Welcome Home

Dear family and friends,

We arrived home just a few days ago and are trying to get settled in to our “life after the mission”.  It has not been easy on many levels, but I know the Lord is very aware of us and has blessed us so that we can tackle each new day with hope and vigor.  This September sunshine in Seattle has been an answer to prayer as it was very sad to feel the “sun-set” on our mission.  I knew a very important chapter in our life was ending and that the next chapter would be very different.  

For each one of us, a sunset marks the end of a day while at the same time holding the promise of a new day.  We look forward to the light of morning, knowing that each day is a gift from above.  All of us, as people of faith, seek after more light and a better understanding of our work and of our role in the world.  This past year, Denny and I know we have been where God wanted us to be.  We have tried our best and have few regrets.  Hopefully we will continue to feel His direction as the years ahead unfold before us.

Not only is this a significant month for our mission, it also marks Denny’s and my 40th anniversary.  I honestly can’t believe it.  Generally, I feel pretty young but a 40th anniversary can’t help but make you feel ancient!  We also feel some pride though, because like most people, we’ve been through some rough times, so…… to mark this milestone, we had a love lock engraved and attached it to the “Love Gate” on Main Street in St. George.  It was very fitting as we both knew we would be leaving a part of our hearts there as well.  We spent our actual anniversary day with our son, Denny Jr. and his sweet family.  They created a big welcome home banner, drew pictures and Crystal prepared a wonderful meal.  We played on the trampoline and played Settlers of Catan while the men watched football.  It was a perfect day in every way!      

Prior to leaving we had a wonderful visit from the Bussey family over Labor Day weekend. They came with their two awesome sons, Payden and Brandon, Brandon’s wife and their 2 darling grandkids.  We loved sharing with them our favorite hike in Snow Canyon, our favorite stories of the pioneers at the Jacob Hamblin home and at Brigham’s and a yummy Sunday dinner together.  We were so grateful for their visit and the support they’ve been to us while serving in St. George. 

Three days before we headed for home, Denny performed an outdoor concert across from the temple.  It was a compilation of all of the pioneer songs he’s written with a beautiful story narration between each piece.  Several sister missionaries performed with him and were the background choir for several pieces.  Denny said it was the most spiritual musical experience of his life.  The inspiration behind the concert came from our amazing director, Elder Cleverly.  We know without a shadow of doubt that we were placed under his care and leadership for a reason.  One reason for sure was so that Denny could continue to develop his musical talents and share them with the people of St. George. 

There’s so much more to tell you about but I’m already sensing a need to look forward not back.  With that said, I feel pretty nostalgic as I wrap up this last mission letter.  We’ve learned so many things over the past 12 months.  I’ll share just three.  After living in a 474 sq ft apartment, we’ve certainly learned that you can enjoy life with very few possessions.  

We sold our home before coming and left for the most part, the worries of the real world behind.  I’ve realized that many of the “things” in our life were like boat anchors, and we have allowed the wind to fill our sails in St. George and really fly.  I am hoping that moving forward we can re-evaluate what we really need and make our life a little simpler.  We’ve also learned that there is little that compares to the joy of sharing the message of Christ, even if it is to a perfect stranger.   Hopefully that will mean we will be bolder in sharing our testimonies as the Spirit directs! After seeing daily miracles in the lives of those we served and served with, as well as our own, we have learned once again how intimately involved God is in our lives.  In our “after mission life”, I hope to continue to find refuge in the scriptures and in quiet places where I can tune out the world and follow His direction.  

We have missed you all and look forward to seeing you soon.  Thank you again for your faith, love and prayers on our behalf.

Love always,

Leslie & Denny

Thunderstorms & Sunshine

Dear family and friends,

August has been a unique month, filled with amazing teaching opportunities, many more miracles and heartwarming visits from family and friends.  It’s also been a month filled with emotions.  Our impending last day in the mission field has been looming around me, and like a child who’s made a paper chain representing the days till Christmas, we’re at 22 days and counting.  But in this case the last day does not represent gifts to open but a gift to leave behind.  Our mission has been a dream come true, and we have loved every day.  Thankfully, the Lord has helped us both feel “a call to be home”.  We know we are needed at Mamma’s Hands and anxious to be close to our Bellevue and Vancouver kids and grandkids.  And, I’m sure as I dive back in to Real Estate, the energy and excitement will return, as well, for a work that’s different but still allows me to serve a variety of wonderful people as best I can.  I am grateful for the peace that has come these last few weeks.  

I would never have guessed but August is monsoon season in St. George!  So, it is not unusual to have several lightning storms each week.  The storms come quickly and often dump a ¼” or so of rain, but after a few minutes the anticipated sunshine follows and the air has cooled.  It has been a welcome relief from the over 100 degree weather.  We have experienced a storm of emotions as well as we prepare to leave this beautiful place and all of those we’ve come to know and love as we’ve served together.  I know one of the very hardest moments will be giving our good-bye testimonies and then taking off our missionary badges when we return and report in Bellevue.  I know there is a time and season for all things in life and this special mission time is quickly coming to an end just like our summer here in St. George.

This past month, Denny had the most remarkable experience.  A couple from Korea in anticipation of their trip to the National Parks googled Utah for more information and while doing so learned a little about “the Mormons”.  After landing in Las Vegas, they were driving in route to the parks and saw the temple from the freeway and decided to come see it.  When they came in to the temple annex they saw Denny with his guitar and said “Are you going to play us a song?” and Denny said “Sure!”  When he finished the Korean man said, “I know you, I saw a video about you on-line!”  Come to find out…….it was the I’M A MORMON video the church did on Denny which he had seen on Google!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  So they first Mormon they met after arriving in the United States was the same one they saw on-line before coming.  They had lots of questions about our faith and our temple and after over an hour at the Visitor Center were excited to take a copy of the Book of Mormon.  We often hear people say, what a coincidence!  But isn’t it great to know that there are truly no coincidences! 

The Lord has been so good to me and blessed me with some amazing teaching opportunities as well.  I have shared the gospel with people of all faiths and they’ve been loving and receptive.  It doesn’t matter how many times I speak of Christ as my personal savior, it never gets old.  My heart burns stronger and my testimony runs deeper each time.  I’ve had so many people of other faiths say “thank you for being a disciple of Christ” or “thank you for your faith, it inspires me” or “I’m excited to read the Book of Mormon or with tears in their eyes hold my hand like they’re not going to let go or just give me a hug.  I know it’s not anything I have done, but the Lord in his grace has allowed me to be his vessel and messenger.  These experiences I will never forget!

Zion's with Mom.

With some prompting on my part, my mom came to visit which was quite unbelievable.  I was so grateful that at 81 years of age, she was willing to brave the airports on her own and had the health and vitality to walk with us on the lower level of the 3 pools hike in Zion’s Park.  Before she left she said “I know why you want to move here when you retire, and you should!”  Funny, but it doesn’t matter what age I am, it still feels good to get my mom’s approval.  

A visit from our son, Denny and grandson, Charlie, made this month especially memorable.  We packed tons of fun in to just 2 ½ days.  The highlight for me was walking the Virgin River in Zions.  We spent over 3 hours getting to the famous “Narrows” section of the river before heading back.  I was so proud of our grandson who never complained once on the long hike and led the way with dad at his side through 2’ deep water.  Charlie’s highlight for the day, though, may have been the cliff jumping at Sand Hollow Reservoir.  Jumping off cliffs has been a “Hancock thing” since our early days at Lake Chelan, but Sand Hollow presented the perfect place to take it to the next level.  At one point, there were a bunch of teenagers at the edge of a 30’ cliff who were saying to each other, “You go”, “No, You go”.  Next thing I knew, our 8 yr grandson said, “I’ll go” and he walked right through the middle of them and jumped. Of course, his dad had gone first and Charlie knew he’d be in the water waiting for him.  If you think I’m an irresponsible grandma to watch this all happening……… believe me, I was on my floater down below saying, “No, don’t go!”  Obviously I have little influence when it comes to things like that. :) At the end of our two jam packed days we collapsed in a booth at two of our favorite all-you-can-eat buffets.  Charlie took full advantage of the free desserts and after eating a huge plate of dinner, he filled another dinner sized plate with a selection of no less than 6 desserts which unbelievably he managed to mostly consume!  So glad we are past the stage of feeding hungry kids and teenagers every day.  It just doesn’t fit in to the retirement budget we are planning for down the road!

And then, if we weren’t spoiled enough…….. our dear friends and motorcycle buddies from home, Brooks and Sophie Larsen, came to visit. We did our best to give them a great tour of this beautiful desert country and Zion’s Park and a taste of the pioneer history that is planted so deeply here in the valley.  The weather was accommodating for our Seattleites and dropped 20 degrees and offered some rare rain sprinkles for them as well.  I so appreciated their visit as it reminded me that we have loving friends at home too, who will be there to welcome us back and support us during our transition to “life after the mission”. 

