Feb 26- Mar 4, 2023

 SUNDAY

It was our Ward Conference today. The Bishop, Martin Kleijweg, and our Stake President, Marvin Bijkerk both spoke in Sacrament meeting and gave us good counsel. Alja (our friend and RS President) had arranged for several people to bring soup and sandwiches for after meetings. The Stake is geographically large and the Stake visitors had an early start today. She is so thoughtful and aware of others in providing a nice meal for everyone.

After lunch was the baptism of Nomi Kleijweg, daughter of the Bishop. There were about 80 people, family and friends of the Kleijweg's, in attendance. It was a wonderful outpouring of support and love for them. 

The primary children and the Elders sang a lively version of The Wise Man and The Foolish Man

Elders Eldon McClure and Erik Palmer

Doug, Marcia, Nomi, Martin and Ilona Kleijweg

MONDAY

As we arrived home from the office about 17:45, Doug received a text from Jan Oostveen. They had spoken yesterday at church and Jan was asking for a priesthood blessing sometime this week. We didn't have anything planned for the evening, so we quickly ate some dinner and headed out to visit Jan and Franca in their home in Nieuwegen. After a short visit Doug gave both Jan and Franca a priesthood blessing. It was so good to be able to help in this way. Hopefully, they will feel some comfort in the days of uncertainty ahead.

TUESDAY

A little miracle today...Yesterday I paid all the invoices as I do on Mondays and Wednesdays. These are the only days payments are processed through Salt Lake, so in order to make it easier for President Watson to sign off, I limit the payment days to those two. One was a payment to the IND for a replacement card for Elder Wood. I should add here that I have never had to remind President to electronically sign anything during the past 14 months. And I know the IND does not issue refunds. It's just 'too bad' if you make a double payment.

But this morning, I got a text from Elder Wood that he had been to the IND to pick up his card and was hoping to be reimbursed the 142.00 euro fee. I thought we had just double-paid since I had issued the payment yesterday. But when I opened Missionary Portal and saw that there were payments waiting to be approved by President Watson, I quickly texted him and told him not to approve the payment to the IND. It really is a miracle that we were able to save that 142.00. Sometimes miracles are big and sometimes they are small. I have learned that mostly miracles come in small packages and we really need to seek to see them. The Lord is in the details of our lives!

This evening we went again to the WarmKamer initiative at the Rotterdam Stake Center. It is the last night scheduled. There was one man who has come often and Doug was able to talk with him for quite a while. I spent the time emailing parents of some of our missionaries. I love to send pictures to them and let them know how their son or daughter is impacting others. I know as a missionary parent, I would have loved it!

WEDNESDAY

The responses we get from the parents just make our day! They are so happy to see a picture and hear about their son/daughter. A sample of their return emails:

Johan van der Put

Hello! 

Echt bedankt/Thank you so much for your lovely email and photos of that precious son of ours! Your kind words mean the world to us and we are so grateful that Johan/E. van der Put got to serve with some of Heavenly Father’s choicest servants! 

Johan has mentioned his high regard of you to us. Thank you for being so kind and attentive. We, mission parents, are comforted knowing our sons and daughters are in such loving hands! 

We can’t wait to have him home! Time has flown by which has been a great blessing! Johan has always been the kindest, smartest kid! 

Enjoy the rest of your time on your mission! Mission couples make all the difference! 

Warmest regards, 

Róisín and Richard van der Put

Cooper Christensen

Dearest Sister Glauser,

All I can say (write) is that your email regarding our son highlights all the great work of Cooper’s mother, Ashley, and her parenting.

(:

Of our 5 kids, Cooper is the one who never complained.  Instead, he just put his head down and figured out how to get things done.  

It’s been the best experience, ever, to see him grow and adapt as a missionary — especially in a part of the world where people can be difficult to “reach”.  

Your note made my day.  Thank you, thank you, thank you for taking the time to write.  

All the best to YOU, and your family, for all your sacrifices.  You truly make the world a better place.  

Chad Christensen

PS:  how crazy is it to think that the kid in the Dole t-shirt would turn into the young man who was presenting at the zone conference.  The church MUST be true…

Hi! 

Thank you so much for taking the time to send such a kind note.  That was just so kind of you to think about us. 

Cooper has loved the mission and speaks often about all the great “ coolest” couples he gets to serve with. 

