Technology at Education Week

We were told we would receive technology training for our mission, but didn't know when or where. We then learned that Paul Scherbel (the person in charge of meetinghouse technology for the church) was giving a class at BYU Education Week along with other classes on technology. We decided to go and see what we could learn.

We went to Pleasant Grove on Monday, August 18th, and stayed the night with Steve & Lisa. We had an enjoyable evening visiting with them and catching up with life in the family.

We found out that we needed to leave early in the morning to find any parking. Our first class (8:30 am) was called "Technology in LDS Meetinghouses" presented by Paul Scherbel. The class on Tuesday was an overview of meetinghouse technology, in which he discussed import and new areas in meetinghouse technology, such as meetinghouse internet, remote printing, scanning to email, and Personal Video Conferencing (the Church's version of Skype). On Wednesday he discussed using digital media in lessons and training. This got technical about the standard equipment found in meetinghouses, various options for showing videos in the classroom and chapel, connection types found on TVs, and the adapters needed to connect to laptops, iPads, etc. Thursday was a presentation on how technology is blessing the worldwide church with examples from many countries. It included 1) Meetinghouses in Papua New Guinea without electricity or internet; 2) Security for family history centers in Russia; 3) Information Resource Centers (internet café in the meetinghouse) in Africa; 4) Personal Video Conferencing in Japan; 5) Webcasting stake conference in Albania; and 6) An ultra-modern meetinghouse in Abu Dhabi, UAE on land donated by the Saltan. Friday's topic was on a new, exciting missionary opportunity - Area Technology Specialist. Diane was given a few minutes to express her feelings about the subject.

Our second class on technology (9:50 am), presented by Ronald J. Schwendiman, was "Teaching the Gospel in a Digital World". He covered subjects like : 1) What technologies may help in the church classrooms; 2) Digital resources for Sunday teaching; 3) Using technology tools to teach children and teens; and 4) Digital resources for the home and sharing the gospel. This class discussed a lot of resources the Church provides for teaching, but emphasized that we can't let technology get in the way of the spirit. He suggested having a technology helper in the classroom so that the teacher can focus on the lesson rather than the technical delivery of the lesson.

Elder David A. Bednar gave the devotional address on Tuesday on using the social media to flood the world with truth. He gave several examples of the power of social media for good. He gave us guidelines to follow: 1) Be authentic and consistent in our message; 2) Have messages that edify and uplift rather that argumentative; 3) Be respectful of intellectual property; 4) Be wise and vigilant. It was interesting that on Thursday there was a water line break at the Marriot Center so they had to cancel classes there. I don't think this is the kind of flood he was talking about.

Marriott Center flood (the Digital Universe)

Our third class on technology (11:10 am) was "The Church's Electronic Outreach: Keeping You Informed, Active in Volunteer Service, and Connected with Others". Wow, what a title! Sure enough, it took three presenters to cover the topics. On Wednesday, Russell J. Hanning talked about how we can receive personalized messages from the church through email and text messaging. On Thursday, Jayson H. Seegmiller told us about the Church's New Volunteer Initiative that fits opportunities for service with our interests and talents. On Friday, Fernando V. Camilo went through a lot of the social media the Church is using - Facebook, Twitter, Google, Pinterest, YouTube, etc.

Since we didn't have time to leave campus for lunch we were pleased to find that there were several gluten-free options at the Cougar Eat, including Chick-Fil-A. It took a lot of pressure off of having to go and find something.

We filled in some time with a few non-technical classes. We were really tired when we attended a class on the Apocrypha so we both slept. On Thursday we attended a class "To Them of the Last Wagon" by Kevin Hinckley. He referred to the pioneers who trailed behind others because of several difficulties then he compared them to several groups in the Church today that may feel like they are left behind: Spouses whose husbands have become disillusioned with the church or vis versa,  missionaries who for one reason or another returned early from their missions, recently divorced, those dealing with same-gender attraction, or "broken vessels" from mental problems. It helps us to be aware of others who are not in the mainstream. His class the next day was about--can people change and how does it happen?

