Almost Home!

I'm sure Devin would love a big welcome home, so please feel free to join us at the Fresno airport on Saturday, July 5. His flight is scheduled to arrive at 3:56 p.m.

Last Week

Well, there is not a whole lot to talk about as far the work here in Eureka as we still literally have nobody to see. So we have been trying to find some service opportunities. We just barely got done doing some yard work for a recent convert who lives just a few houses down. We've been weed whacking for an hour and it been the hottest today for a long time which it is about 85 which I know will be nothing to the 104 that I will be coming home to. I am so used to the 60's!

For church Sunday we sang "O Canada" for the opening hymn for Sacrament Meeting as half the congregation came down from Canada as Canada Day is July 1st, which is today. Then we sang our national anthem for the closing Hymn. So there are tons of Canadians here in Eureka and in Kalispell this week! Also I saw the huge line of cars waiting to enter U.S.A. at the border.

Well, don't know what else to say except it will be weird that I will be home this Saturday! I will be spending Thursday night with the Zone Leaders and have to be in Missoula by 9:30 and leave there around 10 for a 6 hour drive to Billings. Have my interview and Saturday morning at 6:15 have a temple session and fly home at 1:00! Crazy huh? Time does fly by fast! Have a great week!

Elder Ashcroft

Elder Ashcroft's Day

Well, things are going pretty good. My mind just went blank... been trying to contact several people in Eureka but a lot of people are not home and we have been doing a lot of tracting but have not found any potential yet. We are working with Milus who we set on Baptism Date for July 5th my first week in Eureka but he hasn't come to church yet. So the baptism may not happen. A less active who we've been working with got offended and does not want the lessons now and didn't show up to church this Sunday, so that is super disappointing and we hope to stay in contact with her. We are pretty much starting from scratch now as we literally do not have anyone to teach.

Yesterday was Elder Ashcroft's Day as that is what the Zone Leaders wanted to happen. So I was going to have us go to Glacier Park except it just snowed last week during summer.... it snowed 14 inches and most of the park is closed though I hear it might open up this week or next. So instead we played Ultimate Frisbee at a park for a couple of hours then we went to the church and palyed volleyball. So it turned out well.

I am currently on exchanges in Columbia Falls with Elder Blackmon till Wednesday after District Meeting. Oh yeah, Friday was a really good day! We went to Kalispell early in the morning as all the missionaries in the Zone helped out at the Youth Tri-stake Conference. The Stevensvile, Missoula, and Kalispell Stakes. I was able to see several people from my first area and from my last area! It was neat to see all of them again. Anyway, I helped out with the activities. I was with Elder Remington, and we had two posts with ropes that had about 16 holes in them that is just big enough for them to go through. The point was for the youth, groups of about 14, to get through the holes without touching the ropes. Once a person went through the hole they couldn't use that same hole again. It is hard to explain, it would be easier if you actually saw it. Anyway, we then shared a spiritual thought at the end about how the activity related to the repentance process. How the ropes represent sin and temptation. How some struggled to get through the rope, in which case they had to go back and do it again. Sometimes we think we have repented an realize we haven't and have to go through the process again. It may be difficult, and may need help from others, which the youth need help, but will be rewarding once you finish the repentance process.

After the Conference we had Zone Training for our Zone. That was really good, and of course they had me go up and bear my testimony. I felt that this was a lot more difficult to do than when I did it at the Mission Tour. It was good though. I'm running out of time, hope you have a great week!

Elder Ashcroft

Stomach Flu :(

Seems like I am always catching a flu and have had quite a few of them on my mission! I was out for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday so we were not able to do a whole lot last week. The exchange ended Wednesday morning in Kalispell and switched over for District Meeting. I gave a discussion, which Elder Remington gave me the same topic that I gave for Zone Leaders Training Last transfer in the Stevensville Zone! So I was pretty well prepared and it went well. Unfortunately, I had to cut my discussion short as we had to facetime in to the Zone Leaders as a district for some information from the mission. Also announcing that Elder Ashcroft's Day is next Monday for preparation day. So, of course I want to go to Glacier National Park and do a hike, so that is what we will be doing next Monday as a Zone. That should be fun and exciting. Crazy to think I only have 2 1/2 weeks left! Gahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Hmmm, oh yeah, Wednesday the Eureka Ward did a Burger Burn at the church and had a pretty good turn out. Had about 6 non members come. I also think I got food poisoning from that, hence I was sick for 3 days. I guess I was the only one that got sick too! :(  Some of the members here live in very nice homes and right next to a beautiful view of a lake/mountains/Valley! There are quite a lot of Canadians here too! Seems to be a tourist hot spot as well down in Kalispell near the Flathead Lake, which by the way, is a very beautiful lake!

I suppose that is all I have for you this time, have a great week!

Elder Ashcroft




                                     Elder Schlenker and I during our exchange in Kalispell!

