Elana's Return

We have a date now for Elana's return home. She will arriving in Utah on December 16, 2010. We will have a homecoming for her on December 18th. It will probably be at our home. We will post a time later on. YEAH!!! What a great Christmas present!!!

Sunday, August 22, 2010


Dear Mom and Dad,

We don’t have any investigators in church this morning, hence I am able to write a few words that I will pass to the computer tomorrow. I am grateful to be here and to be a force for good in my new area, Las Rosas. Except for the fact that the speaker is talking in Spanish, you might think that we were in the U.S. Out in front of me I see over 150 members, all of which are well kept and clean. In fact, there are only 2 people in Corte (the native dress). Many women come in high heels and makeup. Clean and shinny.
The ward building is perhaps, 3 times the size of my singles ward in Orem...and yet, the members are dead as far as the missionary work goes. That’s ok, we just have a lot of work to do. There are even real flowers at the pulpit.
My new companion, Hna Forsyth, has heard ¨ a lot of good things about me¨. That´s good, makes me want to live up to whatever she has heard. The truth is, it has been difficult to work every day, like I did before. I am diligent never the less, and I will work until the end.
This is the work of the Lord. This is His church. And it is my privilege to bring these glad tidings of great joy unto others. What a sacred call.

Hermana's McGaughy, Finch, et al

Drop Box

Report from Mission Office in SLC

Hi Friends and Family, I have received calls asking about the conditions in Guatemala. It is as if it is under siege from mother nature! First the volcano eruption, then a tropical storm, and as of yesterday an earthquake. I look at bbc.com as they seem to have the best coverage. Anyway, I called the mission office this morning and the last message they got from Guatemala was that all missionary's and member's have been accounted for. Church buildings are being used as shelters and treatment centers. This report was made before the earthquake. Maybe I should stop praying so much that the hearts of the people be softened toward the message from the missionary's. Ha! We were online with Elana on Monday, May 31, and she mentioned mud slides blocking the road but did not answer other questions. She is not in Guatemala City..that is a very good thing. Keep that country and the missionary's in your prayers. Ellen

Although Elana has changed locations the address is the same as you see here on her blog.
She would really like to hear from you with a real letter and pictures are always a treat.
Thank you all for supporting Elana and praying for her success.

Elana has moved!

So i wrote a 5 page letter about my new area and companion and everything. I´m hoping to get it out this morning but not sure if I´ll have the opportunity. We are headed to Xela to do some shopping since there are no stores here that have everything. I LOVE my new area. Im in San Fransisco de Alto which is part of the Momostenango stake. Look up pictures if you can, its beautiful! I´m finally out of the city and in the mountains! Our area stretches for hours on foot in all directions and is mostly made up of small mud houses, the people dont know how to read or write. Many walk an hour to church on Sunday. My companion is Hna Solares from the capital of Guatemala. She has just 3 months in the mission and is wonderful. We are opening an area, which means we are starting from scratch. Hna Rodriguez was here about 5 months ago and it is soo great to meet some of her converts. The members are amazing and I quickly felt at home. It was my dream to come here. San Fransisco is the most urbanized of the area in Momostenango. Many of the Elders have to walk 2 hours to their house, or they have like 3 places to stay because their areas are so large and cover various branches. The areas are pure mountains. I´m finally getting my exercise, maybe I´ll lose a little weight hahah. Anyway my companion reminds me a little of Nina in her mannerisms and it makes me feel even happier. I love it!!!!