Our final technology class was "The Church's Digital Tools and Treasures, and What's New for You" given by Fernando V. Camilo, a Brazilian. On Tuesday and Wednesday he discussed LDS.org as a digital church resource and the productivity tools it offers. On Thursday he discussed many of the mobile apps put out by the Church, such as Gospel Library, LDS Tools, Bible Videos, etc. Friday was a discussion about some of the resources that seem to be hidden, but are really treasures. These included the new Youth Activities website, new social media, and teaching videos.

This was a busy week without a lot of pictures to show for it. One evening Diane had a chance to actually meet her Portuguese tutor and have a language session at Amanda Knight Hall (where Paul ate many years ago while at the LTM - Language Training Mission). 

Diane with Douglas, her Portuguese tutor

We were also able to have gluten-free pizza at The Brick Oven where everyone was very friendly, especially our server. We took some time to go through the art museum where they had an exhibit on period costumes worn by famous actors in the movies. (Pictures not allowed)

It looks like he lost his head

In the evenings we attended musical performances. Tuesday was "Seven Brides for SevenBrothers" one of Diane's favorite musicals. Wednesday was "An Evening of Music and Inspiration" presented by five of the popular LDS performing artists. It was a good performance, but we didn't relate to the music as well as other performances. Thursday was "William Joseph in Concert". He is an LDS pianist and composer. We enjoyed it a lot more.

During education week they premiered "Meet the Mormons" a new movie coming out October 10th in the theaters. We thought we wouldn't be able to see it, but on Thursday evening we got in the standby line and actually were able to get in. It was an uplifting movie. We hope it does well when it's released. 

Meet the Mormons comes out October 10th

We had tickets for the Ogden Temple open house Friday evening so we left in the afternoon right after our last class. The traffic was horrendous on all roads. We decided not to get upset and just crawled toward Ogden. We arrived an hour late, but were able to go through. It was beautiful!

We were glad to be headed for Logan, but we had very slow traffic through the canyon. As we approached Mantua we saw that there was an accident and many emergency vehicles. With the rain some huge boulders fell off the mountain and onto the highway. We just missed it. We were very glad to finally arrive home safely.

We are glad it didn't hit us! (standard.net)

August 2014 Highlights

Summer is in full swing. We spent a lot of time this month preparing for our mission - Paul working on technology in Brazil and Diane working on Portuguese. The ICS group in Riverton found another couple (the Rowes) to help us. They are taking the information we have about technology specialists in Brazil and creating a spreadsheet. They will also send an email to all the stake clerks in Brazil asking about technology specialists within the stake. It will be a lot of help. We were able to meet them when we went to Riverton later in the August to discuss using a Learning Management System (LMS) for technology training in Brazil.

We did have time for summer activities, starting with Youth Conference. On Friday afternoon we went to the Brigham City Temple for baptisms for the dead. Paul was able to perform confirmations. It was a nice spiritual activity for the leaders as well as the youth. This was followed by a BBQ and testimony meeting in the back yard of our Young Men's president with a beautiful view of the mountains. The next morning we had a swimming (and sliding) party at Downata Hot Springs in Idaho. It was also a lot of fun.

Kamary with her friend Valerie

This has been a wet year, which sometimes interferes with mowing the lawn.

This was a downpour just before I was finished mowing

Kamary went to vocal camp again and really enjoyed it. She was given honorable mention and sang a solo for the group.

Why does she always have her mouth open?

Meanwhile Andrea played the clarinet for the community band at the county fair

Andrea playing at the county fair

The rest of us hanging around so we could hear her play

and the USU Alumni Band for their Sunday evening concerts. The music was hard and the only practice they had was a couple of hours before the concerts.

At least we could see her when she stood up

Our big family activity for the summer was a day at Bear Lake. It was the Saturday before school started and there were a lot of people there, but it was a lot of fun - and the water was just right. 

Alyssa ready for a swim 

Brynlie and Lauren play in the sand

That air mattress isn't big enough for four kids!

Kohler buries Hanna in the sand

Grandma reads in the shade

So does Mom

Why sit in the shade if I can get a sunburn?

Jason, master of the BBQ

Why would Kamary be reading on a day like this?

What a FLIRT!

The water was shallow for a long way out. Beyond that, there were three floating trampolines. Hanna decided to investigate. She can swim, but not that well. She made it, but was too tired to swim back so she got a ride with someone on a jet ski. She remembers when she "almost drowned". 