Dinner with the Larsens

With all three visits, our guests stayed in our same temple apartments right across the street from temple square.  What a blessing for us to have them so close and be able to share with them some of the amazing teaching exhibits we have at the Visitor Center and most importantly meet some of the sweet sister missionaries.  At the close of one of the evenings, they were able to here these angel voices sing their closing song with Elder Hancock’s accompaniment.

This month we attended our last show at the Tuacahn Amphitheatre, the Hunchback of Notre-Dame.  It was perhaps the best musical performance Denny and I have ever seen, even topping my standing favorite, Phantom of the Opera at the 5th Avenue.  Victor Hugo’s story is already powerful but Tuacahn took some artistic liberty with his story and gave the audience an even deeper understanding of real Christ-like love.  The actor/singer who played Quasimoto was absolutely incredible the way he could distort his face and hunch over and limp, and then sing……..oh my gosh…..I had shivers!  I truly honor him and so many others who performed on stage that evening for their talent and hard work in delivering a story that became real in everyone’s hearts.

Well, there is much more to share but I know you all have more important things to do then read more about Denny and Leslie’s life.  I want to thank those of you who have been followers and especially those who’ve sent messages and emails to us in response to our letters.  It has meant everything to me.  I hope to send a final letter on our last day in the mission field, September 21. Please pray for us that we can be strong and continue to have peace about the end of this chapter in our lives.

We love you all so much,

Leslie and Denny

Move Forward With Faith

Dear family and friends,

It’s hard to believe but our missionary service comes to an end in just 53 days.  I’ve been feeling a little melancholy and anxious over several things I feel the need to do or finish prior to coming home.  This week I reviewed the goals I set for myself at the beginning of the year and realized the time was slipping by and that there were some things that may not get done before our mission ends.  We’ve stayed very busy and the Lord has filled our days with wonderful things that I could never have planned for, but were obviously more important.  As I’ve struggled with these anxious feelings, I’ve found refuge at the temple.  Just being on the temple grounds has a way of calming my spirit and if I can spend some time inside, I always receive valuable inspiration.  The message that came to me yesterday was not to stress!  The Lord knows what is important to me and I just need to exercise more faith, and move forward one day at a time.  Through the enabling power of the atonement, Christ can help me accomplish those things that I so desperately want to do even when our time is short.  He reminded me that great things have been accomplished one day at a time, and I have 53 days here and then a lifetime beyond!  I am still writing my lists each day, but recognize that if I’m prayerful, God will direct our remaining days here, and ultimately the things that are most important will be the things that get done.

Today we served at the Brigham Young Winter home.  I love sharing the story of those early pioneers who came to St. George on a cotton mission.  They endured every kind of hardship you can imagine, but their faith and dedication was rewarded with the first completed temple in Utah.  That temple sits right across the street from us today.  I want so much to have this same faith and commitment of the early pioneers.  I want to know that I too could leave my comfortable home and come to a barren desert and suffer all kinds of deprivations in response to a call from the Lord.  Yes, Denny and I sold our home to come on a mission, but, it’s obviously so very different.  These pioneers knew they would likely never return to their home and they suffered sickness, poverty and almost starvation.  Following the Lord may involve some sacrifice, inconvenience or unpopularity but thankfully we’ve never been asked to do something hard like these early pioneers.  At the same time I believe that the time may come when we will face a more challenging call from the Lord and hopefully we can all be ready. 

This month has been a particularly patriotic one with both July 4th and…. Pioneer Day (a Utah holiday).  The streets of St. George were lined with full size flags for both holidays.  Wish I’d thought to take a picture!  The young sister missionaries had a rare evening off to watch the fireworks and we ate watermelon and s’mores cooked in the oven.  We’ve also been somewhat caught up in the election. I was reminded to read something by Harold B. Lee.  He said, “Men may fail in this country, earthquakes may come, seas may heave beyond their bounds, there may be great drought, disaster and hardship, but this nation, founded on principles laid down by men whom God raised up, will never fail.  We are living in a day when we must pay heed to these challenges. This is the land of our forefathers.  It is the nation that will stand despite any trials or crises it may yet have to pass through.”  So……. I am going to liftup my head, be positive, vote, and remember that the Lord is watching over this great land!  

Leaving politics way behind…. our high this month was visiting our son, Michael, his wife Melissa and our 5 little grandkids in Texas.  It was a fast 2 day trip so we could attend our granddaughter, Lily’s baptism.  We felt so grateful to be given permission to attend this important milestone in her life.  Lily looked like an angel in her white dress and her 10 year old big sister was a rock star as she confidently and brilliantly gave the talk on the Gift of the Holy Ghost. It is a parent’s greatest joy to see your children trying hard to raise righteous and loving children. We are so excited to be able to attend our grandson, Charlie’s baptism as soon as we return.  His 8th birthday was this month but he decided on his own that he wanted Nana and Papa there.  We feel so grateful and loved!

Lily's Baptism

Speaking of high, we have hit the highest temperatures we have personally felt here in St. George …..115 degrees!  It is now that I am grateful for that air conditioning that chilled me all Spring long.  During these summer days, you need to be strategic with your plans.  The only time to exercise is before 7am and then it’s still 80 degrees!  Car handles and steering wheels are hot… so gloves are helpful.  If you’re going to do a Costco run, you need to bring a cooler.  Ice melts in bottles in minutes so a Hydro Flask is the only way to go.   A big thank you to our daughter, Rachael, for sending those!  Amazingly we are ok with the heat.  It’s easy to get dehydrated so I find myself getting a bit more tired but I still LOVE taking a late night walk and feeling the warm breeze and Denny loves to hop on the scooter and feel the wind in his hair.  Darn those no helmet laws here in Utah!  

The greatest high of all though is continuing to testify of Jesus Christ and his restored gospel.  Denny and I have had some amazing experiences in our life, but there is nothing that compares to the pure joy that comes when you feel the Lord work through you as you bear your testimony to someone who is truly searching and ready for the gospel. I am reminded every day that it doesn’t matter what you know, but how you’ve prepared yourself.  If I’ve approached my day in prayer and study, the Spirit truly works miracles.  

I continue to write all of the posts for our Visitor Center Facebook page.  My favorite post this month was of this little girl in pink staring at the Christus in the Visitor’s Center.  Take a look above, it will warm your heart!  And if you’d like to visit our site and see some of the other posts you can go to: https://www.facebook.com/StGeorgeVC   If you do, please like those you do!

I hope all of you are happy and healthy.  We love you and keep you in our prayers.

Leslie and Denny  

Hope, Hoodoos and Hips

Dear family and friends,

Last night I took a walk alone in the dark.  I don’t remember the last time I felt safe enough to do that.  It’s one of the blessings of living in St. George that I don’t take for granted.  For those of you who are already thinking I’m crazy, I wasn’t totally naïve.  I remained aware of my surroundings and had my cell phone ready to call.  I’d spent all day in the hospital with Denny for his hip surgery and knowing that he was asleep for the night and in good care, I stole the moment and began to walk with no specific destination in mind.  It was a warm evening and very quiet even though we are just blocks from downtown.  I strolled across the street and began my walk around the temple grounds.  There are meandering walkways through 100 year old trees and occasional areas to sit with lovely stone benches and charming little street lights.  The temple with its white walls literally glowed against a black velvet sky.  As I walked under the lights I saw sweethearts sitting and talking, yes……just talking. :) There was a family nearby, a father with a little boy riding piggy back and a mom holding hands with a younger daughter.  There were teenagers on the temple steps talking and texting (of course!).  I felt a lot of goodness and I thought about how much I am going to miss living in the shadow of our sacred St. George temple.  In the distance I could hear laughter so I followed the voices to the nearby park.  It’s a park that takes up an entire city block with a huge lawn, play and picnic areas as well as 3 sand volleyball courts, and 6 pickle ball courts.  Amazingly at 9:30pm the courts were almost all filled with parents and kids young and old.  On my walk back I saw several people strolling the sidewalks and others leaving from the final session at the temple.  It was a wonderful peaceful walk, one that filled me with gratitude.  I know at times we all feel like the world is falling apart around us.  Even here within our beloved homeland there still seems to be so much hate, greed, selfishness and despair.  But there is goodness, and hope and love around us. It’s harder to find perhaps than it used to be, but it’s here in St. George and it is in your hometown as well.  I saw it and felt it tonight, not just on the temple grounds but I felt it in the air, I could feel it in the vast sky above. God is still with us.  He is watching over us every day and his angels are encircled around us.  His power and love was manifest so clearly to me on another evening when I caught the most beautiful sky I think I’ve ever seen, right over the Visitor’s Center and temple.  Can you see the Christus through the window?

