Russell and Eileen's Church Missions: SWISS TEMPLE, FATHER'S CHILDHOOD HOME

Thursday was a holiday in Germany. Elder and Sister Rueckert asked us if we would like to join them in going to the LDS temple in Switzerland. We had much to do and Russell initially declined. However we both decided that this was an opportunity we couldn’t pass up and we were willing to work late before and after the trip to make up for lost time.

Elders and Sisters Rueckert and Healy

The Rueckerts are here as missionaries responsible for the Perpetual Education and Self-Reliance programs in the Europe Area. We enjoyed their company immensely and found we have a lot in common. They have 11 adopted children (we have 3), and both Russell and Elder Rueckert worked for the same accounting firm many years ago.

Central Square in Strasbourg complete with statue and carousel

Russell and Eileen in Strasbourg

The ride to Switzerland was beautiful. We could see castles built into the sides of the hills. Wildflowers bloomed alongside the road. We stopped in Strasbourg, France to stretch our legs. We visited the famous Catholic Cathedral of our Lady and saw boats with tourists traveling along the river for a tour of the city. The baguette sandwiches we had for lunch brought back many memories of living in Belgium.

Switzerland is lush and green. We stayed in a place called Moosegg that was more than a little tricky to find. Thank goodness for a GPS system. We booked the least expensive hotel we could find in the vicinity of the temple. Our hotel was on the top of a mountain overlooking a beautiful valley dotted with chalets, cows grazing (complete with their cowbells ringing) and birds chirping. It seemed almost surreal.

On the way

LDS Swiss Temple

Friday we went to the LDS Swiss temple and spent the day there. We consider a temple to literally be the house of the Lord, a holy sanctuary in which sacred ceremonies and ordinances are performed by and for the living and also in behalf of the dead. It is the most holy of any place of worship on the earth. The Swiss temple was dedicated for use on the same day that Russell was born. It is the oldest LDS temple in Europe. We spent the day doing ordinances conducted in German, Italian, French, and English and overheard a few individuals speaking Spanish. The ordinances we performed were for ancestors of Elder Rueckert. It was truly a blessing to be with the Rueckerts and with other members of our church from so many different countries.

Max Cannon (my father) is the curly haired boy on the front row

Saturday was my (Eileen) father’s 92^nd birthday. My father was diagnosed with some health issues when he was in his early 30s and his doctors predicted that he wouldn’t live past about 40 years of age. We have had a close relationship with him over the years, and it has been a miracle that he has lived as long as he has. Wednesday I called to wish him a happy birthday and told him that I wouldn’t be able to call him on Saturday due to the fact that we would be in Switzerland. He told me that if we happened to go past Basel, Switzerland perhaps we could look up his childhood home. When my father was just one year old his parents moved with their young family to Basel so that my grandfather could preside over the Swiss German mission from 1925-1928.

We had heard through a couple of different people in Switzerland that the original mission home had been torn down and a new building constructed. We drove to Liemenstrasse 49 and there was a building that appeared to be only 20-30 years old. However there were many buildings that not only appeared to be old but were dated back to the time when my father would have lived there. It was very sentimental for me to walk the same streets where my father had spent three years of his early childhood.