Las Vegas- October 1, 2017 Sadness

Last weekend (Saturday, September30) we had our circuit assembly in St George, UT, and were feeling spiritually upbuilt. Sunday I watched the Dallas Cowboys game and then as usual went to the Spanish meeting and enjoyed the fellowship of the brothers.

Sunday night around 10, I turned on the TV to catch up on the day’s news, and what had been a normal routine weekend became something totally, horribly unbelievable. How do you wrap your mind around the fact that some crazed individual has shot more than 500 people only about 5 miles from your house?

Like most Las Vegas, I could hardly sleep and then woke up early Monday to find out more than 50 people were dead. While I was trying to digest that, I got a text from a brother saying that six of our congregation members were at the concert. Now it became very real. Then I received a communication from the circuit overseer to have all the group overseers in the circuit contact every person in their group and report back.

It turned out that none of the Las Vegas brothers were hurt, but sadly a sister from Massachusetts, visiting here with her husband (an elder) and their 6 year old daughter was shot and killed. There was immediate help from the brothers to comfort the brother and help anyway they could in a very terrible situation.

We arranged immediate shepherding calls on our local brothers who had been there. It was clear they were traumatized, as anyone would be. Few of us have been in a situation where bullets are flying and we are seeing people shot and killed and wounded all around us, and we have to flee for our lives.

On Tuesday we had our midweek meeting and all 6 were there, but you could tell they were still stunned, and the sisters especially were emotionally raw. Kindly, the circuit overseer paid a visit and gave a very encouraging talk and spoke personally to each of the publishers who had been at the concert.

Invariably, events like this cause people to question why these things happen. Of course, as Witnesses we know the reason, and we are happy to reach out to others who are hurting and offer them comfort from God’s Word. While these events sadden us, we know there is a positive future that is ahead when these terrible things won’t even be brought to mind, and our dead loved ones will live again

I think even for Witnesses, when these things strike close to home, it causes some introspection as far as what we are doing with our lives. When we see how quickly some random event could cause us to lose our life, we become even more determined to do worthwhile things with the time left that Jehovah has given us.

We arrive in Ecuador! (Time Travel series, Part 1)

(Note: In 1971, the Winder family of Mobile, Alabama (Bill, 41, Jean, 40, sons Jesse, 19, Joe 16, and daughter Eva, 13) sold their possessions and moved to Ibarra, Ecuador for 2 years to preach the good news of the Kingdom. Jesse returned once more in 1976 for a visit of a few months, but has not been back since. However an extended visit and possible move is planned for 2018. In preparation for that trip and to amuse the ex-pats who have moved to Ecuador in recent years, I will be publishing some “time-travel” blog entries as I might have back  in day if there had only been an Internet.)

Rodrigo Vaca conducting the Watchtower study

Spring 1971:

Several families in our congregation in Mobile were discussing moving to a foreign country to serve where the need was greater. The consensus seemed to be that Guatemala might be a good choice because we could drive there. However, an American couple, Robert and Pat Swartz who had been serving in Ecuador visited our Hall and regaled us with their experiences. My dad was sold- Ecuador would be it.

So we began the process of disposing of most of our possessions, house, cars, etc. Being 18 years old with a life of my own, I initially wasn’t too excited about moving, but my dad said just give it a year, and if I didn’t like it, he would send me home. Okay.

Summer 1971:

With my Kingdom Hall buddies

Me in front of the Kingdom Hall

We get off the Ecuatoriana jet in Quito. None of us know any Spanish. To my knowledge, I’ve never even met a Hispanic person. In Alabama, there’s basically just black people & white people.

So the Swartz’s meet us at the airport and we head for Ibarra, a city of about 50,000. In the entire province of Imbabura, there is only one congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses. There are about 50 or so publishers, 17 of them Gringos, mostly Canadians. The Kingdom Hall was a rented room. (Now if you look up Imbabura on jw.org, 35 congregations pop up. What a difference 40 years makes!)

Ivan Morillo and his family

Want to meet them? There are 4 older single Canadian retired sisters living on their social security. There is the Convery family from Sudbury, Dave, Stella, two teenagers, Warren and Jocylyn. Larry & Janet Ginn, a young Canadian couple, the two Swartz’s, and now the Winders. Most are pioneering and there are a number of local Ecuadorian brothers who are special pioneers.

