December 30

Everyone is getting married eh! Now it is Brandon's turn! 

On Christmas day we had breakfast and opened presents at President MacDonald's (District President) and then came and skyped you guys and then we went over to dinner with a member who is  less-active and we had a fantastic turkey dinner with him and his dad, who is one of our  investigators. Then we watched "The Santa Claus" and then "Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End" which was really strange watching movies after having not watched anything like that for nearly 8 months! But it was a nice relaxing Christmas Day. We even got to sleep in till 8:00 that morning! 

The next day we went back to work and had a good Roast Dinner at the Haesslers then on Friday, a couple had us over for a ham and perogy dinner, and then on Saturday, a sister had us over for a great Lasagna dinner where she made 3 different kinds of Lasagna which was great. On Sunday we had The MacDonalds left-overs from their Christmas Dinner which was Turducken (Turkey with a duck inside with a chicken in side the duck) which was pretty good.

Love you too and thank you! Take care and have a great New Years and if you can get me a plate of Chinese food while you're at Hat Restaurant and mail it that would be great!

-Love Elder Shane Dola

PS - My Ecco shoes have a hole in them :(

December 23

This week was pretty good. It was a little slow with work though. We were out of our area most of Thursday, all of Friday, and most of Saturday, but still were able to do quite a bit, so it was good and Zone Conference was pretty fun too! The picture from the Christmas Party was quite a while ago, back on the 6th I am pretty sure. And thanks for the Christmas letters. We finally got those at Zone Conference. I also have a Christmas package that I am going to send you guys, but I have no money right now so I will have to wait till next month’s allotment to send it! But that is great to hear that everything is going so well there. But I don’t have all too much to say. We shall talk on Christmas day, but in the mean time you all have a very Merry Christmas!

And as for what time we will be doing that, I have not a solid idea as to when. We are going over to a member’s daughter’s home for Christmas morning to open our presents and have brunch and we are not sure exactly how long that will be. We are going there at 9:00 and will hopefully be at the church to e-mail at around 11:00 or 12:00 or somewhere around there, I don't know. I’ll just give you a call at home, or give me grandma’s phone number, or your cell phone. it doesn't really matter!

But Love you a lot take care and see you on Wednesday!

-Love Elder Shane Dola

December 16

My week was good, and it warmed up a bit on Saturday, but was back down to -31 on Sunday, and lots of people’s car wouldn't start, but mine did because we plugged it in! Our investigators are progressing pretty well but they all have their concerns, which are being resolved, and the main thing is some just don't come to church! But the virtue of Patience definitely is needed. I really don't know exactly when I will Skype you or whatever. It will be on Wednesday, I know that much, and I will have more information for you next Monday! But it is great to hear that you are doing well and that everyone else back home seems to be doing well also!  Yes, I have been reading those Christmas stories you sent every night, thank you! And no, I have not yet made my birthday cake but we did use the candles the other day on Elder Elliott's Birthday cake that sister Tambre made for him!

I don't have much else to write and will tell you more stuff on Wednesday next week, but I love you, take care.

-Love Elder Shane Dola

Made the newspaper!

Click the Dryden Observer link to read article.

Dryden Observer

December 9

So I was not transferred, staying in Dryden, but two new Elders are coming so Elder Elliott will not be my companion any longer after this Thursday. However we will still be in the same apartment until the 21st when the Tambres go home and then we will live across the hall from each other! It is going to be good, and I may or may not end up going to Atikokan if the senior couple who is supposed to be going up there get their Visas to India any time soon!

But this week was pretty great!

Monday we had P-day and had FHE with some Members.

Tuesday it snowed all day and night and also Wednesday, but Tuesday we were busy all day doing all kinds of stuff, like getting stuck in our car. We taught a great lesson with a less-active where we went to his workplace and he prayed for the first time in he doesn’t know how long, it was great! We also helped out at the Mission and then ran a youth Mutual night for the 3 youth here in Dryden, stopped by some others had dinner with the Haesslers and then a really good appointment and lesson with P's.

