Small JNF General Hospital Project

Got just what we expected from the media at the little humanitarian proejct ground-breaking ceremony for a steam-boiler room addition to the laundry at Joseph N. France General Hospital in Basseterre Monday, 20 June 2011.  NOTHING . . . except this female "reporter" who showed up after the fact with no press ID, no camera, no recorder.  Not even a paper or pencil!

Slim-Jim told us to "just hang loose."

Pictures that follow happened before the "reporter" arrived.

Ground-breaking,

pictures, (hospital administraton and laundry staff) and . . . . .

Let the construction begin!

Priesthood under a mango tree & Jomilah Ferrell

Preisthood class meets Sunday mornings under this mango tree.  Watch out for the birds!   They hit some unsuspecting victim almost every week!  YUCK!

Twelve-year-old Jomilah came Thursday morning for a missionary discussion.  After the discussion we enjoyed a cool drink on the veranda and then went inside to make and bake brownies.

Too bad dishes have to be a part of baking, but,

the finished product is worth the work!

Blue containers to the left of the refrigerator hold our hurricane water supply; open door behind Jomilah is the extra bedroom that isn't a part of our lease agreement.

Ship Wreck Beach and Junior Primary

Pictures of the beach and water at Ship Wreck speak for themselves.   We went there Monday because it was a "bank" holiday.  Businesses were closed and locals picnicked.  Actual holiday was Sunday--Whit Sunday???  Six weeks AFTER Easter.

Norma Stapleton is St. Kitts Branch Primary President.  She is using Peyton Allred, whose father is employed by Marriott Corporation, and ? Vazquez, whose father is a medical student, as visual aids to teach the junior primary children about missionaries.  Before missionaries brought the gospel to Sister Stapleton she had questions about why the Lord would call prophets in days gone by and not in the latter days.  She lives within walking distance up the hill from us.....IF your knees, ankles and heart are in good shape!                                                                            

Ernestine's Baptism & Guests

Brother Jason Benjamin baptized Ernestine Jules a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on 9 June 2011 in the baptismal font of the St. Kitts Branch!

Congratulations, hugs and refreshments followed. 

And then, everyone went home . . . . . except Elder Mangray.  His home is Trinidad!

Sunday evening dinner guests on the veranda included Elder Radmall who finishes his mission June 18th, former branch president Jason Benjamin, Elder Hadlock, Elder Mangray, Brother Persaud and lots of uninvited mosquitoes!

Companion study at 9:00 a.m.

One hour later, companion study and daily plans for the day are finished.

Caribelle Batik & Nevis

Spent our P-day at the old Wingfield Plantation where there are only reminders of days gone by when sugar cane, tobacco, rum and more were grown and produced in St. Kitts.  Parasite plants now grow on old smoke stacks that once expelled smoke from the fire that made steam to heat huge copper bowls that melted sugar cane to make sugar and rum.  Seemed strange to learn that St. Kitts is the birthplace of Thomas Jefferson.  He was born at Wingfield.  Stranger still that Nevis (which you'll see later) is the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton.

  

This one big old tree covers a quarter of an acre.

Caribelle Batik is located on the old estate.  Batik is a process of waxing and dying to create designs on fabric.  

Sweet faces on these donkeys, don't ya think!

P-day over!  Work day followed. While we waited for the ferry to load Thursday morning Sister Hymas and I walked a sandy road to the rusting grounded barge you see in the distance in the crystal-clear water at the south end of St. Kitts.  We  didn't snorkel but we did see the sting ray that makes these waters his home.

Car ferry leaves St. Kitts on the odd hours and returns on the even.  It takes a darned good driver to

back cars onto the deck close enough to have to climb out the window!

Nevis is St. Kitts' sister island.  We thought Dominica was a small island until we came to St. Kitts.  Nevis is even smaller--little more than a big rock.  It's home to another medical school where this semester four members are enrolled.  John Makoni (red shirt) and Jake Ledbetter (green scrubs) are two of them.  John recently started his first semester.  He was surprised when he met Jake.  They served at the same time as missionaries in Nicaragua!  Small world! 

President Hymas asked that the members hold Sacrament Meetings in their apartments and generally strengthen one another as there is currently no formal church activity on Nevis.

Some things are hard but "somebody has to do it."

This little frame house was home to Sister Amparo, a Spanish-speaker from the  Dominican Republic, who agreed to hold church meetings here and then left the island.  Where she is or when she'll return no one knows.