News from the Branches

 

September 2014

Oregon Group

Sr. Joanie Barber Reporting

We are pleased to share with the Saints that we are still attempting to meet on or near the first Sunday of each month for class and ministry provided by Elder Doug Rouse. This summer Elder Chuck Barber and Sister Joanie returned to Bend and Brother Barber is now assisting Brother Rouse. We continue to meet in Sister Mary Ann Fullerton’s home in Bend.

Last month we held a fellowship picnic in a local park and had thirteen in attendance. It was a lovely time together. Since the passing of her husband Ron eight months ago, Sister Jeanette Paugh spends her time with her dog grooming business which she has named “Pretty Paw.” She also “hops, jumps, and runs” with her farm animals. Prayers from the Saints on her behalf would be greatly appreciated.

Doug and Glenda Rouse are having a great summer working in their yard and growing abundant produce to share with others in their garden. Plus, they also spend a great deal of time with their children and grandchildren.

With our return to Bend this summer, both Chuck and I wish to send a huge THANK YOU for all the prayers on behalf of our son Dan Barker in his custody struggle for his son. And a further “thank you” for the prayers on Chuck’s recent heart surgery which was so successful. We hope to travel to Arizona for the winter and then be back in Independence for April’s General Conference.

Mary Ann Fullerton and her family camped in July for seven days with her mother. Another trip is planned for August to celebrate her mother’s 98

th birthday. Many family members will be there for this wonderful celebration. She may well be the oldest Remnant Church member.

Prayers are requested for Jonah Fullerton, Mary Ann’s son, who is struggling with some legal issues at this time. Jonah previously had attended First Congregation with TJ and Alice Smith and remembers his time there in the Center Place fondly. He currently is in police custody but can be reached at this address: Deshutes County Jail, 63333W. Hwy. 20, Bend, OR 97701.

The Dunn Family Reunion was held at Emigrant Springs State Park in the Blue Mountains of Oregon. Ted and Debbie Kolecker, their daughter Amber, and her three sons were there, along with Tom and Tawna Noftzger and two of their granddaughters. Don and Linda Dunn, their daughter Sarah, and her two sons also attended. It was a wonderful time for each of them as they reunited their family for several days of fun and relaxation. Linda plans a further visit to see her family in Idaho sometime in August.

We send our love and prayers to you from Oregon. Please come and visit us in Bend.

Sperry, OK

Sr. Patricia Whiteman Reporting

May 9 Megan Crank graduated from UCO with a Master’s Degree in Family and Children’s Services.

Jan Harris passed from this life on May 9. Her services were held at the Sperry church with Elder C.H. Whiteman presiding.

We had a visit by Apostle Don and Linda Burnett when they came to attend Linda’s 50th graduation celebration at Skiatook High School’s Memorial Day reunion.

Anna Gosser passed away on July 7. Her services were held at the Sperry church on July 10 with High Priest Steve VanMeter and Elder C.H. Whiteman presiding.

Leah Anderson has been moved from her home to an assisted living facility in Vinita, OK, nearer the cousin who sees to her needs. Priesthood will continue to visit and take Sacrament to her.

Several youth attended youth camps and reunions.

July 20 we had the ministry of Apostle Don Burnett. On July 19, he and Seventy Roger Tracy visited several members in their homes. Sunday, Brother Don preached and then a basket dinner was served.

Locust Grove, OK

Elder Ronnie Rogers – Reporting

Osiyo! That is “Hello” in Cherokee and is the greeting from the Locust Grove Branch! A lot is going on in our area and we’d like to share some of that news with the Saints.

Gentry is back from her trip to Australia. She had a great time and encountered a lot of new learning experiences. Her great-grandmother, Miree Smith, who gave her painting lessons, finished a painting for the main worship center of the Oklahoma Reunion in Miami, OK this past June. It was a painting of the Father and the Son and will find a place on the walls of our new church when we move in.

Robert Day has been mowing and grooming the new church grounds. Having him as a part of our branch is a blessing to each of us.

Joe McFarland is back to work after knee replacement surgery. God truly blessed him with a quick healing.

Kelsea McFarland was baptized on July 13 by her father, Tony McFarland, at the pond below the Rogers’ home. It was a beautiful setting and outstanding service. She was confirmed and then served her first Communion on August 3 by her father.

Jeremy McFarland will be moving into the college dorm at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK and begin his college career on August 18.

