Letter from Elder Barlow's Mission President about new mission change - June 27, 2024

 Dear Family Barlow 

 We feel deeply grateful for the service of your son who has been serving with us in the mission. With the creation of the new Santo Domingo North Mission, we have made some adjustments with the assignments of some missionaries.

We would like to inform you that your son will be part of the new Dominican Republic Santo Domingo Norte Mission starting July 1st.  This decision was made after fasting and prayer and receiving approval from the missionary department and area presidency. We know for sure your son will be a blessing to the new mission leaders and will have the opportunity to serve in different places and with new missionaries that will allow him to continue growing and learning in this new mission.

We know that this change may be unexpected, but we trust that your son is ready to be part of this wonderful story. Your son's new mission leaders are President and Sister Stroud who will be leading the mission. The address of the North mission office is Calle Manganagua #15 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. 

Missionaries are doing wonderful work, bringing the message of the restored gospel and making a difference in the lives of many people. Their dedicated sacrifice is a great blessing and we are sure that the Lord will reward them for their faithfulness and selfless service.

We will appreciate your support to continue strengthening him to continue serving with love in this wonderful work. Your prayers are always a source of strength.

Sister Hernandez and I feel so much love and gratitude for having served with Elder Barlow during this time. We will miss him, but we know that the Lord will bless him with opportunities for progress.

May the Lord bless you in your sacred efforts as you support your son through these changes.

With love,

President and Sister Hernandez

 

Weeks 70, 71, 72, and 73 - June 4, 2024

Another week or two down in the DR, and it's been going good.  I've really been starting to get a foothold in this area, and the weather's changing a bit, too.

First off, this past month has gone by real fast. The work has been a bit slow, but this past week we saw miracles and were able to find a lot.  I'm really happy to see the direction the work is starting to go in. 

As of June 1, we're now in "temporada ciclónica," so it's starting to rain a ton now.  I love the rain, not only is it a vibe but it also means no sun.   Aún así, it's still suffocatingly hot here, ya lo sabes. 

We're getting really close to the release date of the North Mission, and if you've been following along, I'm currently in an area that belongs to the new mission.  I still haven't got any confirmation if I'm going to the new mission, but I'm like 99% sure I will.  It'll be confirmed to me this Thursday, so I'm really excited to see where I'm going next.  Last Friday was transfers, and the whole mission was changed around a bunch to prepare for the new mission.  Elder areas became sister areas, and vice versa, some areas got split between two companionships, and a bunch of people moved.  Except us down in La Unión.  Me, Elder Funk, and the other companionship we live with, didn't change at all.  We felt as if we were in the eye of a huge storm that threw everyone around but didn't touch us.  Pretty crazy. 

The past couple weeks were a little rough, but I'm getting excited for the future, both for the progress of the area that I've been waiting for for months, as well as to see if I go north or stay west.  Lots of cool stuff is about to happen, I know it!  For now, that's all I got, should've sent this yesterday but it's OK. 

I must go -Elder Barlow