Transferring to Prichard, Alabama!

Tuesday was a crazy crazy day. We had zone conference. President Summerhays stood up and began talking. He began by saying how in our mission we have about 800,000 people, in the whole mission. 45% of those people are black. He said that we need to start tapping into the African American culture and start getting them baptised. He told us that we are going to start doing that. He began talking about an area called Prichard, Alabama. It is the Mobile, Alabama area. Mobile, is what we call the black hole. It is 80% black there. Prichard is 95% black. It is just the pure ghetto of Mobile. It has the highest crime rate per capita in all of America he said. He said we need to change that, we are going to put missionaries there. They will probably have to bus in, then just walk around all day and talk to people. He said, we're going to buy a ware house in the middle of town so people can walk there. We're going to build up that warehouse into a church, and start a branch from scratch. It's going to be an all black church, and were going to worship to how they like to. It was crazy, the spirit was just booming there. So after we got done, in my interview with President we were talking. He said, I feel you are the missionary to go to Prichard and build up the kingdom there. WOW....I was STOKED. He said I would probably be there a while. I am so ready to go.

If anyone wants to see what Mobile, Alabama is like, go to youtube and type in leprechaun in Mobile. Watch that video. That is Mobile, and I'm going to the most ghetto part of it. I will be going to Prichard Jan. 7.

Alligator Hunting & St Marks Beach

Well, sorry this email is coming late, a member took us to St. Marks beach today and we went alligator hunting. This week was amazing. It was crazy. Some crazy stuff happening in this mission

December 15. 2008

Tuesday we went out to Monticello. We hung out at the barrel for a while. They love us there. They said they will have the drunken tree this week. The Christmas tree with the beer cans. That will be funny. We hung out there for a little while, then went to visit some less active people. That night we had a lesson with a part member family and non member person. It went well.

November 24, 2008

Our whole zone went paint balling today. It was awesome. It was so fun. I will send pictures of it. a guy in 3rd ward supplied all of the guns and ammo and everything. So that took up most the day. Also go Utes! I am so glad they won. WOW, I was gettin so much crap from the ward the whole year haha now they don't talk....

On Tuesday we ha zone conference. It was awesome. Our Mission President is unbelievable. He will be an apostle. We talked about the power of prayer.

November 3, 2008 Super Nanny

We went to Blythe's house cause we got permission to watch the Super Nanny. It was CRAZY but the funny thing is that is Exactly how it is at the house all the time. haha they are hilarious. Elspeth, the crazy little one is just like that 24/7. She is so funny tho, but it was extremely awkward because we watched it with the ex husband. ha, it was really awkward but o well. It was cool cause we were in the house where the whole episode took place. So that was sweet. Hope you all had a chance to watch it, that is in our area and were over at there house about 3 times a week. If you didn't try to watch it online.

Halloween 2008

Friday was Halloween. In the morning we went to the skate rink and painted the whole trim outside the rink. It took a while. Then we went over to mikes dance studio and they put on like a Halloween carnival. So we hung out there and helped do that. After we went home and made home made costumes. haha they are hilarious. I will email a picture of them. Elder Carroll was Zorro and I was his Mexican companion. These were all stuff around the appt. we found. They were hilarious.

Trailer Park Investigators

We went walking around the trailer park. We sat down with the guys who just drink beer and play checkers. We played some checkers with them. I took some pictures of all of us, they are hilarious.

Squirrel Hunting!

I forgot to tell yall that last week, that super southern family showed us how to gut and clean a squirrel! ha. So there is a picture of the squirrel and everything. ha hope its not to nasty but when I get home I will make you all fresh squirrel.

Pimped Missionary

Miker Bergstrem is going to be a pimp for Halloween so I dressed up in his out fit.

October 28, 2008-Zone Conference

On Tuesday we had a zone conference. It was great. President Summerhays made an awesome comment. He was talking about the Economy of the world right now and how he was so thankful the whole world is suffering. He said our generation is spoiled. We haven't faced anything, and then he said, why would the Lord come down to a generation like this? He said he is so thankful for this time because it will improve our faith greatly and the best memories are when the trying times come. It was awesome.

Elder Kenworthy Transferred

On Tuesday night, Elder Kenworthy packed up all his stuff cause he was transferred to Troy, Alabama on Wed morning we met at transfer spot and switched companions. My new one is named Elder Carroll. He is tight we get along great.

Baptisim

Saturday was Roberts baptism. We went early to prepare for it. It was so awesome. Robert is 18, none of his family is intersed just him. They didn't even want him to get baptised but when he told him they were, they said they wanted to come. So both sides of his family came to the baptism. It was sweet. It went really well I thought. I got to baptise him which was pretty cool.

GO UTES!

Everywhere I go there are UTE FANS! Even in Florida. GO UTES!
(Look at my shirt isn't it clean? Hey mom, how do I get my shirts white again?)