Carlos Salazar

The presiding overseer is a Gilead graduate (only the second from Ecuador), Carlos Salazar. He is Ecuadorian, but due to having lived in NYC speaks excellent English. You can see his picture in the 1989 YB page 218. The Watchtower conductor is Rodrigo Vaca who is blind and has only one hand due to an unfortunate encounter with black powder when he was younger. You can read his life story in the Awake!, September 8, 1985.

With Hugo Salas at the family business

It was great having the Swartz’s  as a connection, because they had already located us a place to live and showed us the ropes. I had already been pioneering for a year since I got out of High School (the requirement then was 100 hours a month) and the brothers let me know that I had to get in the swing of things quickly. So they gave me an index card with a 4 line magazine presentation written on. I would knock on the door and read the card. One of the first lines was “No hablo espanol”. Of course, I couldn’t get in too much trouble because I was working with another brother. But after the first day, I had the card memorized. So I could give a presentation, but I just couldn’t understand what the householder said.

One of my studies, David Saud

I noticed right away this was a different world than the Bible Belt of Alabama where we were used to preaching to church-going people who were generally not interested in talking to us. For one thing in Ibarra, almost everyone was home, and almost everyone invited us in. Naturally they were curious, because our group may have been the only gringos in town. Once when my brother and I went out in the street with our baseball mitts and started throwing a few balls, a crowd gathered. We let a couple of them try it, only to find out Ecuadorian guys throw like girls. (OK, most girls. My wife can throw a ball, but you know what I mean.) But thanks to soccer, they are really good with their feet. Because everyone had plenty of studies, I would go along, and have my English and Spanish Truth books side by side. Because Spanish is phonetic I could read the paragraphs no problem, but understanding wasn’t always so easy.

Before long we were meeting people our own age, either at the Hall or from studies, and hanging out

playing basketball or listening to music. None of the locals spoke English, which is good in the sense that your brain is force fed a new language at breakneck speed. Initially, there was that period of total confusion, but in just a few months I was able to communicate fairly well. Obviously the ministry was a big help. Some days I would leave the house early when the sun was just coming up and not get back until nearly dark. The whole day I might not speak a word of English.

Here was my schedule:

Monday: Get up early and take the bus to Otavalo and work there all day.

Tuesday: Same thing, but in Atuntaqui

Wednesday: Work in Ibarra

Thursday: Bus to Cotacachi where I would meet Dave Convery (he would come from Otavalo) and work territory.

Good friend Ivan Morillo. For
those who are wondering, yes
that is an Alabama Crimson Tide
jersey. Only one in Imbabura.

Fri, Sat, Sun: Work in Ibarra or San Antonio.

Back then, we were still taking contributions for the literature, and that was an issue for some householders. Ecuador was using the Sucre which was going 25 to the dollar, so they were worth about 4 cents. Most of the time we worked with the Truth book because we wanted to start Bible studies, but the books were placed for 7 sucres, which not everybody had. But if they really wanted the book, we placed it on the installment plan, meaning give me 2 or 3 sucres today, and then each week when I come back, pay me one sucre. It worked out pretty well, and you could study at least the first few chapters while they were paying off the book. No wonder just about all the pioneers had double-digit studies. I remember maxing out one month at 15 studies reported.

With a Bible study

I found out quickly from the guys my own age that Ecuadorians love music, and a lot play guitar. I’m the same way and had played in bands back home so I had brought my electric guitar with me and put all my vinyl on cassette tapes. So before long there were guys coming over and we were making music. I never did get into the serenade thing though, where they would go to a girl’s house at night and sing to her out in the street (until her dad ran them off).

Not long after arriving, we found out there was going to be a convention in Guyaquil. My brother and I and one of the Ecuadorian brothers our age hitched a ride in a truck to the convention. There was plenty of staring going on, as there were few gringos. So one day at the convention, this little girl comes up to me and says, “My sister wants to meet you”. (I only knew what she said because my friend Ivan Morillo spoke enough pidgin English to tell me. Then this beautiful sister comes over and we have a semblance of a conversation. “This never happens to me back in the State”, I thought to myself.

We ended writing a couple of letters, and then one day a month or so later I come in from service and my mother says, “you have company’

Edith, the girl who came to visit

I looked around and there was the sister from the assembly, complete with suitcases, ready to spend a couple of days. I guess it was fairly normal to just drop in when you’re travelling in the area. The fun part was explaining it to my mother.

