Baptized Nine People this Week- All of them Families

Elder Hunt was too busy working and traveling with President Farnes to write a letter this week.  He did send some photos with captions.

Grandpa!

A bit of that Cantareira favella action ;)

Vinicious, Vitor, Allan, and Ketlyn on their baptism day.

This is a family!

Natasha, Raquel, Kaique, Joaozinho,  and Paulo Henrique on their baptism day!!! 

This is also a family!

I am so happy that I can't put it into words seeing these wonderful families get baptized.  

Elder Hunt

Back to Brasilândia

Thursday-We did a division with the zone leaders of Barueri! I stayed in our area of Cantareira and Elder Rebouças went to Barueri. I stayed with Elder Felix, who I unfortunately didn’t get a picture of! But he is a very small Brasilian recent convert with a big personality! He is a great leader and missionary and I loved being able to work with him. I learned more about his life and how he is the only member of the church from his family and was baptized secretly only a little over a year before he left on his mission!  We found tons of new and marked a ton of dates!

Friday-Two friendly quick baptismal interviews for the sisters turned into six interviews and not a foot in our area the entire day, go figure lol. That night we ended the division with Elder Felix and Barueri.

Sao Paulo Temple

Saturday-We went to the temple to go watch a temple sealing of a family Elder Rebouças baptized earlier in his mission! IT WAS SO SPECIAL! It was my first time seeing a temple sealing! 

Elder Hunt in front of his Great Grandpa's former home when he served as the Area President over South America and was in charge of building the Sao Paulo Temple

And because we were close by, we stopped by the Sao Paulo West mission office, which was Grandpa Faust's old house. It was really funny, we talked to the Assistants from Sao Paulo West and they asked us for all our tips and everything they could to find out what we do to baptize so much in our mission. The numbers came out and officially Brasil Sao Paulo North is number 1 for baptisms in the entire country of Brasil!   

This quote about Grandpa is labeled as a "historical event" in the history of Brasil Sao Paqulo North

Also, Grandpa's house soon will be made a historical church and history site in the city of Sao Paulo, how cool!  We followed up with all our investigators for their baptisms the next day! 

Fernando and his family on their baptism day

Sunday-We baptized 5 people today! 4 sisters and a man named Fernando! It was super amazing! 

Monday-Picked up numbers, followed up with the zones, ate Chinese food with President and then had a meeting with him! President Farnes is AMAZING! From what was going on in the mission, it was decided that we would go to Brasilândia that night! So we did! (My first area)

Elder Hunt with Elder Medina and Elder Quero

Tuesday-We had an awesome zone training done BY THE MARVELOUS MEDINA AND QUERO my favorite Chileans -haha. We worked all day in Brasiliandia! It was so strange to be back! Great day!

Materials for their Zone Training

Wednesday-We woke up early and bought bus tickets to Sorocaba! We went to go help out Elder Galvao and Patterson in Barcelona, Sorocaba! Another great tiring day! 

This street is called 'Beautiful'

Thursday-We met up with President Farnes who was doing interviews in Sorocaba and he gave us a ride back home to the capital and we had another meeting on the drive home.

Elder Hunt was able to meet some of the members he baptized in his first area on a division this week.  

Elder Hunt with Kleber 

Elder Hunt with Carlos and Zilda from Brasilândia!

The Elders from Brasilândia

We most likely will be going on another division somewhere tomorrow. I’m super tired and have worn the same clothes since Monday. This new Assistant to the President responsibility is making me grow and learn a ton! I’ve never been happier! :) Amo vocês! 

Elder Hunt

      

Nordstrom-like Customer Service For Our Missionaries

Elder Hunt and his companion, Elder Reboucas 

Assistants to the Mission President

Wednesday-Last p day wasn't p day, haha. Life as an Assistant is even busier than that of an Zone Leader.

Cantareira

 We worked a ton in the mission office in the afternoon and then we worked in our area that night. 

Thursday- Our area Cantareira is unbeatable! Só favela! Our area is very big, but we have a solid area of favela that is not too far away from the church that I have already worked in on divisions in the past. Elder Rebouças and I are an unbeatable double! We both have 24 hour smiles and talk with EVERYONE, and even better we invite EVERYONE to be baptized! Everyone in the favela knows us as those who baptize and bring happiness into peoples lives. The favela we work in is pretty intense, but the drug lords respect us, so it’s all good. :)

Elder Hunt got to visit Hugo on a division in his Cashereihna, a young man who he baptized earlier this year.  

Friday-Our days are always filled with different projects, assignments, and responsibilities along with our usual work in the field. Rebouças and I have been finding an average of 10 new investigators per day, our phrase is "smile on your face, Book of Mormon in hand, and fire in your bones’ -it sounds way better in Portuguese! ;)

Wesley and Paulo Henrique

Saturday-We did a division to interview Wesley, a young man who we baptized on Sunday. We followed up with tons of people to bring them to church the next day. 

