We had 6 investigators at church and went to Sosua Beach for P Day

Hey what is up guys? It sounds like everything is going good back home. In 365 days I'll be on an airplane heading towards Houston! It is great to hear that Grandpa Brink is recovering well, and hope every thing goes well with Grandpa Smith. I hope Javier gets called out here and I can train him, it would be easy since he already knows Spanish. Jacob survived some heat and humidity, good job you survived a week. Today we went to Sosua beach for the day, so that was way fun other than we couldn’t get in the perfect water. I know why people pay to come to this country now. We played some soccer on the beach so my comp was happy for that.

Elder Montepeque is pretty tight, we get along really well and he is an awesome teacher. Our ward is pretty tight, there are usually about 120 people in Sacrament Meeting every week so it is pretty consistent. Everything runs well in this ward other than in the gospel principles class the teacher was teaching that we should pray to Jesus instead of Heavenly Father, talk about apostasy! We had 6 investigators at church so I like the numbers here. We are working really hard to get some of our couples married but it is hard when they don’t have their information, or a little bit of extra money to pay for it. One of the people we are teaching is 16 and he is living with his 27 year old girlfriend, talk about awkward. Contacting is a little hard, Elder Montepeque has contacted every house in our area and it’s hard when you do the same houses again. He just tells me to pick cause he already has tracked everything.

I hope everything is going well at home, the summer is passing by fast! Enjoy the new furniture, I can’t wait to sit on a real couch again! Take care, Love you guys!

Love, Elder Smith

Matthew and his companion, Elder Montepeque 

Matthew and Elder Jimenez(he is best friends with Elder Reyes, one of Matthew's former companions)

Matthew and Elder Child, he lives in the house with him

People from his Zone
Which one is the American???

His shirt blends in with the water and sky

They found Bob Marley

Relaxing on P Day

We love you too!

Scenery

Clear water.
We don't see that on our Texas beaches

I wish I could go swimming!

Our area is doing pretty well.

Hey what’s up guys? I survived the strike that didn’t quite make it up to here. That is good to know that Grandpa Brink is doing better, my thoughts and prayers are for both of my grandpas. It sounds like Jacob (who is at scout camp) is just getting ready for his mission call here, its good for him. My new area is awesome, a little small but that means less walking. Elder Montepeque is a stud, we get along really well and teach well together. Santiago was pretty chill today. I got to see Cesar so that was good to see that he is still going strong. But yeah, I am in another 4 man house to make 7/8 transfers in a 4 man house.

Our area is doing pretty well, we have a good number of investigators and for the most part they are families which is good. We had 7 investigators in church on Sunday which was a good sign for my first Sunday here. The Church is true here! Just kidding, but really it is. We actually have a ward here. I got roped into playing the piano for Sacrament Meeting again. The last elder here before me played and they caught me practicing during the week so I was forced into it. We have some legit investigators that always read, pray, and go to church so it makes our job easy. We still have to get some of them married, so that will be the biggest challenge here. I miss that part of La Vega in that everyone was married legally.

I'm getting a pretty good farmer's tan out here, the only thing that saves me from the heat is the nice ocean breeze that comes in. I hope everything is going good at home and that y’all are enjoying the summer! Take care, Love y’all!

Elder Smith

This is what Matthew calls the Junk Beach in Puerto Plata.
It's still better than Galveston!



Matthew and Elder Montepeque



I’m on a beach! I got transferred to Puerto Plata.

Hey what’s up guys? I’m doing great, we had another baptism this past week and it was awesome! Hey guess what, I’m on a beach! I got transferred to Puerto Plata (Silver Port) and I extend the mission with another Latino comp from El Salvador named Elder Montepeque, I’m going to forget English pretty soon. He seems way tight and says we have some people that are good here, but none of them are married legally so we have to work with that. But I’m stoked that Javier put in his papers, he can come join me out here. Dad finally let go of the Dodge, it will be weird seeing my truck in the other driveway when I get home.

So yeah I was kind of bummed to leave my last area because we had a lot of people progressing and of all of the juice that we got from the members, but I was stoked when I was called to one of the coolest areas in the mission. Seeing the beach today was sweet other than the fact that I can’t go swim. We baptized Edi this past week and I got my second baptism. He was a stud, we started teaching and baptized him in the same transfer. It is awesome Cesar and Edi help each other out a lot, and they have already started paying their tithing! The branch in La Vega was sick and helped us out a lot. Now I am in a ward for the first time in my mission.

My new area looks pretty legit, we have the mountains on one side, and the beach on the other. You can see the mountains behind the photo of my comp and I. I can’t wait to take a gondola up to the top of it and see everything. I hope that y’all enjoy the photos that I sent home. I really don’t have too much to say because I don’t know how things are here yet.

I love you guys, take care and enjoy the summer!