Josh McFarland finished 14th out of 175 participants in the South-Central Junior PGA Golf Tournament. Josh also got his driver’s license and begins work at a new job working for the Pryor Creek Golf Course.

We would welcome any visiting ministry to Locust Grove. The Rogers’ Bed and Breakfast is always ready to accommodate you. May God bless you all.

First Michigan

Sr. Kathleen Haley – Reporting

Sometimes, like wayward children, my hands do not obey what my mind tells them to do. By accident I deleted the whole article I had written about our branch, (with no hard copy). So here it goes; my memory is now on overdrive. Too late I learned that there would have been a chance to restore it.

The four of us from our branch had a good trip down and back for conference. We were blessed by the Spirit at conference. To me, and also to Brother Bob Murie, the silent prayer service was a special service.

The Communion services in May and June were on time—no snow! We had to reschedule Communion five months in a row due to weather and conference.

We’ve had a couple of services of watching the “Go Ye and Teach” slides and also the live streaming from the Center Place. These are always good services. Thank you Lord, for the modern technology that allows us to do that.

Apostle Bob Murie had to go to Independence for two Sundays for meetings and to preach on a Sunday evening. On June 8 we were set to live stream a sermon of Apostle Don Burnett’s from earlier in the year. All of a sudden, at 11:30 am, we heard music, and singing and the starting of a service cutting in on top of Don. We were getting a double dose. The only thing we could do was to end the service early. We’ve never had that experience before.

Four from our branch also attended the Canadian-Michigan retreat in Caledon, Ontario. It was a great experience with a good abundance of the Spirit also attending while the Lord sent us beautiful weather. Thank you, Lord.

“Ask for the Old Paths”—Memorial Day. We remember our forefathers that served their country and sometimes gave parts of their bodies or their

lives for our freedoms today. We must remember to pray for them and their families and thank them for their service. Thank you, Lord, for your love for us, and for the freedoms that you have given to us. This was the Sunday that we were privileged to have Seventy Dick Wilson preach while he and Joyce were here visiting.

Sunday, June 15, brought several surprises. Priest Karl Bell was scheduled to preach but he took sick and was in the hospital. Marion Wallace was also in the hospital. Joyce Malmgren had a bad shoulder and couldn’t attend. That week I contracted a slight case of vertigo and had to ride to church with Jim Malmgren. Sandee Murie’s brother, who was in the hospital, took a turn for the worse and she had to leave to go to him. However, we continue to say, “Thank you, Lord,” for the blessings that you have given to your children. Another great blessing in our week of trouble was the fact that Seventy Ray Setter and his wife Leith were in the area. He was able to come and speak to us, and the added surprise was that Leith played the piano. We were truly blessed that day. He preached a great sermon by way of introducing himself to us. He told us some personal experiences he had in growing up in the area as a teenager and, as he grew older, of how the Lord led him to the Remnant. We had a great service. Thank you, Lord, for sending the Setter’s to us on Father’s Day.

Sunday, June 22, Priest Karl Bell did make it to preach to us. He told of his experiences during his hospital stay and how the Lord blessed him. His heart had gone out of rhythm. The doctor was going to have to put him out, stop his heart, then paddle it back into rhythm again. Right before the procedure, the doctor checked him again and found the heart was working okay and the procedure was cancelled. A day or two later, he was back in the hospital with another problem. The internist had prescribed the wrong medication. An alert pharmacist saw the mistake, called the doctor and had it changed. If he had taken that pill, due to his bad heart, he would have been dead within an hour. We never know how the Lord uses other people to pass His blessings on to us. Thank you.

The last Sunday in June, (already-where has this year gone?) we had a very unique experience. It was planned that we would have a session of “Go Ye and Teach” slides. Well, somehow the computer would not talk to the screen. So we switched to live streaming, but our modern technologies were still not speaking to each other, so we had an unplanned prayer service. The service was beautiful. Maybe it was the Lord’s way of letting us know that it was needed. His Spirit was there in attendance. Thank you.