While we have shifts each week at the historical sites, I have come to most love being right at the Temple Visitor’s Center.  I think it’s the sweet sister missionaries that bring me the most joy.  Currently we have 28 sister missionaries from the all over the world who speak over a dozen different languages.  Many of them have sacrificed much to serve and all have powerful testimonies of Christ. They work hard.  Their day begins at 7:30am with scripture study and prayer and they are not home until after 9pm.  Sometimes I don’t know how they do it, but then I’m reminded they are decades younger than us!  Recently I have come to know an amazing young sister from Tahiti named Sister Kints.  I know you’re thinking beautiful brown skin and dark eyes, but no, she was born to French parents and is blonde and blue eyed.  Growing up on the island she had never worn anything but flip flops until the mission.  Sounds perfect doesn’t it!?  Anyway, she had a wonderful experience early in her mission that I want to share.  Sister Kints was called to be French speaking but surprisingly knew no French prior to her mission.  While at the Missionary Training Center she became very discouraged trying to learn the language.  She became so discouraged that she had decided she was going to go home.  She packed and went to meet with the local leadership.  While talking together he said “You are here for a reason, you need to pray tonight and ask God what you need to do”.  She went home and prayed.  She told God that she felt completely useless.  She said “I’m here for you and I don’t know why you don’t want to help me and if you don’t help me, I’m going to go home!”  The following morning she was still very angry.  She dressed and got ready without speaking to her companion.  She wanted to go home but went to class.  When she walked in, all of a sudden she shouted out “Hello Everyone!”  Then she gasped as she had no idea how she had said that and everyone else gasped as well.  From that moment on she said it became easy to think in English. Her teachers would say “This word means this, and she would say, “yes, I know, I don’t know how I know, but I know.”  Three months later her English is not perfect but she can speak and understand everything.  After experiencing such a wonderful blessing in her life, you can imagine what a powerful light she is here in the mission field.  She still struggles with the work load and the responsibility she was recently given to be a trainer, but she is so committed.  I included a picture of her, it’s actually a selfie she took with my phone but shows the light and love of several of the missionaries serving.

This past month we had the sweet privilege of helping at the Manti Pageant.  For those who don’t know what that is, it is an outdoor play performed on the grounds of the temple in Manti, Utah which sits high on a hill.  The cast numbers over 1,000 members and the evening performances draw as many as 20,000 guests.  The play shares the story of Joseph Smith’s first vision and the Book of Mormon.  It is beautifully done.  At one point in the play, Jesus Christ appears and hundreds of cast members kneel in reverence on the lawn.  Then he calls the little children to him just like in the New Testament.  It was such a beautiful scene to see his arms stretched out in love and the children rushing to him.  That’s how I picture him and am so excited for that day when I can kneel at his feet as well.  

The following day was our P-day and since we were close to several National Parks we went to Kodachrome Basin and Bryce National Park.  It was a completely different landscape than Zions Park.  There were miles and miles of hoodoos some jetting up from ground level, others in canyons hundreds of feet below.  As a child I had seen the hoodoos in Calgary, Alberta with my parents, but these hoodoos were giant in size and a deep red orange color.  As we walked down in to the canyons you could find pine trees that had somehow found the sunlight and grown to hundreds of feet between a crevice.  There’s something that changes inside of you when you see a spectacular part of the world you’ve never seen before, especially when it’s “God made”.  I wished so much my photos could have captured the magnificence, but there’s just no way.  You have to be there to really feel it. 

We finally had the opportunity to attend a performance at the famous Tuacahn Amphitheatre just 15 minutes from us.  This outdoor theatre is built in the shadow of 1,500 foot red rock cliffs in Snow Canyon and means “Canyon of the Gods”.  We saw Peter Pan which was awesome, but really any performance would have been amazing, as the backdrop is breathtaking.  We will be seeing Tarzan and the Hunchback of Notre Dam later this summer.  Yes, we are working hard during our shifts and with the auxiliary assignments the mission gives us, but honestly….. could we be having any more fun!!!

Not so fun but necessary, was a scheduled hip surgery for Elder Hancock.  Some of you may be following this on Facebook, for those who haven’t, he’s doing really well. The doctor said the surgery was a bit more challenging because of the tightness of his muscles (he loved hearing that :) ) which have to be stretched open to get to the hip bone.  Because of that and the loss of 2 litres of blood during surgery, Denny’s recovery has been a bit slower than he planned.  He comes home today (yikes!) and hopefully I can give him the same good care the nurses have given him in the hospital.  One thing I won’t be doing is waking him up in the middle of the night to check his blood pressure or poke him with needles.  I know we’re both glad about that! 

We saw more extended family this month with a visit from the McCreadies.  They are so incredibly awesome and without a doubt our tallest family members!  Our daughter, Minta, married in to their family, which hopefully means that one day we will have some super tall descendants!  Who would have ever guessed. :)

We continue to feel so incredibly blessed to be serving a mission.  We see miracles literally every day with this work.  

God bless you all!

Denny and Leslie Hancock

Bike Flips, Ambulance Rides & Revelation

Dear family and friends,

This has been an eventful month but amidst my crazy antics we’ve felt an immeasurable outpouring of God’s love and His continued direction in our lives. 

I’m sure you are all assuming it was Denny who took the bike flip, but nope……it was me!  I wish I could say it was intentional as it would really impress my grandsons, but Nana’s not quite that cool. ;)

 So, bikers, take note…..what happened was my back brakes had shifted out of alignment and when I had to stop suddenly only my front brakes worked.  I went up on my front tire, flew over the handle bars in to a forward roll and Denny, who was behind me, said my bike did a perfect flip over top of me!  It happened in a flash but thankfully I landed on a nice patch of red St. George dirt and was ok.  It was several days later when I was nursing the mango size bruise on my leg that I realized how lucky I’d been.  We had been biking at a good speed all morning on trails through the lava and cactus fields.  I don’t even want to think what a fall in there would have been like or for that matter on any of the paved areas we had been on.  Two weeks later I’m still a little sore in my shoulders but we won’t stop biking, it’s just too beautiful and amazing here. My favorite time to ride this Spring was just before dusk.  I loved the warm breeze, the smell of honeysuckle trees and the frequent siting of a hummingbird.  Now that summer has come, we go early in the morning or head in to the mountains where it’s 15 degrees or so cooler.  This has become our primary form of exercise as Denny’s hip has progressively gotten worse.  In fact, we’re switching out his hip for a new one.  When just plain walking and sleeping became painful, we asked the director if he could approve a week’s hiatus, and he has.  Hopefully everything will go as planned and Denny will be able to serve again within the week and be as good as new in a couple of months.

I also found myself at the hospital last weekend with an internal infection.  After flu like symptoms, my temperature got to 104 degrees and I passed out.  Denny called 911 and I got a sweet ambulance ride that of course I don’t remember.  Anyways, Denny played nurse maid to me in the most creative ways.  One of the pictures shows how he drilled a hole in the top of the water bottles so I could drink laying down.  He also brought me a big pan and the knife sharpener to bang if I needed him which we shortly changed out for a harmonica. ;) And, I found a sweet love note in the funniest place that really lifted my spirit. I always hate being sick, who doesn’t, but this time it was really worth it.  After about 4 doses of antibiotics when my head wasn’t pounding quite so hard, my brain started to function again.  It was great at first but then I couldn’t shut it off and I hardly slept all night.  But…….. it was an amazing night!!!  I had strong promptings all night long about different things.  One was a very specific directive regarding genealogy (think Ancestry.com) which has NEVER before crossed my mind for even a fleeting second.  Another prompting regarding a specific change I needed to make here in the mission field and then the rest of the night was just a flood of gratitude around this mission.  I felt like the Lord finally had me in a spot where I couldn’t go anywhere, I wasn’t distracted with anything else and He was going to tell me what I needed to know and remind me of how blessed I am.  It was a powerful but exhausting evening.  Needless to say, I am so grateful for the things I learned and were affirmed to me that night and ……..to finally feel better.  

We said goodbye to 8 powerhouse missionaries this month from Florida, Tonga, Washington, France, Australia, Mexico, Italy and Guatemala (their picture is above).  It was so hard to say goodbye.  I had learned much from them, and we had grown to love them all.  Their farewell testimonies were amazing.  Each one of them learned different things here in the mission field, but clearly just what the Lord needed them to learn.  It will be less than 4 months before Elder Hancock and I leave this beautiful place and give our farewell testimonies.  I can’t imagine how hard that is going to be.  

Our new sister missionary, Sister Royer, pronounced “Woyah”, arrived from France a week ago.  With all the French buses that come to St. George, we have been counting the days for her arrival.  She had been waiting for over 4 months to get her Visa to the US and so while waiting, she served in Belgium for a few months.  Her Belgium companion was the young French girl who was the victim of the terrorist bombing at the airport.  Sister Royer has continued to stay in touch with her and thankfully after a 2 month set back, this sweet girl has now re-entered the mission field.  Not much stops the determination of these committed sister missionaries!

Dream Location!