Hanna recovering after her swim and grandma providing shade

We were invited for breakfast at Rayhan's house (a friend of Paul's at USU). Paul had a good time playing with Jeren, her daughter.

Oh, to be young again!

And finally, a photo we couldn't resist.

Does he belong in our family?

We have been waiting for technology training, so decided to attend BYU Education Week where there will be several classes on technology in the church. We decided to have the experience as a separate post.

Visa to Brazil

We heard that it is sometimes difficult to get a visa for being a missionary in Brazil. What we didn't know is the ordeal it takes just to apply for a visa and the kind assistance we would need from others to accomplish the task.

1. Passports: We had passports that didn't expire until we would be home from our mission. Since we needed passports valid for at least 6 months after we returned, we needed to get new passports. Our call letter included form DS-11, an application for new passports. What we needed was form DS-82, an application for passport renewal. We soon learned that the information we got in the call letter was aimed at the young missionaries. After trying to find pictures in our photo albums that we could modify as passport pictures, we decided to go to the post office where they can help. We walked in (appointments were expected), got our pictures taken, finished our passport applications, and got everything mailed off. We were told to use the express service so we would get our new passports in two weeks. We got them in one week. We appreciate the kind lady at the post office for helping us get our new passports.

2. Color Photographs: We got an extra copy of our passport pictures that we expected to be able to use for our visas. It's not that simple. The instructions said, "These photos must be noticeably different from the photo in you passport". We went back to the post office to get visa photos. Paul wore a different tie and Diane a different dress. The man who took the photos had a son who served in the São Paulo Interlagos Mission.

3. Curriculum Vitae: We had to write a curriculum vitae that showed our formal and religious education, including what schools we attended, seminary and institute graduation, teaching experience, and church meeting attendance from primary to present. The sample was aimed at a 18 or 19-year-old to demonstrate they have the academic training to be missionaries. It may be hard for others to accept that young people are able to be ministers so documentation is needed to prove it.

4. Notarized FUNAI letter: We had to agree that we wouldn't visit native-American villages while in Brazil without the permission of the national organization for Indian affairs and have the agreement notarized.

5. Notarized Seminary Transcript: OK, how many of you have a transcript of classes you took in seminary or institute, especially those who went to church schools and have religion classes mixed in with other classes? Yes, those who have recently graduated from seminary or institute may have a transcript, but it can't be a copy. It must be an official transcript signed by a seminary or institute representative in the presence of a notary. We looked all over our mass of files looking for something that might work, but finally gave up in futility. We finally called the missionary coordinator in the church technical office to see if we really needed one.  Sure enough we did, but she gave us a number to call in the church education department who could generate the transcript (given information about our seminary experience - when and where) and have it notarized. She said she would mail it on Monday and we should receive it on Tuesday or Wednesday in the mail. We didn't receive it so we called back. The person generating the papers had been sick so they were not ready. Rather than wait on the mail, we decided to go to Salt Lake on Friday (day after Pioneer Day) and pick up the papers personally.

6. Notarized Seminary Graduation Certificate: This was for Diane. It had to be original (No photocopies accepted). Fortunately the office who generated the seminary transcript also generated the graduation certificate.

7. Notarized Priesthood Ordination Certificate: This was for Paul. Again it had to be original (No photocopies accepted). It said the ward clerk could generate the certificate, but it had to be signed by a priesthood representative in the presence of a notary public. We tried to find a notary public in the ward (and even in the other ward who met in our building) so the priesthood representative could sign it at the church and we could process the notary stamp later. No such luck. We had a member of the stake presidency sign on one line then made arrangements for the ward clerk to meet with us at the Credit Union and sign it in front of a notary public along with our FUNAI letters.

8. Marriage License: This had to be a certified license (no photo copies accepted). At least it didn't need to be notarized. We were able to call the County Clerk's office in Provo where we filled out the original and they were able to mail us certified copies of our license.