Love, Elder Smith




Matthew and his new companion, Elder Montepeque (pronounced Montapecker)




Mildred and her daughter, they always gave the missionaries juice




Saying goodbye to Edi and Cesar



Matthew found a friend

Matthew, Jose Miguel and Elder Jimenez

Matthew with Dariel who is a RM. Matthew was going to baptize his wife in 2 weeks but got transferred

Matthew, Elder James and Elder Kinney



At a dinner cita (appointment)



Matthew eating in the dark, you know the power goes off all the time



Edi's baptism



Matthew and Edi

Matthew, Edi, Cesar and Jimenez



At the Tourist Trap



We have another baptism this week!

Hey what is up! I am doing well for the most part, I just wish the power wouldn’t keep going out all of the time. The power never used to go out and we don’t have an inverter so when it goes it goes. Sleeping is a little hard without the fan, but oh well. But we got hit by a freak storm the other day, it was hailing here! And we got hit by a tornado! Good thing we were in our house and not in the street when it hit.

But on the good side we have another baptism this week! We are baptizing someone named Eddi who is a stud. We have only been teaching him for 4 weeks and he has already met all of the requirements and has a testimony. We had a sweet branch activity at his house last night which helped him out a bunch. This means our branch is going to have a baptism every Saturday for the next three weeks in a row. We also have some other people that are awesome that are progressing mainly Jose Miguel. He is already going to institute and has his friends for support so it’s a favorable situation.
We have transfers next week, thankfully. I love my comp but we are two different people and are styles of doing things are way different, so we have had some mini clashes in the past week. Its aright I have a good 60 pounds on him. But the Dominicans in our district have paired off with the sisters, so we have had some problems in our district. Our district meeting the other day was Elder Kinney trying to teach and our comps chatting with the sisters not even paying attention and me in the middle of them, talk about an awkward situation! So these problems as been here for a couple of weeks now and the zone leaders and assistants have tried to talk to them, but it has just gotten worse. So I might be staying next transfer with Kinney if they combine the area which is probable.
The weather sounds like the weather here, hot and humid! Well I hope y’all have a great week, Love ya a ton!

Elder Smith



They serenaded the Mission President when he was there




The infamous Kola Real Challenge he talked about previously.
The challenge was who could drink it the fastest, they may be missionaries, but still boys 



Another waterfall picture.

This week has been the best week in the mission!

Hey guys give me light (a Dominican phrase- Dame luz)! Happy late Father's Day dad! Too bad I don't get a call for Father’s Day. This week has been the best week in the mission! I got to baptize Cesar and participate in his confirmation! That baptism was one of the most spiritual ones that I have been to. I love the branch we have here, it functions like a ward for the most part. They set up the program and some of Cesar’s good friends spoke and gave their testimonies. I did it right on the first try, not bad for never having done it before. When it was just me and him afterwards before we changed he gave a big hug and started crying in relief that he was finally baptized. He is stronger than ever, we are trying to get him the calling of ward mission leader because the one now does absolutely nothing. He is already fulfilling that calling. He left with us to teach with him last night and he has a strong testimony and knowledge of the doctrines. It is almost better teaching with him instead of teaching him. He has also made some visits to some of our investigators without us!

We have 2-3 people that as of right now are eligible to get baptized next week if they all got to church this week. So we will get some more baptisms this transfer. First we have Eddy a golden reference that we might prepare him for only a month to be baptized. He is one of Cesar’s good friends, but he was a reference from another member. Cesar goes over everyday and talks to him, so he has that support. Also we have Flavio and his wife, they have the desire and a testimony so if they come to church this week we will baptize them. We are finally getting some good support from the branch and they are helping us out a lot. We also have José Miguel who is 18 and is way smart and is already going to institute with his friends so he will be a member shortly.

Last night most of the Elders from La Vega came over to our house to eat pizza and Elder Jimenez (Mexican, not my companion), Elder Kinney and I decided to do something called the Kola Real challenge. In this challenge you have half an hour to drink a 2.6 liter thing of Kola Real (soda). The record in the mission was 12 minutes, so we decided that we wanted to break it. So we went at it Jimenez set a new record at 5 minutes, Elder Kinney 7, and me 10 minutes. We found out the key to drink it faster is drink it fast, throw up, and keep drinking till it is gone. So we all threw up a ton, but we broke the record. I think Jimenez will put it up on facebook in 2 weeks, he is finishing his mission this transfer. But other than that we went to Jarabacoa today, and it was way nice. It was cooler up in the mountains.

But hey guys stay busy, it sounds like everyone is having fun with their summer activities. Take care guys, I love y’all!

Love Elder Smith




Elder Jimenez, Cesar and Matthew/Elder Smith



Branch President, Matthew, Cesar and Elder Jimenez 

Cesar

Some of the Branch Members



Matthew and Cesar





Matthew and his companion, Elder Jimenez 





Elder Kinney, Matthew and Elder James




James, Kinney and Smith





Elders Jimenez, James, Smith and Kinney



Cesar is getting baptized Saturday

Hey guys, it’s been a great week. I think I actually miss the rain because it was actually cooler with the rain, now it is insanely hot. The fan doesn’t do such a great job as an ac system. But hah, Jacob has glasses now too; looking good bro.