Elder Hancock and I finally found the spot we want to live (when we retire)!  It’s called the Ledges and it is still in St. George, just 7 minutes north of downtown.  It borders Snow Canyon and has some of the most stunning views ever .  Well it was going to be the perfect place for us until we saw the price tag on one of our favorite lots.  It was 1.1 million!!!!  Yup that’s just the lot and it’s probably less than a ½ acre.  It was kind of discouraging as we would just love to live right there so we could hop on a bike or walking trail, but apparently so would a bunch of other people! I was so hoping this little haven on earth would stay a secret to the masses, but obviously not! So, back to the drawing board……..

Last night was the final concert at the Tabernacle before it closes for two years.  All of the missionaries in the St. George mission gathered for 3 rehearsals and sang for the concert.  I still can’t believe what our director was able to accomplish with us.  The songs and arrangements were incredible and I think we sounded pretty amazing.  Denny performed a song he wrote for the Tabernacle which was awesome and the Southern Utah Heritage Choir were a flash mob in the audience and did a surprise couple of numbers including “How Great Thou Art”.  When the evening was over, everyone got up and was clapping and cheering.  The spirit was so strong, many felt the presence of angels.  I’m sure those pioneers who sacrificed so much for that Tabernacle were cheering in heaven.  This morning Denny said, “I can’t believe how blessed we were to participate in not just one but two concerts there at the Tabernacle.  It was a twice in a lifetime opportunity!

The Lord continues to bless us with His wisdom and love.  With His help, Denny and I have been able to share the gospel with so many people these past 8 months and so many people have tearfully shared their gratitude. I know this little season in our lives has been a sweet privilege and that when we go home, we won’t have the same opportunities.  However, I am hopeful that I won’t forget how to open my mouth, share God’s love and declare what I know to be true!  I included a picture of Elder Hancock (lovingly referred to now as “the singing missionary”) walking to the Visitor’s Center.  I love seeing the joy in his face, he loves this work as much as I do!

President Ezra Taft Bensen says, "We are commanded by God to take this gospel to all the world. That is the cause that must unite us today. Only the gospel will save the world from the calamity of its own self destruction. Only the gospel will unite men of all races and nationalities in peace. Only the gospel will bring joy, happiness, and salvation to the human family."

And I can’t forget to share our visitors this month.  Chris and Amanda (Bussey) Jones were here as Chris competed in the challenging ½ Iron Man.  And, Seth and Mckenzie (Rands) Chatterly came to hike and stayed in the temple apartments with us.  Always so grateful for familiar faces from home.  Love them all.

Amada & Chris

Mckenzie & Seth

I hope summer will come soon for all of you…..it has definitely come to St. George!  

Much love,

Leslie

You say goodbye, I say hello.

Dear family and friends,

Bus season is upon us!  Yesterday while serving at the Visitor’s Center, we had 6 tour buses stop and visit.  They were filled with travelers from Latvia, Lithuania, Italy, Greece, Tonga and Africa.  Who would have guessed that little St. George would become a mecca for international travelers!  Everyone who came was so friendly and genuinely interested in the messages we had to share, and in most cases we had missionaries who could speak their language if needed.  Thankfully those from Botswana spoke English and we had just enough copies of the Book of Mormon in their native Tswana language!  Where else in this world could we be where we could “teach all nations” as it says in Mathew.  I know the Lord is “on our right side and our left” in this great work and He is directing these special people here to our beautiful temple.  I absolutely LOVE serving at the Visitor’s Center.  I LOVE being with the young sister missionaries and feeling of their sweet spirits and testimonies.  I LOVE sharing my own testimony of Christ.  It makes me happier than anything else I do.  

This has been a bitter sweet month of hellos and goodbyes………..

The Sweet…..  We were blessed to have close family and friends come visit.  Our two daughters, Rachael and Minta w/ granddaughter, Mia, and our son, Billy, as well as my dear father and sister, Andrea, spent four days with us.  It was so wonderful to share what our mission life is like with them.  It was a particularly meaningful trip for Minta as she served as a missionary here at the Visitor’s Center in St. George exactly 10 years ago.  Minta’s daughter, Mia, wasn’t feeling well for the first few days, but her bright eyes and gentle, happy spirit melted our hearts every moment we were with her.  We cherished our time with each of them!

Also, our closest friends of over 40 years, Jon and Becky Rands and their kids and grandkids came as well.  We had so much fun hiking Snow Canyon, showing them the historic sites we serve at and catching up on life.  Check out the picture of the Rand’s daughter doing a handstand at the top of the canyon.  I secretly sooo wish I could do this!! Our mission would not have been possible without the help of Jon and Becky as they have bravely and effectively taken the helm of Mamma’s Hands while we’ve been away.  Speaking of….we are so grateful to those of you who are planning to attend this year’s dinner/auction to support the House of Hope.  Thank you so very much!  We were also thrilled to have Jerry Carlson and two of his sons come visit.  Jerry is also a board member of Mamma's Hands and working hard in our absence and we are very grateful to him.

The Bitter…..  We said good bye to three missionary couples who we’ve served with these past 7+ months and have now completed their missions.  Each couple had hearts of gold and were dedicated and valiant missionaries.  Having experienced so many spiritual moments together, I understand more fully the phrase that reads: “and their hearts were knit together in unity”.  Though miles will separate us, we will always be connected in spirit and will be forever friends.

We also say goodbye to the historic Tabernacle as it closes soon for two years of renovation.  It has been a sacred place to serve.  It was at the Tabernacle that we as missionaries shared the story of the 309 families who were called by Brigham Young to come to St. George and grow cotton.  Leaving their comfortable homes in Salt Lake they came to a dry barren desert and endured years of hardship, sickness and hunger.  Most of those families remained steadfast and today this valley is thriving and beautiful and covered in steeples and towers as Brigham prophesied it would be.  My favorite spot inside the Tabernacle was standing at the pulpit where every prophet of the church except Joseph Smith has stood and spoken and then sharing the story of Lorenzo Snow and his talk on tithing. I am grateful for the many personal spiritual experiences I’ve had in that building as well as the inspiring lectures and performances by some of the very best.  It truly was sacred ground.

At the request of the director, Denny has written several more songs for the mission.  One song is about Joseph Smith and Brigham Young which is currently called “Carry On.” It is a powerful music video that will be played at the closing ceremony for the Tabernacle.  Here’s the link if you’d like to see it: https://youtu.be/_gAraAkX-nU

ART ENTHUSIASTS:  Right now in the Visitor’s Center we have an amazing exhibit of 18 art pieces by Julie Rogers a celebrated Utah artist.  Her impressionistic portrayal of pioneer life and our Savior’s love is so moving.  Each painting has a real life story behind it which makes the pieces so much more meaningful.  I have attached a picture of a favorite painting and story of mine about 2 young boys who traveled west as part of the Willie Handcart Company.  The plaque below the picture reads:

“Eleven year-old James Kirkwood had a great responsibility to look after his five year-old brother, Joseph.  When Joseph couldn’t take another step, James picked him up and carried him for 27 hours over Rocky Ridge.  James brought his little brother into the camp and set him down gently.  He then collapsed and died from exposure and exhaustion.  With determination, James had faithfully carried out his task and saved his brother.” 

This is just one of dozens of paintings Julie Rogers has painted depicting the struggle and sacrifice of the Mormon pioneers.  It is a story that needs to be told and I’m so glad someone is doing it in such a creative and beautiful way.

I continue to feel like Denny and I are in the best place we could be right now, doing exactly what the Lord wants us to do.  While we are away from family and friends we are touching lives every day in a way I never thought possible.  There is nothing greater than being able to testify of Christ.  It doesn’t matter if the person you are talking to is touched and in tears or is ignoring you, it feels good every time!  I know too that Denny and I are simply instruments in the Lord’s hands, we are weak on our own but w/ Him we truly can do all things.  

I love you and wish the Lord’s greatest blessings on you all,

Denny and Leslie    

The View From The Top

Hi Y’all,

Just had to greet you that way as I’ve been missing one of the sweet sisters who was serving here from the South and is now “outbound” as they say.  Her name is Haley Sanders and she truly shined with the Light of Christ. 

It’s been another great and busy month. Denny performed a concert at the Tabernacle, I celebrated my 59th birthday (next year will be my 59th as well!), we had a visit from our son, Michael and his family, we enjoyed a sacred Easter evening and…….. I had some amazing teaching opportunities! 

First of all, Denny’s concert………

On March 12th, Denny was able to perform at the historic St. George Tabernacle.  It was such an amazing privilege and one he will tell you is his very favorite music experience to date.  His performance was a story of songs beginning with his struggling teenage years, the County Line experience with the two homeless men, the change for good he’s experienced in his life and concluded with several new heartfelt songs he’s written about the lives of the pioneers.  He played both the piano and the guitar and had two guest performers as well. I couldn’t believe how nervous I was for him, but the Spirit was strong, he performed beautifully and the audience gave him a standing ovation.

