View from window of MCG Hospital
August is Georgia's second largest city with an area population of around a half million. The area is a leading health care center of the Southeast. Augusta is home to the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Health Sciences University along with dental medicine and nursing. There are many large hospitals in Augusta and the surrounding area with a Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center at Fort Gordon. As we visit all the hospitals in Augusta we have been very impressed with how respectful, kind and helpful the employees and everyone treat clergy. We are always Sunday dress and wear our name tags and can be spotted a mile away. We are so grateful for the respect and kindness.
Sister Berry and Sister Lee (counselor in Relief Society, she is from Las Vegas from our Stake but we didn't know them until arriving in Augusta) We are waiting outside a room until the nurses finish so we can visit Katy.
Monday is usually preparation day but because Andrea's (recent convert) husband was in the hospital that's where we spent most of the day, with her family. Andrea's husband had been taken back to the hospital and was on life support and wasn't expected to live. After twelve hours the family could choose to remove life support and after much thought and prayer that was the family's plan. While we were at the hospital we visited the Nap family (non members). Brother Nap was sitting in a wheel chair when we walked in and we learned they would be transporting him back to the Eisenhower Army Medical Center within the hour so we were so happy we got to see them before his transfer. Brother Nap has been sick since the first of December and had been in and out of the hospital but no diagnosis had been made and was continually getting worse. The first of January he was hospitalized and wasn't expected to live. Elder and Sister Atkinson, the senior couple that served here when we arrived had become close friends with them and continued to communicate with them when they returned home last April. Elder Atkinson called and informed us of their condition and asked if we could give him a Priesthood blessing as that was the desire of Sister Nap. The branch president and Brother Gowans went to the hospital and gave him a blessing. In that blessing he was blessed that he would be transferred to a hospital so that he could be diagnosed and treated and gain his health. He was transferred to MCG Hospital and remained there for a week. We had a prayer with him and his family before we left and before he was transferred. No greater faith have we ever seen in a family and after the prayer there wasn't a dry eye. We know Heavenly Father is aware of all his children and loves us and blesses us. After leaving the Nap family we got a phone call that Katy who lives in a nursing home was in the emergency room of the same hospital and that Sister Lee was with her since she had no family in town so decided to wait until later to visit Katy since Sister Lee was with her. The remainder of the day was spent visiting sick members of the ward in their homes. Monday evening we returned to the hospital and visited with Andrea and her family. Andrea was at peace although her heart was breaking at loosing her husband of thirty some years. The family was a great comfort and support. We learned that Andrea's husband lived ten minutes after life support was removed. After leaving Andrea's family we visited Katy who was still in emergency room waiting to be put in a room. We had a wonderful visit, with Katy cheering us up. We love the time we spent with her, perfect ending to our day. We had witnessed the joy of healing, the peace and sadness of death, and received comfort from the sick.
Tuesday Zone Training Meeting with Zone Leaders conducting - they did a great job.
Sisters gave training on ways to better support sister missionaries since we are due to have thirty more sisters within the next few months.
Standing Accountable - During the meeting each district and companionship stand accountable.
Tuesday during training meeting we got a phone call informing us a sister who lives in St John Towers tripped and fell face down in her apartment and was taken to the emergency room. Just before the meeting was over we left to check on our sister but couldn't find her in the emergency room at MCG where we were told she had been taken. While we were there we also checked on Katy so we could come back and visit later but were told she had been checked out the night before. That didn't make sense because she was told they were going to admit her and run more test plus someone who was having a heart attack wouldn't be sent home. We found our sister at University Hospital and she had just received discharge orders. When we walked in the room she got so excited and told us over and over she knew we would come. Then she said she didn't have to worry anymore because now she knew how she was getting home. She looked terrible. She had a big knot on her forehead plus it was scraped up, her nose was all scraped up, and her eye had begun to turn black. X-rays were taken but no broken bones were found. We took one look at her and told her it looked like she had been in a bad fight and lost and we had a good laugh. Elder Berry and I drove her home and on the way got her prescription filled, walked her to her apartment and made sure she got there safely. We were concerned about Katy so drove to her nursing home and were told there she was still in the hospital. Sister Lee from the Relief Society called the hospital, tracked her down and gave us her room number. Katy was found.
Wednesday we drove Sister Crystal to the hospital for a procedure and stayed with her until the procedure was over, and the doctor reported to us. Sister Lee was at the hospital so she visited with Sister Crystal till she was taken away then we all went to visit Katy. Sister Crystal had to stay in the hospital for three hours so while she was sleeping and waiting for her time to be up Elder Berry and I had lunch and did missionary things. When we got back to the hospital Sister Crystal had just finished lunch and was anxious to leave. We drove her home and had just enough time to drive to Andrea's home and check on her, drive back to our apartment and grab our things and start picking up people for Book of Mormon Class.
Thursday we decided to take a preparation day since we didn't have one Monday. The plans were to drive to Redcliffe Plantation in Beach Island, South Carolina, about a thirty minute drive from Augusta. Of all the luck it was cloudy when we got up so decided to hurry and hopefully get ahead of the rain. No such luck before we left it was pouring but we decided to go anyway. Redcliffe is a 400 acre plantation and is now owned and operated by the park service. The plantation was used for agricultural experimentation of vineyards, orchards and special crops like indigo and sugar cane. The plantation gets its name from the red cliffs it is built on and the road leading to the plantation is red gravel. It is beautiful and we plan to return when it isn't raining and tour the inside of the house although Elder Berry got the umbrella and grabbed the camera and off he went in the pouring rain and got some pictures while I waited in the car.
Stable
Slave house
Friday Sister Lynch invited us for lunch at St John Towers. We had a delicious lunch and enjoyed visiting with her after her fall. By the time we saw her on Friday both eyes were black. Carol another sister that lives at the Towers joined us.We love Sister Lynch and wish we could take her home with us when we leave. She is always doing such kind and thoughtful things for us. She knows Elder Berry likes salmon so whenever the lunch room serves salmon she always calls and tells us she has something for Brother Berry so we go down and pick it up.
Saturday we had the opportunity to go the the Columbia temple. Sister Henri and Sister Owens rode with us. This was their second time to attend the temple. We loved visiting with these beautiful sisters as we traveled to and from. The day was beautiful and no rain.
To end the day Elder and Sister Gowans picked us up and we drove to Edgefield, South Carolina to dinner and to see a play. We had dinner at Chef Bob's. The play was a comedy by Neil Simon, The Odd Couple the female version, preformed by a local theatre group.What a wonderful day! President Holm is always telling the senior couples to have a weekly date night so we did this week.
Transfers are coming up Wednesday and Sunday we learned Elders Potts and Olsen will be leaving us. Our ward members will be driving them to transfers as the AP's called and asked for our help. Harlem is being white washed (Elders replacing sisters) don't know where the sisters will go but will find out Wednesday. We will go up and pick up the Elders assigned to Harlem along with their bikes. They will be biking Elders. Harlem is a very rural area with a ward.We are looking forward to Wednesday as we anticipate all the changes that will take place with the addition of more sister missionaries. We love all the Elders who have served in the Augusta District and we will miss Elders Olsen and Potts but are looking forward to Sunday dinner with our new Elders.
This has been a very difficult week for many of the members we have visited and hope that we may have made their days a little brighter as we serve them and assist them as they draw closer to Heavenly Father. We love being missionaries!
Love, Elder & Sister Berry
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