Home sweet Home

At last! We have heard from Kevin and can pass on information about his new home. Kevin spent one day in Guam and said it was gorgeous. He then took a plane to Chuuk and landed in Weno. It is not pronounced anything like Reno. It is pronounced Wooda. (We checked Weno out on Google Earth and you can see the little landing strip) He then took a boat to Tonoas which is pronounced Todoas. Kevin was warned Tonoas would be very primitive. He also said Tonoas was "beyond any paradise you have ever seen. At least until you see the houses." They are made of three walls of plywood and a sheet metal roof. The windows are screens. There is no electricity. Kevin said there is only one road that goes all the way around the mountain but you can't even tell there are houses around because the forest is so thick. He said the area is so poor that the houses in Tijuana, Mexico look like the White House. The weather is always about 85 degrees but the humity must be 1,000,000%. It is the dry season right now and so it only rains every other day. This is good that it rains because Kevin says they live off of the rain. They have rain gutters which send the rain into two big tanks. This is where Kevin gets his water. They do have filters for the water they drink. Since it is the dry season they often have no water, but Kevin says if that happens they drink coconut milk. Anyone who knows Kevin well will laugh here as Kevin has always disliked coconut. He does say that coconut there is way better as they eat it fresh there. He says we eat the ones that have fallen off of the trees and are rotten. He says the milk is clear and like water and the meat is the texture of egg whites. He also makes the statement that he is sure he will like it more in the future. Kevin also says the only food they have is white rice, ramen, tuna, and spam. "If variety is the spice of life, I am not having much spice in the diet category." Kevin's home does have solar panels so they can do a little bit of cooking. Many of the locals cook over a fire. Kevin says the people there are nice. At least he thinks they are... he is not sure of what they are saying. He is working on learning Chuukese. Kevin currently has two companions. One is from Arizona (Elder Tyson Peterson) and the other is from New Zealand. He says they are very patient with him. Despite the hard living conditions Kevin expresses that he loves it there and is glad to be there. As you can imagine Kevin does not have internet service. He does have an internet address he can check when he goes to Weno to get supplies but he does not have time to sit down and respond to e-mail. Tonoas does not have mail service, but he can pick up mail when he goes to Weno. Kevin will be in Weno about every three weeks. If anyone has time to write I am sure he would love to hear from you!

Kevin was met in Guam by the mission president and his wife

Kevin with his district in Provo, Utah

Kevin Opening his Mission Call

The Wideriksen Family sent in a video of Kevin opening up his mission call! Thank you for sharing this with us!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Kevin's Mission President

Here is Kevin's Mission President and his wife's blog, Guam Adventures.President and Sister Dowdle give great insight into where Kevin is serving.

Kevin is in Tonoas

Kevin's parents received an e-mail from a senior couple missionary in Kevin's mission. Here is what the e-mail said,

"Kevin has been assigned to labor on the island of Tonoas (sometimes called Dublon) in Chuuk (Truk). Tonoas has a small branch with an attendance on Sunday's of about 40 people. He will be in a 3-some for the first transfer (6 weeks). His companions are Elder Peterson from Arizona (he's been out 9 months) and Elder Matuauto from New Zealand (he's been out about 18 months). Send mail and packages to PO Box 861, Weno, Chuuk, FSM 96942. US postage rates apply so a regular first class stamp is all that is required for letter. Most Elders receive packages in the Flat Rate boxes.Elder South will be learning Chuukese. The Chuuk Zone is leading the mission in baptism currently and we have a great group of 15 Elders in the Zone."

Wow! What a neat experience for Kevin. He must have gotten off the plane in Guam, flew to Chuuk and then got on a boat and headed to Tonoas! Kevin said he wanted to go somewhere where it was authentic! Boy did he get his wish a then some! Keep him in your prayers!

Peanuts and a Drink

Kevin left the MTC Tuesday March 3rd at 2am in the morning. He left the SLC airport and headed to the LA airport. He had a quick layover there and was able to call a couple family members. He then headed to Honolulu. When he arrived in Honolulu his famiyl was hoping he 'd have a chance to call one last time, but unfortunately there wasn't enough time and they didn't hear from him. He landed in Guam Friday the 4th at 7:00 pm Guam time. Nobody knows exactly what area he will head to once he arrives there, so until we hear from him.....

When his family talked to him on the phone he sounded great and like a spiritual giant! He talked about how he broke the MTC sit-up record, how great the food had been (he even mentioned he put a little weight on), how much he loved his zone and companions, and how it felt weird to be back in the real world.

Here is a blog entry from Kevin's sister, Tori, about getting to talk to him at the airport.

"This morning I received a call from Domino's Pizza Boy, J/K my little brother called from the LA airport getting ready to depart to Honolulu and then head to Guam. For some reason every time we call each other in my family randomly we tend to be some fast food chain, thinking were teasing each other! Anyway it was so wonderful to hear is voice. He sounded so grown up. He said he loved the MTC and went on and on how wonderful it was. He mentioned that it was the first time in his life that he ever sat in one tiny little classroom for 12 hours! I can't believe how fast those missionaries learn. He loves his companion and district. He was flying with 4 missionaries from his zone and one missionary met them at the airport who had left for medical reasons and was returning to the missionary field. We talked about how much he loved the MTC food. He told us that in the short amount of time he was there he gained 15 pounds!!! OM goodness. He talked about how he broke the MTC sit up record- 226 sit-ups and he said his stomach was still hurting! I asked him if he was nervous and he said a little and that it felt weird to be back in the real world. I asked him if he could think of anything he was already missing and he said no. I mentioned to him that I read that missionaries in his area crave Taco seasoning. I mentioned this to him and he laughed. He said he couldn't ever imagine himself writing us to tell us to send him taco seasoning. It's so weird to think about where Kevin is heading to. An island where there may be no electricity, an island where there are no birds because the snakes have eaten them all. An island where the closest church is miles away and you have to carry the children just to get there because it's to far for their little feet. An island where you baptize the members in the ocean. Kevin is about to embark on an amazing mission for our Heavenly Father. We are so proud of him. It was so good to hear his voice I guess until Mother's Day??? We love you Kevin and pray for you everyday!"

This is a picture of Kevin at the MTC with a friend from Reno, Ryan Christensen!