A New Mission - A New Experience

Elder Moulder (aka Ed) and I (Sister Moulder, aka Nora) completed our week of training at the Missionary Training Center (MTC) in Provo, Utah. We began last Monday checking into our room to stay at the facility there in Provo.  The very first day we were paired up with another couple who we were told to get to know and who we would be working with on Wednesday.  It was so fun to find out that we had been paired up with a couple we knew when we lived in The Woodlands, Texas!!

Ed Moulder and Steve Radford

Kim Radford and Nora Moulder 

We were so surprised and excited to get to spend time together with these wonderful friends.  We were able to share our excitement about our assignments (they are going to Carlsbad, Ca as an office couple).



Before the day ended I wanted to make sure we had our photo taken in front of the map.  The last time we were in the MTC we neglected to have our photo taken, so this time we took our picture 3 times for the 3 missions we have served.

August 2010 - December 2011 - Family and Church History Mission, SLC Utah

January 2013 - July 2014 - Singapore Mission, Kuching, East Malaysia

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February 2017 - February 2018 - Philadelphia PA Mission, Philadelphia, PA

Before we entered the MTC this past week we spent time training on the equipment we will be using at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to perform our assignment which is to scan books or other information housed in this very old Society in downtown Philadelphia to be placed online at FamilySearch for anyone to look through to find out information about their ancestors.  To make sure we were training properly we had an assignment at RootsTech in Salt Lake City, Utah to scan books for anyone who brought books for us to scan from their family records.  A woman came by and said she wanted to take a picture of me doing the scanning.  She sent me a copy of the photo which shows the Copibook scanner that I will probably be using in Philly.  I have come to be very comfortable with the equipment.  I think we will be a great team, the scanner and I!  :)

Nora scanning books at RootsTech 2017
The scanner is on my left and in this photo I am checking the computer where the scans are viewed and stored.

We had such a great experience with our assigned districts as we helped one another learn and become comfortable with the things we will be doing over the next year or two depending on the assignment given.  It is so interesting how close we can become with people you have never met before and after spending 5 days getting to know each other and working together for a common goal we just feel close and are excited for each others lives.  This is a photo of our district with our morning teacher.

What a great group of people!!  We are so happy to have made these new friends.

So we are back home doing the final preparation for us to leave on Wednesday morning to drive to Philadelphia.  We are hoping the weather will be good enough for us to make good time and not to have any problems as we make this drive. Tomorrow is our last day with Autumn and Derrick and the grandkids.  Then we leave on Wednesday and spend Wednesday night with Ashley in Denver (she is flying back home and has a stop over in Denver).  Then it is on the Philly where we will meet our Mission President on Monday, Feb 27th. So excited for another new adventure!

Good times are ahead!!

Mormon Hollow

Last week we went to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and met Daniel N. Rolph, Ph.D.  (We were introduced to him as Dr. Dan)  He is a long time employee at the Society and full of information and seemed genuinely pleased to help us. He is LDS and had put together a wonderful exhibit on display of some of the artifacts at the facility concerning Mormons in the Philadelphia area.  I will try to take photos of that when we go back.  It is a timely exhibit with the  temple open house. "Dr. Dan" also shared the name of the Greater Philadelphia Area Seminary and Institute Coordinator, Charles Muldowney as one who has lots of details and info about Church history in the area.  I emailed Brother Muldowney to get more information about Mormon Hollow.  He gave me a lot of information so Ed and I headed out today (Tuesday, Sep 6, 2016) to find what is probably the place of "Mormon Hollow". 

Probably "Mormon Hollow"

The Hollow is on the large property of Edward Hunter who was a prominent land owner and leader in the community now called Glenmoore in Chester County, PA. He was pivotal in helping to keep the missionaries who came to preach there safe from the locals. Hunter had built the church being used by the other local churches with the provision that all who wanted to preach would be welcomed there.  When he learned that the local people did not let the Mormon missionaries use the building he threatened to not let them use his building any more.  

