twas the p-day after christmas (or what has been happening this week)

Hey all,

  first of all I would like to thank everyone for the constant support and everything that you sent to cheer me up.  it really helped.  this week has seen many miracles now that we are finally gaining the members trust again.  It has seen us nearly triple our goals for receiving referrals and we have gained a couple of new and returning investigators thanks to that.  It was awesome to talk to the fam on friday and I  am stunned at how fast the littles have grown up. 

thats all for now, see y'all next week

Elder Strunk

While we were Skyping on Christmas, Maclane found out that the members where Grayson was Skyping lived on a farm.  When he found that out, he asked if they had a tree house.  Low and behold, they did.  so Grayson took a picture of it and sent it home for Maclane to see.

'twas four and a half days before Christmas...

hey all,

  this weeks email is going to be short and sweet as we get ready for Christmas.  it has been a week of contacting and we have seen miracles from the referrals that we have talked to.  we have one appointment set up for tomorrow with a woman named Tami and she has been going through a hard time and was very receptive when we knocked on her door.  other than that everybody is getting really excited for christmas and the holidays.

  Oh and before I forget, we had a mission story moment this week: we were tracting down a street by the local high school, and were teaching someone who had answered the door when we hear the thudding of what sounds like hoof-beats and turn to see a rottweiler the size of a small bear pounding toward us, fortunately we didn't get bit but it was loud.

see y'all friday

Elder Strunk

Crazy and Awesome all rolled into one letter

hey all,

  so you can stop holding your breath because yours truly is staying in martinsville for another transfer *does a happy little dance*.  this week has been crazy and awesome all at the same time.  reasons for crazy,  we have been getting nearly a referral a day and it's transfer week (as shown by the email on Wednesday) so we've been driving from heck to breakfast to contact them and start our area picking up again.  Reasons for it being awesome (and a little bit frustrating) the Alleys, who are a part member less active family, have been coming to church the past two weeks and have been staying nearly the whole time.  sister alley is amazing she is a member and has an amazingly strong testimony despite having had one trial after another.  Brother alley on the other hand is the reason for my frustration, he is not a member and has been taught by not only his wife but at least a hundred other pairs of missionaries as well.  he has a testimony and the only reason he is not a member is because he can't give up his morning coffee.  *head hits table and eyes roll toward heaven*  so any suggestions would be welcome. 

see y'all next week

elder strunk

P.S.  We will be skyping on christmas and If you can get me your account I will let you know the time so that you can join in or just gather together.

Week of Miracles

Hey all,

  this week has come and gone faster than any of it's predecessors and I still can't believe that it is monday.  the last week we have been transferring all of our contacts over to our new phone and calling them to let them know of our new number.  that has gained us many potential investigators.  As I think on this week we have seen the hand of the lord in our lives and in our area.  the first thing happened on wednesday,  we were going to visit a less active family (the Alens) when we were stopped by a woman as we were walking down the street.  we were a little wary at first but then she told the guy she was talking to "it's O.K., I'm mormon"  so we walk over to her and start to talk and come to find that she is a less active that is not in the branch directory (Sister Boone).   she then after talking with us tells us "I'd like to start coming to church again, and I would like you to teach my boys.  they are both old enough to be baptized"  which is awesome in the extreme.  then we exchanged numbers and parted ways.  the next thing happened on saturday as we were contacting some Media Referrals.  the brother's name was Lerone Vinson, and when we knocked on the door he came right up and started talking to us.  when we asked if we could share a message he told us he was just getting ready to leave, but if we could call him at another time he would be happy to listen to us.  so I'm kind of on a spiritual high right now and this week has been great.

