Sunday, March 29, 2009

If Ye Are Prepared, Ye Have No Need to Fear

The weather was beautiful and the mood upbeat among many dozens of people from Bloomington 4th and 7th and Southgate 1st and 2nd wards who gathered on Saturday, March 28 for the annual preparedness fair at the church. From 8 a.m. until nearly noon, ward members filled 3578 cans with rice, sugar; white, red and pinto beans, powdered milk, potato pearls, dried carrots and dried onions, red and yellow wheat and other assorted food storage totaling 20,466 pounds (though that total did not include Roy and Carol Stephen’s cans of Kraft macaroni and cheese and a year's supply of candy bars!)

According to event chairman Eric Smith of the Bloomington 7th Ward, this is certainly Bloomington’s biggest preparedness event ever and included representatives from the local cannery, as well as instructors on such topics as "Cooking with Food Storage," "Family Finance," "Essentials of Food Storage," "Employment Options for the Un - and Underemployed," "Shopping with a Plan and Coupons," and "Healthy Living."

It was a busy Saturday on which ward members were reminded in numerous ways what FEMA has been saying for many years, "If the community experiences a flood, fire, earthquake or tsunami, your comfort level will be determined by how well prepared you are personally. The government has no responsibility for making you comfortable!"

Monday, March 23, 2009

Three Wrights Don't Make a Wrong

92-year-old Wilson Wright is actually Wilson Wright III. He does not know much about the genealogy of his name . . . only that he is the grandson of Wilson Wright, the son of Wilson Wright, Jr. and father to Wilson Wright IV. "When I was young I didn’t like it when people would call our home asking for Wilson and my father or mother would respond, ‘do you want Little Wilson or Big Wilson,’ so when my own son was born I named him Wilson Wright IV but called him by his middle name of George." A graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy in the class of 1939, Elder Wright spent a year on the battleship U. S. S. Idaho followed by a year on the destroyer U. S. S. Lamson, then became a Navy fighter pilot during World War II. His last military assignment was as an Operations Officer on the U. S. S. Wright (no joke!) where he was replaced by another Commander Wright. Of that transition, newspaper headlines announced, "Commander Wright replaces Commander Wright on the U. S. S. Wright (named for the famous fly boys of Kittyhawk)!" The senior Wilson Wright has been a Bloomington resident since 1987.

Wilson Wright IV (known to his family and friends as George) hasn’t met very many people outside of the family with his moniker, and recognizes he is the last of his family’s long line of Wilson Wrights. After two tours of duty in Southeast Asia in the U. S. Army (during the Vietnam era), he graduated from Orange Coast College with a degree in marine science. George was then employed by the University of Southern California Institute for Marine and Coastal Studies as a senior oceanographic technician. He later worked in the aerospace industry for Aerojet and Boeing before his recent retirement and move to Bloomington where he resides with Wilson III.

10-year-old Wilson Wright is the 3rd of David and Gentry Wilson Wright’s five children. "The doctor thought my baby was a boy, so we started calling ‘him’ Wilson early on. When the baby turned out to be a 'she' instead of a 'he,' it was already her name!" laughs Sister Wright. Born in Montana, the blond Wilson Wright loves to read and can go through 5-6 books in a week. She also enjoys playing soccer, loves the outdoors, doesn’t mind getting dirty and always likes to be where the fun and the party is!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

YM / YW Have a Big Adventure

Exploring in the pitch black darkness of Bloomington Cave isn’t for the faint-of-heart or anyone who suffers from claustrophobia, but on Tuesday, March 17, nine youth and eight leaders in the ward’s Young Men /Young Women’s program planned a Spring Break adventure into Utah's fifth longest cave. The spelunkers left the church at approximately 5:30 p.m. but couldn’t find the cave, located about a half-hour from Bloomington, passing the unmarked entrance several times, according to YW President Trudy Oviatt. At 7:15 p.m., the cavers began descending one-by-one into the darkness, each armed with a flashlight and a belief they would be back to their vehicles in about an hour!

The cave has more than a mile of corridors, narrow passageways, highly valuable and unusual geologic formations and thousands of feet of unmapped terrain. It is also home to several bat species, reptiles, insects, and other unique and delicate cave-dwelling life forms (though none of our intrepid explorers report seeing anything more unusual than their friends and leaders). Leaders mistakenly determined it would be easier to go out a different way than they had come in, so after the 240-foot descent into the main room, they decided to continue on to another exit. The climb out was very difficult. "Lots of prayers were offered and everyone helped everyone else," stated Sister Oviatt. "My heros were Brother (Neal) Cazier and Chase Evans who helped drag my poor, tired body to the surface. We were very happy to be greeted by a gorgeous night sky - a kind of 'welcoming committee' - after our marvelous adventure! We were also grateful that we had taken in 17 youth and leaders and 17 came back out!" The adventurers arrived home at near midnight where worried parents - who could not be called on cell phones from the depths of the cave - were glad to see their teenagers safe and sound . . . and, already talking about "the next time!"

