Hoping Winter Is Coming to an End

 Here at the end of April, signs of spring are finally coming to Anchorage:  the mound of snow in front of the Institute building is shrinking, flocks of geese and birds are arriving daily, moose graze in the city greenbelts, and daylight lasts past 10:00 pm.  With daytime high temperatures in the 40s, our YSAs are wearing their shorts and flip-flops.

 Mary has come to rely on some handy mixes in baking for YSA events. The muffin mix can be used as the basis for many delicious variations:  chocolate or apple or banana or mandarin orange, etc.  These Ghirardelli brownies are especially good. 

 Saturday we presented some information about the BYUI Pathway program at the Chugach Stake Women's Conference. The program, meal, service projects and activities were outstanding. (Class topics included "Dip-netting for Salmon" and "The Art of Clamming in Alaska.") We were especially impressed with the work of Brother Betz, the  stake clerk in charge of technology.  He uses all this equipment to connect with the  remote "Bush" branches in Bethel, Nome, and Kotzebue so members there can participate in events like this.

Last Saturday we had another baptism in the Anchorage YSA ward.  The young man flanked by the two (great) missionaries was introduced to the gospel by an friend with whom he served in the Army in Afghanistan.  We are constantly impressed by the outstanding young people here who are seeking "the good" and find the Church because of the examples of faithful young Church members.

Waffle Night at the Institute

Each Friday we sponsor a "Waffle Night" as a way of providing a safe, wholesome place for the YSAs and their friends to gather and socialize.  Among those pictured here are long-time members as well as investigators invited by the missionaries. That night we also hosted some visitors from the YSA Branch in Juneau who had flown up to attend the Anchorage Temple; they were so pleased to get to know some of the Anchorage YSAs.. 

 We had a crazy "Waffle Night" on April 19. Behind the group playing dominoes, another group is playing Family Feud.  To the right Mary is posing with our final Mickey waffle of the night when we ran out of batter. (The kids especially love the Mickey Mouse waffles.)

Here some of our ping-pong players are demonstrating their technique.  Not shown is a large (individually and collectively) Samoan priest quorum of darling and hungry boys who crashed the party and wanted waffles, too. Waffle Nights are great for the long, dark Alaskan winters, but we will discontinue them in a few weeks.  Our sunlight hours are getting gloriously long, and everyone will be eager to
be outside in the evenings.

These four missionaries are assigned to the small, struggling Spanish Branch in Anchorage.  They work diligently, but have trouble finding people to teach. Since they often lack dinner appointments, we have them over about once a week. They seem awfully hungry when they come to our apartment for dinner, but we so appreciate their optimism and faithfulness.  

Lauau in Alaska

 The North Anchorage Stake includes four "Island" wards:  three Samoan wards and a Tongan ward.  The Young Single Adults often stay associated with their home wards (rather than attending a YSA ward) which conduct services in their native languages and foster their Island cultures.  In March they sponsored a awesome luau as a regional YSA activity. 

Most of the YSAs in these photos had been up all night the night before decorating the church gym with cardboard palm trees, tapa cloth, strings of lights, and colorful silk-flower arrangements. These girls, wearing typical Samoan dress, presented a graceful dance. (The two on the left--in rust and in white--are in our Pathway Program.) The young men pictured here presented a "Haka." They had fun enacting this traditional ancestral war-cry dance and challenge.  They could have been show-stoppers at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Hawaii!

These girls from the Lake Hood Tongan Ward wore tall headdresses as they presented a beautiful dance with such lovely, sensitive hand movements.   It is wonderful to see them so proud of their culture and eager to share it.

The food, of course was amazing; we especially enjoyed the pulled pork, the spiced chicken kabobs, and the mandatory macaroni salad.  The generosity of the members in the Anchorage Stake Island wards is legendary.  Providing mountains of delicious food is the mark of a good host and (over)eating heartily is the mark of an appropriately grateful guest. 

Fairbanks

 We took a quick trip to Fairbanks this week, taking advantage of a few days off for UAA and Institute "spring break" (few signs of actual spring here, however).  One highlight was visiting the BP Ice Art Championships going on there this month.  This is the largest ice sculpting contest in the world.  It is held here because the bluish, glowing ice (cut from a lake in Fairbanks) is especially clear and fine, and because the temperatures are so low.  Luckily it got to only 15 below while we were there. 