This is the little building he built for the community on his property when the original building burned down.  It was called the Nantmeal Seminary at one time. The LDS Church and the Presbyterian Church have both put markers at this property.

There is more to the story, but that is it in a nutshell.  

The LDS Church put up a marker plaque at one corner of the large property he owned: 

Edward joined the Church along with 200+ others from the area which is why the name "Mormon Hollow" came to be used.  Hunter was baptized by Orson Hyde in the creek on his property at a “hollow” which is probably the place shown above, close by his Springton Mill building. Orson Hyde stopped by this area when he was on his way to the Holy Land.  

Among those baptized, probably in the same place or very nearby, were ancestors from our Mousley (my mother’s side) line: Baums, Clowards, Mendenhalls and others.  

Of course there are other Church historical names from the "Hollow":  (Brigham) Young, Wooley’s, Bitner’s, Dilworth’s and Orrin Porter Rockwell to name a few. 

There is much history here and it was wonderful to visit the area.  It is beautiful and peaceful now, but sadly most of the saints who lived here left the area, including Edward Hunter, in 1842 due to persecution.  

It seems to me that many of those who joined the Church during these times endured much persecution for their choices.  Selling property and sacrificing much to be with the Saints in Zion.   This was true for the Mousley ancestors as well, even though they were in a different area closer to Wilmington on the Delaware, Pennsylvania border.  I am so grateful for the heritage and example they have left me.  My life has been so much easier than theirs but I am enjoying the search to learn more of them now so I will recognize them when I meet them after I die.  I hope they will be proud of me in some way. 

Searching for Sharples

We have had a wonderful day.  It has been sunny and cool.  We have enjoyed a light breeze and it looks like Hermine will miss us although they keep saying the storm could always make a sudden change.

After attending a local ward for church this morning we decided we would spend the afternoon doing some serious detective work to find the famous ”Sharples Rock”.  This is what we knew about the location:

            - it was 2 miles north or northwest of Chester but in one of the documents we read it was in an area called Waterville

            - we could not find any area called Waterville

            - we had a 1683 map showing the property with the house close by Ridley Creek

            - using that map overlaid onto a current map of the area Ed discovered it was at an intersection of two roads, Brookhaven and Waterville!

With our optimism and technology (our trusty GPS) we went to that location and found Ridley Creek and …………a Jewish Cemetery!

We were not discouraged.  We drove around finding spots along Ridley Creek but didn’t find anything that was promising so we had to come up with another plan.  What to do?  Find the police!  Off we went to find the nearest police station for that area.  At the second station (the first one was closed on weekends…..what????) Nora spoke with an officer who was willing to use his computer to look for the name Sharples.  He found a Joel Sharples in a neighboring township and gave us directions. It wasn’t far from where we had been looking before, so we anxiously went to the place he told us.  We didn’t find what we thought we were going to see so we kept driving up the road and suddenly I said, “Stop! There it is!”

This is what I saw first:

Ed backed up and we drove into what we thought was a driveway past a fairly modern house and then we saw it.....beautiful!!  Don't have a clue what Wolley Stille means to the family, but I'm hoping we will be able to discover much more detail about the house later on. 

These are the plaques to the left and right of the front door. 

Joseph Sharples was the youngest son of John Sharples and was quite young when his father died in 1685.  He is the ancestor from whom our family descends. 

I loved seeing this above the front door.....

Looking at the stone work we can tell that the house was added on but since no on was home I don't know what was added when and by whom.  Hopefully I will learn more later.  I am happy we did this during the first week here.  We have plenty of time to try and make contact with the owners/residents and learn more of the details of this living legacy from our ancestors. 

So......our next adventure will be to travel along Ridley Creek and see if we can find the actual Rock!! Ed has found a photo on Ancestry of the rock where the first house was built.  

We will put on proper trekking shoes for tomorrow and (weather permitting) head out and see what we can find. 

