Week 49 First Major Injury

June 13, 2016 Family, Hey! Good to see that you are all out having fun in Panguitch! I really miss being there and it sounds like you are all having a lot of fun! I wish I could be there but, I know I'm needed here! Plus, if the plan goes right I should be able to go next year with you guys! Anyways, we had a pretty good week this week. Monday we went out to the beach for one of the Hermanas birthday, it was super fun, the whole zone was there and a couple of guys brought stuff and cooked up some burgers and hot dogs for everyone. That night we had dinner with a cool family in our ward and they had that same Hermana over so they had cake and stuff. We did FHE with them afterward and one of the sons had his nonmember friend there with him, so that was cool too. Tuesday we had district meeting, we had the ZL's and one of the assistants there with us. It was a good meeting, really fun and there was a ton of people there haha like 13 in a district meeting. That day I went on exchanges with Elder Schaefer, who I was in the MTC with! So that was pretty cool. We are in the same district and his MTC comp, Elder Waites, is also in the zone. So all we need is my MTC comp, Elder brooks, to come here with us! But it's super fun having them with me in the zone. Me and Elder Schaefer visited a less active that is huge into basketball, and also likes ping pong, so it's like my perfect house. We were able to talk with the guy for a while about basketball, talk about his mission, play some ping pong, and just BRT(build a relationship of trust). We invited him to basketball on Saturday morning but alas, he didn't show. We will get him there eventually. That night we had dinner with an older couple in the ward that lets us do our laundry at their house, and the guy told us stories for like an hour and a half haha. Super funny guy he just really wanted to keep talking haha. That night we went and saw another LA in the ward. It was a pretty good day. Wednesday morning we tried to do some more finding but got lost and couldn't find the address so it was pretty frustrating. We went and had a waffle party down at the other elders apartment, since we have the stuff and they have a waffle maker. We are instituting "Waffle Wednesday" here on Wednesdays. I'm pretty pumped about it. We did service at the food bank that afternoon and then had dinner with a really cool family in the ward. Thursday we did service for the CrossFit gym, then did service at the food bank too. We do a lot of service here. We visited some of our other less active families and then had dinner. That night we had correlation with our bomb awesome WML, Brother Gruwell. Friday we went and saw some more LA's in the morning, then did our weekly planning in the afternoon. The sisters were jealous of our waffles and we didn't have a dinner appointment so we made waffles at the church. That night we saw a woman in our ward that hasn't come for a little while, and it was good to see her. She is from Haiti I think. A ton of people in our ward are from a bunch of different places, like Fiji, Haiti, Africa, etc. It's pretty cool our gospel principles class is always so diverse. Saturday was a crazy day. We did basketball in the morning, a thing we do to try and get some of our investigators and less actives out for some fellowshipping with the EQ and stuff like that. It's for the whole stake so we usually have like 10-15 guys there, about half of which are missionaries. But for that one, there are two things to mention. First, an elder that I won't mention said I wouldn't dunk on him, so I did. Second, in a later play I sprained my ankle and so I was out for the rest of the time. When I sprained it, I heard a pop so I wasn't sure if I had sprained or broken it, but I was able to walk, which was a good sign. But, progressively throughout the day it started hurting more and more to the point I couldn't walk anymore. So we unfortunately had to stay in for part of the day. At the end of the day we went over to a members house, because lucky me he is a foot and ankle podiatrist. So I had him look at it to make sure it was a sprain and luckily for me that's all it was. But it still sucked haha. I thought for a minute that I had broken it and I just thought whether they were going to send me home for it haha. But as usual I was overreacting and thinking of the worst scenario and luckily it's just a sprain. I should be good to go in like 2-3 weeks. I can walk on it now which is nice but I'm not functioning like normal of course. Sunday we had church, and we taught the gospel principles class. Well, Elder Moniz did since he is much more knowledgeable about the gospel than me. We ate lunch then went and visited some more of our less active families and members. We had dinner with a cool part member family and then again visited a less active lady. It was a pretty good night though, and I was happy that my ankle wasn't hurting too bad. In other news, it's super sad to hear about all of those people killed in Orlando! That's so awful. It seems like every month now there is some sort of bombing, shooting, or killing or terrorist attack of some kind. It's almost becoming normal to hear about it now! I can't believe how horrible the world is becoming. But, it's cool to see that this has been prophesied of and has happened in scriptural times too. Anyways I love you guys so much! Have fun in Panguitch! And also, I'm wearing my polar bear shirt in your honor for good luck! Elder Hatch

