Joining the Battalion

We got our mission call on Thursday, Oct 17.  We thought it was going to come on Wednesday, but we forgot about no mail on Columbus Day.   Finally, our big white envelope arrived.
 

 Inside was a letter for each of us.  Luckily, we are going to the same place!  The California, San Diego Mission.

We were so happy to see we are going there.  We adore San Diego.  We went there on our honeymoon and go back as often as we can.  Our primary assignment will be at the Mormon Battalion Historic Site as visitor's center missionaries.  We had just been there last July with Genna and Jeff.  It was re-done about 3 years ago and now it is interactive and very nice.  We had a picture taken at the end of the tour and one of the kids did get a gold nugget while panning for gold in back.  Or maybe it was a tiny rock painted gold.  But there are good things happening there.

Also in our call envelope was a booklet with all kinds of information for our mission.

         It included who our Mission President will be, a to-do list for before we report to the MTC, what to bring with us to the MTC, guidelines for dress and grooming, a list of about a million immunizations, and a form for each of us to write our acceptance.  On Sunday we gave those to the Bishop to endorse and send along. We're in.                      
                                                                     

 

    

Craig posted the news on Facebook and many people responded.  I sent out some emails.  My cousin Becky has a friend serving in the same mission.  She and her husband do work at the Battalion, although it isn't their primary assignment.  Becky got us in touch with each other and Sister Goering has been a wealth of information and is a lot of fun.  We can't wait to meet the Goerings in person.  She did confirm that we WILL be wearing period clothing.  Enough said about that.

Mormon Battalion Facebook page

In the meantime we have met several people who have worked in the San Diego mission and it is nice to get some insight and tips.  One man, who served with his wife until last March, told us when we tell people we will be serving there, or have served there, no one will feel sorry for us.  Who wouldn't want to go to San Diego? 

Did you know the Mormon Battalion was the only religiously based unit in the United States military history, and it served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American War.  The battalion was a volunteer unit of between 534 and 559 Latter-day Saints men led by Mormon company officers, commanded by regular US army officers.  During its service, the battalion made a grueling march nearly 2,000 miles long from Council Bluff, Iowa, to San Diego.  Thanks to Wikipedia, now you do.