Rex and Betty Fiji Mission

The Nakawakawa group of 6 families, on their way to the Tongan temple, came to the Labasa church to do family history. They wanted to get names to do in the temple when they go to get their endowments and be sealed to their families.

They arrived Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 12, 2015. President St. John was there to welcome them and leave them with the key to the church, as they were to sleep there and use the facilities until Friday morning.

We greeted them, also. To try to cut down on their expenses, and since there are no cupboards and absolutely nothing is left in the kitchen, we brought a pickup load of supplies for them to use including our ceramic plates, cups, utensils, big bowls and serving spoons, water, cooking supplies, a huge rice cooker, buckets, etc. They were very appreciative. They had brought some cassava, etc. from home and bought more food at the market. They cooked their own food and were quick to clean up after themselves. Since there were no showers, they used the fire hose and strung it into the bathrooms. They set up ropes for clotheslines held up by bamboo poles and washed and hung out clothes to dry. It all looked like a well-oiled machine. These are competent, talented, members.

We were there with them as much as we could be to make their stay more pleasant. Rex brought the soccer ball, volleyball, and basketball. While the adults were working, Rex played with the kids or let them use the balls to play with each other.

We got lots of handshakes and hugs. Some of them did not speak good English, and they didn’t talk much, but we communicated pretty well. Pita had requested they see “Meet the Mormons” on Wednesday night. To make that more enjoyable for the adults, I took the little kids into the primary room where they all sat on a mat and watched “Frozen.” Everyone enjoyed the movies. We gave them brownies as treats.

Pita said he would be going the next morning to pick up boat tickets and to buy big suitcases. Everything was so expensive here that we volunteered to have them take our suitcases. It took a little insistence on our part as he kept saying, “Are you sure?” Yes, we were.

Thursday morning, while I was making chocolate chip cookies at home, Rex took them the suitcases; and he and the Harwards helped others sign onto Family Search to get their names typed in. It was quite a challenge to set up all the Google Accounts and LDS Accounts. Elder d’Aquin also helped. The children had the balls again and were happy as punch. Kini is one of our new converts in the branch. Her family was with the group. Her mom was out playing basketball and volleyball with the youth. She is really good! Two of Kini’s sisters had blatant errors on their birth certificates, which were not noticed until they were rejected for passports a couple weeks ago. One of the girls was 5, yet her birth certificate said she was born in 1995. The passport people said they had sent them an outdated picture that showed her as 5, not 20. They didn’t have time to fix the errors and reapply. The two children cannot go. The parents will take the ones who can and get their endowments and be sealed in Tonga now; and then get the rest of the family, including Kini, will be sealed to them later in Suva.

We had a little scare about noon. Pita had gone to pick up the boat tickets to go to Suva. From there they would fly to Tonga. He returned with tears in his eyes. They only had room on the boat for 7, and 23 tickets were needed. There would be no more openings until Tuesday, and the tickets to fly to Tonga were for Monday. Pita expressed that they had encountered so many obstacles and challenges to get to the temple. He said at times his head felt so big that it would pop. These people all have such great faith, and they have had to fight hard to get through this. We asked if the tickets hadn’t already been reserved. Wasn’t there someone he could call? He said Sulu, the lady who had made the reservations was in New Zealand, but she had given him her cell number and told him to call her if there were any problems. He hadn’t been able to get through to her yet. Finally, he did. She contacted someone higher up. One call from the Church leaders to the boat company was all it took. The company very much wants to please the LDS Church. They are some of their best customers. They authorized the tickets.
I asked Pita if there was anything else we could do to help them. He said, "No, you have done more than enough."
I expressed our love for his group. He replied with the sweetest thank you ever, "We can feel your love."

We showed “Finding Nemo” as a matinee. It seemed appropriate for Fiji. While they ate dinner, we taught our Business class. Then we showed “17 Miracles.” Hearing their stories and witnessing what Pita had to go through earlier that day made this movie even more potent. Before we started the movie, we told the Nakawakawa group they are all pioneers who had sacrificed greatly. We encouraged them, as they watched the movie, to realize how blessed they are to be members of the true church. Rex told them his great Grandfather was the company clerk of the Willie’s Handcart company and had the same calling as Levi Savage to be over 100 people. (After the movie we told them that when Brigham Young called for volunteers and supplies to “Go Bring them in,” my great grandfather sent his new wagon and matched team of horses to go rescue Rex’s great grandfather. He would have driven them himself, but they said he was too old, and they would be pushing the horses too hard.)

Even though I had seen the movie just a couple weeks before, the tears came freely. I am ever so grateful for the sacrifice of the saints that made it possible for me to have the Gospel in my life today. Their faith was unshakable. Their sacrifices supreme.

After the movie was over, we applauded them as pioneers today and passed out the chocolate chip cookies. They were happy.

We were so involved that we had forgotten to take pictures. We thought maybe we could get a couple shots before they left Friday morning. Pita had said they were leaving at 7 AM. We were planning to be there at 6:30. We got a call just before 6 AM that they would be leaving in 20 minutes. We threw clothes and got there in time to tell them “Goodbye,” and we were able to take a few pictures, too.

They were so appreciative of everything we had done. We said it was nothing compared to what they had been experiencing. We were just happy to help. We will always look back fondly on this experience. Our faith grows stronger as we witness the faith of others. We know the Lord will bless them, and we are excited to hear of their experiences with the Tongan temple.