My birthday was once again on St. Patrick’s Day.  Such a funny day for a birthday but after 59 years I’ve finally gotten use to the little green leprechauns and clovers.  One of my wise friends from home told me I should celebrate all month so I took her advice to heart.  Every chance I could I asked Denny if we could do this or that because it was of course “my birthday month”.  It worked….you should all try it!  We biked, hiked and went to my favorite restaurants.  On my actual birthday, we had the day off and we went to Zion’s Park to hike Angel’s Landing.  Those of you who have been there know it is a tough and frightening hike.  For a good part of the hike there is a chain that everyone holds on to so as to keep from falling.  I didn’t make it to the top, (Denny did) but I sufficiently challenged myself both physically and mentally.  And the views at the top or almost top for me were so worth the climb!  We both came home completely exhausted and then…… couldn’t sleep!  Every time I closed my eyes and started to drift off, I was clinging on to that life-saving chain.  By 1am in the morning we decided to watch a movie and finally drifted off around 3am.  I still want to try to get to the top again………. I think. 

The trail to the top.

We loved having Mike and Melissa and the kids come visit and so appreciated their 20 hour car drive they endured each way. They rented a big house and we moved in with them for the 4 days and it was so much fun.  We crammed in as much as we could but honestly my favorite part was being able to gather round at nighttime for family scripture reading and prayer.  I am continually amazed by every one of those kids and how well they read their scriptures and pray.  It sure makes you grateful to see your children raising their children in the gospel.  Mike and Melissa had a sweet gift for me and then each one of the kids gave me a little something.  The gifts were precious drawings, candies, rocks, lotions, plastic toys and so forth. Each one of their children are all so kind and thoughtful. On our last day we did a very quick photo shoot at Sand Hollow.  Melissa is such a talented photographer….the picture below was set up and taken within minutes. 

This Easter was unlike any we’ve had since I can remember-  there was no big Sunday dinner, no Easter egg hunt with the grandkids but it was a wonderful day nonetheless.  Following church and our shifts we met as couple missionaries in the Tabernacle and gathered around the piano and organ to sing.  We had each come with a favorite song about Christ and a personal story or scripture to share that went with the song. I chose “How Great Thou Art” which expresses my first religious feelings as a child and “He Lives” because it makes me so happy!  It was a sweet and sacred evening with many tender feelings shared.  I won’t forget it.    

A very tender experience.

While we have the opportunity to testify of Christ every day in one way or another, we are usually also sharing about the history of the area and pioneer stories that everyone is so interested in.  However, when we are working at the Visitor’s Center we will more often have the opportunity to really spend some significant time with someone who may or may not have much religious background.  About 2 weeks ago a very special couple from China made their way across town to our temple.  They were part of a large tour group and were spending their last night in the United States before heading home when they decided to go for a walk.  She told us how they had been drawn to the “beautiful white building”.  They came first to the annex where Elder Hancock was.  He shared a bit about the temple construction with them and then escorted them over to the Visitor’s Center where I was.  It was a particularly busy evening and all of the sisters were with visitor’s so I had the sweet privilege of showing them around.  She spoke only broken English but they were so incredibly gracious and seemed genuinely interested in the things I wanted to show and share with them.  Since they seemed to know and understand the word “temple”, we walked around the display that shows a model of the first temple that Moses built in the wilderness, King Solomon’s temple and our first LDS temple.  I tried to speak simply and clearly and they responded in a way that made me feel they understood.  The next closest display was on the Book of Mormon.  I pulled from the shelf the Mandarin Book of Mormon prompting the screen above to turn on, show the world map with China highlighted and begin an audio presentation in Chinese.  They nodded their heads and smiled.  We proceeded to walk down the hallway together and as we passed by the beautiful artwork, I pointed to each picture of Christ and said “Jesus”.  To my surprise, they shook their head in approval and repeated back “Jesus”.  Then I asked them, “do you know about Jesus”?  She said in her broken English, “We are Budhist but we have heard about Jesus and want to learn more”.  I can’t tell you how excited I was, but I was also so incredibly nervous.  There was so much to tell them but at the same time we spoke two different languages and our only Chinese speaking missionary, Sister Lau, wasn’t due back to the Visitor's Center for almost an hour.  So, I decided to take them to the Christus and when they saw the beautiful statue of Christ they gasped.  I turned on his message in Chinese and when it was over I noticed she was crying. I took her hand in mine and said, “Jesus loves you”.  She nodded in agreement and so did her husband and then we all hugged for the longest time.  It was one of the best moments I’ve had on my mission.  For the next 45 minutes we tried to talk but mostly laughed. She gave me all of their information including phone numbers, email and address and at the end invited me to China to stay with them!  It was all pretty remarkable.  I know it was not me, just the Lord using me to touch these people.  I am so hoping that they will move to the U.S. one day where they can continue to learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ.  For now, they have a Book of Mormon in Chinese and will hopefully read it. 

I had another amazing opportunity at the Visitor’s Center last week with a couple who were visiting from Nebraska.  They had come to visit the National Parks but it was a cold and windy day and they decided to do some site seeing.  With everyone busy, I was able to partner with one of the single sisters, Sister Orellana from Guatemala.  As we were getting to know them, he shared the news that they’d just received about their sister who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and how hard that was to deal with.  As it so often happens, those that come in end up with just the perfect missionary for them at that time.  Sister Orellana was able to share that her mother had been diagnosed with cancer 6 months after she had arrived on her mission.  She went on to explain that when she heard the news she wanted to go home and just be with her mom but her mother convinced her that the work she was doing in the mission field was so much more important as she was helping others learn the principle of eternal families.  We decided to show them God’s Plan for his Family and then had a wonderful discussion about the sealing power in temples.  They seemed very grateful and hopeful about the message we shared.  I don’t know what will come of it, but it was such a great experience to testify once again about the Savior, about the restoration and His love for all of us!  Every day I thank the Lord for this sacred privilege to be on a mission!!

Thank you for sharing in this amazing journey with Denny and I.  We know we are very blessed to be here and are grateful to all of you who love and support us!

Love always,

Leslie

February Thoughts

The incredible pool at Marie Osmond's home

 February, no wait it's March! It's been a wonderful month here in St. George and I can't wait to share the pictures with you all. In fact, it took me a little while to gather them all, so you're probably reading this in March.

I heard a wonderful quote recently that has helped to shape my thinking towards others:

“We must remember that the people we meet in parking lots, offices, elevators and elsewhere are that portion of mankind God has given us to love and serve”.  

So I determined that if we are to LOVE those we meet in an elevator I can certainly LOVE those that I show through the Visitor’s Center and historic sites. J I really prayed about it and the thought came to me to think of each person as a member of my immediate family……a sibling, a son, daughter or parent.  I tried it and the effect it had on me and those I met with was remarkable!  I found that the visitors really opened up to me, and shared things with me on a much deeper level even if we were together for just a few minutes.  I too was more vulnerable, and we laughed more and connected in a way that I don’t think I could have otherwise. I’m so grateful the Lord answered my prayer and gave me a little glimpse of the power of God’s love.  Now I just have to work on trying to show His love through me every single day.  

Continuing with the theme of love….. Denny and I celebrated Valentine’s Day with a short drive to Mesquite to see THE FAB perform a Night of Beatle’s Love Songs!  It was so fun to sing along to “I Love Her”, Michelle, and “Something”.  We had to leave the concert early to be back at what we felt was a good missionary curfew but just as we were leaving they began to play “Yesterday”.  Denny took me by the hand and we found a quiet corner and danced till the song ended.  Yes, at 61, Denny can still be so romantic!!!!!  We also received several care packages this month which were so fun to get, sweet cards and emails from friends and some wonderful visits from loved ones includingDenny’s brother Ralph and his wife Julie, our niece Josie and her cute little ones, Kim Malyon from the Bellevue stake, Riley Cooney (Bellevue stake) and his friend from Las Vegas and our dear friend of almost 40 years, Christie Monson.  Thank you for coming!  We loved seeing each one of you!

The past 2 months our Temple Visitor’s Center has been closed for remodeling.  In anticipation of the opening we received great training from Salt Lake.  You know you are getting old when your trainers are the same age as your kids!!  Many of you know that our sweet daughter Minta, served in this same mission a little over 10 years ago.  I know it is here that she developed many wonderful traits that she still possesses today.  Since it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks, I’m hoping I will come home having learned at least a little of what she learned!

We have 2 amazing new exhibits at the VC.  One is called “8 Stories” and chronicles the life of 8 young missionaries- before, during and after their mission.  If you’ve seen “The District”, this is it.  It’s on a full screen and guests use an IPAD to play 1 or more of the stories at their leisure while sitting on comfortable moon shaped couches.  It’s very cool.  The best part………..behind the screen is a wall of missionary badges under glass and Elder Hancock and I got to submit our badges for the exhibit along with a thousand or so other missionaries.  It’s a little like having a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame only better!  

