Homecoming

It was a week full of challenges at home.  The highlight of the week was definitely Thursday, May 18th, when the family arrived at the airport to welcome Elder Heimuli home.

A nephew, Hendrix, and a niece, Kiegan, were born while Houston was on a mission.  We were excited to see how the babies would react to him.

And before we knew it, he was coming down the escalator and into Mom's arms!

One of our challenges was Dad's health, but there he was on crutches to give his son a hug

Hendrix likes Uncle Housty, but Kiegan is not quite sure about him!


A few of Houston's friends, his trainer Kyler Freeman, Grandpa Heimuli and some of his siblings (including siblings-in-law) came to the airport.

From the airport, Elder Heimuli wanted to go straight to Provo to see Grandpa Murray who had suffered a stroke earlier in the week. 

It was a tender reunion. Elder Heimuli gave Grandpa lots of kisses, fed him some applesauce and sang a song he wrote in the mission field.

We finally arrived home later that evening to meet with our Stake President for Elder Heimuli's release. On Saturday, there was a Welcome Home BBQ where Houston got to greet several friends from our current ward and our old wards, high school teammates and classmates, Indiana Indianapolis missionaries, relatives, and even the family of a current missionary (serving in Samoa) who is also going to play football at Stanford. Sunday, May 21st, he spoke in church with Luis Goodrich who departs on Tuesday for the El Salvador San Salvador Mission. Houston testified of the Doctrine of the Gospel and his sister Hevynn sang "This is the Christ." His first Mission President Steve Cleveland and his beautiful wife attended along with dozens of missionaries, family, friends, and a coach from Stanford. It was a wonderful day. Houston has grown into an incredible man with a solid testimony and we are SOOOO happy to have him home!

Saying Goodbye to Indiana

Here are just a few pics of Elder Heimuli's last day in Indiana.  The APs, Elder Gillman and Elder Shaw, were kind enough to take him to say goodbye to a few special people like Grandma Banks.

After nearly a year of watching other departing missionaries do this, it was finally Elder Heimuli's turn to add his heart to the "With Full Purpose of Heart" quilt (pictured here with Sister Carlson)!

One last picture with President & Sister Carlson, from whom he learned a lot.

He slept at Elder and Sister Breck's home.  Early the next morning, the Brecks and the APs took him to the Indianapolis Airport.

Goodbye, Indiana! 

Last Letter Home: This Is It

Dear Mom,

We got to meet Elder Heimuli's 13th (and last) companion in Indiana, Elder Taylor Larson (from Highland, Utah) when we skyped on Mother's Day. They got 1 whole week together as companions, but Elder Heimuli loves him!

Well, this is it. I've had the experience of a lifetime, and I can honestly say I'm grateful for the opportunity of doing it. I'm not just grateful for the experience itself, but I'm very grateful for the blessings and for the opportunities I've had while trying to come closer to my Father in Heaven and my Savior Jesus Christ. I've had many companions that I learned some valuable lessons from as well. 

Freeman - I learned the basics of all great missionary work. He taught me how I was to behave and he also taught me how important it was to still be me while on a mission. He was not a cookie-cutter missionary. He was the best Elder Freeman in the world! Because he loved the people in Columbus so much, I developed a huge appreciation for families and cultivated relationships with them out here. I never guessed I would return to C-bus at the end of my mission and have an awesome baptism. I also got to become best friends with my trainer. It was truly an awesome experience. 

Briggs - I learned that scripture study can be a powerful tool, especially when you memorize them. That saying "The spirit can't draw from an empty well" was something I saw manifest by Elder Briggs time and time again. Have I memorized a lot of scripture? Not as much as he did, but I can bear witness of its powerful effects when he used them. 

Ballif - I learned that working harder doesn't necessarily mean we are working smarter. In fact, I learned that there are better ways to do missionary work than just tracting all day. 