Hope y'all are having a great season

Elder Strunk

Internal Fist Pumps

November 30, 2015

Hey all,

  this week was pretty dead due to the fact that it was thanksgiving and then black Friday... yay.  We did see some miracles come out of the service that we did to fill the Thanksgiving day. The service was helping serve a thanksgiving lunch to people who could not afford to buy one. I hope that this all finds you well and happy hand that you aren't buried in snow.  the weather up here has been fifties and sixties ... I WANT SNOW... anyway, as we were leaving service we happened to see a former Investigator (Earl) that was coming to get some dinner for himself and his daughter.  We said hi as he passed and he stopped us and talked for a while before giving us his number and telling us to call and set up an appointment.  *internally pumps fist* I'm glad that we saw a miracle from not just treating the holiday as another P-day.  anyway I'll let y'all know how it goes. 

November 23, 2015

hello, good morning, good afternoon, good evening, and good night all,

  I think that covers it ... right?  Well anyway, this week has been a lot of knocking and talking so there isn't really much to write, but I'll give it a go.  the first thing that I shall do is answer the questions that have been posed to me about my companion.  things are going great, we get along pretty well and have a few common interests to keep us busy and entertained while on the not so fun duty of tracting.  he is from Murry so we were practically neighbors, and he knew Joe, so that is cool.  other than that it has been pretty calm.  though the Jehovah's Witnesses are starting their door blitzes so ... yeah it gets interesting sometimes, though we haven't had any confrontations yet. 

hope y'all have a great thanksgiving

  Elder Strunk

Drums and a Jazz Organ Funeral

Hey all,

  this week has been pretty cool.  we have been visiting members throughout the week and have been lucky enough to find the lovely members that are within walking distance from each other (yay less miles on the odometer)  they mostly didn't answer and so we will keep trying.  As for Bonnie, I think that she was just being nice when she first answered her door, because we haven't seen hide nor hair of her since we first saw her.  then there's Chris, he was just kind of there to state what he believed. as soon as we started to teach him the Restoration however, he dropped us |(. (grumpy face)  we have and appointment today @ six for a less active that we knocked on earlier this week.  we were told by the members that her husband was atheist, so this should be fun.  the weather here is definitely changing,  the temps are now in the thirties every morning and the days are usually in the sixties.  no snow yet but a lot of frost.  other than that it has been a week of knocking, talking, and "just keep walking"

Oh! before I forget.  one of the members of our ward passed away in her sleep this last week and the funeral was on Saturday.  which since most of her family is black (and Pentecostal) it made for a really interesting funeral. The first part was the fact that they played a jazz organ and drums whenever a musical number was played and then the preacher burst into song in the middle of his sermon so, that was interesting.  the message was good, though you had to be listening really closely to the preacher in order to hear it.  and then there were the 1'x3' speakers that were lined up above every Pew which made it so we left with cotton ear. (A liitle different then funeral services that he is used to attending.)h

hope to see y'all next week

Elder Strunk

Same Area, New Companion

Hey all,

  it's P-day again and I am having a good time with my new comp Elder Fidel (pronounced Fie-del).  this week has consisted of basically tracting and less active work so not really many updates.  Though while we were tracting the other day, we walked by this house and as soon as they saw us they slammed the door.  So we just kept on walking. 

  I love doing Less-Active work out here.  The people are just so nice, and it makes me happy to talk to them because they have a sincere desire to come to church but their health keeps them from coming.  sometimes I think that Satan knows how strong their spirit is and works Extra hard to keep them from seeking safety, which kind-of backfired with them because they all ended up just inviting us over and we strengthen them in their home. 

Hope this Finds Y'all well

Elder Strunk

Out With The Old and In With the New (Companions, that is)

hey all

  I'm staying in Martinsville! We have still had no luck with bonnie *sighs as head hits desk* we have however, had an awesome new investigator named Chris who is ... lets just say Interesting and leave it at that.  The past few days have been hectic as Elder Holbrook is leaving and I am getting a new companion.  It is sad to see him go and I am going to miss him, but he is on to bigger and better things.  hope y'all had a great Halloween (or as they call it here Hallelujah) night. 

see y'all next week. 

