Cow Branding

Hello!

That's cool that Chantelle got engaged. I will have to see if I can find her fiancé's family here in Cardston. Things are going great here in Cardston! We have been working with a lot of less active people. We set a baptismal date for our investigator for Cinco de Mayo. Things are going really well with him. We taught him twice this week and we had a really spiritual lesson on Friday where we were totally guided by the spirit through the whole lesson. Elder Staley is awesome to work with as he is very spiritual and we teach so great together.

Elder Staley and I volunteered at a handicap center on Thursday and that was fun. We also did service helping brand cows on Saturday and that was a lot of fun. We would work in pairs. One of us would grab a calf's hind leg and pull it out of a group and then the other one would wrap their arms under one of its front legs and pick it up and throw it on the ground and then put their knees into its neck. Then people would brand the cow, give it a vaccination and burn its horns off. We went with the zone leaders and we wrestled the cows. The zone leaders are in the Barfuss' ward and they asked us if we could go help them brand too so we might get to go help them too.

Here is a picture of us in Cardston BRANDING COWS last week!

Transfers were this last week and we got a new Elder in the other Stake in Cardston, his name is Elder Langi and he is from Tonga.


Here is a picture of all the Elders in Cardston. Me, Elder Kuettell, Elder Staley and Elder Langi


Elder Kuettell, Elder Ellgen (he just got transferred), me, and Elder Staley

How is the weather there? It is really nice here right now.

These are pretty much the highlights of our week it was really good.

I sure love you all and I am praying for you every night! Love Elder Dowd

I Met Your Mission Friend Mom

NOTE from Richie's Mom: On Friday I received this note from my friend who I served a mission with in the Canada Montreal Mission

Maureen Barfuss 3:55pm Apr 13

Guess what I just met your boy! He is a good looking fine missionary and I recognized him as your boy as soon as he smiled. He totally has your smile. I guess he was on splits with the missionaries in our stake. I walked around the corner and I called him by his name before he could introduce himself to me.

We had a nice visit and I enjoyed talking to him and learning about your family. We gave us a good message and of course challenged us to have someone in our home for them to teach. Then he took a picture of the family that was here at the time and I must warn you that it will be scary. The youngest girl Maddie is sick with the flu. Darcy just had come in for dinner from the farm and I had no make up on the Mikayla had just fallen out of a quad trailer and had a road rash up her back. So she had her shirt tucked up and I was doctoring her back and she quickly ran into the other room to pull it out. So really no big deal just a normal day at the Barfuss house! Just warning you probably not the best picture, but it was with your boy.

He looks great and he looks happy. He says that he is hoping to last another transfer here so I guess we will see on Wednesday. I talked to Carolyn at a basketball game and she said that she met you and enjoyed her visit with you too. She takes good care of the missionaries it sounds like. She's a good woman. I hope all is well with you. I guess that you are getting a girl ready to graduate from high school aren't you? Family keeps you busy ay? Anyways just a note to tell you that he is doing great! Thanks for sharing your son with us.



Hey Mom,

Yeah we went on exchanges so I thought I would go and say hi to Sister Barfuss for you. They are a great family and they are misionary minded which is nice.

Sounds like everyone else is doing really well back home. Things are going great here in Cardston. I'm really enjoying it and we are teaching a few more people now. We started teaching this young man. He's been coming to church for awhile and his sister just got baptized recently so that's pretty promising.

Elder Staley and I are staying for another transfer as well. So that will be good. Other than that nothing too exciting has happened! I sure love you!

Love, Elder Dowd

PS For Easter Elder Staley and I made Easter eggs. Elder Staley did the one
with the fish and mine's the other one.



Also, on exchanges we saw a house with a lot of election signs on their lawn!

All is Well

The library was closed on Monday for Easter and it and the businesses up here were closed last Friday for Good Friday. Next week is transfers, so I won't write until Tuesday again.

I am doing really well. Elder Staley and I are working really hard and things are starting are starting to happen. We have been struggling to get the family of the little girl that we have been teaching to come to church. So she's not progressing too much right now. Last week we got a referral from someone who told us that his friend wants to meet with us but he is in Calgary until the 16th. We are teaching a new investigator tonight so hopefully that should go well.

It looks like everyone is doing pretty well. Thanks for all the pictures. What are those shirts that everyone is wearing? Maddie looks like she is medicated in that wisdom teeth removal pic!

Thanks for the Easter basket. Tell Grandma and Grandpa Dowd and Carl thanks so much for the CD. We had fun with the messages in the eggs. Thanks to Aunty Tye for her note. Did you all have a good Easter? Elder Staley and I went to this family's house and we painted Easter eggs, we are going to go finish them tonight! Then I can send you pictures.

I guesss to answer your question on how I am feeling, just last night I started getting a really bad sore throat and my sinuses are way bad. I've been dong a lot of stuff to try and feel better. I took some Vitamin C, drank some hot medicine, drank lemon juice, had lozenges but it's still hurting. Other then that things are going great, we have been working with a lot of less active people and the dad of this one family came to church which was really good.

I sure love you all and hope you had a good Easter weekend!

Love, Elder Dowd

Here are a couple pictures from our golf game last P-day! Have a great week!

Some Miracles

Hello Family and Friends,

P-day was on Tuesday this week because we had interviews with the Mission President yesterday. Next week we will write on Tuesday too because Monday the library is closed for Easter. Then the week after that will be transfers, so that will be on Tuesday also.

We just got to the library after going to the temple, it was really sweet. We went to the early morning session so it was just in one room, but it was nice. We got to go see the baptistry and we got to look through some of the rooms.

