Couple's Conference

Dear Friends and Family,

This month we had the opportunity to attend a couple's conference in Edinburgh. When we arrived we were told there was a surprise for that evening. We couldn't imagine what it could be. They did say we would be going to the Bridge Inn at Ratho. When everyone finally arrived, we were escorted through the restaurant in a circuitous route and then out the back door. We thought how strange. The hostess led us down two flights of steps to the banks of the Union Canal. There waiting for us was a large restaurant barge. We were  escorted on board and entered a lovely dinning room the length of the boat. What a surprise! We enjoyed a lovely evening on board visiting, dinning and cruising the canal. Sister Brown made all the arrangement and kept it a secret even from the office staff. She was so proud of herself.

This is Sister Wager and Sister Fergeson. They are part of the mission office staff. Sister Wager is responsible for apartments in the entire mission. Both of them came and stayed with us for a week in November and we took them to inspect all the apartments in our District. They are such neat ladies!

Gary and I, and Brent and Sandra Hale stayed the night at the mission home. It is a beautiful old mansion. We stayed in what was once the maid's room. Next to the ceiling was a bell, which at one time summoned the maid. The room also had its own stairway down to the kitchen. The Hales stayed in the Elder's dorm room. It has 4 sets of bunks 3 high. They use it for incoming and departing missionaries. There is a similar room for the Sisters.

The next morning we had our conference at the chapel next to the mission home. Gary and I were asked to give a 40 min presentation pertaining to senior missionaries. The best part is having an opportunity to visit with other couples and talk about needs, challenges and successes they've had. Here we are enjoying our   lunch between sessions.

 Sister Brown planned this lovely meal and is actually taking time to sit down and enjoy lunch with Brother and Sister May. The May's are serving in Tralee close the the Dingle Peninsula in the Limerick District. They are getting ready to leave for home in a couple of weeks.

This is a large formal dinning room in the mission home.

This is a rare moment for President Brown when he can relax and socialize. He seems to be enjoying himself.

This monument stands in front of the mission home. It has a well known 

statement on it, "What ere thou art, Act well thy part." This is the story behind it. 

President David O. McKay (1873–1970) often related an account that occurred while he was a missionary serving in Scotland. He was feeling homesick after being in the mission for just a short time and spent a few hours sightseeing at nearby Stirling Castle. When he and his companion returned from visiting the castle, they passed a building where the stone above the door had a carved inscription of a quotation, usually attributed to Shakespeare, that read, “What-E’er Thou Art, Act Well Thy Part.”

Recalling this experience, President McKay explained: “I said to myself, or the Spirit within me, ‘You are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. More than that, you are here as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. You accepted the responsibility as a representative of the Church.’ Then I thought [about] what we had done that forenoon. We had been sightseeing; we had gained historical instruction and information, it is true, and I was thrilled with it. … However, that was not missionary work. … I accepted the message given to me on that stone, and from that moment we tried to do our part as missionaries in Scotland.”¹ This message was so important and had such an impact on him that President McKay used it as inspiration for the rest of his life. He determined that whatever responsibility he had, he would do his very best.

With Our Love
Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Grandma, Gary and Karen Weber

                                     

Stormy February

Hello Friends and Family,

Couldn't resist putting in this adorable picture of Logan and big brother Bryson. (Joseph & Tanna)

This little brother was a pleasant surprise for Bryson!

And here is our cute little Tre at 14 months old

"Secure your posts, here I come!" (Janice & Tracy)

Current Galway Six - Left to right - Gary and I, Elder Novotny, Elder, Shubin

kneeling - Elder Udell left, Elder Tarbet right, new convert, Bo Wen, in the center.

He was baptized January 10, in Limerick, located an hour away, we have 

no baptismal font here in Galway. He is a super nice young man and is here studying at the University.

These  two cuties are Sister Griffin and Sister Montoya 
from Limerick. They are oh so sweet and silly. We 
love them.

Nataide and Sarah Shafer over for Sunday dinner

Sister Montoya is from Mexico, her Spanish has come in handy as there is a growing number of Spanish speaking people from Mexico, Central and South America in Ireland. Most of them come to learn English. Nataide in the picture above is a member from Mexico and here to learn English. Nataide is such a lovely person and so cute too.

