Email Letter - December 17, 2014

Hey everyone sorry it’s been so long, but I want you all to know that I am still alive and that I am doing great out here in the DR.

I am still in Santiago and things are going really good. I am training a kid from Idaho and he is a really good kid and we are doing a lot of really good work together. We’ve got this family that is amazing that we have been teaching and they are amazing. Andres, the husband, was raised in Miami and is super cool, he has had a lot of hard times in life and decided to come to the DR to get away from everything and then met Bielka, his wife, and now they have 2 kids and are really happy together. But we found him one super rainy day huddled under a little tin roof on the side of the road ha-ha. God truly knows how to help the rain become a blessing here, ha-ha. But they really are an amazing family and the other day Andres’s parents were in town and they are totally against us and I got to see the two of them defend their beliefs, and now his parents are participating in our lessons and we were able to answer their questions and explain about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, I know that the Spirit was able to testify to them and that their hearts are slowly being opened to the restored gospel.

I am so happy for the opportunity I have to be here changing the lives of other people. But I love you all and I will write you again soon and I mean it this time ha-ha.

- Elder King

Email Letter & Pics - October 8, 2014

(Dad's note: Quin flew to the DR one year ago today!)

Hey everyone so this week was awesome. And very crazy. So really the craziest thing was conference, and this is why. So Saturday morning we had to go fill up the baptismal font because we had a baptism in between the afternoon and priesthood sessions. So we did that and then we got everything ready so that we could watch everything in English but once its time to start it doesn’t work... so we go running out and take a taxi to a members house so we can watch it there and that was all good for the first 2 sessions on Saturday. We went back and had the best baptism ever and the boy, Jordi, bears his testimony afterwards and everyone is just crying because he talked about how is mom was killed and then he was able to find the church because of that and how he knows he’ll see her again someday. Just amazing. Then we go back to the member’s house to watch the priesthood session and it went well until the first presidency is about to talk and the Wi-Fi cuts out. And then the same thing happens for the Sunday morning session. But whatever, cause we got permission to watch it in the mission office on Monday but it was really frustrating at the moment. But it was so great being able to hear the prophet speak at last on Monday. My favorite talks were Sister Esplin and Elder Callister, and then President Eyring from the priesthood session. 

But I love you all and hope your week is a great one.

- Elder King

Email Letter - October 1, 2014

Hey everyone,

So this week has been really good. Elder Rodriguez and I have been working hard to find new people and hadn’t been having much success, but last week the church offices in Salt Lake sent us a list of references. Now this is not weird but usually missionaries, in the DR at least, just ignore them and keep doing their own thing, but this time I was looking at the list and felt a really strong impression that at least one of these people needed me, so almost immediately I began calling the numbers listed and this one guy named Roldof answered and told us to come over the next day. Well it took us almost an hour to find his house but we eventually found it. And oh boy is he awesome and he also has a girlfriend that is super cool too. It just seemed like they both have been pretty prepared. I’m really excited to see how things go with them. We´re still trying to get a hold of the other people on the list but a lot of them have moved and we just haven’t gotten ahold of the others, but I’m not giving up yet ha-ha.

Another really cool thing that happened was that last Saturday I was able to go back and visit Navarrete, because 3 girls that I had taught were baptized and one of them wanted me to baptize her. So that was great getting to go back for a day and visit people and participate in such a special baptismal program.

But that’s it for this week and I just want you all to know that I love you and you’re all in my prayers.

-Elder King

Email Letter - September 24, 2014

Hey ya´ll

So things are going really good, my comp Elder Rodriguez has been pretty sick recently but now he’s starting to get better. We started leaving in the nights last Saturday and tomorrow we are going to start leaving full days again tomorrow. So the work is staring to progress again, a lot of the people we were teaching we haven’t been able to find, but that’s what happens when you spend a week not working. So a lot of what we´ve been doing is trying to find people. I’m really trying to focus on this thing the mission is starting to do called mini contacting. Basically you just walk up to someone testify of Christ and invite them to church. And of course when they say no you walk away ha-ha, but its all about showing the Lord that you’re willing to do anything to help his kids and we were given the promise of Elder Cornish of the seventy last week that if we do it the people that are ready for us will come out of the woodworks. So of course now that means, in my head, if we don’t do it we aren’t going to find any new people, so I'm going to be mini contacting the world from now on ha-ha.

But really I’m just happy and content to be able to be here helping in the work of the lord. I know he is getting people ready to hear what I have to say everyday, so I’m gladly going to open my mouth ha-ha.

Ha-ha love you all. Have a great week.

-Elder King

Pics - September 17, 2014

Email Letter - September 10, 2014

Hey everyone,

So I left Navarrete today and now I’m in the heart of Santiago in a place called Cristo Rey. The mission office is in my area so I guess that’s pretty cool. My new comp is named Elder Rodriguez and he is from Puerto Rico. But my last week in Navarrete went really well. We had the baptism of Yadira on Saturday and that was great, Elder Mercedez was the one to baptize her, he is the Elder who did her interview, I don’t know why she picked him but it went really well and it was probably the most spiritual service I’ve ever had here. Then on Sunday Yadira asked me to do her confirmation, so that was pretty nerve wracking ha-ha. I’m glad I was holding onto the bishop’s shoulder or I probably would’ve fallen over ha-ha. But it was very special and I’m glad I was able to do that for her.

Saying goodbye to everyone there was really sad especially to Elder Neeley, we really became the best of friends over the last 2 transfers, but a few members said that they were going to start a welga (strike or riot) if I left ha-ha. Navarrete really was like home for me and I’m sad to leave but I’m excited for the opportunity I have to make Cristo Rey my new home. I'll probably be here for a long time so ill need to ha-ha.

But that’s it for this week everyone. Love you all, have a great week.

-Elder King

Email and Pics - September 3, 2014

Hey everyone so I’m going great and I still love the mission. So I don’t know if I’ve told you guys but its been raining a lot recently and really all that means for us is muddy pants and shoes and awesome pics of the sunset ha-ha. The DR wins for its sunsets. But Elder Neeley and I are working really hard and having a lot of success.

We are going to be having a baptism this weekend of this girl that was just golden. She has been going to church even since she was little but was never baptized cause her parents never went but she came to us and asked us to teach her cause she wanted to be baptized. She is now living with her Aunt and Uncle who are super strong members. It was just a really good situation, it was really just a matter of her getting all of the lessons to be baptized so its been a great blessing for us to help her. But we're helping and teaching a lot of other people and it is just so great to be apart of the Lord’s work.

So we also had this awesome service project this week that was soooo gross, like the nastiest thing I have ever done in my entire life, but it was also one of the funnest. We went to a water canal type thing that had a tone of trash in it and weeds and other plant and animal life and we cleaned it out. The water in some parts was black and I’m pretty sure that people had been dumping oil in there or something. But the best part was getting into to water and cutting things out with a machete, lots of fun ha-ha.

But that’s it everyone, I’ll write you next week.

-Elder King