New news from Elana

Not very many missionaries have the opportunity to hear form a member of the twelve apostles during their mission. this past saturday however, we had the opportunity to hear from Elder Anderson and Elder Clark and Elder Clayton. i think the last two are from the quorum of the 70. it was a really wonderful experience. did you know that Elder Anderson was a stake president in Tampa Florida in like 1992 or a date close to it?! cool huh? we all got to pass by and shake his hand, when i told him i was from Sarasota Florida he was like, "Oh really?" the world can seem so small sometimes. this thursday he will united with President Monson to report on how his visit to the Quetzaltenango mission went. i was actually surprised at the message that he shared with us. he spoke more about our life after the mission than what we should do in the mission. "thank you for the baptisms", he said. "but what we really need is more young men to go on missions, more returned missionaries to stay in the church, more education in the wards, more youth activities, your labor, your work is a lot bigger than just to baptize, it is to uplift the Saints". then he asked, "how many of you can name the Bishops children by name? and all the children in the primary? and all of the young men that will be leaving on missions soon? and the most recent returned missionaries?" Elder Anderson speaks french (due to his mission there) and later returned there as a Mission President. He also spent 3 years on church related business in Brazil and hence speaks Portuguez, but his Spanish is a little rough and most of the time he used a translator. Next, he spoke while to those "South of Mexico" and later to those "North of Mexico". he was very blunt in what he said. To the latins he stated that their opportunities for education are not as great and hence they needed to work harder. the Perpetual Education Fund was created by Gordon B Hinckley especially for you, returned missionaries. take advantage of it", he said. it was really cool to hear him say that. i have encouraged all of my companions to go to BYU and study. i just know that it would be a great experience for them. i know it is not for everyone and i doubt that my current companion will go. but it is such a wonderful program. then he spoke to us gringos. "Many returned missionaries lose their way, make a list right now of the habits you have created in your mission, and if in one year after you get home you are still completing them, then you have been a successful missionary. make a list of what you want out of your life! too many young men get home from the mission and return to video games...use this time to change and stay that way." i really enjoyed his message. we have now heard that the new Mission President is a friend of Pres Lorenzana and is also from Honduras. im sure he´s happy about that. the new mission will be up and running in May. Crazy fast. we should be having interviews this week, so i will mention the 12 step program, i know that there is AA here, but a church focused program would be really wonderful. this past Saturday, Esdry was baptized. dispite the opposition from her family, she has progressed so much and it was a wonderful experience to be her teacher and friend. we dyed her hair (which was red) in preparation for the baptism and it looks so much better now. we are going to teach her older and married sister the first lesson this week, so im pretty excited. as for other investigators, we pretty much dont have anything, so we continue searching. we are working a lot with the Bishopbrick to get the members animated and i gave a talk yesterday about missionary work. its interesting how much less nervous i am talking in front of people, but i still have a lot of growing space. i am constantly grateful for the gospel in my life. i find myself waking up extra early just so that i will have more time to study the scriptures. i got my hands on the complete set of study manuals and i am learning sooo much more. i also hope that my Spanish is improving. i am seriously considering going to a Spanish ward when i get home. thank you for all your support. send my love to everyone. Elana

Letter from Hermana McGaughy Jan 8 2010

"A MISSION DIVIDED!!!!!! Wow, so this week we had an emergency conference for the whole mission. The only time they usually have a conference with the entire mission is at Christmas because the mission is huge and extends all the way to the coast...making the Elders have to travel like 6 or more hours. Right now there are no Hermana's in the coast. Anyway, with tears in his eyes, President told us that they are going to divide the mission in June of this year. Mission Quetzaltenango is one of only four missions in the world that will be divided!!! The new mission is mostly the coast and will be called Mission Retalhueu. The chances of me being sent to a new mission with the new mission President are exrememly slim. Im like 99 percent sure I wont be changing. Except for the heat it would be awesome. But, the heat would kill me for sure!!!! Basically we will have one last conference in May in the which the President will announce who goes and who stays. I really have a testimony that he receives revelation and will feel who is meant to go and who is meant to stay. In these upcoming changes there will be a record number of both Elders and Hermanas coming to our mission. All should be really exciting!"

Elana with the Mission President and Sister Missionaries

Hermana McGaughy, Pres. Lorenzana, Her. Healey & Her. Mella

January 25, 2010 from Hermana McGaughy...

ok, so let me fill you in on this week. im still in the same area, living with 4. this change is so much more peaceful. both hna rodriguez and i are training new companions and we all get along so well. her companion is hna Castaneda from the capital and mine is hna Godoy from El Salvador. let me tell you a little bit about her. if there were two words to describe her it would be sweet and humble. she brings a gentle, peaceful spirit into the lessons and our home. if you dont remember, my trainer, hna mejia, was also from El Salvador but a different stake. my companion remembers seeing her once years ago at a single adult activity. many of her habits and mannerisms are similar...which is a good thing!! she loves veggies and we usually eat veggie soup for breakfast. she also loves chile...i've become quite famous in our area for the ¨gringo that likes chile... lol.
when i say she is humble i mean in every sense of the word. this morning i am teaching her how to use a computer...she lives with her one sister, mom, grandmother, aunt and uncle and another aunt and cousin. she is a convert of just 3 years and has a powerful testimony of the gospel. she lives in the campo...farming and harvesting. for many years she worked in a factory sowing clothes. she says that about 3000 people worked there and they were paid 5 dollars a day. crazy huh? although im sure money goes a lot further there.
she was born during the war which lasted about a year in El Salvador. many men died, including hna Mejias dad...whos body they never found. hna godoys dad abandoned the family when she was just 2 years old but she has a desire to know him someday. he is actually from Guatemala and a sister in the ward is going to help her track him down. her real love is being in the outdoors and farming etc. she knows how to grow like every kind of plant. her and bethany would get along.
her house in small and humble, for many days during the summer there is not enough water so they store it up in large barrels. the bathroom is also outside of the house and there is no shower. i think the CCM was her first time using a real shower. in her home they would heat up water but she always showered with clothes on. imagine her life.
besides all of that, she has such a great attitude. the church is helping her sister get an education in nursing and she wants to study as well when she gets home. she also loves English so im teaching her a little bit.
it is truly a privilege to be her companion.
but i was realizing the other day....out of the 5 companions that i've had. only one had a family happily together with both a mom and a dad. crazy.
well ill write a little more later. love you

