Back to School!

The children on the ranch started back to school on August 22nd. For them that means getting on a bus at 7 AM and returning home at 5 PM. Elementary and high school students go to school in Harmony, which is a fairly new, large housing development. A traffic signal and a convenience store/gas station are the newest additions to their community. It's about 20 miles from the ranch. The middle school students go to school in St. Cloud, another 10 miles or so away. One family home schools and another is trying out "virtual" school online as well.

We are gradually getting to know all the families on the ranch, i.e. connecting children to parents and vice versa. Working in Primary has helped. During the summer, the sister missionaries helped with "Kids Club", an 8 week summer program on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. It was started about 15 years ago by one of the mothers who wanted to maintain her children's reading skills over the summer. It now includes a lot of varied activities led or taught by the young mothers with children in Kids Club. Preschoolers are also included.

 The missionaries volunteered to work with 8-10 children ages 10 and up for an hour on Tuesday mornings followed by about 12  7-9 year olds during the second hour. We learned two things: 1) we are not very creative, and 2) we are no longer 30 years old!! It was a challenge to come up with activities to keep them busy and we were pooped when it was over! We did crafts, line dancing, pioneer games, Minute To Win It (MTWI) games, movies, and the older ones helped paint some of the toys we make for charity. MTWI was a hit (maybe the oreos and candy helped) as was a pioneer game from Nauvoo called "graces". On Saturday August 13th, the families gathered for a "show and tell" finale and refreshments. Nauvoo Visitors Center



Ben, Taylor & Dillon paint suncatchers.




Cora & younger sister Holley make kaleidoscopes.




Mary as a MTWI "Toilet  Paper Mummy".





Ethan & Bradley compete in MTWI   "M&Ms"




MTWI "Face The Cookies"
(Madison, Kaylie, & Cora)



Youth Camp

The Central Florida Youth & Family Camp (CFYFC) is located on the ranch, although it is operated by the Cocoa Stake. Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Young Women, families, and other groups camp there. It holds about 165 campers. A senior missionary couple runs the camp and joins the ranch missionaries for FHE and our bimonthly Sunday dinners.Up until recently, that couple was Elder and Sister Appel from Ventura, CA. However, on July 20th, Sis. Appel had a serious accident on a 4-wheeler resulting in 7 broken ribs, a broken pelvis, and an episode of blood clots in her lungs, so she is back in CA recuperating as we continue to pray for her complete and speedy recovery!! Elder and Sister Murdock from Idaho will arrive in mid-September to take over for the Appels. (This was planned BEFORE the accident.) The Murdocks have a niece, Sara Birch, and her family living on the ranch.

The St. Petersburg Stake Young Women had their Girls Camp at CFYFC this year from 7/18 to 7/22. We joined them for dinner on the 20th which was "Bishops Night". President David Biliter, counselor in the Stake Presidency, spent the week in camp as the chef and cooked his Shrimp Gumbo that night. Yum!! After dinner, we watched the girls perform skits for the bishops and Stake Presidency.  Young Women Camp

Interesting note: a very big alligator causing some concern in the camp was killed by the ranch employee licensed to do so several weeks before our girls arrived. We heard it was 11 feet! But then, we also heard it was "only" 8 feet! Both are bigger than we want to encounter!!



Entrance to camp





Elder & Sister Appel




Air Conditioned cabins hold 16-20 campers.




Screened Mess Hall






Mess Hall Inside



Part of C.O.P.E. course
What is C.O.P.E.?




Shooting Range




Getting set up for first skit.




This skit even had an alligator!




Stake YW leaders were really into their skit!




Another beautiful sunset at camp.

"Believe in God; believe that he is, and he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend." Mosiah 4:9



Summer Picnic

Each year the ranch has two social events for the employees and their families: a summer picnic in July and a Christmas party in early December. The summer picnic was held on Saturday, July 2nd at the Rodeo Grounds. The elders spent Friday and Sat. A.M. cleaning up the rodeo grounds and helping the sisters "decorate". The missionary couples were also enlisted to man the snow cone concession. After a dinner of hamburgers ("BEEF - It's what's for dinner!"), hot dogs, baked beans, coleslaw, chips, and a variety of desserts, there were arena games (some on horseback!) with fireworks as the finale of a wonderful evening.

 Although, we worried about rain because of the late P.M. storms we have been having, a short rain came in the middle of the day resulting in perfect temperatures for the picnic.



Entrance to Rodeo Grounds





Elders Appel, Manning, and Yates clean up the place.
(Elder Kennedy is busy off camera!)




Sister Yates sweeping the deck around the tree.




Sister Manning putting on tablecloths.
(We won't do that next year!)




Red, White, & Blue decorations!




Water Slides for the kids




Ellie Anderson (ward organist) & son Ian




Bishop Jim Campbell & wife Terri




Chad Smith & daughter Maya (9) head for horse race starting line.




Winner of Horse Race: Bishop Campbell by a nose!




Pie Eating Contest




Snow Cones!!

 




Arena Games (Egg Toss maybe?)



Sparklers

Watching fireworks from the back of a pick-up truck!

New Calling

When SK joined the church 40 years ago, her first calling was in Primary teaching a CTR class of 7 year olds. Now after various callings in Primary, Young Women, Sunday School, Scouts, Seminary, and Relief Society, she's come full circle and has been called to teach the same class! What a nice change! No presidency meetings, no PPIs with Bishops or *Stake Presidents, no ward or stake council meetings, etc, etc!! She suspects they'll teach her more than she will teach them and she will welcome that.   Primary

(*Pres. Emery, if you are reading this, meeting with you was pure joy!)