Our sweet Sister Weber on the right and her companion Sister 
Simmons on the left with their new convert, Jovanna. Cierra  is 
having a great experience and seems to be very busy. She says 
they see miracles all the time.

After District meeting we headed to McDonalds for lunch. It is always good craic (good fun) to be with the missionaries. They do keep us young. We marvel how hard they work even when it's pouring rain. A couple of Sunday's ago they rode their bikes to church, when they arrived they were soaked to the bone and dripping. But they are always upbeat and take the weather in stride. Each one is endearing with their little individual  quirks. We get quite a kick out of there antics.

We treat them like our grandkids and they like that. They love the hugs and huge meals we prepare for them too. 

The children seem to be quite involved and having a good ole time making a bigger mess.

There are the Matshazi children - Shiobhan, Shiloh, and Shaquel. Oliver Shafer, Ryan and Annie O'Toole.

                                     The Primary children are preparing for a puppet show. 

                                     Alexis in the above picture and Trisha are helping them 

                                     make paper mache puppet heads. Another week they 

                                     will paint the heads and make cloth bodies. It was a 

                                     fun project for them. 

Love you all

Gary and Karen Weber

Christmas In Galway, Part 2

Dear Family and Friends,

Yea, we can blog again! We have had some technical difficulties getting to our blog site on Google Chrome, after fighting it for weeks, we switched to a different browser and we are back in business.

News of Our Family

Here is the newest member of our family, "Logan Adam Weber," son of Joseph and Tanna. What an adorable little bundle. Born January 13th at 4:39 am. Logan weighed 6lb 4oz and was 19 1/2" in length. He came 3 weeks early.   Surprise I'm here!

This is our newest missionary. Devon Weber,  Ammon and Terie's oldest son.

Devon is on his way to Chile where he will be in the Missionary Training Center for 2 months learning Spanish. Way to go Devon!

Here is our sweet Cierra and her companion.  Cierra will be home in May, just 4 months away. Ammon and Terie are anxious to get this sweet daughter home again.

We are so proud of these grandchildren!

Christmas In Galway

This is an overhead view of the Galway Christmas Market with booths from Europe. It was here for an entire month before Christmas.

Gary and I had a wonderful time roaming the Christmas market picking up souvenirs here and there. We found a nativity from Bethlehem.

A close up of the German Windmill House. Look at the nativity figures in the tower. It was quite amazing. The house below is a bar.

Our Primary children acted out the nativity on the Sunday before Christmas. They thought it was great fun. We have 3 wisemen, an angel, 2 shepherds and Joseph and Mary.

We had the Shafer Family over for dinner on Christmas Day, Cody, Sara and little Oliver. Oliver is playing the part of Joseph in the photo above.

Sara is here at the University working on a Master's degree in mental health advocacy. Cody is a writer and holds down the home front.

Here are 3 very sweet young  women. On the left is Leswa; she is  attending Galway Uni. Emily Pillo in the middle was here for 3 months as a para(nanny). We had a lot of fun with her. Allison  met Emily when she was out in September. Ems is delightful. We love you and miss you Ems! On the right is Nateide from Sao Paulo Brazil. She came to Ireland to learn English. Right now she is working as a para. She is a sweetheart! Nateide stayed with us Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. She is lovely young woman.

Alexis on the left is a new convert as of last July from California.
She is such a cutie. I absolutely love this picture of her and Emily.

In the middle front row is Korrin Cheatwood. She was here for a few weeks working on a dairy farm and then as a para while touring around trying to see everything she possibly could in Ireland. I think she did extremely well. We miss you Korrin! On the back row, left to right is Elders - Shubin from Colo, Novotny - Czech Republic, Campbell - Utah and Dickinson - England.





Gary and I are busy and happy! It seems like there is always something new in the branch to keep us on our toes. Our YSA group is keeps growing. It's fun to be around these energetic young adults and missionaries.

In closing, here is a picture from city center. Gary decided to wait outside while I went inside to shop.