Elder Strunk

Undesirable Patterns

hey all

this week has been great.  We have been getting more and more things accomplished and have seen many miracles.  this week we picked up a new investigator named Chris, he is really cool and has been staying with one of our less-actives.  we have only taught him once but he was very receptive and seemed interested, which is awesome because he is currently studying to be a minister. 

I have detected a pattern here though and I was wondering if any of you had this: you have a person that seems very interested when they come to the door, but when you try to get into contact with them a second time it's like they vanish off the face of the earth. It amuses me that even though they want us to think that they aren't home, they leave multiple lights on and we can hear the TV. 

see y'all next week

Elder Strunk

p.s. transfers are next week.  so give everyone warning

 

P-day in Martinville, VA

Sisters Johnson and Wong, Elders Barnett, Holyoak, and Holbrook

One Day at a Time.

hey all,

  It has definitely been flying by this week.  We have been doing a lot of Less-Active work as the weather cools down and it gets darker earlier.  Frustrations abound for trying to contact Bonnie, we can't tell if she is avoiding us or if she just isn't home when we come around.  We aren't giving up though and will keep knocking until she answers again.  It really only feels like it has been a couple of weeks, so it is hard to believe that next week marks 3 MONTHS!  Elder Holbrook and I have been trying to be more exactly obedient to the white handbook, and have seen many different miracles come out of it.  One such miracle is that we are getting fed at least five times a week, if not consecutively X}. 

Taking it one day at a time,

  Elder Strunk

Time is Flying By!

hey all,

  this week has been all about less actives and recent converts.  It has been a long haul of visiting and tracting trying to get back on track from the rain, rain, and more rain the last week.  Kira and Kaina have been really hard to contact because we only have Kira's number and she works 10:30 - 7 except for weekends.  no other new investigators though, we are going to try Bonnie again later in the week (I think that she fell asleep in front of the tube) still very hopeful though.  we are getting fed almost every day by members and though I have expressed willingness there has been no exotic food :/. Usually we get pasta or roast beef and other stuff like that.  the leaves are really starting to get pretty and all over the road. 

  the weather has cooled down and is stabilizing in the sixties so nice weather.  the weeks have gone by so fast and I can hardly believe that it is October already. 

see y'all next week

Elder Grayson Burbidge Strunk

Ahh, Conference!

Hey all,
 

  the weather out here has been non-stop rain for the past week and a half, so things were a lot slower than they have been for the past month.  you can definitely tell that fall is here and the seasons are changing.  it now starts to get dark at six-thirty and the temperature has stayed in the upper fifties to low sixties. 

Enough about the weather though, ON TO THE WORK!  we have had a lot of referrals coming form Axeton so we plan on trying to get into contact with them soon.  At the beginning of the week we tracted into a woman named Bonnie,  who seemed interested but was half asleep and asked us to come by on Saturday.  We left her with a resto and went on our merry way.  When we went back on Saturday she had just gotten home from the dentist and had gotten four teeth pulled so we ended up rescheduling for this upcoming Saturday.  We asked if she had read the pamphlet we left and she said she had and had loved it so, fingers crossed.  Conference was amazing and I really loved Elder Keetch's talk and the message behind it.  I hope that everything is going well and that the lack of updates is just from a lack of news.

see y'all in 2

Elder Strunk

If at first your don't succeed try, try again!

Sorry for the delay.  For some reason Gray's email didn't come through on Monday.  So he had to resend it on Tuesday afternoon.  I was busy getting a package ready to send to him which further delayed this post. Also....the pictures wouldn't attach. So don't go crazy looking for them.  There are two pictures that I got off facebook that are included here.

Hey all,

  it has been really great to hear from all of you and I finally remembered to bring my camera cord to the library so get ready for a flood of pictures.  This week has gone by kind of slow due to the rain that has been coming down non-stop for the past four days.  We haven't let that stop us though, and it has payed of big-time.  Prepping for Conference is taking up a lot of the free time we have and study has been another big one. With transfers last week I have been anxiously awaiting mail and packages.  It has been amazing to get everything together for a new week.  We have a new sister in our district named Sister Wong, you'll never guess where she's from... Hawaii! 

