Wednesday, February 22, 2017 – Mission-Wide Training Meeting, Quincy Rescue, The Bowlers, Gomphrena Seedlings

Sis. Johnson is much better today after yesterday’s headache and laryngitis. She felt better yesterday evening and this morning woke up with her voice back; she was ready for our day of meetings and work.

Every Wednesday we attend a Mission-Wide training meeting with all of the other Senior Missionaries. Today’s meeting was a little different; we watched a documentary titled “Quincy: A Rescue Never to be Forgotten.” It was very good.

The 64-minute video details the exodus of the Mormons from Missouri during the winter of 1838-1839.  Missouri governor Lilburn W. Boggs signed the following “Extermination Order” evicting the Mormon settlers from the state on October 27, 1838: "The Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the state . . .”

The treatment of the Saints by the Missouri State militia was brutal and unrelenting. To hasten the Mormons’ departure, mobs attacked and continued to prey on the Saints, plundering, pillaging, raping, and burning as the harsh winter was already upon them.

The documentary featured local Quincy historians and LDS historians. They quoted from pioneer journals, letters, museum exhibits and historical documents to bring to life the humanitarian manner in which over 5000 Mormons were rescued by the residents of Quincy, Illinois, a town of only 1500.

 

An LDS historian described Quincy’s aid to the beleaguered Latter-day Saints as "a lasting example of benevolent people extending help to those in need…" President Gordon B. Hinckley commented: “In the annals of our Church, the city of Quincy and its citizens will always occupy a position of the highest esteem.” 

At work we had a full day of transplanting Gomphrena seedlings into 72 cell trays. Sis. Johnson and I have a system now that is fast and it works very well. It only takes us about an hour and a half to transplant a tray of 500 seedlings. 

While we transplanted Gomphrena seedlings, Richard was hard at work seeding more trays, lots and lots of trays.  It will be a challenge for Richard to find room for all the plants once everything is transplanted into “Pony Packs” or 4” pots.