I know how much you couples sacrifice to be out there. Away from the comforts of home , family, grandkids. Also, not to mention WAY MORE aches and pains than the young ones. It can’t be easy. Much harder for you guys than for the kids. 

You have no idea the impact you have on the young missionaries. I still think about those couple missionaries from when I served and how much they taught me. How much comfort they brought me and their little words of wisdom I still remember 30 years later. 

So trust me when I tell you, You do so much good! 

May God bless you and your family for your service ❤️

Love, 

ac 

Megan Perry

Thank you so much! We love to hear and see everything about Meg❤️.  I can’t wait to hear her speak someday, we can tell she is growing spiritually each week. Thank you so much for all of your help with her prescriptions too. 

It means so much to us. Megan has felt surrounded by loving leaders. We hope you have a wonderful week!

Shelley & Jeff

Richard Hoopes

Thank you for such kindness. I'm at work reading this and tears are coming to my eyes 😀. It means so much that you would take a minute to let us know. I can't tell you how rewarding it is. Thank you!

Thank you so much for your beautiful email. And even more than that, thank you for loving and caring for our son. We are so grateful for your love, testimonies and examples to Elder Hoopes. He has mentioned you both many times, and we count you as some of our great blessings. Thank you for your service and love.

Brooke Hoopes

Adam Kujanpaa

Sister Glauser, thank you for this note and these pictures!  We are grateful for your generosity in sending.  We know our son is happy serving there with you all and we thank God every day for the blessing of him being in the Belgium Netherlands Missions!  We pray you and your husband will also be blessed for your amazing service❤

Love, Lorna Kujanpaa

Dear Elder and Sister Glauser:

Thank you both for your service in that great Belgium Netherlands Mission!

It brings us great joy to hear from you regarding our son. We are so grateful and happy that he can be in the Lord's full-time service at this time in his life. Elder Kujanpää is definitely loving his mission and we, our family, are also greatly blessed by and through his service.

Thank you for sharing these photos and giving us a glimpse of the recent Zone Conference.  It's also a blessing for Elder Kujanpää when he can use his piano skills from time to time.

Thank you and keep up that great work.

Love, Paul Kujanpää

Nichole Cullumber

Thank you so much, Sister and Elder Glauser! This makes my mom heart so happy! I know she just loves the two of you and I’ll never forget your Christmas service to her. What a blessing you are in our lives. Thanks, again.

Jenny Cullumber

Alex Holje

Hi Elder and Sister Glauser, this just made my day! Thanks for taking the time to share the pictures and kind words.  Makes us very proud to be his parents. 

Eric and Mandi Holje

Brigetta Broadbent

Dear Elder and Sister Glauser,

Thank you so much for the sweet words about our Zuster Broadbent and for the cute pictures!

We love her so much and are so excited for her to be serving the people of Belgium and the Netherlands!  We’re grateful she is serving with wonderful and kind people like you! 

Love, 

Sister Broadbent

Isaac Auger

Thank you so much for sending this picture.  It brought tears to my eyes.  We are missing him so much.  He has been away for so long. He loves serving in the Belgium/Netherlands mission.  It has definitely been life changing. 

Thank you so much for your service and we wish you many blessings for your time spent serving. 

Cynde Auger 

Gideon Ross

Thank you so much for all you do for our missionaries! And thanks for the picture! We’re so excited to see him! 

Best, 

Michelle and Mike Ross

Erik Palmer

Thank you for taking the time to reach out to us.  He likewise feels honored to serve with you and speaks of you often.

Bill and Donna Palmer

Adrian Blodgett

Hi Sister Glauser,

Thanks for the note; he is really talented.  I miss hearing him sing.  Thanks too for all the help you've given him.

Dan Blodgett

Amilya Wyss

Sister Glauser,

Thank you so much for your email and the picture.  When we talked to her early Tuesday morning (Monday night for us), she told us about that experience.  She said she hadn't felt totally prepared but was happy with the way it turned out and that it was a highlight of her week.  

It is so good to hear from others who serve with her.  We're pretty proud of her, and even though she hasn't had any baptisms, we can tell she works hard and is trying to make things happen in Spijkenisse.

May the Lord bless you and Elder Glauser.  Thank you for all you do in support of the missionaries.