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Draper Temple Dedication

President Thomas S. Monson will dedicate the church’s 129th temple in Draper, Utah on Sunday, March 22. Proceedings will be broadcast at the Bloomington Stake Center beginning at 4:30 p.m. Those planning to attend should be seated by 4 p.m. Dedication tickets are available to worthy baptized members. Those members with a current temple recommend or a current limited-use recommend (i.e., to perform baptisms for the dead), do not need to have an interview with the bishop. Dedication tickets can be obtained from a member of the bishopric. This is a great spiritual opportunity for families to experience together. Youth under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult. There will be no nursery. Also, please note because of the temple dedication broadcast, only Sacrament meeting will be held on March 22 and will conclude at 2:10 p.m.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

You're Invited!

Peter William Bown will receive his Eagle Scout award at a special Court of Honor beginning at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 25. Any and all members of the ward family are invited to attend. The ceremony will be held at the Mt. Trumbull Lodge in the Parashant National Forest. Allow approximately 2 hours for travel time on a dirt road off Industrial Road in Bloomington Hills. Flags will be posted along the way to guide your journey. A dutch oven dinner will be served at 12:30 p.m. followed at 2 p.m. by a visit to the pioneer sawmill site and the Temple Trail head. Come out and make a day of it, see more of the Temple Trail, then at 5 p.m. enjoy a hot dog roast with S'mores for dessert. "We know its a long way, but we want all of Peter's ward family to know they are invited and welcome," state Bishop Jim and Sister Paula Bown.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Second Hand Rose is RS Party Theme

In the "worst economic climate in 70 years," big and little sisters of the Bloomington 7th Ward gathered for fun, food, friendship and to celebrate the Relief Society's 167th birthday on Wednesday night. The evening included dinner (chicken enchiladas, refried beans and cake), socializing, a show of fashion from local thrift stores and grandma’s attic; and, shopping for "second hand hats, second hand clothes for all us Second Hand Rose(s)." Beautiful gowns, fashionable sportswear - even a Navy uniform - purchased at rock bottom prices, were modeled by the young and young-at-heart sisters of the ward. Special thanks to Jill Jones, fashion show narrator; Rebecca and Taylor Olivo for their energetic rendition of "Second Hand Rose" and to chairwoman Jeanine Smith and her dinner committee including Margaret Hooks, Dori Wilkerson, Margo Parker, Marilyn Orlossy, LaRae Wheeler and Deanne Hill. (Sorry about the poor quality of these photos - the settings were wrong!)

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Meet the Adams Family

Quincy and Sunnie Adams first met when they were 14-year-old students at Dixie Middle School. They dated all through high school and she (sort of) waited for him while he served a mission in Chile. In 1999, six months after he returned, they were married in the St. George Temple. They now have a 6-year-old son Quincy and a daughter, 2-year-old Amy.

The 1st son and 4th of 7 children of Nolan and Meretta Adams, Quincy was born in Salt Lake City, but came to St. George as a toddler. Quincy is a direct descendant of Samuel Adams (a cousin to U. S. President John Adams), who was a leader in the movement which resulted in the American Revolution and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. The current Quincy Adams loves soccer, is a professional pilot and is, at the moment, seeking gainful employment as one of thousands of Utahns who has been hit hard by the nation's economic downturn.

Sunnie is 7th of the 8 children of Steve and Sylvia Peterson. She is a graduate of Dixie State College and Southern Utah University where she majored in Family and Consumer Science. She also graduated from cosmetology school, but always knew her calling in life was to be a wife and mother. As a child, when asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, Sunnie responded she wanted to be "a Sylvia!" Welcome to the Bloomington 7th Ward, Adams family!

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Bown Children Excel at SUPAF

Elizabeth, Peter, Caroline and Grace Bown were among more than 5000 participants in February’s 21st annual Southern Utah Performing Arts Festival - and 4 of the 283 beginning, intermediate and advanced pianists who performed before an adjudicator during the ten day event. This was Grace’s second year as a participant. Caroline has participated for four years and Peter and Elizabeth have lost count of the number of times they have been involved in this outstanding community event. Congratulations to the Bown children for their ongoing efforts to develop their talents and to Bishop Jim and Sister Paula Bown for their parental support and direction.