 We were amazed at the fabulous creations!  Prize winners this year were from Russia and Japan and the United States.  Besides the art, there were huge ice slides for the kids, an ice house, an ice train, and twirling ice bowls for the kids to play on and in.  We stayed until our fingers and toes froze.

 Sculptors work on huge blocks of ice starting with chain saws and progressing to finer tools.  The night lighting shows the delicacy of the carving. 

This monument to the pioneers of Fairbanks was impressive.  The city, population about 32,000, was founded in 1901 as a trading post for gold prospectors.  Today it is home to a large military base and a branch of the University of Alaska. Fairbanks has long, cold winters (much colder than Anchorage) and short, hot summers.   

 

We also visited a section of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline running near Fairbanks.  Oil is pumped  from Prudhoe Bay-- the ''North Slope," to Valdez, 800 miles south on the Gulf of Alaska.  The pipeline, completed in 1977, is a modern engineering marvel. Much of the 4-foot diameter pipe is supported above ground because of the permafrost. 

We were blessed to have beautiful, clear weather for our trip up the Parks Highway to Fairbanks.  We got spectacular views of the mountains of the Alaska Range, including Mt McKinley (Denali). This is the highest peak in North America (20,320 feet), and on clear days can be seen all the way from Anchorage, over 200 miles to the south.

One of our favorite YSAs left this week for a mission to Brazil.  Mckenzie (second from left) was introduced to the Church in high school by some of her choir friends.  She was converted and has since been a great strength to her ward.  She recently graduated from University of Idaho with a bachelor's degree.  Independent and faithful, she will serve without the support of her parents.

The Thrill of the Iditarod

 Saturday we attended the ceremonial start of the Iditarod sled dog race which goes from Anchorage to Nome, over 1000 miles.  For the ceremonial start the mushers drive their teams through Anchorage along several miles of the city's extensive recreational trail system. Fans line the groomed trail cheering the teams, cooking hot dogs on grills, handing doughnuts to the mushers as they pass.  It is quite a party.  The musher pictured here, #2, is Martin Buser, a popular competitor who has won the race several times.  He stopped his sled to greet his fans who put up these flags.  This year 66 teams are competing.      

A driver must have at least 7 and no more than 20 dogs on the tow line to start the race.  At least 5 must be on the tow line at all times. These seemed happy and ready to run!  They wear small cloth booties to protect their paws for the long trip.  The booties must be replaced about three times a day during the race. A minimum of 56 pounds of dog food per dog must be distributed among 16 checkpoints along the trail. The dogs are checked by veterinarians before, during and after the race. No dogs may be added to a team once it has started out, and the musher must stay with his team and sled the whole way, no trading off.  It is a grueling test! 

Institute Speed Dating

 Here are a few candid shots from an activity at the Institute last Friday night.  It was a "potato bar" followed by "speed dating."  The girls sat on one side of the the tables, the guys on the other.  They had about 4 minutes to get to know their partner across the table; then at the signal, the guys moved over a seat, and they all had new partners to get to know.  It was a joy to see them conversing, sharing, and laughing.

The YSA's really enjoyed "speed dating" and begged to continue longer than we had planned.  Afterwards they folded up the tables and had a dance.  The whole evening was planned and executed by the YSA's:  from baking the potatoes to arranging the clean up.  We were definitely in the background, but really appreciated the opportunity to spend an evening with these great "kids." 

These three young men are all recently returned from missions.  They add a great strength to our group of YSA's.  Among our 18 to 30-year-olds we have a wide range; some have just barely graduated from high school while others have completed their schooling and are established in their careers. Surprisingly, the young men typically outnumber the young women at our activities.


We are thrilled to host activities such as these at the Institute, though they are not our primary purpose.  We want our YSA's to know this as a safe place where they can find happy associations; then, hopefully, they will feel comfortable and seek to increase the influence of the Spirit in their lives as they attend firesides and classes here as well.

We feel so blessed to have this assignment to associate with these young people at such a critical period in their lives.  They want so much to find happiness and peace in this crazy world ; they can if they keep choosing to build their lives on the sure foundation of Jesus Christ.  Our mission is to love them and to testify to them of the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. What a privilege to be involved in this great work!

We are constantly humbled by the goodness of these young members who stay faithful in spite of their many personal challenges.  Very few come from "easy" home situations.  Many have had to make their own way, financially, emotionally, and spiritually. 

These YSA's were part of our "clean up crew" and were the last to leave the party.  They seemed to want to linger in the wholesome and happy spirit of the evening.