District 48A - CTM, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Now Serving in the Recife, Brazil Mission
[more info on LDS Missionaries in Brazil - CLICK HERE]

Back Row:

Middle Row:

Front Row:

 

 

  [Population Stats for Cities in Pernambuco - Click Here]

Brazilian Demographics  Weather

Brazilian Culture   CIA World FactBook   Photo Collection

Sister Woodruff:   Our mission covers all of Pernambuco, but we don't have missionaries everywhere.  We go as far as Arco Verde, about four hours away.  Then there are three towns on the west side of Pernambuco-- Trindade, Salgueiro, and Araripina.  Those missionaries are REALLY isolated, and have to arrive there on an overnight bus over the desert. 

Email Extracts from the CTM - CLICK HERE
 

Sister & President Woodruff


Quite an Interesting photo . . . Playing "follow the leader" as they go to breakfast at a Restaurant owned by a member.
I can just imagine common people seeing the Elders like this for the first time - wondering who these guys are - - - The CCIA raiding some place?? LOL.
Note some of the detail:  The cobblestone road; the motorcycles, an apparent hospital in the background.

 

At a restaurant ready to eat breakfast: 
Breakfast was scrambled eggs with corn and peas, sausage, fruit, breads, etc

In the Hotel after their arrival in Recife

Typical street scene with vendors

Image:Carnival Recife Brazil.JPG

Carnival Time In Recife
(Photo NOT taken by a missionary)
History of Carnival
 

"mug shots" at the mission office

 

Email Extracts:
 

Elder Barwick
Well I am in my first area with my new trainer.  My area is called camaragibe(cam-ar-a-jeebay)  My trainer is named Elder S. Costa he is from São Paulo.  The flight out of São Paulo was good, the sister missionaries I sat by had never flown before...yeah that was an experience for them.  Take off was especially hard.  Our last week at the CTM was wonderful, we spent much time talking about what we were going to see in the field.  Monday night was really hard for everyone.  We we're saying goodbye not only to our teachers but to each other as well.  Remember there were 48 missionaries that came in on the 28th of November.  We had all become close friends and we were saying goodbye knowing that the chances of seeing each other again were slim.  It was the most different goodbye I have ever had.  We heard about President Hinckley's passing Monday morning, so our last day at the CTM was very subdued.  But his death does not FOR A SECOND mean that there aren't any more prophets on the Earth.  There will be a prophet again, and very soon.  That a blessing of living in these the latter-days.  Prophets are in the land again.  God speaks to his children today as he did in days of old.  I know he does.  He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  Therefore, if he had prophets before, he will have them now, and he will continue to have them.

Camaragibe is way outside of Recife.  We took the bus, and then we took the Subway...getting my bags out of the station was fun.  Altogether we were too heavy for the elevator so Myself and Elder S.Costa left the bags in the Elevator, pressed the button and ran to the other floor to be there when the elevator opened. We made it.  We had lunch at a members house.  The food was good.  This area is cool. Think of being way out in Podunk nowhere and picture two missionaries walking around and you have Camaragibe.  It's very beautiful here though.  Extreme Green everywhere.  Elder S. Costa is the District Leader, and guess what? I'm in the same district as Elder Hales, that will be fun.  Elder Johnson is opening a new area all by himself and his trainer.  Elder S. Costa and I have a nice place to live.  There are four missionaries that live there; the other two missionaries are Elders:  Gardim and Luciano.  They are good missionaries.

I love Camaragibe and I've only been here for a few hours.  President Woodruff and his family are awesome.  We ate dinner at their house last night and we slept in a hotel.  We met the assistants and the secretaries, they were helpful. My time is about gone so I'm going to say that I love you all.  My mission is great and I'm going to work as hard as I can to serve and love the people.

Elder Yancey

OI!! ToDo BEM!!!!!

 Minha Familia

 Eu chegei hoje em Interior Escada que é um lugare que esta na central parte do Parumbuco (o estado do Recife). I wont have much time today becaus their is not enough computers and my new companion Elder Silva YEP!

 Yesterday we packed our bags left the ctm and went to the airport. The group being the twelve in our district. 2 amercans from another district (elder harission, elder wardell), another american from another district (Elder Hales), and 2 sister missionaries (brazileiros) (sister gavia and i forgot the other). 17 total. We got to the airport. Everyone checked in and we were by the port for the airplane. We were sitting down and i saw another lady i wanted to talk to so i sat next to her and we started to talk about the big group of missionaries. She said she was catholic and she also said she had family in curitiba, i pointed to one of the sister missionaries which was from curitiba and she joined the conversateion. She saw how nice we were and i know she felt our spirits.