Week 48 Golden Gate Bridge Service

June 6, 2016 Family, Well, time to write again. It was a fast week this week. Me and Elder Moniz had a pretty good week. Monday was a good day, we had a fun Pday where we went hiking and we had dinner and FHE with a part member family in the ward. They are really cool, the wife is this awesome Fijian lady and the husband is a nonmember, but really really nice. They even lent us their waffle maker because we found a bunch of pancake mix in our apartment. Tuesday was zone meeting, which was for some reason held outside, then I went on exchanges with one of the zone leaders in Petaluma, Elder Checketts. He is super awesome, I love that guy. He is a bomb missionary and gets a lot of work done and has fun in the process. Also, a bonus about that exchange was that I got to be in an apartment with Elder Waites, who I lived with in Crescent City for a long time. That day with Elder Checketts we were able to teach a family that they baptized the two kids this last Saturday. They are awesome kids! Luckily even though they are Spanish elders the lesson was in English, so that was nice. Wednesday we did service at the food bank like usual, then went and saw one of our less actives that night. Thursday was good too; we did service at the CrossFit gym in the morning, then helped out at Theodore bank in the afternoon. That night we did visits with the WML, Bro Gruwell's, who is a super cool guy. Unfortunately our visits were not super successful but I'm glad we went anyways. Oh, that night we got the rest of a Queen mattress from the sisters and set it up that night. It's so sweet! I never thought I would have a queen size on my mission. Friday we went and did our weekly planning, had donuts, because it was national donut day, then went and had a pass off lesson with the sisters in San Rafael. We went and did suicide prevention on the Golden Gate Bridge on Friday night. Fortunately we didn't find anyone looking to commit suicide but me and Elder Shaefer were able to talk to a really nice guy from San Francisco on the bridge and hook him up with the missionaries down there. He was such a nice guy, because it was freezing on the bridge and we had no coats he was trying to give us his, and he gave this random Asian couple a ride across the bridge cause they had no other way to get there. Speaking of the Bridge, it is so beautiful, but when the fog rolls in and the wind picks up it gets sooooo cold. I couldn't believe how cold it gets there. But, it is really cool to get to go and walk the bridge every once in a while. Saturday was a crazy day. We played ball in the morning and a bunch of the missionaries came, it's like a bring your investigators type thing, the EQ from our ward set it up. One of the elders, as we were playing, got hit in the head and had to get 8 stitches in his eyebrow! Pretty crazy. His eye looked all bloody and stuff. Right after that we helped a family in the ward with a car wash fundraiser they are doing for their kid to go to junior Olympic weight lifting in Texas. Super cool. While we were there this guy in a brand new custom Corvette stingray, probably cost him like $100,000+. He said that his wife just bought it without him knowing it. Gosh dang. These Marin people are so filthy rich it's ridiculous. We did a blitz in our area with some of the other missionaries that afternoon, and that night we visited another PM family in the ward. The husband is a nonmember, super nice guy, but not super interested at this point. But, he will probably get there eventually. He comes to church like every week but just doesn't want to commit to it. Sunday was a good day. We fasted, and at church for testimony meeting it was sooo good. Our investigator that is married to the Fijian lady, came to church for the first time and got up and bore his testimony type thing, he said he has been reading the Book of Mormon and that he liked church services. It was so awesome. Super cool moment. That night we had dinner with another PM family, one where the dad is a nonmember, as well as the kids, but what is weird is that the kids are all like 8-13 and not baptized, because the dad won't let them be baptized, even though he is a nice guy and the kids come every week. It's a weird situation. Hopefully we can help change his mind on the matter. That night we saw the Forsters, who is the PM family with the Fijian wife. Super cool people. The guy made us some of his salsa which is really good. So it was a good week this week. We had some good old service opportunities, and some good times and missionary opportunities with the part member families in the ward. Elder Moniz and I are getting along good. He is an awesome guy. Anyways thanks for all that you all do! Love ya! Elder Hatch