The second new exhibit is on the Book of Mormon.  Guests can relax inside one of 2 comfy cubbies where when they flip open the Book of Mormon and different stories play on the screen. I’ve missed watching the little children come in and run to the Christus exclaiming “Jesus, Jesus, it’s Jesus” in their sweet little voices and I’ve missed the interaction w/ the young sisters.  There are 35 single sisters representing 15 different countries here at the St. George Visitor’s Center.  They all have powerful testimonies of the Lord and many have sacrificed much to be serving a mission.  I love them all and can’t wait to see them at the Visitor’s Center this week!

We continue to love our assignments at the other sites as well.  Denny has written the most amazing song about Jacob Hamblin whose pioneer home we work at a couple times a week.  After our tours are over we usually ask the guests if they’d like to hear the song and they always do. (see picture above)

On a complete side note, there was a Parade of Homes here in St. George.  We didn’t have time to see many but I did get to see the home that was built for Marie Osmond.  One is of her backyard which has a circular couch and fireplace nook in the middle of the pool!......  and the other picture is of the coolest room for grandkids complete with a little trailer and treehouse, see below. It made my heart warm to see all the pictures of Christ and the pioneers so beautiful and tastefully displayed throughout her home.  Loved the fact that so many people saw that!  

I learned a very hard lesson today on love, so these following quotes are mostly for me to ponder.  I hope they are meaningful to you as well. 

 “We need to be tolerant of each other. Compared to God, none of us are all that different.”

and……

“We can never underestimate the power of kindness.  Kindness can change hearts and lives.”

I know God’s love for all of us is unchangeable, remarkable, everlasting, beautiful and more.  Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us so much.  It’s amazing how much they love us.  We are never, ever alone!   

Be good to each other…………..

I love you all,

Leslie and Denny

New Year Reflections

Stunning Views from Snow Canyon

Dear family and friends,

It’s hard to believe that Denny and I are more than one-third of the way through our mission!  This realization has made me a little more contemplative, both about the experiences we’ve enjoyed and the work we still need to do.  Overall, I feel such a sense of gratitude.  If our mission ended tomorrow, I could confidently say that these have been some of the best 4 months of my life.  I have always been a person of faith and I know God is aware of all of us, but I’ve seen miracles on this mission almost daily that confirm without a shadow of doubt that God orchestrates our lives.  He knows us individually, and loves us beyond our comprehension.  And, he absolutely works with and through us to bless the lives of others.  Of that I am convinced.

Elder and Sister Fuller

I have a new assignment within the mission!  I’ve been asked to provide content and pictures for the St. George Temple Visitor’s Center Facebook page.  It is a big job to write 2-3 posts each week.  Thankfully I submit them to an employee at church headquarters who edits and approves them and does the actual posting. Elder Hancock continues to be asked to make videos for various people and events.  One of the most tender requests he received was to video homecoming talks for Elder and Sister Fuller, couple missionaries who serve with us. Sister Fuller was diagnosed with 4th stage lung cancer last summer.  Though others may have chosen to go home, she was determined to complete her mission.  She has lost her hair and is in a very weakened condition from the radiation and chemotherapy treatments, however she has continued to serve faithfully along with her devoted husband. It is expected that she will not live to their next Stake Conference (Regional Service) so Denny’s video of them speaking here in the Tabernacle will be played next week in their home stake.  It has been an honor to know this couple, who like many have sacrificed much to serve missions.  Along with our daily shifts at the Visitor's Center and the 3 additional church history sites, we still enjoy our assignment of meeting with 2-3 ward (local congregation) councils each Sunday to promote the resources of the Temple Visitor’s Center.

We have continued to explore, bike, hike and go the driving range on our days off.  Denny and I are continually drawn to Snow Canyon which by the way rarely gets snow.  It was named after Erastus Snow who was the apostle called to lead the pioneers here in St. George.  Earlier this month we spent the day biking in this gorgeous canyon.  It was a rigorous roller coaster bike ride that just about killed us but the backdrop was so spectacular and we were totally proud of ourselves after we looked down in to the valley and saw where we’d come from….  When we stopped for lunch we were visited by two little mountain birds.  They loved our raisins and almost ate from our hands.  It is so awesome to be able to be outdoors in January!  

Every now and then, Elder Hancock and I have the opportunity to drive the young sister missionaries to their service projects or spend a p-day (preparation day or day off) activity with them. Two weeks ago the director planned a special day for them and we were fortunate to go with them to Pine Valley to play in the snow.  Some of the sisters had never seen snow before.  They were like little kids, making snow angels, snow balls and snow missionaries (more pictures). There was so much joy and laughter!  We also visited the Humane Society where we cuddled puppies and walked big dogs, and made several visits to the nursing homes and Veterans hospital to talk with and sing to the residents.  It is sad to see so many people living out their last days with such physical limitations and without family around them, but I am grateful we can bring a little love, conversation and entertainment to these good men and women.

With time here in the mission field slipping by, Denny and I talked a lot about our goals for our remaining 8 months here in St. George. We wrote couple goals and I wrote personal goals as well.  It feels REALLY GOOD to have an “outline” for how we should prioritize our time.  We agreed to review them each Sunday which has provided some accountability to ourselves and each other and helped us plan each coming week.  

I know that the goal setting process can be time consuming.  I have always tried to write pretty specific and detailed goals, however, I know that some people set very simple or general goals and it can be very effective.  Two goals that can be life changing are:  “What am I doing that I should stop doing?”  And “What am I not doing that I should start doing?”  IF LIVING A MORE CHRIST CENTERED LIFE is your 2016 goal, then the above two questions could look like this:

“What one thing would I be willing to give up, starting today, to put the Savior even more at the center of my life?”  And “What one thing would I be willing to do starting today to unlock more of His power?”

I’ve found that people are sometimes afraid to set goals because they are afraid to fail. So, the solution is to be realistic but to also stretch just a little.  If we are prayerful about our goals then God will know they are important to us and will help us accomplish them.  It’s through Christ’s grace that he enables us to do things we simply could not do on our own.  “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”  Philippians 4:13.  Remember too, that doing all we can doesn’t mean we have to be perfect, it is about the direction we’re headed and what kind of people we’re becoming.

In December of 2010, we wrote down the goal to be on a mission in 2015 and here we are!   There was a lot to take care of with my real estate business and with Mamma’s Hands but thankfully it is all working out and we should be able to step back in to both upon our return.  

Well that kind of wraps up the month!  We are continuing to study and pray and work hard so we have no regrets come September! 

We wish you and your family and loved ones a fabulous 2016!

Love you all,  Elder and Sister Hancock 

“He rarely moves the mountains that are in front of us, but He always helps us climb them”.

Light at Christmas & Into The New Year

Dear Family and friends,

As I begin writing this, I’m sitting on a little folding chair peering out of a paned window.  In the distance I can see a small farm, meadows, the edge of the Santa Clara river and a sage brush hill beyond.  Today, Elder Hancock and I are working at the historic pioneer home of Jacob Hamblin….. one of my favorite men in history and one of my favorite places to be!  In fact, today, it feels like a little slice of heaven.

It has been a magical month here in St. George.  Temple square and all of downtown has been draped in Christmas lights for thousands to enjoy.  On Christmas Eve we had more than 4,300 people tour the Temple Visitor’s Center and walk the beautiful temple grounds.  We hosted 23 December performances for the community at the Tabernacle, each one of them absolutely amazing.  While most of the performers were professional, my favorite was Tuacan High School’s performance of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah.  Here is a short clip of part of their song…. you’ll be amazed:  http://youtu.be/nDt6kivd5oc

The last Sunday before Christmas, all of the missionaries, young and old performed during a missionary fireside.  Since I rarely sing in a choir, this was especially meaningful for me.  I think we all felt the support of heavenly angels as we sang our hearts out and bore testimony of the Savior to those in attendance.  

Christmas was wonderful as we were blessed with a visit from our youngest son, Billy.  He arrived Christmas Eve, just in time to help us with a crazy fun surprise we had planned for a local family.  The Hunters have 5 children, 3 boys/2 girls ranging from 1 ½ to 11 years of age.  They remind Denny and I so much of our own little family 30 years ago that we have adopted them as ours and thankfully they have adopted us.  Their children had been hoping and praying for snow, and one of them had apparently said to their mom….. “we can’t have Christmas without a snowman”.  So, we decided to bring some snow to them!  Late Christmas Eve we borrowed their dad’s big truck and drove 30 miles north to Pine Valley where there was plenty snow.  After loading the entire truck bed w/ that pretty white stuff we drove back to their home and sculpted a charming snowman in their front yard.  This was not the easy task we had planned for.  Unlike Seattle snow, this snow was as light as a feather, or it had crystalized in to ice chunks, so, it took a lot of patience to make our snow mound resemble a snowman.  We persisted though, and he eventually took form and brought lots of joy to at least the three of us that night!  See pictures above!