 We all sat together in the plane. We arrived in Recife and went to the mission office and met the AP there and he helped us get to our apartment. We went to the mission home and met their fmaily and ate wonderfully. The next day we went to nearby chapel met our new companion and said good by. I took my bags and went in the bus to our city. i talked to as many people as i could . I am trying not to miss opportunites as much as i can and improving. I love saying hi all the time to this lovely people. They are bondoso. I talked to this man in the bus... Oh i also took a metro bus..lol . like my travels there. and talked to a mother and child. I told them about the Restoration and they took a card. The kid was great. In the bus the money person (in-charge of money) i talked to him and he had a lot of question about the livro de mormon). I bore my testimony so powerfully i know he was touched. I left the bus took out my bags and as i walked away i looked bag and i saw him and he smiled back. The trip up to the apartment with bags was probably the physically challenging. Sweated alot. This is a small city and it has a branch of an attending 30 people. with one branch president. I was pretty suprised and scared a bit when my companion told me that i would be the 2nd counseler of the banch . i met the branch president 20 minutes ago. my companino the 1st counseler. looks like i will be pracicing piano. Excuse my mistakes in writing but i need to allow my companion to write. I forgot my camera in all the tiredness and hurry but next week i will send pictures. I love you all. I cant wait to serve this people. My companino is more than i could ask for. I LOVE YOU!!! We are going to make super goals for this great city . Thanks for the advice. Sorocaba, São Paolo is where my compaion is from . HE is wonderful and ready to work. The apartment is wonderful. 2 fans. I see the missionaries following the promptings of the spirit to talk to people. I need a hard bound folder (like those school ones), maybe my next journal in a month or so. I need a study and a personal journal in a month is what i mean. Thank you so much.

  .. LOVE

 Elder Yancey

 

OI!!! - 2/6/2008 

Tudo bom!!! Familia!

Wow! This week has been great! My companion is Elder Robert Silva. He is a great companion. I had my first sunday. First they start with priesthood and then gospel principles and sacrament. I played the piano because they dont have a pianist. A couple days ago we went with a member down the streets and talked to a man sitting at his house. We told him we could give him a message about the gospel. WE came back the next day and i really felt the spirit there. WE will see what happens. THe ward is small and the members are new. So yea they need their help to be self-reliant. We have cellphones but we really cant use it to its full use, because we are only allowed to call with certain limitations i forget. We can only recieve not call others. its wierd . But so we ring 3 times to our district leader and he calls back. The town is nice. The roads dirt and some brick and some cement. Im trying harder to improve my approaches. Its still kind of heard to to things like get addresses because if i do ask  i wont understand there tough ~soutake~ or `´accent´´ . The people of recife have a unique accent of all brazil. They prounounce 3 letters differently in a way. But once i get that out of the way it will be getting a lot better. OUr ward. I have met the relief society president.

We had carnival the last four days. I dont like it. We need to avoid main streets and stuff. and all the shops are closed. We drained all our food. Oh , but we are getting well fed here. We buy stuff today.

 Chow eu amo voces  Elder Yancey

 

 

Elder Page

hey family,
this week has been super crazy all week I have been trying my hardest to learn
the language so that I wasn't completely useless in the field. so our whole
district was trying really hard to stay focused in the ctm. and it was such a
great experience when elder nelson came and talked to us I couldn't believe it we
all shook his hand it was really hard to say bye to the teachers and the other
people in the ctm. really hard. I cant believe what its going to be like in the
field when I have to leave. the flight was ok not to long. and here I am in
Recife. its amazing my comp is a Brazilian from Sao Paulo named elder Castro he's
amazing as far as I know. I think we are going to do well together. I have
already done some good street contacts on the hour bus ride to my area. I am still
not there I am  in a different area my comp said that ours is really poor and there
is no place to use the Internet I cant imagine it poorer than where I am at now.
so I haven't even seen my area yet. my comp said that I will be able to fit right
in with the ward I don't know why yet. Yesterday night we got our interviews with
President Woodruff and they feed us it was so good best food that I ate in two
months. It turns out that he knows Brother Barker Nan and Dan so tell him hi for
him. weird huh. so it turns out the rules are here that anyone can email me and
that's way good. so tell all my friends and everyone. the thing is I just cant
email back but I will write back. It has been raining today and its so fun to
just be walking through the little dirt streets in the rain I need to send pictures
but we aren't suppose to have our cameras out in public and stuff. I am soaked from
head to toe just smiling away. I love it here we have some people to teach
tonight and we have two baptisms this Saturday my comp is telling me that I get
to do them. I hope he's not kidding with me. It is super great here. I want you
all to know that I am safe and learning a lot I hope you all are too.
are you getting my letters I am sending to everyone. . . . I know I am  going to love it
here in brazil. I pray for you all. and love you all. thanks for all the
support.
love elder Cadillac page
the church is true.