Larene Wyss

Mason Zarges

Thank you so much for sharing! As you can imagine we are over the moon to have him home we have missed him dearly! Although I’m sad to see his time as a called missionary end. I know he love the Netherlands and all those he serves and serves with and it’s such a special time in life where he has drawn so close to the Lord. I know these have been the best two years for him and he will always treasure his mission. Thank you so much again.

Sincerely,

Aimee Zarges

One lucky mom

Hannah Hammer

Dear Sister Glauser,

 Thank you so much for the email! That made our whole day! We are so grateful for her and her service in the mission field. We look forward to coming to pick her up this month and her siblings are all counting down the days till she gets home. 

I know Hannah loves you and your husband so much and really looks up to you. Thank you so much for taking such good care of her and loving her for us!

Love, 

Mamie and James

Tyler Hanks

Thank you so much for your kind words Sister Glauser! We sure are glad to hear how well he is doing as a missionary. It's so nice to have this kind of feedback from other missionaries who are with him right now. I really miss hearing him play the organ. I'm so thankful he had been able to share his talent on his mission. We're looking forward to having him come home soon. His 5 sisters have big plans for him this summer! I know he has loved his time in Nederland! I wish you both all the best, and again, thank you for reaching out!

Regards,

Heidi Hanks

Kamryn Doyle

I love this. Thank you for sharing! 

And thank you for helping to care for our young missionaries. ❤️

Ranse Cottam

You made this this Mom smile and you filled my cup today. Thank you for taking a minute out of your busy schedule to write me and share this with me and Travis. It means so much to me as I am missing my Ranse. He is in great hands and surrounds by loving leaders like you. 

I love this picture  That boy loves the Lord and he loves the to serve. He will be a lifelong missionary.

With a grateful heart,

Ashley Cottam 

THURSDAY

Our regular dinner. Somehow it seems to grow every week 😂. We love having these missionaries in our home often!

Marcia, Kamryn Doyle, Elise Conlee, Emma Bair, Janessa Anderson

(back) Izaak Bevell, Eldon McClure, Doug, Atticus Snow, Tess Flake

Everyone was trying to capture the sunset as they were leaving our apartment. 

Emma Bair, Janessa Anderson, Doug

FRIDAY

Another miracle! A little background: Doug's Drivers License expires on his birthday in April. Many months ago, it became evident that he would need to get a Dutch license since the Belgium system wasn't working anymore. The young missionaries are able to be transferred to Belgium for a transfer or two in order to establish residency and get the license but that wouldn't work for us. So he studied hard and took the written exam and passed! (It is an extremely hard test to pass). Then he signed up with a driving school, a requirement here in order to schedule the behind-the-wheel test. After just one lesson, the instructor realized he was very experienced and scheduled the test. He first got word that it would happen in February. But a couple days later, got an email saying the test was now going to be on May 2. BUT his California license expires BEFORE that date and you must have a current license in order to exchange it.

So for months we have been trying to figure out how to do this. He has attempted to call, email, message the DMV but to no avail. We made plans to have him fly home for a day in order to get the fingerprints and eye exam they were requiring to renew the license. We have prayed continually and fasted many times. On Tuesday night, we called Mike G and asked him if he would go in to a DMV office and talk to a live person to try to find a solution. Today, Mike called back to say everything was arranged for a one-year extension for Doug's license. He had been able to contact someone, explain the situation and get an exception! After all these months of trying to contact the DMV, the problem has been solved!

We recognize the Lord's hand in these small and simple ways. It may seem small to everyone else, but to us it is another evidence that the Lord is in the details of our lives! We don't always get answers as quickly as we would like, but if we are patient we can see the blessings.

SATURDAY

A cold, but beautiful morning for our walk/bike ride. I am still amazed at the beauty of our little city and this country!

This afternoon we went to the Temple with the VandeWal's and Alja and Henk Schuur. The session was full and it was good to see so many familiar faces there. A couple weeks ago, Annie Jensen texted to see if we would be available to help with an English Endowment session today at 5:30. It was also well-attended with many asking if they could do this again next month.  They can always use headphones to hear the English, but all seemed to appreciate having the audio be in English. Most of the people are members of the Wassenaar Ward and have come from the US and only speak English. We are so happy to be able to serve in the temple here. 

Marcia, Doug, Gerrit and Norma VandeWal