Christmas day we visited a rest home close by and spent several hours talking with and singing to the residents in their rooms.  I loved hearing Denny and Billy sing together.  It was a priceless experience and I am certain Elder Hancock and I will visit many more times.  I made Cornish game hens for dinner w/ all the Christmas fixings and left a giant mess in the kitchen which my good husband and son made disappear.  Then off we went for a late night viewing of Star Wars, Billy’s treat! 

The day after Christmas, Billy, Denny and I hiked in Snow Canyon.  Even though the sun was shining, it was perhaps the coldest, windiest day I can ever remember which of course added to the adventure.  We found shelter inside a Lava Cave.  It was a cave we’d hiked before but this time we went much deeper.  After 100’ in to the cave it becomes pitch black but with headlamps and flashlights you can  make out the edges of the cave and generally find your footing.  At one point, Billy found a hole not much larger than the width of our bodies, which provided access to an additional cave beyond.  He crawled through and insisted we come too.  Since I definitely didn’t want to be left behind, I went next.  It was quickly apparent that I lacked the upper body strength to pull myself through so they both resorted to pulling and pushing me from either end.  I was laughing so hard I was useless but then again, it made for another good story at least for Billy and Denny to share! Once inside, we found it incredibly warm…..keep in mind, we were probably 300’ in to the cave and 50’ below ground.  I got those numbers from Denny so you can trust them J.  Turned out it was the perfect spot for lunch!  Since I could only see about  12” in front of me, I tried not to think about the possibility of any creeping or crawling things and we ate our salami, cheese, crackers and dried mangos in style.

We found out this past Thanksgiving that holidays wo/ the kids are hard but we are grateful that we had Billy to hug for 3 days whenever we were lonely and we could skype with our other children and families.  We are looking forward to a big reunion we’ve planned with all of the kids and grandkids next Christmas.

This morning Elder Hancock and I arrived at the Visitor’s Center to find all the Christmas trees and lights down.  It felt strange and a little melancholy. In our training meeting, with the other missionaries, one of the sisters said, “We’ll just have to become the LIGHTS ourselves”!  I have thought about her comment all day.  We are taught that we were all given a little bit of Christ’s light at birth.  As we live our life we find we must take care of and nurture that light within, as we are really nothing without Him.  What is so exciting though, is that with His light, we can effect great change in our own lives and in the lives of others, in fact, we can effect greater change than we could ever imagine!  I have seen Christ’s light work miracles in the lives of so many of the missionaries here.  I am truly grateful for Jesus Christ, for his birth, his life, his atoning sacrifice, his perfect example and for the LIGHT he is in my life.  As we turn the corner to the New Year, I hope we can all find quiet moments to seek even greater light and truth in our own lives.

We love you all,

Denny and Leslie

Things to be thankful for...

Dear friends and family,

Thankful!  That’s the message of the season and I have truly felt it in abundance.  Admittedly, we desperately missed our family, particularly our littlest ones this Thanksgiving but are so incredibly grateful to be serving a mission in this beautiful part of the world!  This Thanksgiving I have found some new things to be grateful for:

·       Sunrises on the red rocks, streets lined w/ 150 year old trees in full color and the glimmer of the temple just across the street from our 

little home.

·       $2.29 gas, $2.00 movies and a $500 rent payment  J

·       Letters from my grandkids, seeing my husband in a suit 6 days a week and diet Dr. Pepper on every menu

·       Seeing the sunshine icon on my phone all 7 days of the week even in November!

·       Tender, spirit filled teaching moments with young and old 

·       Our son, Billy’s, new job in Orem, Utah w/ Reflect Scientific 

·       No slugs, No rain, and No traffic still

·       Great friends at home and new friends here in St. George

·       Visits from friends and family who’ve come and are planning yet to come. 

·       Our parents who in part felt some confusion and trepidation at our leaving but ultimately have showered us with their love and support.

·       Our 5 children and 14 grandchildren who I know are praying for us and loving us from a far.  

·       The best mission companion in the world, my dear husband, Denny.  

Speaking of Denny…..our mission director gave Denny and I a public relations assignment to promote the resources available within the visitor’s Center to the wards and stakes within the temple district.  Denny felt strongly that we should make a video to share in our presentations.  The video he made turned out AMAZING!  In fact, the director is using it himself as he travels around with similar assignments.  He’s now asked Denny to make two more videos, one for Christmas and one specifically for the French tourists that come.  The video is just under 4 minutes.  I hope you’ll take a look at it.  The family who acted for us has become close friends of ours.  Amazingly the children’s comments are all spontaneous.  I think you’ll really love it.  Here it is!!!!

https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__youtu.be_EO6VWubWGEM&d=CwICAg&c=z0adcvxXWKG6LAMN6dVEqQ&r=cnzO3rKu9FQbUA1jkXyM2g_UKBNnPpaXwui3fZVOBzc&m=voSCih7WtWyBq5Wim34GBFsBUXDMPdKQ6aNcOJWOI5U&s=zc--j9uUSRzQeF-mRLYDMjvmzG2COwOaCY6NOaQgEGA&e=

Pictures attached:  We’ve given dozens of tours at this point to young and old but never been photographed.  Elise Neville, the sweet granddaughter of Dale and Glenda Estes took this picture of me w/ some of her children at the Tabernacle and so I determined to take one of Denny today giving a tour at the pioneer home of Jacob Hamblin. The other two pictures are of our daughter, Rachael’s family who visited us right before Thanksgiving.  We hiked Snow Canyon and then went to Glitter mountain and mined some Gypsum

St. George is amazing!

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Elder and Sister (Denny & Leslie) Hancock in front of the St. George Temple

Dear friends and family,

On October 1st we arrived at our mission location here in St. George. It has been an amazing 3 weeks and we have loved every minute of it!  We have worked hard to learn the history of the area as quickly as possible. As temple square based missionaries we rotate daily working 6 days a week at either the Temple Visitor’s Center or one of the three historic sites; the Brigham Young home, the Tabernacle and the Jacob Hamblin home.  It has been such a sweet experience to be able to share so easily with people we barely know about our love for the Lord and his love for them, about the power of prayer and God’s word.  While we are doing our best, we still have much to learn.  Thankfully we have witnessed firsthand that the Lord works his miracles through the simple and weak.

The St. George and outlying areas are beautiful!  We are surrounded by red rock cliffs that make the sky bluer than I’ve ever seen it.  The city of 80,000 residents is laid out with 60-90’ wide grid like streets just like Salt Lake City.  Everything spans out North or South from Tabernacle Street and East or West from Main street.  It’s so easy to find anything, even without GPS. We are within walking distance of downtown which is DARLING with a plethora of art galleries(mostly pioneer art), boutiques (mostly antique or 2nd hand shops) a center square park and lots of little restaurants which we walk or bike to.  Bakeries are on almost every corner that specialize in cinnamon rolls, sugar cookies or some other old-fashioned but yummy dessert. The best part…..absolutely No Traffic! We are taking full advantage of our day off each week.  So far we’ve hiked in Zion’s Park, Snow Canyon and biked an 18 mile loop along the Santa Clara River, and Denny snuck in 9 holes of golf on a ½ day with a fellow missionary.  Who said missions had to be tough! 

Enjoying Zion National Park

The apartment we live in is right across the street from the Visitor’s Center where we work and have our weekly training meetings.  When we first walked in we knew it was smaller than the 700 sq ft we’d heard. Turns out it’s just 476 sq ft!!  The space is incredibly efficient though. We can walk across our main room in 5 steps which means we can greet our guests at the front door after one knock.  If we fall asleep on the couch we can sleep walk to our bed in 4 steps, and if we need more milk during dinner, we can just rotate our chair to open the refrigerator.  It’s all very convenient!  The biggest challenge was figuring out how to hang both sets of clothes in a 5’ wide closet.  I decided to just narrow things down and rotate when needed, so it makes choosing what we wear each day very easy!  We’ve put out bed on risers and packed Denny’s 3 guitar cases and our luggage underneath and we’ve used our pantry and the back of most doors in the most unusual of ways. In all seriousness though, we are actually in love with our little home!  

A little more detail on the sites we work at:  

The Visitor’s Center is special because it is here that the young sister missionaries work.  Currently we have 22 single sisters between 19-23 years of age who are literally from the 4 corners of the world.  Some of the countries include Africa, Tonga, Switzerland, Marshall Islands, Taiwan, Australia, Mongolia, France, and Brazil to name a few.  All together, they represent 14 different languages!  One sister is from the island of Kerabass and prior to her mission had never been off the island!  Many have sacrificed much to be here.  They come with great faith and work long hours.  They are up at 6:30, often studying for 2 hours before they head out and generally not finished with their assignments until after 9pm.  I have so much love and respect for them.  Two weeks ago were “transfers” which happen every 6 weeks in this mission.  Transfers means that some missionaries just change companionships, others transfer out of the Visitor’s Center to be in the field, others are heading home after 18 months of dedicated service.  I spoke with one of the sisters who was going home to Ecuador.  I asked her what had been the hardest part of her mission.  With tear filled eyes she told me, “Going home”.  It was clear to see she had put her heart and soul in to serving.  It’s such a lesson to all of us on the joy that comes through service.  After the Visitor’s Center was closed, but before the sisters went home for the evening, a few of them began to sing.  Soon they were all singing in their angel voices.  I felt so moved by their sweet spirits and couldn’t help but picture my daughter, Minta, who served this same mission 9 years ago sitting among them.  