Hope Y'all Have a Great Conference

Elder strunk

 Splits -From left to right: Elder Wheeler, Elder Sawyer, Elder Holbrook, Elder Strunk, and Elder Barnzoto 

Not sure what they are doing, but I am guessing it is P-day.  Grays is the one holding onto the Elder doing the handstand.

Questions Answered-Kinda

Hey All,

  This week has been cra-razy with everything that has been going on, but we're pushing through.  First off, holy crap there were a lot of questions from the gala this week and I'll mail a quarter to anyone who can guess who asked the most.  No guessing your own name though! X) This week we gained two new investigators and lost them in the space of 24 hours so that didn't go so well, but we'll try to talk to them again in a few weeks.  ON TO THE QUESTIONS!!! Our branch is the Martinsville Branch, the branch president's name is President Hodnett,  and we meet with him, and the rest of the branch leadership once a week.  Next so y'all don't worry we usually get fed most days at least once by branch members and Less-Actives.  when they do we eat what they make, when they don't it usually means Ramen.  It has rained a lot the past few weeks so finding has slowed down, but the plus side is that it has cooled down dramatically in the mornings and evenings. 

On P-days we get our laundry started then come and email.  After that we go to the store to get things that we need and in the case of my Compadre get three or four packs of Oreos.  After that there is Fishing, Bowling, and Leasure time.  The members here are awesome and super nice.  We don't usually get referrals from the members so we are making the most of media referrals.  Exercise is pretty easy, usually it involves jumping jacks and sit ups and push ups.  We do what we can. 

For those of you who were confused by my first email GTKY stands for get to know you, so that is usually the first thing we do with companions. 

Service is usually done at the Blue Ridge Rehab Center or like this Saturday we are helping out with the Fireman's fair in Axeton.  I'll be sure to take pictures to send.  And finally to end the questions: investigators and Dedicated Study Time.  The investigators are doing really well, though we have had some trouble actually finding a time that both us and them are actually free.  It's getting better though and we have been working diligently trying to find and teach.  DST is really nice because it opens so many doors.  Right now I am studying the Teachings of the Prophets: Joseph Smith, which has been really interesting and a great source of Persona revelation. 

If Y'all Have Any More Questions Shoot Me

Elder Strunk

hey all,

  This week was pretty cool, we picked up two new investigators.  Tuesday brought the lesson with Shakira and Shakaina, the two that stopped us in wally world.  They seemed very interested and were very participatory in the lesson, they even said the closing prayer which was awesome.  this Thursday we get the "black boxes" which monitor our driving and make sure we are driving safe.  Most of the Missionaries are not so happy about this (ha).  Anyway, something that I haven't written that I can now because it has been confirmed is that we have a relative here in VA on the Strunk side.  She and I have been working to connect the lines, as she has her work on paper,  so that we can get everything squared away and on family search.  In other news it finally dropped below 80 degrees out here so fall is officially on its way.  The tops of trees are turning and it promises to be a beautiful fall.  The past few weeks the meal calendar has been pretty bare,  but this week it is all filled except for Thursday, which we won't be there for anyway, so YAY. 

Have a great day, week, and year

Elder Strunk

Roanoke Zone 

September 7, 2015

hey all,

  sorry this is coming out so late but the library is closed for labor day.  Anyhoosers let us begin with the shpeal.  The weeks are flying by so forgive me if my emails make it sound like we aren't doing anything.  This week we did get to teach a few people,  one that we tracted into the richer part of the area.  This has been a week for the priesthood, we have had a number of people requesting that we help with or give blessings.  The upside is that we are helping people and exercising our priesthood authority.  P-days are usually spent playing games at a member's home or shopping /laundry /relaxation.  Once in a while the district will have a P-day together and then rarely we have a zone P-day.  We do have a washer/dryer which I am grateful for because it gives us more time to do the activities and other things we had planned for the day and allows us a little more time to proselyte.  