Ellsworth - Here I learned to forget the baggage and get to work. I relied heavily on the Lord when I became his trainer and I realized the blessings that came from doing so. 

McCloud - He was an awesome zone leader who taught me that we need to be responsible for all that goes on under us and within our area of responsibility. I learned I could not just sit back and blame everything around me, I learned that I can change what I can change. But I'll never be good enough to do everything so that's why we rely on the Grace of God through Jesus Christ. 

Mortensen - I learned the essentials of being an AP from Morty and Clark. They taught me the value of being a good leader, not just another leader. I learned, too, that talents and abilities are given from God and that we need to use them and appreciate them. 

Clark - I learned the value of staying busy and using time wisely. Granted, I'm still working on that. Clark was also a great example of how I wanted to be as a missionary. He helped me out a lot. 

Wimmer - I learned the value of caring. Not just visiting people and preaching the gospel, but taking time out of every day, just to talk to people and visit them, goes a long way. He taught me a lot about missionary life and how to do things more effectively. He's also a stud who never runs out of steam. We had a ton of memories together. 

Redmond - I learned about faith. I learned that the power of faith can bring MIGHTY miracles. Faith can trump any bad situation for true faith goes right along with the Will of God. If we can do this, we can have power. He helped me to open my eyes and see past just the initial face of things. I learned to look with more of a spiritual eye instead of just man's view. Also, he is super ripped haha!

Gillman - I learned that when obedience stops being a chore and becomes a part of who we are that we gain power. He is an awesome missionary who I appreciate and I was lucky enough to serve with him for a transfer. I also learned that you can have fun while being obedient. Such a great guy. 

Shaw - I learned humility from Shaw. He was thrown into a tough spot at such a young age, but he didn't shy away from doing his best. He took criticism and improved himself. He didn't let the position he was in get to his head. Awesome guy!

Quick - I can't even tell you all the lessons I learned from him. I think the biggest thing I learned while serving with my best friend was that we are accountable to God for our actions here on earth. In the end, it doesn't matter what everyone else thinks or does. God is who I will give an account to at the end of the day, and I will face His judgments at the end. So I need to do my best here on earth. I loved serving with Quick. Being able to serve together just helped us become even better friends. 

Larson - I learned to love those around me. He is always happy and always positive about everyone around him. He never fails to compliment and to help. He is an awesome dude and I can't wait to chill with him, too, after he gets back. 

You can see I've learned a lot from these companions of mine. But I've learned a lot from ALL my experiences these past 2 years. My testimony has definitely grown stronger. I know without a doubt that God is our loving Heavenly Father. In His love, He gave us His Son Jesus Christ...the center of the Gospel, and the center of the Plan of Salvation which gives us hope in the hereafter, and the assurance of eternal bonds. I know this very same Jesus Christ suffered for our sins, died on the cross and was resurrected. I testify that we have that same opportunity to be resurrected. I testify that He has given us a prophet in our day to lead, guide and defend. I testify that Joseph Smith was the Prophet of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know this church is true. I know that Christ lives. And I know that we are never alone in our trials. Never. I know I have a lot to improve on. I know we can all improve ourselves and our testimonies. But for now, this is what I know to be true. I, again, testify of the divinity of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, of the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon, and how it can guide us. I testify of modern day revelation and its guidance of the Church of Jesus Christ today. I know the Church, which houses the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, is true. I testify that these things are true through the confirmations of the Holy Ghost, and I know that we can ALL receive these same feelings, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Love,

Elder Heimuli - see you Thursday!

Happy Mother's Day from Elder Quick

Happy Mother's Day!!! :) :) 

I hope you had a great Mother's Day and were able to get a good facetime skype session in with Elder Heimuli, He'll be home so soon I bet that is going to be the best Mother's Day present ever!! That'll be amazing. But I want you to know I love you a lot and appreciate all you have done for me. You've been such a great example to me and helped me out a lot. Thank you. I look forward to seeing you soon, in just 3 months, just around the corner, and I'll be walking down that escalator! Enjoy your time with Elder Heimuli. Love you!!