I love being at the Tabernacle as well and Denny particularly loves it because he can play the piano when we don’t have visitors!  Here at the Tabernacle we share about the families who were called to the St. George area on what was called the “cotton mission”.  Their story is one of great sacrifice and pure grit.  

Walking through the Brigham Young home gives you a glimpse back in time.  It has beautiful period furniture and tells its own story of pioneer living.  Brigham Young, who was called by George Bernard Shaw “The modern day Moses” led the Latter Day Saints from Nauvoo, Illinois across the plains and into the Salt Lake Valley settling more than 400 communities before he died.

If I had a favorite site to sit though, it would probably be the Jacob Hamblin home. Jacob was a stalwart member of the church and a great frontiersman, but he is best known as the Peacemaker to the Native Americans.  He is responsible for dozens of treaties not just between the Indians and the white man but between warring Indian tribes.  It can be said that he personally was responsible for saving thousands of lives.  He served for 32 years among the Native Americans in Utah, Arizona, Mexico and New Mexico he learned more than 7 different native languages.  He is most famous for the Treaty of Point Defiance, and for leading Major John Wesley Powell on a survey of the grand canyon.  It is again so inspiring to realize what one man did towards the cause of peace.

There is so much more amazing historical detail surrounding each of these sites which we would personally love to share with you when you come to visit!  Speaking of visitors……. we were thrilled to have the Pinkstons, Lori Crowshaw and Lou Ann Mackay visit.

Although it is getting a bit cooler in the evenings, the sun continues to shine.  It is easy to see why there are so many snowbirds here in St. George.

We continue to feel so blessed to be in such a beautiful area amongst so many wonderful people.  We miss you all and hope you are finding joy in your lives as well.

God bless you always,

Denny and Leslie aka Elder and Sister Hancock

First Experiences As A Missionary!

The Missionary Training Center in Provo, UT

Dear family and friends,

This is our first letter home from the mission field!  So much has happened and there is so much to share.

First of all, The MTC (Missionary Training Center) was awesome!  I loved every minute of the 9 days we were there.  The rooms had just been remodeled and most had a view of the mountains!  Our schedule consisted of breakfast at 7:30, class from 8am to 4:30pm, dinner at 5pm and then sometimes a meeting in the evening.  Sunday was the fullest day for sure.  The 300 senior missionaries that were in training that week comprised a “district” with a Bishop who made everyone feel like they were the most important person there.  Everything flowed seamlessly. 

Our teachers were fantastic! Most of them were college students just recently back from their missions.  They were motivating, fun and filled with goodness. WE got the opportunity to practice sharing what we believe.

A swarm of eager young missionaries at the MTC in Provo, Utah

I just have to tell you about our meals!  They were in a giant all-you-could-eat cafeteria. How 300 senior missionaries and 2,200 young elders and sisters cycled through for 3 meals a day is still a phenomena I can hardly comprehend.  It was crazy but amazingly organized.  There were the staples like hamburgers and fries, homemade soup, a salad bar and fresh fruit and veggies and at least 2 dozen different drinks.  The entrees and desserts changed each night and there were several to choose from.  Denny and I had so much fun, and yes, we ate WAY too much!  It was hilarious to watch the missionaries pile up their trays.  A typical young missionary elder would have at least 2 entrées (always fries), soup, at least 3 giant cookies and their famous chocolate milk(It was from the BYU creamery and was super creamy and good).

Denny and Leslie with Jon & Becky Rands

We had the sweet privilege of seeing family and friends before, during and after the MTC.  The weekend before we entered, Steve and Melissa Comrie hosted an amazing dinner w/ dear friends, Tom and Sandra Woods and Chris and Kristin White.  During the week we spent two evenings with Denny’s brother Ralph who is a professor at BYU and his wife, Julie, we had dinner with Marilyn Victor and on the night before we left for St. George and had the sweet privilege of spending time with Mackenzie Rands and her family.  Another tender mercy was that our stay in Provo was just long enough that we could share that with our lifelong friends, Jon and Becky.  Tonight we had a wonderful visit from President Mackay and his wife, Sheila……our first guests to our humble little apartment in St. George!

Denny with the Mackays

I’m happy to report is that even though Denny and I are spending every waking moment together, we are still very much in love!  We celebrated our 39th anniversary with a movie night and too much popcorn and hiked to Stewart Falls at Sundance the next morning to work it off.

We are now here in St. George and had a full day of training today for the visitor’s center and historical sites.  Tomorrow we begin!

Take care of yourselves and please come visit if you can!

Windermere Community Service Day!

A huge thank you to all of the volunteers that worked tirelessly to help make the House of Hope a little more welcoming to our residents. I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to serve with friends and colleagues who are dedicated to giving back in any way that they can.

Well done Windermere! It was a great day. Here are some of the best pictures...

A Big Thank You

Last Friday we celebrated the 25th anniversary of Mamma's Hand and The House of Hope. It was everything I could have hoped for to share this momentous occasion with so many of our friends, supporters and some of our dear children.

We were overwhelmed with gratitude for all the generosity shown that evening and were glad to pay tribute to all of those who have helped this organization help so many.

The evening was a lot of fun with  a lively dance performance and a surprise Seattle Seahawk appearance.The weather was gorgeous and the food outstanding as always. We all left smiling and feeling good about all the giving.

We're grateful for the wonderful images provided by Burton Photography.

For more images of the evening visit: http://stephicaburton.pixieset.com/mammashands/

Denny and Leslie with Paul and Sarah Gerdes, some of our most valued supporters.

Linda, a former House of Hope resident, spoke of her stay almost 15 year ago!

Noah, another graduate of the House of Hope shared his experience of overcoming trials and looking to the future

The ever enigmatic John Curley, our Emcee for the evening.

Swinging in Newcastle.

MIchael Bennett with the winning bidder, Cory Flynn

Melody and her son, Jace shared their heart wrenching story of homelessness and redemption.

Bad to the Bone! Denny on our annually donated Harley.  Thank You Eastside Harley Davidson.

Honoring those who have supported us since the beginning.

Jon (Chairman of the Board) and Becky Rands (Board Member) with Marilyn Victor ( A former board member and generous donor) were honored for all they have done for Mamma's Hands

Ready, Set, Go! Our famous Desert Dash...

The Hancock Family minus Denny ( He was on the bike!)

Gardener Report Q1 2015

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Here's to 25 years and new adventures...

Here’s to 25 years and new adventures!

2015 sees the 25th anniversary of the miraculous journey of Mamma’s Hands and the House of Hope. This year’s auction will be on May 8th, held at the ever charming Newcastle Golf and Country Club. We are thrilled to welcome back John Curley as emcee for the event. It’s always a wonderful night of black tie dress, delicious food and heartfelt giving.

This is also the 25th anniversary of my career into real estate, it’s been a wonderful quarter of a century, (wow, that makes me feel old) working with friends and clients. I have loved getting to know you and learning more about your families. I count you all as close friends and hope that you have felt equally blessed by our friendship.

You may have noticed a For Sale sign up in our yard. As friends, I want  to share with you the new adventure into which Denny and I will be throwing ourselves with much enthusiasm later this year….

Sometime this Fall we will  begin a 1 year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Where we will be heading remains to be seen, but having felt great joy in serving others through our many years as founders of Mamma’s Hands we are excited to be able to devote all of our time, attention and efforts to helping those whom we are called to serve.

This was a decision made close to our hearts.  Taking time away from family, friends and loved ones always requires careful consideration. This will be a difficult transition. We have been richly blessed in our lives, but feel we have much yet to give. It is a yearning that both                                                                                                 Denny and I have always felt.

Our mission may take the form of humanitarian efforts, or a more general assignment of sharing the gospel message of Jesus Christ. Church missions are given by assignment to those willing to serve. Learning of where we are to go and how we are to be assigned is part of the adventure.

As the hustle and bustle of work, life and family puts demands on our time, it will certainly be a change of pace. We hope to come home with a new perspective and a greater sense of purpose and joy in our lives.

In the mean time, Denny is in the process of welcoming a new executive director to fill his role while he is absent. Everyone knows he has given both heart and soul to Mamma’s Hands and he will be actively involved upon his return. Our wonderful board, valued staff and volunteers will continue the important work done at Mamma’s Hands.

I will in the coming months continue to work feverishly with my real estate clients.  I am ever grateful for your referrals and hope to have the opportunity to work with and see many of you before we leave. While I am away, you will continue to hear from my team who will keep you posted on the local market.

 Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share.

 Warmly,

  Leslie

3rd Quarter Market Report

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By Matthew Gardner