Anyhow it was a pleasant visit, but I was so new in the country that there wasn’t a lot of communicating. It turned out I never saw her after that. But I remember. And I have pictures to prove.

Okay- this is part 1.

There will be more coming, including the bat massacre at the assembly in Santo Domingo de Los Colorados.

With my lora, Patricio

Like they say, it's a "dry heat" LOL

To simulate Vegas in summer: Put blow-dryer on high & aim at face

Can’t believe it’s almost August already.

We got beat up in June with ten days straight of over 110 degree temps along with a couple of 117's thrown in for variety.

Incidentally, 117 is the official Las Vegas record, but official just means the temperature at the airport. Around town, it hits 120 or so. But as you can see, we still go in field service, and for some perverse reason, still wear ties LOL.

Also can’t believe we haven’t been to the regional convention yet, but our time is coming and when it does, I’ll post some pics.

At the Spanish Circuit Assembly, St George, UT

We got assigned to St George, Utah, as we have for a number of years now. This time was later than usual, August 4-6, but I did get a taste by catching Sunday’s program in Spanish with my Colombian compadre, Al Pinzon.

Spanish Regional, St George, UT

Speaking of Spanish, mine is coming along nicely. Of course, I had the advantage of pioneering for 2 years in Ibarra when I was younger, so I have a good foundation that has stuck with me. I’ve been attending a local Spanish congregation, Valle Verde, here in Las Vegas since November, getting back into the swing of things. Their Sunday meeting is at 3:30 pm, so I have time to go to my English meeting at 10:00 am, then home for a bit of lunch and a siesta, before heading to the Spanish.

With Joe Thomas, age 99, at Memorial

A highlight of the year was giving a public talk at the Spanish congregation earlier in July. I’ve been giving public talks in English since I was 18, but my first Spanish one was special. I was a little nervous at first, but then settled right in. I guess it went okay, because they want me to give another one in a couple of months. It’s good preparation for when I head south (way south) next year, because I’m sure there won’t many elders and I’ll have ample opportunity for program parts.

Here in Vegas the routine continues, with spiritual activities as well as joyous occasions of brothers getting engaged and married. The bonus is that there are always gatherings, and witnesses may love to eat as much as they enjoy the preaching work.

Brotherhood in action: 5 brothers, 4 countries, 1 congregation

We always read about our international brotherhood, but here in Las Vegas it’s more in evidence than a lot of places. People move here from all over, so the congregations can be literally a “gathering of people of all nations”.

I was reflecting on that just this past Monday as we were out inviting people to the convention. (Ah, summer in the Mojave Desert). There were 5 brothers out, myself, just the basic North American Caucasian; Jesse S., African-American; Kevin N., Vietnamese; Al P., Colombian; and the brother who took the picture was Glen L. from Sweden. What a great organization to be a part of, the only truly unified organization on earth, based on love of God and neighbor.

At an engagement party with the Mehlings

Mario, my Filipino brother

Kevin, my Vietnamese brother finally got married

2016- Gone But Not Forgotten...

Wow!

2016 flew by so fast, it still feels like January.

Oh right- it is January. But January 2017.

So because I neglected my blog all year, I thought I would write just one all-encompassing post to cover all of the 2016 highlights.

Lots of treats at the Pioneer Party

Silverado Pioneers

January- This is when we like to have our pioneer party, and as we have 16 plus a dozen elders, it makes for a rousing good time with plenty of food.

 As usual, we had our circuit assembly in St George, Utah, attended by 3000 happy, smiling faces.

Brother Joe, sister-in-law Rhonda, nephews, mother, JW & SW

March- My brother and his wife came from Alabama to see me and their two boys (my nephews) who live here in Vegas. They even brought my 84 year-old mom out to stay with us for a week. Even though they’ve been here before, they had never been to Valley of Fire State Park (about an hour out of town) so he headed out for a taste of the outdoors and a picnic. There is some spectacular scenery there as you can see from the photos. Some of it is so alien-looking that scenes from Star Trek movies have been filmed there. 

What planet is this?

Distinctive arch, Valley of Fire

Shirley & Phoebe, Valley of Fire

Family picnic, Valley of Fire

Petroglyphs (above) and wildlife (below)

Shirley talking to speaker, Aaron Dana

Memorial crowd find their seats

Memorial Season- Definitely the year's highlight.
We always try to bring in a Bethel speaker so the congregation gets to see a new face giving the talk. This year we had Aaron Dana, whose parents are in the Silverado congregation. Aaron even has an Ecuador connection as his wife Savannah’s parents (Elam’s) live in Atuntaqui where I used to go in field service every Tuesday. Small world.