Elder Quick

Goodbye, Elders

Note from Mom: The Lord has a way of letting His children know He is in the details of their lives. Nichole Hackler (used to be Nichole Betten) was seriously one of our favorite people at Legacy Preparatory Academy where Hevynn, Houston, and Harrison (and Brad Quick) went to school. Always so happy, always so kind. We missed her when she left. Fast forward a couple of years and up popped her beautiful face in Indiana like a little piece of home for Houston and Brad. She messaged me on Facebook and sent photos she took while saying goodbye to missionaries at transfers today.

Nichole sent these pics from mission transfers today

The Hacklers made Houston a cardinal red t-shirt with #34 on the pocket and #TurboTongan on the back!

Nichole's son Robert Betten models the #34 #TurboTongan shirt they made for Houston

<3

From Elder Quick - I Kept My Promise

Dear Mama Heimuli,

I wanted to send you your own email today. Sorry it's going to be short. I want you to know that I was so grateful for the short 6 weeks I got to serve with my Brother!! Ending it with LJ's baptism. A lot of people were looking at us two in the mission, seeing what we were going to do, or how we were going to perform, you could say. Not that it is a competition or anything. And not that we do work for any other reason than just to work hard, but I hope you know that I kept my promise to you. We worked hard! And I was so grateful we were able to help LJ along the way and that we were able to be part of his baptism day. Elder Heimuli and I will forever love LJ and we'll be able to chill with him someday. It was an honor to serve with your son. I learned many valuable lessons from waking up early, early, early to go running and work out, to gaining all the spiritual insights he has of the Gospel. I know he will do great things when he returns home to you next week. And I will see you in a couple of months. Thanks for raising us both great! We did our best to honor our families :)

 

Love,

Elder Quick

Letter 2 - LJ was Baptized :)

Hi mom!

Typical busy week for ya! I'm sorry to hear about Uncle Lisiate passing away. It's a good thing grandpa went. Everyone also sounds like they are busy as usual! But here are a couple thoughts from this week which was an amazing week! 

Well I'll start with the best thing that happened. LJ was baptized :) It was awesome.

He had a lot of people from his family come, and the ward came and supported him as well. There were so many people we had to have his service in the chapel! I think the coolest thing though was the spirit that was present throughout the whole thing. I had the wonderful and humbling opportunity to baptize him, and Elder Quick was asked to confirm him. 

LJ is seriously such a special kid. He can literally do anything he sets his mind to, including being baptized. It is obvious to see the great potential he has as a young man and a son of God, and the places he will go as he continues to live the standards of the Gospel. It's really quite amazing! He even mentioned to us a long time ago how he wanted to be a missionary, too. And I can't wait for the day that he does, mom. Quick and I really love this kid and his awesome family. I am so grateful that I was able to come back to Columbus to be with them all again and to witness the happiness and change that comes from living the gospel.

Also, Elder Quick is leaving :(  Yup, he is needed as a ZL again to help out the zones. I am grateful to have been able to be his companion and I learned A LOT from him. Things I know I will definitely carry with me after the mission. 

He will be going to Elkhart. I will be staying in Columbus for one more week with an Elder Larsen. He is a stud. I was around him a lot in South Bend so I am excited to be his companion, too, even for this very short amount of time. 

This Sunday was stake conference. It was great, President Hill (Stake President) gave an amazing talk. He talked about Life, and the worldly definition of it. He said in the worldly definition of Life, Life consists of Loss. Eventually we all LOSE loved ones to death. Eventually we LOSE use of our own bodies and start to age and deteriorate. And eventually, we LOSE our own lives. There are so many things we will lose in life, but that's not the case with the gospel. The gospel offers a more eternal and celestial view of life. We will eventually reunite with the loved ones we lost. We will eventually regain the bodies we lost. The gospel offers a bridge between our losses and us. It offers a bridge between us and our Heavenly Father. A bridge made possible by Jesus Christ. It was such an amazing talk. After that we had a luncheon with LJ's family to celebrate his baptism. It was great to be with them. 