9. Obtain Notary Authentications: We each had three items that had been notarized: Paul - FUNAI letter, seminary transcript, and priesthood ordination certificate; Diane - FUNAI letter, seminary transcript, and seminary graduation certificate. We needed to send these items to the Lieutenant Governor's office for authentication to verify that the documents were correctly notarized by a certified notary public. We decided to travel to Salt Lake City the day after Pioneer Day to pick up the seminary transcripts and graduation certificate and drop off all the notarized documents at the Lieutenant Governor's office in the capital building. As the receptionist looked over the papers she noticed that the priesthood certificate was notarized on the certificate itself, but should have had a separate sheet with notary information. She could authenticate the notarization, but we would need the extra sheet before we sent it in with the visa application. We had a nice day in Salt Lake then returned to Logan in time to get the extra sheet from the notary at the Credit Union. He happened to be working that day and we arrived before the Credit Union closed. He wasn't certain what was needed and had to get approval from the manager to make up a separate letter. He got the approval, he made and notarized the  letter, and we finally had what we needed. We now had to wait for the 3-5 working days to get the authentication back from the Lieutenant Governor's office.

Utah Capital Building

10. Sending in documents: We received the authentication and met our first deadline - send our completed documents to the travel department of the church by 05 Aug 2014. It was a relief to get this part completed.

No! it's not over yet! The next items could not be completed earlier than 04 Aug 2015.

11. Police Department Clearance: We needed to go to the police department for a police clearance letter on police letterhead certifying that we have no criminal record. This must have been a tight one because it took them several days to complete. That was interesting because a policeman pulling over a car can get the information in about a minute. I guess it takes time to create a letter, however.

12. Electronic Visa Applications: We next went on line and officially filled out our visa applications. The instruction letter we received showed the fields to fill out in English. We must have gone to the wrong site because it was all in Portuguese. No problem, we got the applications submitted on line and printed out the last page (3 copies) for signing.

13. We sent the police reports and signed visa pages to the church travel department on 12 Aug 2014. We haven't heard anything so we guess they got everything OK. We are told not to contact the travel office to check on the status of the visas. They will inform us two weeks before we are to report to let us know if the visas are here or if we need to wait. Everything is in so I guess the waiting game has begun.

So this is what it takes to apply for a visa to Brazil. One of the things not mentioned is the $$$ each step of the way. This is an expensive process.

July 2014 Highlights

You already know the big news for July - our mission call - so everything else is just whizzing by. We have been volunteering again at the American West Heritage Center and spent several days as pioneers (even on Pioneer Day). It has been a hot month, but we are glad we can serve the community.

Flag ceremony for Pioneer Day

We also had a grand celebration for the 4th of July on July 3rd (as is the custom in Logan. We staked out an area right outside the stadium where we could hear the music form the stadium and have a good view of the fireworks.

Brynlie dancing to the music 

Hanna creating cross-stitch patterns

Our flags: Utah and the USA 

Andrea and Kamary playing cards on Alyssa's back

Diane and her puzzle book

The fireworks are always exceptional - provided by Fireworks West, owned by our stake president (former bishop).

Fireworks on the 3rd of July

This has been a month for music. Andrea and Alyssa finished up summer orchestra where they play cello. Andrea has been playing clarinet in the Cache Community Band (which played in parades and concerts for Independence Day) as well as the Alumni Band which gives a nice concert on Sunday evenings.

Listening to the band - Andrea joined the band following this concert

The Alumni Band

Kamary turned 14 this month. She was treated to tickets for the musical "Wicked" in Salt Lake. Since she spent her birthday away from Logan we decided we would go to Salt Lake a week earlier to see "Wicked" ourselves. We tried to find a room at the Shilo Inn close to the theater, but they were all booked up. We went outside the hotel and booked a room through the Internet and were able to stay there. 

Who is the Wicked one?

 The next day we walked around Salt Lake. We were able to practice our Portuguese on Temple Square with a young man from Brazil (now living in Barcelona) and a lady missionary from Brazil.

Window washers in Salt Lake

 We stopped in Ogden and checked on our old family home. It is still there and the family living there is taking good care of it.

Family home in Ogden

We took another trip to Salt Lake later in the month to make arrangements for our visas. It is good to get away now and then. 

A walk in the park

Say hello to the pond jumpers!

We also got a call from Steve & Melissa who were visiting from California, but didn't have time to go all the way to Logan. We decided to meet them half way - Layton. We had lunch at the Olive Garden (yes, they were able to provide some gluten-free pasta) the went to Layton Commons Park where the kids could play while the parent's talked.

