PLAY BALL

Last Tuesday evening, our whole mission had the opportunity to attend a professional baseball game.  The Kansas City Royals were hosting the Boston Red Sox, and it was JustServe Night at The Royals.  Once a season, it is like the Church’s night at the ball game:  the missionaries sing the national anthem;  Elder Gary E. Stevenson threw the First Pitch; and many members of the Church attended.

Last year we arrived just after the game night, and we heard that missionaries singing the national anthem didn't go as well as hoped.  This year more effort was put into practicing and it turned out much better.  The ballpark limited the size of those singing to just 150, which allowed those of us not wishing to sing, or those with voices not beneficial to the effort, to gracefully not participate and just observe.  While watching the game was entertaining, and since no young missionary would miss the opportunity to go (which turned out to be a super-spreader event for Covid in the mission), it was unplanned event related to the singing of the national anthem that made the night memorable for Eileen and I.  

Our seats were near the right field line, not the best seats for watching the game, but actually about the closest for watching the missionaries when they were singing on the field.  Eileen went down to the first row in preparation for taking pictures and a video, where she was asked by a woman seated there if she was the mother of one of the missionaries.  Eileen said she was kind of a mother to 200 of them, then explained that she was the mission nurse.  While waiting for the missionaries to sing, Eileen and the woman, who was there with her husband, started talking.  The couple looked a little rough-around-the edges.  They both had long unkept hair, with baseball caps and sunglasses on.  The woman disclosed to Eileen that they were there incognito to watch their daughter sing in the choir of missionaries.  They had no intention of letting their daughter know they were there as that might be against mission protocol.  But they wanted to see their daughter sing and had driven from Utah for that sole purpose.  Eileen took her pictures and then returned to our seats as the game started.

After an inning or two, Sister Sommerfeldt came by where we were sitting.  Eileen couldn’t help keeping the secret to just the two of us, and got up and discreetly told Sister Sommerfeldt about the parents on the first row.  The two then walked down to the couple and started talking to them.  President then came by and I told him where our wives were and what was going on.  He asked, “They drove all the way from Utah just to see her sing in the choir?”  To which I said it seems so.  He thought about it for just a few seconds, then went and got the young sister missionary and asked her to follow him, as he walked down toward the front row and Sister Sommerfeldt.  Eileen was able to capture the reunion, see the pictures below.  The parents took off their hats, glasses and wigs when confronted with their daughter who initially did not recognize them.

As I watched the events unfold and pondered them during the rest of the game, I couldn’t help but feel a little of the joy the parents and their daughter experienced.  I was grateful President was willing to let them meet.  I then recognized that not only had they been blessed by the unplanned meeting, but that Eileen had been blessed to be a critical part of the event.  It was inspiring to me to see God use Eileen to connect the parents with their daughter.

In the end, The Royals lost the game 5-6.  A young sister missionary and her two parents went their separate ways after enjoying perhaps the best baseball game of their lives.  And I went home grateful to know that God cares about us and can be involved in even the smallest details of our lives.  

Last Sunday afternoon, Sister Creer invited us over for dinner with Dennis and Sondra Cato of the Independence 3^rd Ward.  Brother Cato was released from being the stake president here just a few years ago.  Both Brother and Sister Cato are natives of Independence and grew up as active members of the Community of Christ (formerly know as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (RLDS)).  Brother Cato was one of six elders who on April 6, 1985, formed The Church of Jesus Christ (Zion’s Branch), after separating from the RLDS church due to certain doctrinal changes during the 1970s and 80s, most notably allowing women to be ordained to the priesthood.  Brother and Sister Cato joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints several years later, along with other members of Brother Cato’s family.

Sister Creer invited us and President Dennis Cato and his wife Sondra over for dinner. We had a delightful time listening to their stories of living in Missouri over the years and their conversion from RLDS to LDS.
 

Russell and I at the Royals game prior to its start. We were staring straight into the sun so I finally relented and allowed Russell to buy me a visor. Merchandise is not cheap at the ball field!

Sister Sheffield led our missionaries in singing the National Anthem.  The elders on the very front row performed the anthem in ASL. 

Sister Dow's parents requested a selfie with me.  They drove from Utah and came incognito to the game because they wanted to see their daughter sing. Sister Dow Sr. has blond hair under that wig, Brother Dow is bald and shaved off his beard for the game. In the end President Sommerfeldt allowed the young Sister Dow to come see her parents. It was a huge surprise for all of them. It was a very sweet reunion. 

Elder Stevenson threw out the first pitch and then visited with the missionaries after the first inning. 

It was dollar hotdog night at the stadium.  It seemed like the missionaries enjoying hanging out with each other and eating as much as watching the game.

It was a cool pleasant evening for a ball game. 

I (Eileen) gave a presentation on ingrown toenails at Zone Conference.  I did this because I had missionaries report 11 ingrown toenails within a 24 hour period of time a few weeks ago.  I was surprised at how much the missionaries liked the presentation.  I think they were especially enjoying seeing the nails of their fellow missionaries. It was kind of like a horror show that you can't look away from. 

                                 

Sister Creer and I took out Sister Sheffield and Sister Dennison for dinner to celebrate their birthdays.

I told the sisters "don't put the birthday hat on your head, just make sure it hovers." I didn't  want them to take home any extra remembrances (like lice) with us from the night. 

Part of our senior missionary district. We attended an endowment session while Russell was serving in the session we attended.