Those are just a couple things from this week that I learned and appreciated :) 

Well I'll be off and working for this last week. I can't believe how fast the time has gone. All the wonderful people in Indiana (and Niles) I've met and come to love and I hope I get to see again some day. 

All the amazing missionaries, young and not as young, that I've worked with and looked up to. 

All the memorable and hard lessons I've learned and hope I never forget. On Sunday I can skype for a bit, too. We have church from 9-12 here so from 7am to 10am your time I'm not available. But anytime after that I'm pretty much available! 

Love you mom. Give my love to the family!

Ofa Lahi Atu

***

Hi Family,

Real quick i am going to be getting transferred to Elkhart, not the ward i served in but the other ward. I "ghosted" that means 6 week in an area, and now im heading back to the North!!! 

LJ got baptized on may 6th 2017, what a powerful experience i was able to be apart of. Elder Heimuli and I found LJ at the beginning of the transfer and just started playing basketball with him, about 2 weeks later he approached us saying he wanted to be baptized. Linda told us to start with the discussions. So we began, LJ has such a high comprehension he is like a sponge and takes all of it in when we ask him questions  he responds with very personable and meaningful answers. Elder Heimuli baptized him, and his smile was so big, he asked how long he had to be under and we both told him 3 minutes... he was like ohh, and then we told him we were just joking. But seeing people are they are baptized they glow, we told him how does it feel to be the most righteous person in the entire world? all he could do was smile. I was able to Confirm LJ and it was one of the most memorable experience i have had Confirming someone, the love and the spirit was very strong in the circle. Words can't describe how much joy there was in that chapel and when he got baptized, he's an example to his family that he can make such a grown up decision and do something to better himself without anyone else telling him to do it, it was all on him. I am blessed to have been able to be apart of this experience. The scripture that has came to my mind this entire transfer is that the hearts of the father will turn to there children and there children to the fathers. How LJ 14 years old is and example to me and Heimuli and all those who are 40+ years old and all of his cousins. 

Fastest transfer that i have ever experienced, the two best friends cruising around Columbus. i remember when i first got here. We literally just threw our stuff in the apartment and then went out trying to visit people and find them all. That night we literally just pull our blankets out and pillows and then sleep, wake up, workout, and study, and get out to work. Slowly we kinda unpacked our stuff but we never really unpacked because we never really had time. Constantly running around doing things, riding our bikes through the pouring rain, walking for days to get where we need to. I have made so many friendships in this period of time, that i will be in contact with, FOREVER. The Gospel will bring people closer together faster and stronger than any other thing. 

We had stake conference, and something different happened i have never seen this before.. but we were there and they just announced that there is going to be a broadcast from salt lake. I was like what in the world? Elder Gong, a member of the 70, and a relief society 1st counselor and Elder Oaks spoke to us all gave us some great counsel. He talked about how the Missionary work in the midwest needs to improve, that it needs to get better. He said this was through the members, they need to be the ones actively finding people and having the missionaries teach them. Also warned the youth about having an addiction to their phones, he stated that anything that takes away from regular activities that you would normally do is considered an addiction. He said "have a face to face, old school !" Then we all laughed. He also said "you youth will never be prepared to serve a mission if your faces are always planted in your phones. how will you feel when you have to talk to some random stranger when you hardly talk to those you love so dearly?"

Elder Quick

Letter 3 - Yup, That Was a Highlight

Hi Mom!

Yes we got the package and Thank You so much for it:) We really enjoyed it. Elder Quick is doing great (as far as I know...wait, did he tell you something different?) haha! It's been a blast being with him, and I am so lucky that I am able to serve with my best friend. Things have been going great here in Columbus though! Here are a few highlights of the week!