Saturday something really cool happened though.  It had been a slow week of finding just due to tracting not paying off and not many people out and about wanted to talk to us, but we needed to grab a few things from the store and so we headed over to wally-world (Walmart) and as we were walking through the store a couple of people called us over and started to ask us questions.  Turns out that they were formers that had been dropped without being told a few years ago and were wondering when we would be stopping by again.  so we set up an appt. for this week and things have been picking up from there.  

remember that there are things that you can do for your missionaries to help them find.

see ya next week

 Elder Strunk

August 31, 2015

Hey y'all

  This week was kind of slow due to a lack of miles (and a bit of poor planning on our part).  But we made it and tomorrow we will be starting over and have a new batch of 1200 miles to drive.  This week was stake conference and the topic for the adult session was family council.  The main session was planning and preparing to be better saints. 

I hope this finds you all well

Elder Grayson  Strunk

First Full Week In Virginia

hey all,

things are going great this week, though Friday and Saturday were really stressful.  But first, questions!  This week we got our bikes back from Rocky Mount, we did visited some investigators and helped out some members.  The apartment is small, but honestly it is a great place, and I have no complaints.  The branch is amazing.  They have only a few priesthood age youth so we end up helping with sacrament.  the branch president is a nice guy and can cook some mean pork.  we have a lot of investigators though I've only met a few.  Sister Edwards is a very nice woman she is a smoker, but that is the only thing that is keeping her from baptism.  The Alleys are a part member family and really cool,  they like to talk and are the most humble people I have ever met.  Sister Alley has cancer and is going through a rough time  but she is doing better.  Our finding is mostly done through the area book or referrals from the Branch and family members of the branch. 

This week we did an exchange with Rocky Mount.  That is why Friday and Saturday were stressful.  Friday night I had a trial of fire put on my a member of the Rocky Mount branch (I didn't know he was a member at the time)  I did pretty well up until the end when he asked me something I didn't know, then I froze.  Afterwards he told me he was a member and gave me a few pointers on what to do when something like that happens.  Then came Saturday,  we were supposed to end the exchange and 10:30, then 11:00, then noon, then finally we ended at 5:30.  So that was not fun.  other than that though it was an awesome week.  Hopefully I got all of your questions this time.  If I didn't just shoot me an email and I'll  answer them.

see you next week

Elder Grayson Strunk

Elder Holbrook- The Trainer

This was a birthday party for Elder Holbrook- It was Ninja Turtles themed

Still at the party, but looking more like Missionaries.(Elder Holbrook is in the chair)

Finally Settled in Martinsville, VA.

Hey all,

  so, first few days out on the mission field and it has been crazy.  First thing's first, I'm going to get questions out of the way.  everything is going great,  it has been easier here than in the MTC where you all were so close.  OK area,  right now I am in a little town in Virginia called Martinsville*.  The area is called the Island, but it has been pretty fun.  I sent a few pics so those should be uploaded soon.  My companion/trainer's name is Elder Holbrook (nice detective work mom) he is from West Point, Utah and is a little on the crazy side, but he's been in this area for six months so.  the trip out was nice, if a bit long.  we landed at Yeager airport at 4:30 and got to the mission home about five.  from there it was a ten minute drive to the zone leader's apartment (where we stayed those two days). 

  now that I have finished with that, let's get down to the nitty gritty.  When we got back to the apartment from Charleston, it was seven thirty, so we couldn't really do any prosc. and we ended up doing a GTKY pow-wow.  the next day we went and visited a rehab center not far from our apartment and had a great time talking with the aides and eating Ice cream (censor that when you read this to Maclane).  We have a few investigators that we've talked to and they're all very nice.  other than that it has been pretty quiet here. 

see ya next week

  Elder Strunk

*for those wondering, Matinsville, VA is in the southern part of VA almost to the South Carolina boarder- almost due south of Roanoak, VA.

Elder Strunk with an unnamed Elder

The Provo Temple

Elder Strunk next to the statue of the Prophet Joseph Smith

Mom thinks this is either a bus/trax or airplane selfie.