Wednesday we traveled up to Fort Francis for a Zone Training Meeting with Elder Tambre and the roads were not the greatest going up but on the way back they were absolutely horrible.  It blizzarded and the road that we take wasn’t plowed and we kind of almost died, but we didn’t. We made it home and then we had a good bible study and had a non-member and a less-active member come out!

Thursday we had a good lesson with x and her kids. We taught her more about Jesus Christ and watched “Finding faith in Christ” with her and had a good conversation with her afterwards. Then we had other places to go, but it took us over an hour to get out of our parking lot! Because they didn't plow it yet! But after that, we ended up shoveling lots of other people’s snow for quite a while and it was like 3 feet deep in some places. We also received and contacted a few referrals that day, had dinner at a less-active and taught him, and then taught a new investigator.  Then we helped out y with making Balloons for the Christmas Party the next day.

Friday we had a great lesson with the P's, received and contacted two referrals, taught a non-active member, and had a great Christmas party where about 35 people came out, including 4 investigators and some less-actives and non-members as well, one who hadn’t been to the church in over 15 years!

Saturday we helped this one lady move all morning and had to move a huge piano and an old hide-a-bed... not pleasant. Then we drove across a Lake! A real live lake! Then President was in town so we got to see him, for a few minutes and ate lunch with him, sister Thomas and the Tambres. Then we were busy shoveling more snow, stopped by a few others, and had a lesson with z.

Sunday was slow. No one came to church but we had a good meeting and got our weekly planning done finally! Then we went to the Dryden Mission Volunteer Dinner, which was great and many people we know, who are all part of the Mission Staff Volunteers, were there so we got to spend time with them and have a good dinner. Then we went to the First Presidency Devotional which wasn’t actually the First Presidency Devotional, which was kind of sad, but it was still good and lots of non-members who we didn’t even know came, and everyone had a great time!

Today we had to clean out our storage room in our apartment because our garbage leaked, which we had been collecting for almost a month, (Because here in NW Ontario you have to buy tags for your garbage and they are $20 for 8 tags so we try to fit as much in a bag as we can to save money because we are poor!!!) and that was super rank and super disgusting. so that was not fun at all. But yeah other then that things have been great! 

-Love Elder Shane Dola!

December 2

December 2, 2013

My week was good super busy again though so I don't have too much time to e-mail today again sorry! Things have been going rough lately with our investigators but just have to have patience and all things will work out. We have a date set for the 14th but he is not going to make it and another date set for the 28th but he still needs to get married and there have been lots of problems but it will all work out! 

I am doing great and I got your packages the other day! Thank you so much! Elder Elliott appreciated the advent calendar as well! No, my shingles are gone, only scars left! 

Monday, we had P-day and a really good lesson with M.

Tuesday, we went out to Sioux lookout and met some less-actives and dedicated a new sister in our branch's house.

Wednesday, we went to Kenora and had district meeting while actually being there in person for the first time, and then we went on exchanges for the rest of the day.

Thursday, we traveled back to Dryden and it took 3 hours instead of 1.5 because there was a huge semi-collision. We got back and went to the DNFC, saw A, and then J.

Friday, we saw B and had another appointment for a service opportunity, had an interview to get an article published in the newspaper, saw N and taught him a lesson, and then saw a less-active member.

Saturday, we helped H move to his new place all morning. Then we went and stopped by G, and then helped out at the mission, had dinner, and did some planning.

Sunday, we shoveled and snowblowered at the church, and had a good fast and testimony meeting. Two less-active members moved into our branch and they came for the first time. We had time to finish up some training and more time to finish our planning for the week, then we taught the P's a lesson.

Love Elder Shane Dola

Oh yeah almost forgot, got a really neat story! This week across the street from where we live by the Health clinic some wolves came into town the other night and got a deer and killed it!  Right in the middle of the city! Wolves just roaming around town! Maybe we will see some while we are tracting and can go and pet them!