Zone Conferences!!! I know I hardly ever called it a highlight before but yup, that was a highlight! 

It was one of the best zone conferences I've been to in a long time because I got to sit back and not do anything for the conference haha. I was like a proud dad. Elder Shaw and Elder Gillman did a great job of helping President and Sister Carlson and making sure that conference ran smoothly. 

L to R: Elder Shaw, Quick, Heimuli, Woolsey, Gillman & Taka

We learned a lot of good things and I think a big takeaway for me was Character. There was a cool quote by Hyrum Smith where he said, "Character is the ability to carry out a righteous decision AFTER the emotion of making the decision has passed." 

That hit me hard. I think about all the times where I made a decision in the heat of the moment and then backed out when the smoke cleared. I think about the decisions investigators make when they get hyped up about baptism and certain things and then, when the emotion of that decision has passed, to see where they actually land. Character is more than just having integrity or being a good person. It's having the will and drive to carry out what you decided to do. After we discussed that we learned a lot about the Book of Mormon and how to help investigators read it. It was great!

Elder Heimuli at his last zone conference

Afterwards I was asked to bear my departing testimony. It was weird, after watching countless missionaries give their final testimonies, all of a sudden it was my turn. I had actually thought about what I was going to say for a long time, and when the time actually came....I went blank, haha! Nothing. But it's all good. I really think things are more heartfelt when they aren't written or memorized. Following the zone conference I had my departing interview with President. He is a great man and I've learned a lot from him. We talked a lot about what the plan was for home...and dating....lol. I told him I might be struggling in that area when I get back...because of school and football and stuff. 

This week a tornado hit part of Columbus and a windstorm blew through as well. Our power was out for about a day and then when the storm passed and stuff, we hit the streets and did service. All the Columbus elders were at a different service one day. It took us ALL DAY to finish those projects, some of us cut down a giant tree which destroyed a house, some of us helped move someone out of a run down house, and another set helped a new family move into the ward. So there were a lot of service opportunities this week because of the storm and because of people moving around. 

Sunday was also a fantastic day. So first of all, LJ was there and is excited for his baptism! This week we are focusing on helping him get ready for his baptism. So on Sunday during sacrament meeting we were sitting by LJ when I saw his mom there! Rewind a bit to the day before. I was buying some stuff to teach Sharing Time when I ran into LJ's mom. We talked about his baptism and how we know the gospel will bring her wonderful family together. She was baptized years ago but hasn't really been to church for a while. And none of that matters. Once we understand that God is our Father who just wants us to choose to return to Him because He loves us and wants us to be happy. As we were leaving the store she said she was probably going to come to church in the morning. AND SHE DID! When I saw her I was REALLY happy! 

But it didn't just end there. During sacrament I got a handwritten note from Kim. She shared her thoughts on church that day and said, "I used to hate Fast Sundays, but now that I have been coming back they are my favorite!" She also talked about how she wished testimonies weren't about telling about problems or things happening to people, but more of their testimonies and what they truly believe in! I couldn't agree more. That note made me and Quick happy and we kept it, too. After that note Linda (LJs Grandma) went up to the pulpit and bore her testimony. She hadn't born her testimony in years, and it was an amazing testimony. And again, because she didn't write it out beforehand or talk about her problems, but simply bore testimony of her beliefs and the things she was grateful for, in a nutshell sacrament meeting was amazing. 

After sacrament Elder Quick and I taught Sharing Time for Primary! We cut out little footprints and got a picture of Jesus and taught about the steps we can take to grow closer to Christ. It was fun and it was so cool because I think Primary is where you find the purest testimonies. I was happy we got to teach those kids. 

So that's what's been going on this week. We are continuing to work and we are excited for LJ's baptism. Love you mom! Give the family my love as well! As for the bbq plan, that sounds great. I would post it on my facebook since I don't really have a way to reach my fellow missionaries, except for Freeman and Pau'u. :)

Ofa Lahi Atu!

Elder Heimuli