He did a great job and we had some festivities afterwards.

A week or so later we had the special talk which I was privileged to give. Now that the Branch has green-lighted using graphics on our parts, I had about 30 slides prepared with the talk which really heightened the impact. The pictures look amazing on our two 70” TV’s.

Giving the Special Talk- with pictures

July- As we got into summer, things quieted down a bit. Nobody wants to expend too much energy when it’s 112 outside. In July we enjoyed our regional convention, once again in St George, the same facility (college gymnasium) where we have our circuit assemblies. The Branch went all out on the videos this year. Looks like it may be a regular thing from here on out.

Jesse & Shirley hanging out at the Regioal

Gym transformed into Regional assembly

Young Silverado sister gets baptized- meet, dunk, and thank you, brother!

Lining up for those choice gym seats at St. George Regional

August was a little more stressful than usual...

Jesse & mom indulging in beignets at Panini Pete's, Fairhope, AL

...due to the fact that my brother called from Alabama to tell me our mom was having dizzy spells and was falling down. She banged her head on the counter and had to go to the hospital. So we’ve come to that time of life that all adult children with aging parents have to face- how to take care of the folks.

It was pretty obvious that at age 84, it wasn’t safe for mom to live alone anymore. So we flew down to Alabama, and in a series of events that I can only attribute to Holy Spirit and an answer to prayer, she was well-situated in less than a week.

Unbelievably, there was an exceptional assisted-living facility just a couple of miles from her home that had one apartment left. We moved here out, cleaned up the house and put it up for sale. Yes it was a change for her, but she got to take her little dog and enough of her cherished possessions to make the studio apartment feel like home. In fact, one of the local elders and his wife already lived there, so she has built-in transportation to the meetings.

There’s a nurse on staff to make sure she takes her meds and three meals a day in the dining room as well as maid service. Hope I’ll have it as good when I’m her age. And of course, since she’s been in that congregation for 50 years or so, she gets plenty of company. I can tell when I talk to her on the phone that she’s doing a lot better now. And she hasn’t fallen once since she moved.

September- towards the end of the month, the unrelenting heat finally starts to recede. It’s unbelievable how refreshing the 90’s can be after months in the 100’s. September also means circuit assembly time, so we trucked back to St George for the 3^rd time this year and enjoyed another spiritual feast.

October-  the highlight was not only did Bob Dylan win the Nobel Prize for literature, but he gave

Waiting for the show to start at the Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas

a concert at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas the very same day. I won’t bore you with details of my 50+ years of admiration for Dylan and his skills (you either like him or you don't, which is why I went alone LOL), but I will say that after seeing him 20 or so times over the past 40 years, this was one of his best shows. Not bad for a 75 year old.

Okay enough of the hero worship. The fall of the year means college football season. I grew up in Alabama, 

JW & nephew Jamison. Roll Tide.

so the Crimson Tide is the only team that matters. Fortunately, they’re almost always among the best. Yes I know it’s superficial and meaningless to most of the world’s population, but everybody needs some recreation, and mine is watching Alabama football on Saturday after service. (Have to be balanced) For me, the NFL comes in a distant second, but the added bonus this year is that the Dallas Cowboys, my favorite pro team is finally out of the doldrums and backing to winning games.

Witnesses & food always go together.

The fall of the year also happens to be party (get-together) time, great for congregation picnics and dress-up graduation parties. I'll miss the friends for sure when I move away.

Finally, in the fall it's cool enough to have a congregation picnic.

One of our sisters just graduated high school and invited all to come dressed as their favorite decade.

December- this year we actually had FOUR assemblies, because the circuit assembly we normally have in January was held on December 31. It was encouraging as always with FAITH as the theme. The only downer is that our next assembly (Regional Convention) won’t be until August 2017, so we have a long wait.

All in all a pretty good year. Not much sickness, nobody in the congregation or the family passed away, and I still have a job.

One great thing about it being 2017 is that now, when talking about retirement (meaning leaving secular work for full-time spiritual) I can say “next year” because 2018 will definitely bring a change in circumstances.

Can’t wait.

It may not rain much in Vegas, but we get some great rainbows when it does.