AMERICA—”A land shadowing with wings,” preserved and set apart by God for a special purpose and people. We have seen the makings of great nations on this land. The birthdays of these nations are all around the same time of the year: July 1-Canada; July 4-America; September 16-Mexico. For years we have led the way in the nations of the world by following the way of God. Lately though, we have seen the workings of the adversary creeping in. It is becoming harder and harder to avoid the direction that is becoming the “new way of life.” We must remain faithful to God. We need to keep Him foremost in our lives. Our faith is being severely tested. We are being tested wherever we turn. Remember to keep your eyes on God and He will see us through. Also, remember, if we want God to bless America—America must bless God. HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA.

Elder Tom Vanderwalker, in his Communion address today, told us that we need to have repentance in our lives. The Lord cannot look upon sin with any allowance. We can approach God and ask for forgiveness. God will listen to our prayers and grant us our request. We need to devote our lives to the Lord. Tom quoted Genesis 7:23, which is our aim, to build Zion. Repentance should be a joyful experience, because through it, we come closer to God. Thank you, Lord, for allowing us to choose to serve you.

On Sunday July 13, Apostle Bob Murie Jr. preached a great sermon. Most people want to be happy, but what we must do is pray for JOY. Happiness is of this earth, but JOY is spiritual. The Lord is offering us the eternal JOY, not the earthly happiness. JOY MUST BE EARNED. Happiness can be compared to cut glass while JOY is a diamond. Are we settling for cut glass? Are we trying to do things our way? We need to read the instructions and do it God’s way. Alma, in the

Book of Mormon, tells us that Satan does the sifting and not God. When we serve and stay with God, we are only storing up treasures in heaven. Now that’s TRUE JOY. Thank you, Lord, for giving us such great ministry to present the directions to us.

Apostle Bob Murie, Jr. and Elder Tom Vanderwalker went to the Geneseo Reunion, leaving Priest Jim Malmgren in charge of our service today. It was planned to have a live steaming service of Apostle Don Burnett, but we couldn’t find the one we wanted. Then, when we chose one, the internet system said that they could not connect it. So we had our Sunday school class and went home early. Sometimes modern technology—bah-humbug!! (By the way, Bob and Tom have reported that the reunion was a great experience. I’ll report more on their experience next time.)

Special prayers are needed for Marion Wallace and her family at this time. She is now under the care of hospice. Her family is gathering there from all over the U.S. this weekend. She has been a very gracious hostess for the ten years that we’ve met there. Our prayers and thoughts are with her and the family at this time. We thank you, Lord, for Marion’s life and for her love of the gospel and her love for you. We thank her for allowing us to turn her home into a chapel for you every week. Be with her and bless her abundantly. Also bless her family. This is our prayer, Amen.

First West Virginia

Sr. Trudy Burke – Reporting

Greetings to everyone from the Saints at First West Virginia Branch. Our congregation consists of eight members, five which attend regularly. Those members are Branch President Elder Paul Burke, myself, and our three children and their families along with my mother. We meet in a basement of a private home and find that it adequately fits our needs–for the moment. We usually don’t have much news, only that we are extremely thankful that the Lord saw fit to give us priesthood to minister to us! I am currently teaching a pre-baptismal class to my granddaughter and daughter-in-law. We will be hosting a fall retreat in September with priesthood from the Center Place coming to share with us. We invite others to come along and you can get further information from Seventy Bruce Terry. The enclosed photo was taken at the blessing of our niece, Alexandra.

May God bless everyone in the Center Place and we look forward to hearing the “good news” from you on a regular basis.

 

Southern Indiana

Sr. Rebecca Paris – Reporting

The Southern Indiana Branch in Floyds Knobs, IN has been greatly blessed this summer. Branch President Richard Paris and his family attended the Senior High Camp again this year in Blackgum, OK. One of the many blessings they received while there was a call to the priesthood for Nathan Paris to the office of priest. Additionally, Brian Caffrey was also called to the office of elder in our branch after serving for several years as a priest. We were blessed to have had a wonderful service on July 20 at our home congregation for these two called servants. The branch hosted a beautiful catered meal following this service. We were blessed to have Andrew, Megan, and Natalie Romer, Josh Madding, Eli Woods, Samantha Holt, Drew Coleman, and Dick and Ester Paris come and share this special day with us as well as some special friends and families from this area.

Another special blessing we have received is the support from a local friend who felt led to help us with our church building and facilities. Although he and his family are not members of the Remnant Church, and serve at their church locally, they have helped us update many items in our building. We continue to be amazed by all these blessings which have all been donated and feel led to share with the Saints that the Lord has supplied our needs in this truly miraculous manner.