Public Safety:  Elder & Sister McQuivey

            Legacy Lake:  Elder & Sister Fenton

            Camp Hosts:  Elder & Sister Losee

            Challenge Course:  Elder & Sister Farrer

            Building Maintenance:  Elder & Sister McDonald

            Grounds Maintenance:  Elder & Sister Goddard

            Mountain Management:  Elder & Sister Leland/Kathie Thomplinson

            Operations Manager:  Elder Beardall

            Reservations:  Sister Beardall

            Support Services:  Elder Hansen

            Camp Secretary:  Sister Hansen

All these calls came straight from the pulpit - as President O'Bryant said "This is a mission, you have already accepted the call to be a missionary - so you don't get called to a new position - because you are already a missionary"  Elder Black said earlier in the day that is how it is in the mission field - you are told to be a senior companion, a district leader, a zone leader, assistant to the president, etc.  There were many surprised missionaries when the calling were announced.  But all are the best choices and will be supported by all.

Then President O'Bryant told us some more things that have been happening.  A few weeks on a Sunday afternoon, Sister O'Bryant is baking and he is out watering his raspberries.  Elder and Sister Rasband pull into his driveway.  They have not seen the O'Bryants in the home ward and came to do some ministering.  After much discussion Elder Rasband tells President O'Bryant to get his records moved to the home ward and correct stake and then he (Elder Rasband) was going to be talking to the Priesthood Leadership about making the Heber Valley Camp a mission and not a branch and several other changes that they discussed.    He continued to tell us how the YW Camp Committee and the Branch Presidency have submitted a Long-term Plan for the Camp to the Priesthood Leadership. 1.  Prioritize stakes over wards. 2. Replace the reservation system. 3. Eliminate the requirement for buses.  4.  Become a mission.  All to enable more Young Women to come to Heber Valley Camp.  To Expand!  President also told us what Elder Rasband said:  "If President Hinckley knew that were 500 beds empty at HVC, he would shudder in his grave."  Because stakes have priority over wards when registering, many stakes over estimate how many will be attending, so the reserve more than actually come.  Leaving empty beds or even cabins - which then with the reservation system, it is hard to fill those beds last minute for maybe wards or individuals to use.  The Church is investing much into this camp, the only facility that costs more is the Conference Center in SLC.  He reminded us of the talk by Elder Uchtdorf "Lift Where You Stand".  We are called to serve.  We are not here to maintain things, but move ourselves to magnify and make it better.  We need to follow the spirit.  Make this a better camp.  Things can change, will change and we need to accept those changes and not to compare to the way things were in the past.

Then the YW Committee made cookies and milk to serve as refreshments and a big thank you for those who shave served and are not returning next year.  An uplifting evening for all.

He also told us that it has been approved to build Camp Elizabeth - which will house 600 girls, to add 12 more missionary cabins, 2 more challenge course, 1 more tomahawk toss and get more boats for the lake.