All in all it has been a wonderful day indeed! 

 

Connections to the Past

My sister, Leslie, asked me in a phone conversation a few days ago if I was posting photos to my blog.  Since I have not posted anything on my blog for over 2 years now I was reminded by her comment that I had neglected recording my life and adventures for way to long.  So, I will attempt to begin again and over time to recreate some of the exciting events over the past 2 years, which have been many.

I am very excited today to begin with a brief note about our discoveries yesterday at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in downtown Philadelphia.  My mother has requested that I go in search of the "Sharples Rock", the spot where a line of her ancestors came with William Penn and began their new life in the New World.  It is an actual rock and I think we may be able to find it tomorrow.

In the historical society vaults, there is an old map, probably from 1687 (although Ed and disagree as to the actual date written on the document) that is "A Map Of The Improved Part Of The Province Of Pennsilvania In America" (spelling from the map).  This includes Chester, Philadelphia and Bucks counties.  On this map I discovered three parcels of land designated for John Sharples.

Another smaller and less detailed map from 1683 showed three different plots of land for him. Two of them right next to each other.  The man who prepared this map also drew in where the homes where on the property.  This has helped us to guess where we can go to find the "Sharples Rock" by comparing (overlaying if you will) a current map with this map.  We also have some descriptions that tell the recent roads, so we are optimistic.



Tomorrow or Monday we will have the time to search out this spot.  We were also told by one of the employees of the historical society that sometime in the last couple of years there was a big ceremony by the Sharples family where they actually put a plaque of some kind on the rock.

We are very excited.

We also found out that one of Ed's cousins is also related by marriage to the same original Sharples!! Can it get much better than this??

More next time.

Happy Mothers Day to Me

We have been in Malaysia for 15 months now so I have celebrated Mother's Day once before but this year was a little different.  

Here in Sandakan, in addition to the well wishes of everyone you see in the hotel, 
 
on the street, 


and the traditional cutting of the cake after church meetings, 


 

I got to hold my first Malaysian snake!

After meetings we had an appointment with a part member family and taught them why we keep records of our ancestors and how to preserve them safely.  The father, Johannes Thomas is not yet a member but his wife, Julia and one of their daughters, Eby are.  They are waiting for him.  He asked a question that we hear a lot from the tribal people here:  "Where is your Church's cemetery?"
Burying your dead is a difficult problem that may be unique to this country. 

After this meeting we went to the Branch President's house for an evening meal with the missionaries and other Branch members. 

President Chin and his wife (seated on right with one of the granddaughters)and family along with the Branch Relief Society President Sister Anita (seated left) and her roommate Priah (who is Hindu).  Standing on the right is Brother Jason, a returned missionary who is the Branch Mission Leader and who is doing the Family History Consultant job even though he has not been officially called to that position.  He is awesome and has a great fire for Family History work. Missionaries in the back are Elder Madsen and Elder Hawkins.

Ironically, last week in Sibu Jaya we were treated to our first snake for dinner.  It was quite good after getting past the bones.  Even Elder Moulder liked it! 

The snake is in the square white dish at the top center of the food between watermelon.  This is the home of relatively new members in Sibu Jaya, Brother Chipping and Sister Evelyn. Missionaries are Elder Chan (left) and Elder Stowell (right).

Their daughter Pamela (in the purple shirt) is the Family History Consultant for their Branch.  The baby keeps us laughing with his antics.  He has the most fun expressions I have ever seen on a baby.  We love this family.  They have embraced the gospel and are looking forward to the temple.  They are amazing! (Missionaries are Elders Stowell, Hill, Fowler (standing in back) and Chan)

A close up of the snake. It is the meat to the right of the noodles at the tip of the fork. There are lots of little bones, but it was really very tasty!  The name of this snake is "dumb snake".  We aren't sure why, but probably because it is easily caught and eaten by the locals.

