Dear Family & friends,


It’s the first of June 2014 with just over one year to serve here in the Philippines. This past week was most interesting with the return of the Pyles’ to our Public affairs offices - it has come much easier. Their hearts and hands make the work load far more accomplishable. A General Authority (with his wife) from our Church has been traveling around the Philippines speaking, visiting, and observing the land and its’ peoples - for the past few weeks and this last week we had some 600 to 800 graduates from the Master Carpenters training in Tacloban and Ormoc complete their requirements and officially graduate. With their certificate of completion about 200 of them are going to work for Catholic Charities building homes for them in and around the areas most devastated by the Super Typhoon – Yolanda. This opportunity to change careers, purchase the necessary tools at a reduced cost, and start anew their lives is a great blessing for these individuals and their families – especially where so much lack of opportunity is apparent. This past weekends was very restful; we just cleaned around the apartment and went to a shopping mall called “Market ! Market!” on Saturday. This mall was over running with people, this week - most of the public schools in the Philippines – were to start their new school year, so many of these families were likely purchasing the new school supplies, uniforms, and those items to begin their new school year. We shopped for about two hours but with all the crowds it was time to return to the peace and quiet of Eastwood (the smaller, upscale mall – where we live) for dinner and rest. On Sunday it was Church followed by a nice dinner - provided and shared with the Pyles’. Sister Pyles had made Mexican food, just like at home, and it was wonderful. After visiting a bit it was home again to the apartment to prepare for our 6am start to a new week of visiting, greeting, hosting, promoting, and generally doing whatsoever our Director will ask of us to do! This week has been much slower paced, but our normal activities are always there to be completed. With this month being the time in 1847 when the Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred - I have included with my daily (week days) News Releases from local Filipinos Newspapers for the leadership (around the Area Offices) - to allow them to stay briefed on “what happening about the nation”, a special daily insert on Nauvoo, Illinois and the places and people of that era. It has been most interesting to research the places and people in preparation for this publication – with us living only about three hours away in St. Louis, Missouri (for the past several years and personally visiting numerous times) – the researching and inserting of these articles has brought many very fun and fond memories from our visits to that community and area. My thinking since nearly all of the Church members here in the Philippines have heard of these places but likely will never have the opportunity of visiting them personally – this might draw for them a better picture of the circumstances and surrounding of the 1840’s and the conditions which led up to the death of Joseph and his brother, Hyrum Smith. Their lost was most deeply felt by a growing church and community on the western plains (a frontier community at the time in the United States) as the people regrouped and moved on to the mountains of the Rockies in Utah and farther westward places. Understanding these events and the situations which lead up to their deaths, has once again testified to my soul of the greatness of their character and the truthfulness of the work they were involved in. As an extension of their service and testimonies we are doing much the same serving here in the Philippines, what a wonderful privilege it is to represent the work of the Lord and personally see the effort moving forward, ever progressing, growing and blessing the lives of so many. 
May the Lord bless, protect, guide, and direct you every righteous efforts as we - each o serve - in some small way in His Kingdom.


With Love Elder & Sister Morello