The Journey Begins

Leaving Benicia

On August 5th we said goodbye to Benicia and to Michael.  Mark and Barbara Thomas took us and our six pieces of luggage to the Oakland Airport.  What a great service by them.  They took their son's truck and we loaded the luggage into its bed.  Our Ford Escape couldn't handle the load.  They helped us schlep the bags to check-in and then we said goodbye to them before security.  Thank you Mark and Barbara for willing to do some heavy lifting to get us on our way!

Six pieces of luggage - Friday night before we left

Packing started...

Reuniting With Long-Time Friends

We then flew to Salt Lake City where our good friends Van and Elizabeth Gessel picked us and our six pieces of luggage up at the airport. They were generous in their hospitality.  Elizabeth is a wonderful cook and Van is a great sous chef and dishwasher.  We reminisced, talked about family, laughed and cried.  They did a really good job in preparing us for going on our mission and what to expect.  We introduced them to a new TV show from England - "Midsomer Murders" which is a favorite of ours and they really enjoyed it.  You can find it on Netflix by the way.  On Monday morning they took us (and our six pieces of luggage) to the Provo Missionary Training Center (MTC) and dropped us off at 10:30 am.  Thank you Van and Elizabeth for a memorable week end and for your enduring friendship and love.

Van Gessel waiting with us and our six pieces of luggage at curb side...SLC International Airport  for Elizabeth and the van (no pun intended).

Key Lime Pie courtesy of Elizabeth Gessel