For Christmas Break we were given instructions to not have regular Institute classes, but to party, party, party! During the last two or three weeks it has been hard to gather some of the groups but we did our best. Our goal all along has been to get our groups together. They are all spread apart and live far from each other and many do not have ways to get around. Many do not have drivers licenses let alone a car and they rely on others to get them where they need to go. It does makes things difficult. We ended up having five activities:
Princeton -- Watched It Happened on 5th Ave. and ate snacks
Eatontown-- Played a Monopoly card game then watched Home Alone 2
Elizabeth-- Pizza and Movie Night (by the way NJ is known for their pizzas)
New Brunswick-- Bowling, out to a college yogurt shop (near Rutgers), then movie
East Brunswick-- Dinner at Applebee's, then party games at the church
We invited all the groups that we teach to attend all the activities. When we held the bowling activity, we had young singles from three different groups plus a new returned missionary from the Princeton area. We were excited to see them get acquainted.
The group that gathered for the last activity really meshed well. Again we had some from three different areas (some had to drive an hour to get there) and as the night was ending, they were planning to get together again on their own the next day.
Mission Accomplished!
Our responsibilities in serving here are not only to teach Institute classes and help them become more grounded in the gospel, but to also provide good social opportunities so they can develop friendships one with another.
There are Regional activities every couple of months but some of these activities are hours away (like in Ithaca, NY). We definitely promote the activities that would be easier to get to. There is a good train system here and the young singles can easily get to Newark or Manhattan activities.
Here are some pictures of our fun times together:
Elder Hancock, Chris Rivera, Orlando, Paul, Citlali, Casey, Stephanie, and Bryan Calle
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| Chris, Orlando, Citlali, Paul |
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| At "Truly Yogurt" |
At Applebee's: Sister Hancock, Benny, Chris, Yantna, Sheila, and Bernice
Sheila let the word out that it was my birthday that night at Applebee's so I was sang to and we shared the cake and ice cream.
We introduced the "candy bar game" to this group of YSA's. We wrapped the candy bar in newpaper and then they had to open it with a knife and fork after putting on the gloves and hat.
Going to play laser tag.
Christmas
For Christmas this year, Elder Hancock decided that he was going to make a nice breakfast and invited Sisters Young and Toy to join with us. We also invited our neighbor, Judi Laguer. He served scrambled eggs, sausage, hash browns, and biscuits. Judi let us use some of her nice tableware from England. We only stayed an hour or so together as we all had plans for the day.
In the days prior to Christmas, Elder Hancock talked to many of the young missionaries to see if they needed a place to come so that they could Skype with their families. When we came to New Jersey, we both brought our laptops so we felt like we had a good set up for the young missionaries. They both could Skype with their families at the same time. As it turned out, two companionships took us up on the offer; Sisters Huele and Nielsen and Elders Nuckells and Berkhimer. We thought that they had one hour to Skype with their families, but they both were here only 40 minutes each.
During the afternoon we were able to Skype with some of our children that had gathered at our daughter's (Laura) home.
New Year's Eve
The New Brunswick Ward has a tradition of having a party together every New Year's Eve. We were invited to join with them. The Bishop asked us to bring a game for the night also. We arrived at 8pm, the appointed time, and only two other cars were in the parking lot. As usual for their parties, the Hispanics have the hall well decorated and the large serving pans from the church kitchen are sitting on the serving table with warmers underneath. As the people arrive, so does the food. We are always amazed at the quantity and varieties of meats that they serve. With the meats they served rice, potato salad, and a green salad and also lots of soda. As with other dinners that we have attended, there is usually very few desserts so that is what I always bring to share.
Some young missionaries arrived around 9pm and hoped to have dinner before they needed to be back to their apartments by 9:30. Elder Hancock went and told the Bishop. The Bishop then got the evening started and explained that the missionaries need to go first through the line. After the prayer the people rushed to the serving table and again the Bishop had to ask that the missionaries be served first.
After dinner the time was ours for the games. Since this was a family activity we planned something for the children. We made them their own personal piñata by putting a piece of candy inside of a balloon. We made a relay out of it by dividing them into two lines and had them run with their balloon to the other side of the hall and then pop their balloon. They could sit on it or stamp it with their foot or whatever. After the children popped their balloons the adults got into it and did the same with the leftover balloons.
With the adults, we introduced "the candy bar game" that was played a lot in our youth.
After the games, the real party started. This group really likes to dance. Since they are all from different backgrounds, the Latin music that was played was a mixture of music from Mexico, Honduras, the Dominican Republic and so on.
We did not stay until midnight, but the next day we saw pictures on Facebook of their celebrating. Their party went until 1am.
Birthday
My birthday is a week after Christmas. Our neighbor, Judi, has her birthday the day after mine, on January 3rd. A few days before our birthdays, Judi was leaving to spend time with her family in Puerto Rico, so we celebrated together before she left.
We have enjoyed our Christmas Break but are ready to get back on schedule again with classes. We have enjoyed hearing from lots of friends and relatives through cards and emails. That is really one of the best parts of this time of year!
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