Touchdown in West Virginia!

hey all, just a quick check in to let you know I made it safe and sound 

more to come in the weekly update

grayson

Checking in

Hey all,

First off I'd like to say that things have been crazy here as well, to two (-ish) weeks have flown by.  Tuesday was pretty cool, it started off with a great class and ended with a devotional by president Nelson of the quorum of the twelve.  Other then that we had a Skype lesson w/ a member in Las Vegas so that was pretty cool.  Then on Wednesday my companion caught the cold that has been going around so I haven't really been doing much the past few days.  I have been reading in third Nephi and the account of Christ's ministry to the Nephites.  It has been a pretty calm for the most part.  tell Maclane I said hi.  Tell rock he'll love all of the teachers and to have a great time at AFY

Until next time

 Grayson

Pics with his some of the Elders and Sisters in his district.

The first letter home!

hey all,

  it's been a crazy couple of days.  After I got here my host took me to the store and I got the name tags and room key and other things that were needed to get me settled in.  As I walked into the store you'll never guess who was walking out.  Elder Neff!  I said hi, but I don't think he recognized me.  After getting all my stuff into the residence I had a new arrival meeting to attend.  Which I promptly left ten seconds later due to a bloody nose.  that is really all that happened the first day.  the second day I woke up and my companion, Elder Capener, went to breakfast and then to our classroom.  We had zone teaching, and started to get in to the curriculum and talk about what the expectations were for the class.  (I feel blessed not to have to learn a language.)  The campus isn't all that hard to navigate, but it is more of a challenge when it is raining.  There haven't been any more incidents, nasal or otherwise.  The food here is amazing,  but I've had to set a limit to how much I can eat, otherwise I'll gain fifty pounds before I get into the field.  I get along well with all of my roommates and it has been a blessing as it has made me less homesick.  Yesterday as I was studying outside I ran into Elder Neff again though this time he was the one that called out to me.  I will be uploading pictures after lunch.  We have our first TRC (I'd tell you what that stands for, but I really can't remember) Investigator on Tuesday,  I am nervous and excited all at the same time.  the first couple of days felt pretty long, but after that it became easier.  There is a talk that was shown on Sunday that I recommend you look into.  It is The Character of Christ by Elder Bednar.  I can't wait to serve out in the field. 

Thank you for all the support,

Elder Grayson Burbidge Strunk

P.S. my room is full of Idahoans, I'm the only Utahan there.  I feel outnumbered

The Journey Begins

Yesterday we dropped Grayson off at the MTC (Missionary Training Center) in Provo, Utah.  He will be there for two weeks before he goes to West Virginia.  It was basically a drop and go.  There were quick hugs and tears that we managed to keep mostly hidden behind sunglasses.  It is one of the hardest we have had to do...saying goodbye for two years.  Before we went to the MTC we had one last lunch together.  Grandma and Grandpa Burbidge and Ya-Ya came with us.  It was a great lunch, with surprisingly few tears!

Stay tuned, the next post should be from Grayson...his first letter home!

Hugging Dad goodbye

Leaving with his Host to start his new adventure

Last pics with Grandma and Grandpa Burbidge

Last Pic with Ya-Ya

The Pre-Adventure Party

Yesterday was the beginning of the journey.  Grayson gave his farewell talk in church.  A party was held afterward for those who wanted to wish him well.  It was awesome and sad at the same time...sad because we won't see his great smile or hear his great laugh (in person) for the next two years. We will only see him twice a year (Christmas and Mother's Day) if there is a Skype connection available.  Otherwise we will be talking to him on the phone.  However, this is totally awesome because Grayson is going to be doing what he has wanted to do since he was a little boy.  Namely, serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He will be teaching people about our Savior and his plan for us.  We are so excited for him and the adventures, both spiritual and temporal, that he will have over the next two years!

We will miss you, but we love you and are super proud of you!

Love,

Mom and Dad