Sounds like everyone is having fun. I'm glad you could meet Sister Leavitt, she is sweet. Thanks for sending up a package with the Nelsons, they are a good family. That is great you were able to meet up, or Rochelle was, with them. I really enjoyed conference. I thought it was wonderful. Other than conference not too much news I guess.

That is good news about Amber, that is really cool. It's really nice today, like 17 degrees (62 Farenheit) so we are going to go golfing. We had a Family Home Evening lesson last night with a lot of empty nesters and the lady in charge brought a non member. We taught her - it was pretty cool. Then when we were sitting there visiting afterwards, one of the members asked me if we knew a former investigator in our area book. I told him I do not know him. He said that he wants to be taught again and wants to be baptized! So that was a miracle and hopefully we should start teaching him this week.

On Thursday we were out walking in front of the temple and we saw our Mission President's car in front of the temple so we left a little note on their car, but they didn't call us or say anything about it. The next day I had to call and ask President Archibald for permission to do a baptismal interview. I thought he just didn't see it or something but he said, "Thanks for the note." It was pretty funny.

I did a baptismal interview on Friday and that was cool. And Elder Staley and I got taken out to Waterton on Thursday and that was pretty cool as well. To answer your questions, Waterton is a Canadian National Park. We went and just saw the town. Next week I will send pictures. I haven't got the Easter basket you sent yet, but I did get the nobake cookies you sent. They were good and I shared them!

Other than that nothing more to report that I can think of.

I sure love you all and hope you have a good week! Wish me luck on the golf course!

Love Elder Dowd

Weekly Letter

Hello Family,

Sounds like everyone had a lot of fun this past week! Happy Birthday Dad and Brian. You're old! 50!

Not too much exciting stuff happened this week. Sorry, I don't really have much to say. Yesterday was Fast Sunday here because of Conference. Today we are going to play basketball. Thanks for the message from Carl Mom! That cracked me up. Tell him I love him too. A lot of people from here are going down for conference and have asked me if I want to send something or have them get something.

I met a man named Lynn Rosenvall and he knows Grandpa Turley. He also said he is going to be a speaker at the conference that Uncle Rick is coming up to Calgary for in June. Other than that not too much has been happening. We were supposed to teach a native boy this last week but he dodged us. We have a lot of prospects, but we are having a hard time helping the members invite them, but we are working hard and having fun.

Elder Staley and I got pranked by the zone leaders last P-day (the snow) so we went and switched everything in their apartment to get them back it was pretty funny because they thought that it was the Assistants that did it so they didn't even know it was us until we told them. That was about all that I can remember we did last week.

Our Stake's high councilor over missionary work is taking us to Waterton on Thursday so that should be a lot of fun (National Park in Southwest Alberta). I can't think of much else. We got fed a lot of chicken this past week. I think everyone has clued into the fact that we get fed a lot of roast and potatoes so now everyone is making us chicken. If you have any questions just ask!

I love you all. The church is true!

Love, Elder Dowd

Snow, Prank, Basketball and Church

This morning in Cardston. Snowstorm and a little help from some friends!

Hello!

I am doing pretty good. Yeah, I talked to Sister Leavitt yesterday and she told me she talked to you and will meet you this weekend. She also asked if there was anything that I wanted from the states and the only thing that I could think of were jalapeno chips and your no bake cookies that you make. If there's anything else that's small that you want to send I'm pretty sure she would be willing to bring it back. Hope you had a good birthday Mom, and Dad, I hope that you and Brian have a good birthday as well.

Not a lot happened in Cardston missionary wise this last week. I had to go to a training in Lethbridge on Tuesday. That was fun and I was able to see some missionary friends. Then on Wednesday, I held a District Meeting. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday the Alberta provincial basketball tournament came to town so it was really busy. The Cardston boys won the tournament and it's the first time in 58 years they have won so that was all that was discussed in Church the next day. The Elders in the other stake told us that someone gave a talk on just the game and didn't quote any scriptures or any doctrine. But he did quote Larry Bird and Magic Johnson!


Cardston High Basketball Team - Provincial Tournament Champions 2012

Last Monday Mom I met a man named Dale Pilling who served in your mission the same time you did. He's from here but he lives in Sacramento now. That was about all that happened this week.

I guess to answer your questions about Elder Staley we are getting along great! I would put him in my top 3 for companions, so we are having fun and all is well.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you that it snowed last night and this morning we woke up to our car being covered in snow, someone (I'm pretty sure the other Elders in Cardston pranked us!)


This was fun to dig out!



Cardston Temple



Me in front of temple!



Elder Staley in front of temple!

Hope you like the pictures I sent!

Love YA,
Elder Dowd

Elder Dowd's new companion, Elder Staley from Idaho

Hello friends and family,

This week has been really nice weather and we have been walking everywhere. It did snow yesterday for five minutes, but it all melted.

Elder Staley is pretty sweet. I'm liking him a lot. He wants to get out and work hard but have fun too so I think I will enjoy our companionship.

Sounds like everyone else is having a good time. I hope that everyone is still doing well. I hope you have a good birthday this week mom!

Other than that not too much has been happening. Oh yea, Cardston is hosting the provincial basketball tournament. We can't go to the games, but there will be lots of people in town and we hope to be able to talk to many.

Here are some pictures - Elder Staley in our house; Me in front of the temple.




We were asked to bear our Testimonies in the Leavitt ward yesterday and I met the Cahoons finally. We started teaching this girl who just turned 9 and she came to church this Sunday which was good. So things should start picking up.

The Church is true, the Book is Blue, and I know it!

Love Ya!
Elder Dowd