Here is Grandpa sitting on a bench with his 2 friends

We will see you all soon -

Love Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Grandma, Elder and Sister Weber

Christmas in Ireland

Dear Friends and Family,

We never know those lives we may touch through small, seemingly insignificant acts. Last Friday night we attended the missionary Christmas concert in Limerick. Elders and Sisters serving throughout Ireland made up the choir.
When we arrived we heard that Anna was attending the concert that night. Gary and I met Anna several months ago working in a shop at the mall.  As Anna helped us, we learned she was an emigrant from Poland. Before we left we felt impressed to give her a pass-a-long card. We encouraged her to check out the web site.  We found out later that she looked at the site and then talked to her neighbor who is a member of the church. He asked her who the missionaries were that gave her the card. Anna didn't know our names, but she said they were an older missionary couple and the Elder had a yellow flower in his lapel. The member knew right away it was Elder and Sister Weber. He invited her to the upcoming Christmas concert at the church and she actually changed her work schedule so she might attend.
It was such a wonderful surprise to see her there at the program. I believe it was one of Heavenly Father's tender mercies. It brings such a warm wonderful feeling to your heart when you can touch someone's life and most often it happens through very small means. Don't be afraid to reach out.

One of our favorite sights in Ireland is the Giant's Causeway located in northern Ireland an hour from Belfast and 5 hours from Galway. We visited the sight several times when Ben, Allison and Bonnie came to see us.

As you can see the Causeway has amazing rock formations

In the picture above, I am standing by a walk-way that goes between stone pillars on either side. Not until our third visit did we notice that hundreds of coins have been wedged in all the cracks, up and down these pillars and around the side of the rocks on the left. We have no idea why. It's a mystery?

This picture was taken at our last Zone training meeting in October. The next transfer we lost our dear Elder Ilori sitting on the front row by Elder Campbell.

We had our branch Christmas party last Saturday on the 6th. We topped if off with a talent show and games. It was a grand night for all who attended. We had 32 members there.

Knowing it was Elder Weber's birthday the next day, Sister O'Toole made him a chocolate birthday cake. It was so thoughtful of her. Everyone sang to him. Of course, he was embarrassed. He hates being the center of attention, but still I think he was pleased that he was remembered.

Link: May the true spirit of Christmas fill your heart this holiday season.

We love you and wish you the happiest and sublimes' of holidays.

Love Mom and Dad, Grandpa and grandma, Elder and Sister Weber

September Adventures With Bonnie and Allison

Dear Friends and Family,

The lovely Sister Missionaries of the Limerick Zone pose with President Brown's wife. The Sisters add such a heavenly touch to the mission. The tall Sister on the right is our sweet Sister Henkle. She is from Germany and arrived in Waterford the same week we did. She is awesome, one of our favorites. Sister Henkle and her companion have a special calling as Sister Trainers, a relatively new assignment in the missions due to the increased number of young women serving missions. She and her companion travel around Ireland working with Sister companionships and training new Sisters. 

We had a delightful time when our two daughters, Bonnie and Allison, came to visit. We took them to several of the favorite tourist sights, but most of all we just enjoyed hugging and being together. Gary and I were more homesick after they left for home then before they came.

Alli was with us for almost 4 weeks. That was a special treat. 

As we traveled around, we found wild blackberries everywhere along the roadside. We made a few pitstops to snack on these tasty little treats.

A view of the interior of Blarney Castle. This was the main family living area. The remains of a fireplace can be seen below. 

The different rooms and levels were accessed by narrow, steep staircases, like the one on the left. They were scary to climb. Metal handrails been have installed for tourists. I wonder what they used originally? In one castle we visited there were rope handrails. That is probably more likely what they had back then. 


If I were living in a castle, I would have heart failure worrying about my children traversing these dangerous staircases, as these provided the only access to bedrooms, other living areas and the kitchen.

Kissing the Blarney Stone is suppose to bestow eloquence of speech or the gift of gab.
No one really knows where the Blarney Stone originated. It was set into a tower of the castle in 1446.

Allison and Bonnie decided they would go for it. This picture doesn't really show how far you have to lean back and slide down in order to kiss the stone. 

The grounds around the castle were beautiful.

