These are pictures taken on the last night the Hafens were in South Africa. The next day they drove to Durban and started their trip home. The picture on the left show the Hafens in the red shirts and the Bartholomews. What a pleasure it is to serve with wonderful couples such as these. They were the perfect couples to take a new district with 5 small twigs – they were not big enough to be called branches – and nurture them through the first year.

Only those couples who have served missions know how special the young elders are. Both in Indonesia and here in South Africa we have seen them go out and work day after day without a complaint. You have to sit on them to get them to stay in bed when they are running a fever and hurt all over – they do not want to miss a day of service.

They go out in the rain and mud, they walk the streets of the cities and townships when it is 100 plus degrees and the humidity is about the same. They teach with love and the spirit. They bear their testimonies of the truthfulness of the restoration, the atonement, and the other gospel truths. Yet with all of this they are still 19-24 year old young men and love to get together and play soccer, paintball, and eat ice cream.

We are truly blessed to serve with such wonderful couples and elders. We will miss being with them when we finally hang up our name tags for the last time.