November 25

My week was pretty good, not quite as busy as last week, but still super busy! The coldest it has been here was -20 on Saturday and I don’t know what the windchill was but it has snowed at least 5 out of the 7 days this week so it’s always snowing!!!! It warmed up today though, only like -7.

My week was pretty good, not quite as busy as last week, but still super busy! The coldest it has been here was -20 on Saturday and I don’t know what the windchill was but it has snowed at least 5 out of the 7 days this week so it’s always snowing!!!! It warmed up today though, only like -7.

We have a scheduled baptism on Dec.14 and one on Dec.28 and hopefully another within a week or 2, but all our investigators are progressing.  Some very very slowly and some rather fast, all in the Lords time!

Great to hear that everyone and everything seems to be going by smoothly!

Monday we were busy shoveling snow and cleaning the house, getting haircuts and getting an Ontario License. (That’s what the $80 charge on my Credit card is, please remember to pay that off and I will get reimbursed for that) Then we had FHE with one of our investigators and all kinds of other stuff.

Tuesday we had a district meeting, helped out at the Mission and were busy all day doing other stuff, stopping by people and finding new investigators and following up on referrals.

Wednesday we helped out at the foodbank and then we saw some people and taught some lessons and were super busy with that. We then had our bible study and had a McDonalds feast to prepare us for our fast the next day.

Thursday we fasted for our appointment with J all day and went and helped out at the DNFC with the lunch and cleaning up. We contacted a referral but before though we met with another investigator and had a lot of our questions answered with how to move forth with him and had the best answers to our questions and we took a huge step forward in figuring out what J’s main concern with Baptism is and are now moving forward and should be seeing some great results in the next little while! Truly humbling to see the great blessing that come from fasting! Then we came home starving and ate bacon and an apple for dinner.

Friday we were busy with receiving Media Referrals and sending this Atheist guy who lives about three hours away (But is still in our area!!!) a Book of Mormon along with our separate testimonies, and a few pamphlets to him because he stated he didn't want to meet with any missionaries or anyone, just wanted a Book of Mormon so we did all that we could do with that and gave all our contact info to him and are now just hoping for the best. Then we had a great lunch prepared by one of our investigators. His wife wanted to add you on Facebook and then facetime you because she thought it was ridiculous that we can only contact our family twice a year! Then we had a great lesson with him, who I have seen huge changes in his life since I have been here in Dryden. At first it was only her who would invite us over and now most of the time he is the one who is more involved and interested! It is truly great to see. We taught him a lesson and then helped him take his couch and put it in his truck because it was broken. We then taught A and went to the Vahovick’s for dinner and then helped President Vahovick put his truck back together!

Saturday we had a bit of a slower day.  We did our weekly planning and saw a lot of people and investigators. We weren’t able to teach lessons but it was still good we contacted some referrals and ran into a former investigator who we tracted into because Elder Elliott felt prompted to go to this certain house and we set an appointment to see him next week! Met lots of other great potentials too.

Sunday we got up and shoveled and ``snowblowered`` the sidewalks at the church and J and M came as per usual and they both stayed for all three hours, which was great! We had good talks and good Sunday school and priesthood lessons. We had a ward council meeting and had another fast, and finished some training for Elder Elliott. We stopped by a family who showed lots of potential but they sent us away. Then we visited and had a great talk with our Investigator L and his Wife, who just lost a really good friend.

Today we got groceries, gas, cleaned the house, went to Elglis and now we still have a lesson, FHE, and another lesson to follow. Tomorrow we will be busy going out to Sioux Lookout (a town an hour and a bit outside of Dryden in some direction) to visit some less actives and to dedicate one of our new member's house. Then on Wednesday we are headed up to Kenora for district meeting and then Exchanges, so always a busy time here and it’s great!!

I love you too!

-Love Elder Shane Dola