9 de agosto -Sunday

We were happy to attend our first baptism last night since coming to the Tigre branch. Sister missionaries have been assigned to this branch for quite a few months now and they have good success. The baptism was suppose to start at 5:30, but it didn't get going until around 6:30. I think they were waiting for Brother Soler who was going to perform the ordinance.

I asked Sister Rodriguez last week if they were going to need me to play an opening song for the meeting. She didn't know. If the meeting was in the chapel, then it would seem strange not to have the piano. But if only a few people showed up, then they may fit in a classroom, and there would be no piano. As it turned out, we did meet in the chapel and after the baptism we reconvened there also to wait for the ones being baptized to get dressed. So I had to play five hymns- opening, closing, and three while waiting for the two sisters to get dressed. I tried to quickly find ones (Spanish titles) that I knew. Next time I will be prepared.

The two being baptized were Catalina Perez (in blue) and Karen Villava (child). Sister Cano and Sister Rodriguez taught them the gospel.

Rich sits on the stand with me by the piano each Sunday. We were surprised to see a little man and his daughter come in and sit down. This was the man we saw one night in San Fernando picking up cardboard with his horse drawn carriage. We had asked him if we could take his picture and he consented. Then in talking to him we found out that he was a member of the church and attended the branch in Tigre. He hadn't been coming regularly due to his wife that was ill. Rich invited him and he said he would try to make it. Well, he came and stayed for all three meetings. He asked where his picture was. Maybe that's the reason he came. But, it was still good to see him and we will try to get the picture copied this week. He said he would come back for it.

After church we were invited to dinner at the home of the Relief Society President, Sister Mary Carbajal. We went to her house by colectivo (bus). That was our first experience on a city bus. Her husband is Oscar and he has been on dialysis for five years. Poor man. He doesn't make it to church very often. In the yard leading to her front door, she has numerous plants. She has some of the largest geranium plants I have ever seen. They were waist high.

The baby is Sharon, her grandchild, who is a year old.

Her youngest son, Masci, who is 18 is the father of the baby. He is not married to the babies mother, and gets to have the baby on the weekends. The baby wanted no one other than her daddy. She wouldn't let go of him.

For dinner we had milenesa (breaded meat), empanadas, potato salad and some kind of a sausage type meat that was stuffed with eggs, cheese, peppers etc. It was like an appetizer. It was pretty good. Sister Carbajal is a happy, spirited person and we all had a good time.

We had to watch the time, because we had to be to the San Fernando church at 5:00 to attend the fireside for the missionaries that are leaving this week. This includes Sister Rodriguez because she is among that group.

One of our favorite missionaries is going home. Elder Whitmer, who was Elder Kroff's trainer, has finished honorably. He was in the office for one year so taught and converted many of the people in the San Fernando ward. At these firesides, the friends and converts of the missionaries are invited to come to tell them goodbye. Elder Whitmer had the largest group of anyone come out to support him. That is mainly because the people all live close, and this is the church they come to on Sundays. Converts of other missionaries who live in the outlying areas of Buenos Aires usually can't make it in and don't have a way to get here.

Many pictures are taken and some tears are shed by members who have become attached to the missionary that converted them. Elder Kroff went around and shot pictures of this group with their converts and is including them at the end of the DVD that he is making. So, after the fireside, he had to add them to the project and get the DVD ready to burn before he goes in for surgery tomorrow.

This is the group, minus one, that is going home this transfer. Elder Stucki, who doesn't come up from the South until tomorrow, was not present tonight. I felt bad that he wasn't in this photo. These are a great bunch of young missionaries.