I'm so happy I got to celebrate 

Mother's Day with 

my lovely sisters in Malaysia.

We love our mission! 

Second Temple Trip to Manila

Once again we have had the privilege to accompany members to the temple in Manila.  It was a large group this trip and many spoke good enough English that we had a lot of help.  Having said that, it was still a whirlwind of organization and follow through to make sure the experience was special and filled with the Spirit. I think we succeeded.  Here is our group and some of their stories.

The first to arrive at the airport at 7:00 AM on Nov 18th was the family who lived the farthest away and had the youngest children, Brother Aret, his wife Sister Linyang and their children Youro, Joneas and Sally. They looked so excited and were very dressed up.  This family lives very humbly and this is the first time any of them have traveled.  Many firsts for them. 

 

I was so impressed with their shiny shoes.  I had to take a picture of Brother Aret's shiny shoes so they all laughed and lined up for me. 

 Shiny shoes in the place where they lives is quite a feat.....^_^

I have been very impressed with how well behaved these children are.  They were so pleasant to have as travelers and I did not have to worry about them at all .  The boys always take care of their little sister and she is never out of their sight.  She is such a sweet girl.

 Youro and Sally had a great time on the baggage carts.

 

Sister Janice from Kota Sentosa Branch.  She is so excited to go to the temple for the first time.  She is a little tiny thing and a fireball.  She has been a member just over a year. 

Brother Christopher and is wife Angelina will be sealed and Sister Angelina's daughters Helen and Maureen will be sealed to them.  Helen is a returned missionary who served in the Singapore Mission so she is excited to return to the temple but for the other three it is their first time. 

Brother Konok and Sister Florence laughed at themselves for needing wheelchairs.  They both did great and it was fun to be with them.  Brother Konok is going for the first time and will be sealed to his deceased wife and then to his living daughter who is going with her husband and they will be sealed also see James and Marjorie below).  Sister Florence has been sealed already to her deceased husband but not all of her children yet.  One more of her sons is with us to be sealed to her.  Her daughter Caroline who has previously been endowed and sealed to her is traveling with her also. 

These are dear people....always with a smile on their faces.

We didn't have everyone available for this photo but I am so happy to have had the opportunity to go with them all.  It was a glorious experience for them and us.

I love the temple.  The sky was always so interesting and I couldn't get enough pictures of the temple. This is taken from directly across the street (Temple Drive), standing on the steps of an office building (part of the Church complex there) which houses the Distribution Center and the Family History Center.

Although the trips are so wonderful I am always exhausted by the end.  The responsibility of making sure the experience, for some this once in a lifetime experience, is one that will always be remembered as a spiritual feast is a humbling one. 

I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to attend the temple frequently.  Sometimes I take that blessing for granted.  I hope I will always remember what a privilege it is.

Proud Big Brother....Prouder Grandma

Yep....it has been a long time since I have posted to my blog.  If there is anyone who keeps watching this I am very sorry I have neglected my "journal".  But early today, because of the wonderful technology we are blessed with, Elder Moulder and I had a fun Skype call with our daughter, Autumn, and our two grandsons.  I took a couple of screen shots and thought I would share.

The baby, Mal (4+ months), is growing so big and Edison (almost 3) is a good big brother.  While we were on the phone Edison said he wanted to hold Mal.  I asked if he was a good big brother and he said "yes" and he wanted to show me.  So Autumn put Mal in Edison's lap and I got this shot first.

About a second later he told his mom not to hold onto Mal....he wanted to do it all himself.  So Autumn fixed Mal in a more secure way on Edison's lap and let go.  That lasted about 15 seconds and then Edison was done holding his little brother!  But I got this photo and have Edison's cute, proud little face to gaze at from the other side of the world and smile. (Sometimes I have to wipe away a tear.)

Later in the conversation Edison showed us his Easter Ears.....I got two shots to keep from those nano seconds of stillness.

 Families are the best.  I love ours so much.