18 Months in the Big Apple: Diligent District Leaders

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Diligent District Leaders

Our Queensboro district leaders, (L to R) Elder Kartchner, Elder McLean, and Elder Crisanto, have made a great effort to encourage, teach and help our zone accomplish some important goals during this transfer. Each gave outstanding workshops at our Zone Meeting on Friday. Elder Crisanto asked us to meet our goals, stressing the importance of having charity first. We can meet every goal we set, but if we don't have charity, the pure love of Christ, we are just going through the motions as missionaries. Elder McLean encouraged us to use planning sheets that Sister Bennion created to aid companionships as they prepare each day. Some of the newer missionaries had never used them. Elder McLean is so humble and happy to be serving. He seeks to be obedient and when he's asked to do something he does it. As a leader he is able to teach why obeying different principles he's been taught by his leaders is just such a natural thing for him. We can see how well planning and evaluating have helped him and we been so appreciative of his talents and powerful testimony of the Lord's work while serving as our Woodside District Leader. Elder Kartchner asked us to encourage and serve those who have committed to baptism through planning, involving members, frequent contact and bearing testimony. Energy and enthusiasm are two infectious qualities we see from this Elder. We have 13 people committed to baptism during the next month in our zone. We are working to do all that these three leaders have taught us so. We are so happy to learn from them and be a part of the work in the Queensboro Zone. These are the Lord's cheerleaders and we love them!

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“Service is the virtue that has distinguished the great of all times and which they will be remembered by. It places a mark of nobility upon its disciples. It is the dividing line which separates the two great groups of the world–those who lift and those who lean, those who contribute and those who only consume. How much better it is to give than to receive. Service in any form is comely and beautiful. To give encouragement, to impart sympathy, to show interest, to banish fear, to build self-confidence and awaken hope in the heart of others, in short–to love them and to show it –is to render the most precious service.”

Bryant S. Hinckley

January 10, 2008 we arrived in Queens, New York. We are currently serving as full-time missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We were called to serve in the New York, New York South Mission. It is a special and unique assignment. Serving here is like teaching all nations, with missionaries who teach in English, Spanish, Korean, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Russian and American Sign Language. Nearly 10 million people live within our mission, representing 112 nationalities. We are blessed to be serving along side the most incredible missionaries in the world! We love President and Sister Bennion who have been cherished friends since he was the president of Ricks College. We are happy to be serving the Lord and living on Steinway Street in Astoria.
Thank you for visiting our blog! Please feel free to leave comments or questions. It makes our day:-)

History of the New York, New York South Mission

Long before our mission was organized, Elder Parley P. Pratt was the first missionary in this dispensation to preach the Gospel in New York City and Long Island.
This mission has significant historic roots. It is the heart of the former Eastern States Mission which was established in 1839.
That mission, headquartered in Brooklyn, enjoys the distinction of being the second oldest mission of the Church, behind the British Mission.
The Eastern States Mission consisted of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and West Virginia in 1948. Since that time, many changes have been made in the boundries of the mission.
The name of the mission was changed from the Eastern States Mission to the New York New York Mission in 1974. At that time the mission included the following areas: New York State as far as Poughkeepsie, the entire state of Connecticut, a small part of Massachusetts, as well as part of New Jersey and the island of Bermuda. The mission boundaries were once again changed in 1976 excluding Massachusetts and all of the state of Connecticut, with the exception of Fairfield County.
In 1987, after another boundary change was made, the New York New York Mission consisted of the five boroughs of New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx and Staten Island), Long Island, New York State north to Poughkeepsie, a portion of Connecticut and the island of Bermuda.
The mission was divided once again in 1993. The New York New York South Mission encompasses the New York City boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn and Staten Island, as well as the New York counties of Nassau and Suffolk on Long Island. It also includes the small British Island of Bermuda in the Atlantic.