TO THE MTC (MISSIONARY TRAINING CENTER) FEBRUARY 11, 2009

In the morning he said good bye to his cousin Vijay...

... and to his Uncle Howard...

And they're off!! Driving to Provo, UT where the MTC (Missionary Training Center) is located. Brrrr! Doesn't it looks cold!? :)

Good thing he has this nice warm jacket! :)

They stopped for breakfast at IHOP. Notice the two families in the background are missionary families as well!

In front of the Provo Temple. Do you think he is tired of having his picture taken?? :) He is probably cold!! How is this Arizona boy going to survive this cold weather!!?

Here is where you drop off your luggage when you get to the MTC...

Saying good-bye again to Uncle Dan and cousins Michael and Jamon...

Inside of the MTC... Jeremy just recieved his Elder Lunt missionary badge. The orange dot at the bottom right of his badge is called the "dummy dot" by the missionaries. They give all new missionaries this sticker so that people know to help them if they seem lost. Jeremy said he was going to take his "dummy dot" off!!

Saying good-bye to Mom and Dad...

Here is what Mom wrote about the trip up to the MTC...

We left Saturday the 7^th of Feb. so that Jeremy could see relatives along the way. We didn’t get away until about 11:30am, as Nathan and his fiancé and Marvin and his fiancé wanted to come by to say goodbye.

The weather was good, so it was decided that we would go through Flagstaff, and then up over Jacobs Lake. The pictures are in the canyon before we got to Jacobs lake. I was worried it would be snowing, but as you can see from the pictures it was a nice day.

Rod had not been feeling well for the past few days, but on Saturday he said he was feeling much better. He had been running a high fever, and having chills, and so just after we passed through Colorado City, when he started to shake, I was worried. It took some convincing to get him to pull over and let me drive. His head was hot to the touch. As soon as we got to St. George, his mom and I worked on convincing him to go to Insta-Care. Jeremy wasn’t looking well either, so I touched his head, and he too had a fever.

Off to the Insta-Care we went. Rod’s was 102, and Jeremy’s was 101. Both were put on meds, and told we could safely continue the trip without fear of infecting anyone else.

On Sunday after church Jeremy told his grandmother goodbye, and off we went. I was going to drive to give Rod a break, but we got to the Black Ridge, and it started snowing, and I was afraid to drive in the snow. Luckily that was the worst of it. We arrived at Rod’s brother Dan’s home in time for Dan’s birthday party. Nice we invited ourselves huh?

Monday morning we went on to Salt Lake. It had been arranged for us to go the Draper Temple for a tour. It is such a beautiful temple and a peaceful visit. They started the tour at a church house about a five min. drive from the temple. We rode a shuttle bus to the temple. Because of the snowy cold weather, the walk way was cover like a tent walkway. It was also heated. Very nice. After what felt like a long walk, we finally entered the main doors of the temple. It was a nice tour. We saw the baptismal font, the dressing rooms, the ordinance rooms, the celestial room and the sealing rooms. It was an awesome experience. I took a picture of Jeremy in the walkway to the Stake Center by the temple, and also at one of the displays in the Stake Center.

Tuesday was a rest and recover day. Jeremy went to the place that Vijay is serving a service mission in Provo. That night he came to Howard’s to spend the night.

Wednesday we got ready for the trip to the MTC. We drove to Provo then stopped for breakfast. Jeremy picked the IHOP. When we went in there was a new missionary and his parents leaving. Their check in at the MTC was at 11:30am. Elder Chase is going to the Utah Ogden mission too. Inside we saw at least 5 other new missionaries and there families. The IHOP gives eight dollars off on the missionary’s “last meal”.

We drove up by the Provo temple, where I took another picture of Jeremy. He was getting tired of getting his picture taken. Uncle Dan brought his boys Michael and Jamon one last time to see Jeremy off, then into the MTC. They have it all down to a science, getting the missionary’s luggage dropped off, and getting the missionaries and their families in for orientation.

Jeremy was given his badge, and we took one last picture, then no more pictures were allowed.

Here were the rules:

1. Missionary service begins today. Please do not arrange or request visits with your missionary, particularly “unanticipated” meetings at the temple.

2. All missionary mail must come through the US Mail or commercial deliver services. Hand delivered items will NOT be accepted. Do not send pizzas, fast foods, items needing refrigeration or anything that is perishable.

3. Communicate with your missionary through a weekly letter. Telephone calls for missionary cannot be accepted.

4. Families and friends should not plan to visit departing missionaries at the airport. Farewells should be said at home before the missionary departs for the MTC.

I am sure someone tried all of the above, or they wouldn’t be there as rules. They also said that, “Notes written on the sidewalk with chalk was not acceptable”. Someone tried that too?

Goodbye was hard. We made it quick, and we went out one side, and he went out the other. The hardest part was seeing Jeremy’s empty room when we got home, and knowing he wouldn’t use it again for two years.

Bye, Elder Lunt!!! See you in two years!! We look forward to hearing about your mission through your letters, emails and pictures!!!