Mission Tour

Well, we were able to travel to Helena Tuesday and I was able to drive up with Elder Linton, who I served with in Riverton, WY, so that was a fun car ride. We then ended up staying overnight with the Stangers! Stangers are the members that I lived with for 3 transfers in Helena so it was great to be able to talk to them. They told me that their home will always be my home and that I am always welcome. :) Really one of the neatest people I have met on my mission! Then on Wednesday we had our mission tour and Elder Codoy was there. He was great! He is very animated and hilarious. He was telling us how great our mission was doing and that we are doing very good at all aspects of the missionary work here in this mission! He also said "if this mission cannot baptize thousands, no mission can." So that is a huge compliment on how well our mission is doing and how much more we can do! Then, something unexpected happened, which I should have known it was coming, I was asked to give my departing testimony to half the mission! I was the first one to go, in which Elder Landry, Elder Burrows, and Sister Ward gave theirs as well. I feel that I did pretty well and handled it pretty good as well. The others gave great testimonies as well. It kinda stinks seeing all those missionaries for the last time on the mission. Anyway, the mission tour was great!

So currently I am on exchange with Elder Schlenker (Zone Leader) in Kalispell 2 ward since yesterday till tomorrow. It's nice being back in Kalispell 2 even though I only served here for only 3 weeks last time I was here. I was able to see Garret yesterday, who was literally one of the first persons I saw when I came to Kalispell and he was baptized that day! He is still active and married one of the members as well last year and now has a 11 week old boy! He is doing great and it was nice to talk to him!

Well, that is all for now that I can think of, have a great week!

Elder Ashcroft

Eureka

Well, the library here is closed on Monday so I will be emailing on Tuesday for now on. So you will have to wait another day to get my emails. :/    So Eureka is very pretty. We have the mountains nearby and there are a lot of rolling green hills, reminds me of the Shire in Lord of the Rings. So Eureka is 8 miles from the Canadian border, in fact the other night we went to see a part member family, who weren't home, and their backyard fence is the border to Canada. So I have seen Canada on my mission! Pretty cool huh? I will have to get a picture with the "Now Entering Canada" sign. 

The members here are great and supportive! Very missionary minded and our ward mission leader is fantastic! They are good about giving us names to see. We do not have too many people to see at the moment that are progressing. We did meet with one of our investigators and set a baptism date for July 5th, so we hope he keeps with that commitment. He has yet to come to church. So we are finding more people to teach. As missionaries we are always looking for more people to see. 

I have also been doing a lot of cleaning in our apartment. It amazes me how missionaries do not know how to clean their living quarters. I cleaned out our pantry which a lot of the food were empty cans/packages. Got rid of can foods that expired 7-9 years ago. Now I am working with the bathroom which is horrendous and am halfway done with that. Never knew how much cleaning I would have to do when I got into the mission! It is rewarding though once the place is clean and it definitely invites the Holy Ghost when you have a clean living quarters. Enough with my little rant about cleaning.

Elder Maughan is a good missionary, he is from Florida and has been out 7 months. We are getting along pretty well and are keeping ourselves busy here in Eureka. We helped a member move one of her storage unit to another one so she could save extra money. It amazes me how much people hoard their stuff which a lot of them they would never use. Anyway, it was great to serve other people and I
love doing service projects! 

Loving this beautiful area and the people here. So Elder Maughan and I are leaving today at 2:30 and driving to Kalispell in which our Zone is carpooling to Helena as we have a mission tour Wednesday and Elder Codoy of the Seventy is going to be there along with another Seventy, can't remember who. So I am super excited as I will be riding up with Elder Linton, who I served with in Riverton, WY. Also, I will be staying with the Stangers in Helena tonight, the family that I lived with for 4 months in Helena! This is going to be a great week! Love you all and have a great week!

Elder Ashcroft

P.S. It's very green here and members here tell me I got here at the best time of the year which is 
super nice! And well, it will be clear one day with nice weather in the 70's to being cloudy and bit on the chilly side like today. So you never know about the weather. Beautiful with lots of rolling green hills and the mountains nearby that are covered in pine trees and have some snow on it still. Very green here and members here tell me I got here at the best time of the year which is super nice! An hour and a half drive away from all other missionaries so we are pretty secluded to the mission. So that is Eureka! Lots of Canadians here with a second home/cabin for the summer. So we see a bunch of Canadians. Forgot to mention! Eureka just became a ward a month ago! :) Have a great week!

Last Transfer

Well, transfer call came Sunday and found out I am being transferred to Eureka, MT which is north of Kalispell and right next to Glacier National Park. I will just be a normal missionary this transfer and a senior companion to Elder Maughn, who I have not met before. I'm hoping this will be a good last transfer of my mission. Hard to believe I have less than 6 weeks left now!

So of course I am sad about leaving Corvallis and all the Pinesdale people I have been able to get close to. Also on Sunday we set a baptism date for Ellen who has been investigating the church for over 40 years! Bummed I will miss out on her baptism on June 14th.

We did quite a bit of service this week. Since it was memorial day weekend we were encouraged to see what we could do to help so we called around and got a hold of the guy in charge of the cemetery in which we helped do some garden work for him on Friday. Found out Steve had known some members in the church and he invited us to help out at his place with landscaping which we did on Monday. He is a really neat guy and we hope to start teaching him. On Wednesday Tarikh Peak was baptized and confirmed Sunday which was a neat experience. The other Elders have been working with him.

We had preparation day today as we worked yesterday, so today we got together as a Zone and went on a nice hike and it is a beautiful day today. Well, I am leaving tomorrow and still need to finish packing. Hopefully this is my last transfer till I go to Billings. Have a great week!

Elder Ashcroft

P.S Excited to hear I am an Uncle now! :)