Something interesting about our situation was that we "opened" the area, meaning the two missionaries who were there before us both left, leaving no one in the area to know where things are or to have a teaching pool. But we came in hot, baptizing one in our first week, along with bringing 8 people to church with a baptismal date for this upcoming Sunday! 

Wesley on his baptism day

Sunday-Wesley was baptized! Rebouças and I bore our testimonies in sacrament meeting to give our ward a little life! Our ward is a very "old" ward if you catch my drift. I bore my testimony about Grandpa Faust's love for Brasil and afterwards everyone in the ward told a different story about how they knew Grandpa or how he set them apart, or did something that changed their lives; I always love hearing stories about things like that! :)

Monday-We picked up all the mission numbers and followed up with all the LZ's in the mission. We wrote the mission news article this week and then we worked in our area the rest of the day! Great day! 

Tuesday-We had district meeting along with a meeting with President. In this moment, our new mission vision and phrase is "Nordstrom" because Nordstrom will do ANYTHING to please their customers, pay any price or make any sacrifice. President instructed us that in our case, our missionaries are our customers and we need to do everything we can to gain their confidence and to raise their vision. They need to want to be obedient not because they are afraid of getting in trouble, but because they want to please God, also with fulfilling their role that we read in D&C 20:38-The duty of the elders, priests, teachers, deacons, and members of the church of Christ... and it is his calling to baptize!"

Wednesday-Today is our p day, even though we've been working quite a bit in the office, we just are using the computer a bit. We had a good lunch and at 6pm we'll being going to work in our area! 

Elder Hunt has a dog like this at home, except a little thinner :)

Also tomorrow, we'll be headed off to do a division with the zone leaders in Baureri; it will be great! I love Brasil and I love being a missionary!

Elder Hunt

AP and 42 Baptisms

From the Brasil Sao Paulo North Mission 

District Meeting

Tuesday- We had a district meeting and we gave a quick training about doing this with URGENCY, that these two years are not ours, but the Lord's, so we must push ourselves and give all we have ALL THE TIME! Especially because we had to baptize 6 more people by Wednesday night at midnight to break the mission record!

Baptism of Engrid

Wednesday- Today was one of the craziest days of my life; it was an amazing. It was one of those super rushed, stressful, make it or break it days, "Stress makes some men break, and others break records." 

Engrid on her baptism day

Engrid, cousin of the Baros family was baptized Wednesday afternoon, getting us to 36 baptisms. Right after, I ran to Carapicuíba and Vila Dirce to make something happen, interviewing and teaching and interviewing some more people who had been taught and had been to church before. One of these was 14-year-old Joaquim!

Elder Hunt's zone broke the mission record and baptized 42 people in the month of September

And at 8pm we had a big group baptism as a zone and we baptized 6 more people, breaking the mission record of 40 with 42!!!

Thursday- We went to President's house to celebrate breaking the record! We ate pizza and played ping-pong!

     

Ping Pong at the President's house

Friday- We found a bunch of news! Also one thing I forgot to mention was President sent us two other missionaries who we having some problems and needed some motivation, so they stayed and worked with us this week.

     

Waiting for the train with the crew

Saturday- Conference was amazing! 

     

Sunday- Conference was amazing part 2!  We got transfer calls Sunday afternoon and I was called to be assistant, I will be comps with Elder Rebouças, a Brasilian from Fortaleza! Our new area will be "Cantareira" which has some good favella. I will work in the office and do a lot of leadership stuff but will also be a normal missionary and be able to keep teaching the people which is what I truly love.That same night I had to go to the mission office, I packed in literally 20 minutes and we were off! 

Elder Hunt with his trainer, his first trainee, and President Farnes

Elders Hunt and Medina with President and Sister Farnes

Monday- Elder Medina (my trainer, or as we call it, ‘father’) who I am taking the place of as assistant showed me the ropes, teaching me about all the different responsibilities.

Tuesday- We woke up super early and went to President's house to give training to all the new missionaries who were arriving in the field. It was super fun! After we went to an all you can eat meat place. 

At an all you can eat meat place

Elder Hunt with Elder Medina, and his new companion, Elder Reboucas from Brasil

I then lead the transfer meeting and was asked by the President to give the same training to everyone that I had given the night before.  I was super nervous, but it was great! I am becoming a better public speaker.  After, we had some meetings and in the night we went to our area to work a little bit. Elder Farias, who was going home, went with us for one last night working as a missionary!

This has been a crazy last couple of days, but being called to serve as the Assistant to the President will be a great new responsibility for me. I’m super excited! Sorry for not the best email, I don’t have much time! My p-day is on Wednesday now.

Elder Hunt