Happy New Year everyone!  I hope the year has started out well for everyone and that we are all eady for the New Year.

I have had a great month so far except that I have been sick all week with what everyone else has had here at the PCC and it lasts and lasts I'm afraid. It is awful to have to jsut stay here and cough my head off and feel lousey and miss being with all the wonderful people who come here to visit. I really do miss all my new friends at the mission settlement where I spend all my time every day.  So I pray that I can get back to work on Monday.

It has been a busy month as everyone has been preparing for the big evening we had last night as we honored President Orgill and his wife Cherrie as they are leaving the PCC after 12 years of service as CEO and President.  They are going to be called as Mission President and wife somewhere in the world but nobody knows where yet. So for the last week his f 102 of amily has been flying in from all over the world with their children, even a son who was just released from his mission in California. What a night it was starting at 6:20 in the evening when all 25 plus of them were put into huge canoes and taken around the whole PCC to each island village and given a presentation or show at each one. All the Senior missionaries about forty of us were at the mission settlement building on the porch and we played the Ukaleles and sang to his family as they went by . they even had a bunch of the dancers from the big night show on barges in the water with torches and sand and danced. It was really a sight to behold. When that was all over we all were invited over to the Island Feast building for a feast with the family and we had a program and gave them gifts from all the islands as well as all of the people who work at the PCC, each separate department. So we didn't get home until one in the morning last night. It was all worth every minute of it as the love that poured out to this amazing man and his darling wife was simply amazing. I went away from that evening last night with a very full heart and testimony strengthened that the Polynesian Cultural Center is part of God's plan for literally millions of people as over the past 50 years indeed it has hosted millions of people who could not have left here without feeling of the special spirit of this place and this people. So many miracles have taken place time and time again and now it is celebrating fifty miraculous years. this is a place that many people in Honululusaid would never survive and inspite of the odds against it it has indeed survived and thrived and grown and only through the hand of God has this happened. Now in Sept. President Monson will be here to celebrate the anniversary with everyone here and I just can't wait.

Now, in another week seven of my dearest friends from Salt Lake will be arriving to spend time here on this wonderful island and with me at the PCC and time in the beautiful temple here and I am so excited. They are my friends who I have loved since shortly after I met my darling Trapper, so for nearly 50 years. Boy that sure says how old I am. anyway I am so thrilled to show them this wonderful place and I have the grandaughter of a past Bishop from the Mt. Olympus Ward where we lived for 22 years, as our special guide. Her name is Amanda and her Mom was Marsha Hansen and Bishop and Naoma Hansen are her grandparents. I have come to just love this special young freshman and I see her nearly every other day as she is a guide here. She reminds me of my Jazzie who is only a year younger than Amanda. That is going to be a great day as she has offered to be our personal guide on her day off Thursday, how about that?


This evening we went to see Lincoln and as we came out of the theater we ran into the new President of the PCC and his family and friends. He name is Alfred Grace and I may have mentioned that above. I hope you all see it as it is very good and yes we can go see movies as service missionaries.
Tomorrow I have signed up to help out the huge family of President rgill by bringing a salad for thier dinner and a dessert on Monday for them . They have over 20 people to feed and the missionaries have taken it upon themselves to help out and I am so happy to do that.

I love it here as you can tell and I have so missed being there at the PCC while I have been under the weather. I love my new friends and am excited to know more perfectly wonderful people freom all over the country.
Oh I also expect the Vassilaros the first week of Feb. and I can't wait to see Pat and Dan. They will also be visiting the Kammerers who have been living and teaching here for over 20 years Can't wait to see then all.