Look At These GREAT Ties I Purchased for $3.00!

I got these GREAT ties at a yard sale for .50 a piece! I even got a Christmas one (on the end)! Aren't they beautiful?

Getting My Missionary Haircut!

Look How Clean My Shirt Is!

Man, do I LOVE doing service work!

A Family That We Baptized!

Turtles & Spiders & Goats, Oh No!

My First Time Cooking Chicken Wings!

September 2 Email- Daily & the Ute Shirt

Earlier in the week I had taken a Utah Football shirt and hat over to Daily. When I called Blythe to make sure that we were still coming over to play ball with Daily the next day, she said yeah and she told me that Daily hadn't taken the Utah shirt and hat off for two days. The producer of "Super Nanny" told him to, but he refused and locked himself in the closet for two hours. haha. He wouldn't take it off. SWEET!

September 2 Email-Bubba

On Friday went out to Brother Williams house. We did service for him. Picked up fallen tree limbs and everything else that had been blown onto his lawn. The sweet thing about Brother Williams house is that he has a huge pond outside and in the pond are two alligators. One named Bubba. So when we finished working, we grabbed some fishin poles and fished for catfish and looked at the alligators. It was crazy. Bubba got like 10 feet away from us. It was awesome!

August 25 Email-My Birthday & The Hurricane

On my birthday the power went out again and the hurricane hit us bad. I have never seen so much rain in my life. We went over to my Bishop's house for a birthday lunch when a member called and said they needed our help. We rushed over to their dance studio and it was flooded in about 5 inches of water from the rain. We were in our church clothes so we took our shoes and ties off and rolled up our pants. We went inside the dance studio and started pumping the water out, but the water kept coming in and getting higher and higher. We went outside on a road that is behind their studio. The water was up to our knees and some parts up to our waists. The water kept coming straight into their studio so we created a barrier out of railroad tracks. These tracks were probably 150 pounds each. We floated them down the road and threw everything we could to barricade the water from coming in. Four cars got stuck and we had to push them out. A Hummer was turned on its side and we had to push it over and out. It was still puring. There were two tornado warnings. We heard it rained 20 inches that day and it was still raining!

August 25 Email-Spiritual Experience

This was the craziest experience. I was driving. I drive this particular route everyday, but I accidentally made a wrong turn. We were going the opposite direction, but I couldn't turn back for some reason. I just kept driving and then I just stopped on a street. I have no idea why. I just felt like I should. It was not me driving. It was like I had no control and was just being led. We knocked on this house and a man answered. The very first house we went to. We began talking and he asked us to come in. So we sat there and talked to him for awhile. He owned his own company and when Katrina hit, he devoted all his time to go help people. He told us some stories that were crazy there. We taught him the whole first discussion and he was like this makes sense. It makes perfect sense. We watched the Restoration and he liked it tons. We made an appointment to come back next week. It was unbelievable because no one ever lets us just come in. Let alone the first house.

August 11 Email-Martin Luther King Jr Street

We went tracting on Martin Luther King Jr Street, right in the middle of the the trailers and the Hood. It really is so humbling to see these people and what they don't have. We went through there and started tracting. Every person there accepted a Book of Mormon. It was AMAZING! They were so willing to hear ANYTHING about Jesus Christ. We were walking and saw some black kids that were like 7-13 years old playing football. There was 6 of them, so we started to play with them. It was so much FUN! It was tackle football and smear the queer together. Not one of the kids had shoes on. We played with them for about 30 minutes. They were so funny. This is seriously a foreign country. Its crazy!

August 11 Email-Decision to Serve Mission Early

Blythe is having such a hard time raising 6 kids on her own that someone recommended for the show "Super Nanny" to come and help her out. Super Nanny chose her family to help! haha. So she is coming out to film on Saturday. Blythe loves us so she told us to stop by everyday and try to get on the show! So we are, and our goal is to get on "Super Nanny". Make sure when it starts you watch, so that you can see the family we found tracting. They are really an amazing family, but she REALLY needs help. We have helped tons, but she needs someone else. I mean 6 kids is crazy, all under the age of 13.

I was thinking about my decision to serve my mission early, and how if I hadn't, I would have never met this family and how perfect Elder Kenworthy and I are them. We both played sports and her son is just so happy to see us. I know I am here for her son. Just to help him. It is really amazing!

August 11th Email-Bythe & Daily

We did service for a lady named Blythe. She is a single mom with 6 kids. She wanted us to come over & play football with her son Daily who is 9. He just started playing football. So we went over to their house, played football, mowed her lawn and just talked for awhile. It was SWEET! Before this Daily has always been sad and stuff because their dad just left. His mom told us that all he did the whole weekend was talk about us coming. She said he has never been so excited before and it is a blessing.