Week 47 Some great cooks in Novato

May 30, 2016 Family, Another week down and more adventures here in Novato! It has been a good week and Elder Moniz and I have had some good times here. Monday we like lost our phone all day so it was kind of stressful figuring things out and stuff but it was still a good Pday. Tuesday was a good day, we had district meeting in the morning, then we went on exchanges with the Spanish elders in our district after that. I went with a Spanish elder named Elder Crosley, who was actually in the MTC with Elder Rees, so he knows him. Pretty cool! It was fun to catch up and talk about Spencer haha. We had some good times and I was able to read one verse in Spanish in a lesson haha. At the end of that lesson it was actually really funny, I stood up and the lady like started saying something really fast in Spanish and then all the sudden she was hugging me! It was so strange I was so confused since I didn't understand any of it! But afterwards I found out that she was saying something about how I looked like her nephew or something like that so she had to hug me I guess! It was super funny. Also we were actually able to teach an awesome on the spot lesson with another lady that they were trying to find. Luckily she was English so I could participate! Wednesday we exchanged back and went to the food bank to help there for the afternoon. That night we gave a blessing to a member and her roommate in the recovery center/crazy old people place that she is at right now. It was pretty cool actually, her roommate is pretty interested. Oh, on Tuesday we went at 5:30 AM to the CrossFit gym, as well as on Thursday and Friday. It's really early and I hate it when I have to wake up but after we do it I am always glad that we did it. The people there are really nice too, and a bunch of them are some of our members. Thursday morning after the gym and studies, we went and did service at the gym, cleaning it. That's actually how we are able to use it haha. We then had lunch then did service at the food bank in the afternoon. That night we had dinner with a PM family that is super cool. We also saw an investigator that should become getting baptized as soon as he can.. Meaning that he has some other stuff he has got to take care of first. But hopefully it will happen while I am here. Friday we did weekly planning then had dinner with a super cool PM family that the wife makes the best cupcakes ever... So good. Saturday we went and had a blitz with the other elders, I went with Elder Cawley, super funny kid in our district. We saw the lady at the hospital again, saw some of our other investigators briefly and saw a member of the ward who said that his uncle was a teacher at cottonwood for like 50 years. Mr. Jackman I'm pretty sure. So that was a cool connection. Sunday was good too, we had church then went and saw the WML, who he and his wife are freaking hilarious people. We got some of the best cookies I've ever had from a member that is apparently famous for his healthy cookies. I don't know if they were healthy but they were delicious. Overall it has been a pretty good week. I am having a good time with Elder Moniz and we are having fun together. Love you all! Elder Hatch

Week 46 Area #4 Novato/ Elder Moniz

May 23, 2016 Family, Well, I'm one week into Novato! It's a great place and I really like it a lot. The members here are super cool. They are always making sure we have food and stuff and twice already we have had members tell us to come pick up some food or ask us if we have a dinner. Apparently we have some famous cooks in our ward, this one guy made us some toffee of his that is to die for. Another lady is apparently famous for her healthy cupcakes that are tasty too and honestly they are some old. We stopped by and she gave us some cupcakes and later she told us she had ribs for us. So awesome. The ward mission leader here, Brother Gruel well, reminds me a lot of Owen Fuller from the ward. It's actually kind of weird but he is a super cool guy. Anyways, Monday in Woodland was good, we did normal Pday stuff and Elder Taylor had an eye doctor appointment that we went to. We saw some families that night that I said goodbye to. Tuesday we packed up and headed out for Santa Rosa early in the morning. It was good I was glad to be able to see a bunch of the boys. There are a lot of missionaries that I really love in this mission. Some that I will hopefully get to serve with. We got to Novato that Tuesday and a lot of the day I unpacked, we went and saw one of our investigators that should be getting baptized soon. He has cerebral palsy, but is a really nice guy. Wednesday we did service for the food bank for most of the afternoon, then that night we went and saw one of the less actives in the ward. Thursday we had district meeting in the morning, but we did it with the whole zone. The zone leaders took over for that one and we got to know the zone really well. We have a huge zone, 24 people, and we are all really spread out so it makes it hard. Thursday afternoon we went and helped out at the food bank again. At this food bank we pass out food to people that come needing extra food. It's a pretty good time. That night we went and saw another less active. Friday we did comp study with some sisters in our district, then had weekly planning for most of the afternoon. That night we went to dinner with the Schroeder's, who aren't even in our ward but were nice enough to have us come along too. Apparently she is like the San Rafael stake lady that keeps all the moms updated on the CASRM moms FB page. They are super nice people. Saturday we helped a member move her couch like 10 feet, then we went and did some finding that afternoon. We went and did a blitz for the Spanish sisters in Novato and I went with Elder Shaefer, who I was in Also, I love Elder Moniz. He is awesome. Plus he is gonna go play the MTC with, and Elder Crowley, who was in the MTC with Spencer. We all go home together and we had a good time. I love both of those guys. That night we had dinner and a little lesson with some people in our ward in a care center and gave a Book of Mormon to their roommate. Sunday was a good Sunday. I got called on to bear my testimony in sacrament meeting and we taught the YM/YW third hour lesson. We went and visited a PM family after church, had dinner with a cool family in the ward then had a meet and greet with a member of the stake presidency. Today we went on a hike, then played some basketball. It was good to go hiking again. I haven't done that in a while. It has been a good Pday. sports for the U when he gets home so that makes him even cooler. We have been having a lot of fun together and working hard. It's exciting to be here in Novato, I look forward to this transfer! Thanks for everything you all do. Love, Elder Hatch