Great news, Cesar is getting baptized Saturday at 10:30 in the morning. We filled out is baptism form yesterday and it is all good. He picked me to baptize him so this will be the closest I will be to swimming this summer. I’m way stoked, his wife is kind of iffy on it, but his desire overrode her. He is already acting as the ward mission leader with the other investigators we have. Funny thing, some of his best friends when he was a kid are members such as our Elders Quorum president and others who are converts so he thinks it is a sign he should be there.

We have two other guys that we might have baptized in 3 weeks at the end of the transfer. We got two golden references, Eddy and Jose Miguel. Eddy is a good friend of a member and of Cesar so they are working a lot with him. Also Jose Miguel is 19 and was another reference from an RM. Also when he went to church he found some of his good friends there and he went to institute last night with them. We still have some of our good families and are just trying to get them to church. We also have a Haitian that we are teaching that has gone to church for a month but we have to wait 2 more months until we can baptize her.

Hey mom, the new shoes are looking fresh! And yeah I miss our good ole dinner time conversations. I think those are one of the things I miss most about home. I got a little trunky Sunday, we ate at one of the richest guys in La Vega house. We have a guy that is a way good doctor in our branch. We got a ride to his house and home in a brand new 4 Runner, and the best pasta I have had on my mission. A ride in a car home from church and good food is something you never get here.

I hope y’all are having a great week enjoying the summer, and wow time has passed by insanely fast, I almost have a year!
Love, Elder Smith

We’ve got some new cheese that we are teaching

Hey what’s up guys, congrats to Mom for a happy birthday and to Brittney for graduating! But yeah the rain never seems to stop. I’m just trying to not get sick. So the Wilkes are moving to Australia then, when are they going to move? We had a sick day in Santiago yesterday, Elder Kinney and I had an intense morning of ping pong at the President’s house and we got some good hamburgers for lunch yesterday. Also we went to the tourist trap and checked out all of the stores they have with souvenirs. Also I picked up some pants that I made last transfer, for the pockets they have SpongeBob and Mickey Mouse animations so they are legit.

Now we’ve got some new cheese that we are teaching and we put out a ton of lessons last week even though it has been raining all of the time. Cesar came to church in a freakin suit this past Sunday and everyone thought he was a member of the 70 when he walked in. I went to go and try to talk to his wife this week and she wouldn’t even talk to me, so its a pretty ugly situation. We are just waiting on the wife. Also we are reactivating a family that has been inactive for 11 years because of problems with the stake. Everyone that is inactive here is because of the mission president in the Santo Domingo west mission. He pretty much screwed up La Vega and the church did nothing. But we have a guy from the states that we are teaching now to that is awesome named Eddy that was a reference so he is pretty tight. Also we have a testigo (Jehovah’s Witness) that is enjoying the lessons and understands everything and doesn’t try to bible bash like all of the other ones, so he is enjoyable to teach. The testigo bible is a joke in Spanish.

I hope y’all enjoy the summer break, and enjoy the pool for me. Take care and have a great week.

Love, Elder Smith

He is way short so I sometimes lose him when we are in the street.

Hey guys, how are y’all doing? I'm doing well and little tired, we played football all morning. I love having someone in the zone that has a football. But yeah the rain sucks, I had to go buy a pair of hiking boots to keep my feet dry during the day. I have to buy a new umbrella someone stole it yesterday. I finally got good at bargaining with the Haitians so for 10 bucks I got a pair of 100 dollar shoes. I almost got a 110 dollar pair of Nikes for 10 bucks but he wouldn’t go that low. But yeah my toe is doing a lot better now with new shoes.

Happy early B-day mom, thanks for all you have done and enjoy your b-day, just don’t go to Pappasitos on Sunday :)

But yeah, Elder Jimenez is pretty good for the most part. He is way short so I sometimes lose him when we are in the street. He is way different than Elder Reyes and his form of teaching is different but it is all go. We had 4 people in church our first week together and it is nice having someone who doesn’t know the area so we have some life in the area. We will see if we will have a baptism this week, Cesar is finally settling things worked out with his wife and she has chilled out since Reyes left. She pretty much hated him but likes me so we have some luck. Cesar wakes up at 4:00 every morning to read the scriptures before he goes to work! He read 3 Nephi 27 yesterday and it hit him that he should work to be baptized this Saturday so I hope all goes down, and I'll get to do my first baptism. We have done a lot of contacts and we still have some of our other investigators that have dates to be baptized this month so we are working with that.

Congrats to everyone for their awards, I bet everyone is looking forward to the summer other than me. Take care and have a great week!

Love, Elder Smith