Daily also made Elder Kenworthy and I a tie hanger from scratch. It is like wood, with a football on front and mine says UTES everywhere. It is AWESOME! Blythe said that Daily has NEVER done something like that, and she loves how excited he has been!

Dallin's First Week in Tallahassee!

"I love it out here. Everything is so green. Everything is green and there are trees everywhere."
"President Summerhays & his wife picked us up at the airport. He pulled me aside and told me he has season tickets to the Utah football games on the 50 yard line, fourth row up! How sweet is that!! Then his wife pulled me aside and started to sing "Utah Man" with me, ha! They are awesome! I love them."
"I am serving in the Tallahassee 2nd ward with Elder Kenworthy from Spokane, Washington. He is a sweet guy. He played football and basketball in high school. We get along great."
"We went to this woman's house to do service work. We built her a fence. She lives on a farm in the middle of no where. There are these spiders there that are huge! They are seriously like 5 inches in diameter! Crazy. She is getting baptized August 16th"
"The next day we went to Jefferson County. I literally counted 16 churches on one street. All the people there sit on their front porches all day. Just crazy, ha."
"We taught these people named Antoine and Jenae. We committed them to get baptized. On my birthday is the plan right now!"
"We taught this boy named Robert. He is getting baptized in October, he has to wait until he is 18 because his parents won't let him. So that is sweet!"
"We found 2 investigators trackting! One, a single mom with six children. They just had a death in the family. She said it was just what they were looking for. The other, a girl. Her and her dad just had a lay over in Salt Lake City. They went to the Temple to see it. She just happened to be babysitting at the house we knocked on!"
"It is so HOT! I love it though. I take 3 showers a day. But it's cool!"
"Everyone has accents. It is great. I love it here."
"We have a car, but we ride bikes every once in awhile for exercise."
"The weather is crazy. It rains everyday between 2-5. It pours! Thunder and lightening. It is sweet. I figured out that I like the rain. Not the cold."
"If you are going to send me something, send me food! I don't really care what!"

Welcome to the Forida, Tallahassee Mission!

"We welcomed your son last night to the Florida, Tallahassee Mission. We shook his hand, looked into his eyes and a feeling of love and gratitude filled our hearts. He is a wonderful young man who radiates strength and goodness." President Lynn Summerhays & Sister Ann Summerhays

Left the MTC & Now Serving in the Florida Tallahassee Mission!

Dallin called home at 5:30 am, on July 22nd, from the Salt Lake City airport awaiting his flight to Tallahassee, Florida. He didn't buy a phone card and swiped his debit card to make phone calls. After the first four calls, his debit card wouldn't work anymore, so he had to call collect and hope that someone would pick up and accept the charges. Each swipe was $30.00. That is why his debit card wouldn't work. He was able to talk to each one of his sisters (who were at four different locations), mom, dad and Wes (who was home for lunch)!

He said he LOVES IT and is so HAPPY! And that choosing to serve a mission was the BEST decision he has ever made!
He has now gained 8 pounds. He said the food at the MTC was delicious.
He talks more mature and focused. He has learned a lot and couldn't wait to get out into the mission field.

We are now waiting to get more pictures and hear all about Florida!

Excerpts Taken Out of Dallin's Second Email From the MTC!

"I eat so much here it is ridiculous. The food is soo good. I have gained 7 pounds! It is awesome."

"I have done two washes, but my shirts keep on coming out wrinkled. What can I do?"

"I have been ballin everyday and work out as well. We have gym 4 times a week. I work out with our district every night. One of the guys brought elastic bands to do stuff."

"We have so much fun it is ridiculous. Can't wait to get out."

"I love the letters so send them all the time. Dearelder though."

Elders In My District

During the day my District went to the Provo Utah Temple. Five of us are going to serve in the Tallahassee Florida Mission and the other three are going to service in the Provo Utah Mission.

Cookies Do A Missionary Good

My Aunt Mallorie sent me cookies from dearelder.com. They were awesome!

My Companion Elder Tew

After a long day of class, Elder Tew and I did service work cleaning the door's & windows at the MTC.

May The Force Be With You!

Excerpts Taken Out of Dallin's First Email From the MTC!

" The MTC is actually awesome. I really like it. The days are long , but the weeks are short. We study all day long, but it is amazing how much I learn so quick! It has really been fun. I really like my district, which is 8 elders. My campanion is small. He likes ballroom dancing and chess, HA! But he is really cool. I couldn't have asked for a better campanion. In our room is Elder Monson. He is a genious. He knows every doctrine, everything about the Book of Mormon, Bible, New and Old Testiment. It is amazing! My other roommate is Elder Fox. Kind of has a problem conversing with people, but has a real good testimony and great spirit. They are all so cool. In the room next to us is Elder Tolley. He is so tight. We get along great! We are all going to Tallahasse. I really like it tons!"

Entering the MTC July 2, 2008