Talking in the park

Hanna and Kamary went to girl's camp this month. Andrea went with them. Paul decided to take the other 4 grandchildren to the park for playground time and a wade in the canal. They didn't play much  at the playground and the water was too cold for wading, but they liked running up and sliding down the sandhill on the other side of the canal. 

Brynlie on the playground mountain

Hey, this water is cold!

Rolling down the hill

Sliding down the sandhill

We also went to the Aquatic Center for a family swimming party. For some reason the grandchildren like the water (if it isn't too cold).

Alyssa and Kamary

Andrea with Lauren, Brynlie and Kohler

We had a little excitement when our neighbors, the Murphy's, reported an electrical transformer leaking oil in their yard. The city was afraid it might "blow up" at any time so they decided to replace it.

The power truck 

That's no 120V

We see a lot of "dressing up" around the house. Notice how fast Alyssa is changing.

Who's that stylish girl?

It's Super Alyssa

With a family like ours we celebrate a lot of birthdays, but why do we celebrate Harry Potter's birthday. Kamary says "But, he's not even real". I hate to tell Kamary, "Neither is Sherlock Holmes". 

The shepherd's pie, butter beer (butterscotch in cream soda), black caldron cupcakes, ton-tongue toffee, pretzel wands, and any-flavor beans (Jelly Belly Beans) were delicious, even if he doesn't really exist. 

Say that one more time and I'll zap you with my wand

You may not know, but at times it is hard to find good gluten-free bread for the sacrament. Sometimes we just luck out, however.

Holey bread for the sacrament?

It has been a busy month. We wonder what August will bring.

Return to Brazil

One evening during the first part of April we were bored so we read through the "Senior Missionary Opportunities Bulletin" just to see if there were anything of interest. We weren't even considering going on another mission so soon. Among other things we saw an opening for an Area Technology Specialist (ATS) for Brazil (we didn't even know it existed). It said that they provide training and technical support for Stake Technology Specialists (STS). We put it aside and didn't think about it any more.

A few days later we got an email with the following notice:

Ad attached to a generic email

We thought, "It won't hurt to give a call and find out what it is all about". The next thing we knew we had an interview scheduled on April 16th in Riverton, Utah (headquarters of the church ICS department). After chatting a bit they introduced us to a young lady from Brazil. We recognized right off that it was a Portuguese test to see if we could communicate in Portuguese. Apparently we passed the interview because they told us the next step was an interview with the director of technology in Brazil.

On April 25th we had an interview (personal video conference) with Emerson and Paulo from Brazil. Apparently we passed that interview too (all in Portuguese) because a during the next week we were told to submit our papers for a mission. 

Completing the mission application wasn't easy because of our travel schedule. We had a conference in Rhode Island (and a visit to Canada) from May 5-16. We then had medical procedures and exams every day from May 19-23. We then went to California and Washington from May 27th to April 5th. We got everything done, however before leaving for California.

After completing our physical on May 22nd we pushed the button to submit our papers and called the ICS department so they could flag our application. We had an interview with the bishop on May 23rd and an interview with the stake president on May 26th (Memorial Day). We were committed. 

Then came the long wait for the call. We were told there was a 90% chance we would get the call we interviewed for, but that could always be changed when the apostles met to determine the calls. After waiting 6 weeks (it normally takes 4-6 weeks) we still hadn't received the call so we decided they probably didn't want us. Then the next day we got the call.

Diane opening the call

We got called to serve in the Brazil São Paulo East Mission (the administrative mission for the ICS department) with a primary assignment in the Brazil Area Information and Computer Services Office as area technology specialists. Even though we will live in São Paul (in a condo across the street from the temple and area offices) we will likely need to travel throughout Brazil in our assignment. 

Brazil has about 250 stakes and 50 districts that should each have a stake (or district) technology specialist. Only about a third of them do, most of whom are newly called. Our job will be to encourage the other stakes to call technology specialists and to train the specialists throughout Brazil. It should be a lot of fun increasing technology capability in Brazil to hasten the work.

We are scheduled to report directly to mission headquarters on Monday, October 6, 2014 and serve for 18 months. Visas for Brazil have been quicker lately so we will see when we actually start this new phase of our lives. Meanwhile, we have training in Riverton. Since we have recently been to the MTC, we will not have to return for this mission.