   Top - Bon and Ali at front entrance of the Blarney House. On our stroll around the castle grounds        we found this huge tree just perfect for a picture.

Blarney House on the grounds of Blarney Castle

        There were beautiful hanging baskets and barrels of flowers everywhere.  


















Elder Ilori and Elder Campbell are scrambling to be the first to get to the cookies. We love our Elders, they are the best in the mission!

This is our sweet Elder Ilori, we sure love him. We were lucky enough to have him here for six months. This transfer he was sent to Dublin and we are going to miss him. You get really close to some of these young people. They feel just like your own!


Love you all and hope you've enjoyed this mini tour-----We love our mission, it is one of the best decisions we made.

Mom and Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, Elder and Sister Weber

Beautiful Summer!

I declare I need to get a post out!

Dear Family and Friends,
A few weeks ago we were at the Stake Center in Dublin for seminary graduation taking place later that evening. We happened to be in the Family History room. Gary was preparing an institute lesson and I was working on a blog. A member who was also waiting came in and began indexing. I felt prompted by the Spirit that I should be indexing too. I thought about it, than pulled up a page and began. It felt good. Indexing is a very spiritual work. Watch this video about one indexer's experience. The Voice What about you! Yes, anyone who may be reading this blog? (Bonnie and Allison) Have you indexed any documents lately? If you've never tried, it's easy to learn. Everyone's help is needed! This is such an important work! It could be part of your contribution to family history. Just to help you out here is the link.  Indexing site

Killarney National Park

July 5th - We had another amazing YSA adventure at Killarney National Park, in southwest Ireland. I always look forward to these excursions. It's so much fun to be with the young people and Brother and Sister Hale. While Elder Hale and several youth went hiking up Torq Mountain, the rest of us opted for a tour of the Muckross House and walks to Torq Falls and the Muckross Abbey, about 8 kilometres away.

The Muckross Abbey was established in 1488. The ruins of the Abbey are in remarkable shape. 

Sister Hale and I in front of Muckross Abbey

I thought this headstone was interesting - 

"This Stone Was Erected by Peter and Timoy Scannell of Roshalue for themsels and Posty. Dated May the 14th 1810." (The symbol at the bottom looks like scissors. What do you think?)

The "Y" after Timo & poste is called the English thorn. It represents the sound "th". So it would be Timoth. The next one is a mystery, I think they were trying to write posterity. 

Looking from inside the ruins to the surrounding cemetery.

We ate a hearty lunch before beginning our hikes. Upper right is the ruins of the abbey chapel. A central courtyard in the ruins has a Yew tree growing in the center. This particular variety of tree has a rippled surface, it is very unusual. It's the first time I've ever seen one. According to a plaque, Yew trees are found in most cemeteries and monastic sites in Ireland. 

Interesting fact: Ireland has an average yearly rainfall of 47 inches, raining 50% of the days. On a world-wide scale it ranks 80, New Guinea being first. Glad we're not there.

The Muckross house was built in 1843 for Henry Arthur Herbert and his wife. With sixty-five rooms, it was built in the Tudor style. Extensive improvements were undertaken in the 1850s in preparation for the visit of Queen Victoria in 1861. She did come, but stayed only one night. It was later sold and turned into a hunting lodge. In 1932, the House and it's 11,000 acres became the first National Park in Ireland. We went on a tour of the house. It was amazing. 

This lovely garden is behind the Muckross house. Here the roses have been trained into trees. It was so beautiful. I have never seen such brilliant red roses. I would say they were Chinese red.

On the way to the falls we walked through some beautiful garden areas. YSA at the falls.

Horse, cart and driver - He's ready to take you where ere' ye fancy.

Proof that I made it to the Falls. I thought the tree on the right had such an interesting shape.

 On the way home the road passed through the town of Killarney. The whole place was chock-a-block with people. They were holding the annual "Ring of Kerry Charity Cycle." People from all over Ireland were there for the event.  I think you would agree, they had some interesting decorations. 
It was a 3-hour drive back to Galway. We were sure tuckered out by the time we pulled in, but it was a wonderful day! 

We love you all,

Elder and Sister Weber, Mom and Dad, Grammy and Gramps