January 18, 2010

January 18, 2010
Here is the latest from Elana in “sunny Guatemala”. Keep in mind that she is thinking in Spanish so sometimes we get a mix of Spanish and English.

So this week was incredibly. we had 4 baptisms and we have another one this Saturday. Yesterday, the familia Ordonez Amaya was married and baptised in the ward building. wow the Spirit was sooo strong. i invited President Lorenzana to come and he gave a brief talk on matrimonio. i even got to sign as a witness. they are such an amazing couple. Lorena has 4 children from 2 previous unions, but Sergio has taken them all in as his own. yesterday was just the beginning of an amazing life that they are going to have together. but wow is it stressful planning a wedding and a baptism, even a simple one like this. we made the cake for 100 people, put together 100 plates of tomales and enchilladas, decorated the whole chapel, did her hair and makeup (me), took pictures, arranged the agendas and smiled during it all. Sergio, Lorena and the oldest daughter, Alejandra, were all baptised by Presidente Nefi who is just sooo amazing. he was crying during the ordinance because the Spirit was sooo strong. In just one year, in March, when the temple of Xela opens, Hna Rodriguez and i will get to attend their sealing. i just have soo much respect for this family. it is not easy changing generations of family traditions for a new religion and a new way of life. i have so much respect for men like Sergio who are willing to change and care for 4 children that were not his. the day before the intravista we had to repasar las mandamientos, and i was a little nervous that the ley de diezmo was going to be a little difficult for them to except...but like everything else this family is so willing to keep all of Gods commandments so that they can have an eternal family. God blesses us sooo abundantamente when we keep His commandments. and that is a promise. i have seen it over and over again. i used to wonder why the church leaders are usually so blessed. even here, the Bishop is a lot more well to do than most members...but i am beginning to understand that they blessings promised in the BOM are still in effect: ¨if we obey the commandments, we will prosper in the land¨.

Here is a letter from Elana's mission President and his wife original and translation.

Looks like she is being the missionary we knew she could be! she is really making an impact in peoples lives!!... Here is the translation... feel free to pass it along to anyone that wants an outsiders opinion of how great Sister McGaught is doing:

Esteemed Brother and Sister McGaughy:

I want to thank you for sending your daughter on a mission. She is one of our best missionaries and now she is going to train a new comanion. Your daughter loves this work and she is working hard to bless the lives of others. She is able to do this because you have taught her well the gospel and now she is growing even more in it. Know that we as a family, watch out for and care for her in her mission and if she needs anything she can count on us.

We send our love and thanks,

Dario y Gloria Lorenzana

Estimados Hnos. Mcgaughy:

Quiero agradecerles por enviar a su hija a la mision, ella es una de nuestras mejores misioneras y ahora ella va a entrenar a una nueva compañera. Su hija ama a esta obra y esta trabajando duro en bendecir la vida de los demas, y eso lo a logrado porque ustedes le han enseñado bien el evangelio y ella esta creciendo. Sepan que nosotros como familia la estamos ciudando en su mision y si ella necesita cualquier cosa nosotros le atenderemos.

Nos despedimos con mucho cariño,

Dario y Gloria Lorenzana

Mision Quetzaltenango

some quotes from a email from Hermana McGaughy...January 4, 2010

Hey everyone!
So I got another package from the Santo family and your letter. Thank you all!!!
I do have a few things to add to what I need. There is a journal I would like. I think they sell it at Deseret Book. Its about 8 inches high and says missionary journal on the front with a small world underneath. it has a place in the beginning to put lots of misson dates etc . Ive been inspired to write more lately and I dont have much space left in the small journal I brought.
hahah hna rodriguez told me the funniest thing----theres a vegitarian club at BYU.
I was joking that i should join it ...lol.