Week 45 Moving to Novato

May 16, 2016 Family, Well, transfers are upon us and the news is..... I'm going to Novato! I leave tomorrow morning so it should be fun! My new companion is Elder Moniz, he is Poly, has been out for about 17 months or so, and apparently is really athletic, like playing football for Oregon level. So it should be a fun time. I'm excited to have a companion that is older than me finally other than my trainers! So that will be nice. Elder Taylor is staying here in Woodland and he is getting elder McKinley, who I served with before. They will do well. But I a, ready for a new comp and area. I really love Elder Taylor and Woodland but it's just time for a change. I should have a good time in Novato! Novato is down by the bay, just below Petaluma and just above San Rafael. It's in Marin county, which is the richest county in America, from what I've heard. So I'm sure it will have pros and cons about that! Monday was a pretty good day. We did the usual Pday stuff and then we did some finding during the night. Tuesday we had district meeting, but we got switched districts mid transfer because there is one Hermana that doesn't speak English very well so they made a Spanish district, and we got switched back to the English district. It was strange. But that afternoon we did some finding, then had a lesson and dinner with a guy in our ward and his 10 year old son that we are teaching. That night we went on splits and saw an inactive lady that is 86, really nice. She told us about her husband who is 98 and he was in the death march, and Japanese prison camps and stuff. It's so crazy. His story was just like unbroken. Wednesday we went and had a lesson with Sean in the morning, then we went to the food bank in the afternoon, and had a lesson and dinner with this "investigator" guy. It was really good unfortunately he isn't interested but we had a good time. Thursday we went on exchanges and I was with Elder Achal, my super cool DL. He is such a good guy, and we had a lot of fun. A bunch of crazy saga's and weird stuff happened. We did service staining a playground in the morning, did some finding during the day, and then we went and did service at the senior center in woodland. After that we went on splits and me and Elder Achal both had inspiration to go to the same place! It was super cool. And the guy I was with and I thought to go to the same 3 people in a row and we didn't ask each other beforehand. Super cool! It was good to be with Elder Achal for the day. Friday we had our weekly planning, and did a bunch of finding during the night. Saturday we did service in winters in the morning, then came back and had two lessons in the afternoon, then did some more finding during the night. Also we got the transfer info that night too! So that Saturday was a long one. Sunday was good too. Elder Taylor spoke in sacrament meeting, and he did a good job. We went to try and see some families in the afternoon then had dinner with a family with 8 kids, all under the age of 13... Wow! They are a well oiled machine! Pretty crazy. Today has been not too bad either. I am currently sitting in a hospital cause elder Taylor has an eye appointment. Also I can't believe that all 4 of the new babies are girls! That is so crazy! I'm only used to having nephews now I come home to 4 new nieces? Absolutely insane! It should be fun though! I know that you are having a good time with it mom. In conclusion, Woodland has been good to me. The ward is awesome, the people are awesome, and I've had a good time. Also, I am excited for Novato. I have heard that my comp likes to get up at 5 AM to work out though so I'm not too thrilled about that. We will see how that goes. But I will have a poly comp so that will be cool. Also I can't wait for the new babies to come! It will be exciting. Love, Elder Hatch