"And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children." Isa. 54:13



L-R Adam(visitor), Melanie,Kaylee, Mary, Tia, Charly, Rawdon
Not Shown: Holly




Ellsworth Ward



*Ellsworth Ward is located on the ranch about 6-7 miles from the visitors center where we live. It's a great ward and we are enjoying getting to know all the members. The Mannings have been called as advisers to the Young Single Adults; the Yates' are serving as ward music chairman (her) and asst. 11 year old scout leader (him); and the Penningtons will be teaching the temple preparation course. Sis. Manning is also the sacrament meeting chorister. She plays the piano and organ and has already played a wonderful piano duet with the organist in sacrament meeting. Hopefully more are planned!

* The ward was named after Leo Ellsworth, a developer of agricultural and livestock operations in central Arizona, who managed the ranch from 1954 - 1968. He had the vision and experience to develop and manage a large tract of wasteland and make it productive.

Busy June

Our first Zone Conference was June 7-8. Elder and Sister Estes came from SLC. Elder Estes interviewed each couple, offering counsel as necessary. We had lunch on the porch of the Carroll House and then moved to the Ellsworth Ward building for our formal meeting. The theme for the conference came from Proclaim My Gospel, chapter 6, "Christlike Attributes" and was presented by Sister Estes. Joe Snider, the Housing Foreman, acknowledged the contributions of the elders to the ranch, each missionary couple bore their testimony, and Elder Estes was an inspirational concluding speaker. The day ended with dinner at Carraba's Italian Grill in Palm Bay.   Preach My Gospel

The next morning we piled into the tour bus for a tour of the ranch which included all of the elders' work projects completed or in progress, the missionary apartments in the 4-plex, and the Sungrove area where the handcart treks take place. The Estes brought their 11 year old grandson, "Luke". After lunch on the porch again, Elder Estes and Luke went on an airboat ride while the sister missionaries showed Sister Estes everything we had made to donate to the Osceola Council on Aging for distribution to various agencies in Osceola County. (Quilts, childrens clothes & toys, baby items, etc.)



Elder Yates explains new electric panel installed at water pumping station.
(Elder Kennedy with suspenders)

   


Elder and Sister Yates' apartment living room.

 




Elder Kennedy and Elder Manning (right) explain 
remodeling being done to a cowboy house that houses interns.





Elder & Sister Kennedy "help" Luke pull a handcart!



The day after Zone Conference ended, we flew to Ohio for Frank's graduation from the University of Cincinnati on June 10th. He now has an MBA in accounting and is doing an internship for ATSG,Inc., the parent company for ABX, wife Dawna's company. Now they actually ride to work together! Sue's brother Bill and his wife Ann also joined us for the ceremony. We were so grateful we could leave the ranch for this important occasion.

Also, on Sunday June 12th, Frank was ordained a High Priest by his Father. Another not-to-be-missed family occasion. Priesthood



We've Moved!!

The Penningtons from NC arrived on 5/16, all of the missionary couples were interviewed by Erik Jacobsen (ranch general manager), and on 5/18 he asked us to be the "lead" couple. This doesn't mean much change for Elder Kennedy, but does give Sis. K some additional responsibilities. AND it meant moving out of the 4-plex and into the Carroll House Visitors Center!! On Memorial Day weekend, we traded a comfy apt for private quarters within the Carroll House, i.e. a large bedroom/living room, small bath, and small laundry room. The good news is we can use the full size kitchen in the Carroll House AND CK finally has a Florida "cracker" house with a beautiful screened-in porch on all four sides of the house. We really enjoy sitting on the porch watching our new "neighbors". Also, how many people do you know that have a 12 foot alligator named Gus in their living room?(See below) Our new address: 3584 Orchid Circle, St. Cloud, FL, 34773.



Our new home. Pat's family visited in May.



 The Carroll House was on 43,000 acres purchased from a Senator Carroll in 1950. I believe the original house was built about 1929 and then restored in 2000. I'm trying to get more information on Senator Carroll, who may have been a banker in Kissimmee.



One of our new neighbors. The herd is growing since CK started feeding them!

  


Elle checking out Gus. Grayson wouldn't go near him!!

 

May Update

SHHHHHH! Don't tell anyone, but we returned to St Pete on 4/22 to see our grandchildren and pick up some things we forgot or discovered we needed from home. Heather has made some (good) changes to the living room. She definitely has her mother's gift for decorating and I love everything she's done. It was fun to  dye Easter eggs with Elle and watch her hunt for them in our back yard. (while Grayson was napping!)



Grandma hid the eggs and she found them all!



The Mannings and the Yates arrived on April 29th and 30th. It was a busy weekend for SK because the Zollingers were in AZ for the birthday and baptism of a grandchild. The Welch's didn't leave until 5/3 so that helped. Also, there were no tours on Saturday (30th) or Monday (2nd) when SK was assigned to that.

We were in charge of FHE on the 2nd, so we piled into the tour bus (holds 17 people) and took the Mannings and the Yates on the visitors tour. We have invited various people working on the ranch to speak to us on FHE: Jacob Birch, a cowboy training to be foreman; James Payne, an attorney for the ranch; and Jeff Walker, comptroller for the ranch. The information they share and the knowledge they have about the workings of the ranch is always very interesting.

We've had some important visitors at the ranch since we arrived. Presiding Bishop H. David Burton (Biography)and his wife came in April, but we didn't get to meet them. CK was busy working and SK wasn't at the Visitors Center when they stopped by there. Then a little over a week ago, people from KSL-TV in Salt Lake City visited the ranch. Article and video of ranch