 

Elder Kirksey


I finally made it to Recife! My new companion is Elder Ferreira from São Paulo. He doesn´t really speak English, so I will be able to learn alot of portuguese from him, and teach him a little English in return. I just finished moving in, and already did some shopping at the grocery store here in Recife. I am in the actual city. A couple of Elders from our old district went to the interior of the state. Elder Mckeen is the only one from my old district that is in my new one, so I will still see him. Elder  Ferreira has  been out for a year and 1 month. He is really nice. We  are going to make a great team teaching the people here. At 6:00 our time, it will be around 11:00 AM for you, we will begin our proselyting for this week. I am excited. . . .  I am safe, and well. Recife is a beautiful place. Last night we had to stay in a Hotel, and I was able to see the Atlantic ocean in the Distance. This place is so amazing! It is a little warmer here, but it has been raining so that has kept me cool. Elder Russel M. Nelson was great. He shook all of our hands, so I got to meet him face to face. He is alot smaller than I imagined. I think I was taller than him. He talked about perfecting the language and our knowledge  of the gospel through teaching, for instance, teaching our companion English so we  can speak better English. He also gave us his apolistic witness of the truth of the gospel and the church.  My P-day will be on Wednesday from now on. Well, I am out of time, but I love you both very much. May the Lord bless you both. take care this week, and try to do something fun, to take your mind off the many troubles around us. I can´t wait to talk to you next week!

                                                                             Love, your son - Elder Kirksey

Elder Harris

Well hello family! I want you to know that im doing great! I have a new companion elder g.santana and he is way awesome! we missed our bus to our area which is in the interior haha! jungle all the way haha! anyway it is now 540 and we can only be here for like ten more minutes cause we have to go to the store! i promise that next week i will email you more but this week im just out of time haha! I am so grateful for this church and for the lord! i can feel him helping me in the language! anyway i hope to hear about drews call! and i hope that all of you are doin well! i am sad about the loss of our prophet but it was a great day in heaven when he returned there!

this area is so far in that i will only get `real mail when i go to the mission office`haha so i might not get to send to many handwritten letters.
know that i love you all! muah! thank you for all of your support! eu amo vocês muito! my area is bazarro camo cim so hope you can pronounce that!
anyway love you! your missionary elder Harris! ps. i love you all!

Elder Hill

Oi! Tudo bom vocês?

I hope everything is alright at home. I don't have much time so I'll try to keep this short.

We at the CTM heard about the passing of Pres. Hinckley about seven hours after it happened. 
A Brazilian elder who was having his hair cut overheard someone talking about it and when he returned to our floor
he told us. Elder Harris (in my district) said "that's the most clearly I've ever understood a Brazilian speaking
 Português."

I arrived safely in Recife on Tuesday and spent the night in a hotel. 
The next day we had a transfer meeting where we got our new companions. 
I was assigned to work with Elder L. Alves, the district leader, who was not at the meeting. 
The area to which we are assigned is the small village of Água Preta (Black Water) in the interior of the state, 
a days drive from Recife. I went with Elder Cox and Elder Schiffman on several buses and a train to reach the city 
of Palmares. Once there I met Elder L. Alves and we took another bus to Água Preta. 
It is a new area, only about a month or two old. There is not even a branch here, only a "group" of a few teens 
and two women. There is about 16 in all. The work is going slowly compared to the other areas in the mission. 
We have a hard time finding priesthood age men who are interested in hearing our message. 
We have a small makeshift chapel and a few people come every week from Palmares to help us with sunday meetings. 
It is hot here, but not unbearable, like Arizona. I like it here.


I'm afraid I will have to tell you more later. I do not know when the next time is that I can email 
since there are no facilities that I am aware of in Água Preta (I am in Palmares rught now for a meeting). 
Until then, I love you all!

Com amor,  Élder Hill

 

 

Temples

 Sao Paulo Temple
 Campinas Temple
  Recife Temple

CTM photos (from Internet)
 Cafeteria
Cafeteria
Building
Assembly Room

Recife
City Scape
Bike Riding
Washing Machine
Missionary Apartment ? <LOL>

 

new Recife Mission Office Address
Elder [use complete name] , Recife Brazil Mission Office
Rua São Françisco, 110  Sala 102
Paissandu   Recife - PE
     Brasil    52010-020   

 Information on Recife

 The Recife Mission Site

 Healing Waters - Nice Video/Music

These are the Days Video

 

 

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