Meet Elder Chiang

Meet Elder Chiang, a convert from Taiwan. He is a student worker
in my office and just got called to the Honolulu Mission. Due to some health
challenges, he will serve a few months there and if all goes well, will
be reassigned to another mission after going to the MTC.

Because of visa issues Jerry Chiang couldn't return home before he left for his mission.
Thanks to a generous donation from some dear friends and Bill's sister and husband, we took
Jerry shopping to get him outfitted.  My friend Karla was kind enough to give a second
opinion and hem up multiple pairs of pants. Jerry is so enthusiastic 
and outgoing and will make a great missionary.

For a P-Day we explored the area above Shark's Cove called Pupukea.
The ruins of an ancient heiau or temple sits atop one of the first mountains. 

The temple was huge with a 20 foot tower in the back. There were
several levels to the temple area.

Here is the view of Waimea Beach from the temple site. If you look
closely you can see a swimming competition in the ocean below.




Next up we hop on our bikes just adjacent to a Scout Camp
at the end of the road.

Our bike ride consisted of washed out roads,

steep switchbacks

dirt with lush tropical areas

and great views. I think we earned a stop at Ted's Bakery
for a chocolate croissant (me) and an eclair (Bill).

Group P-Day Hike

Yesterday on our P-Day we joined some other senior missionaries
for the Pu'u Ma'elieli Digging Trail Hike.

It was very wooded and lush with vegetation. Lots of
roots to hike over.

Here is the whole group on top of the pillbox.
The digging trail area was used by over 4,500 troops
during WWII for training exercises.

We were rewarded with a fine view of Kaneohe and Kailua.

We are always stunned by the beauty of this place.

A Second Graduation

Here is Venus from our student ward at her graduation. It was raining,
but that didn't dampen the spirit of the occasion. Her mom came from
Taiwan for the happy event.

This is Liahona and his wife who just graduated. You can see
that the Samoans go all out. Liahona worked in the
Career Center with me.

Here is another of our employees Young Che. She is Korean and these
are her cute parents. Keni Kelama, her supervisor is in the back with another
Korean employee named Park. Young Che is a hard worker and
quick study. She just got hired by FamilySearch in Salt Lake City
to do a 6 month internship. She is fluent in English and needs a place to stay.
If any friends or neighbors are willing to give her a room for a few months
it would be so helpful. 

While I have been busy with the students, Bill is nearly done with
his first round of faculty duplexes. They are very nice and cool
besides with the fans in the attic and windows throughout the home
designed to take full advantage of the prevailing trade winds for
ventilation. Few homes here are conditioned. Two down and 4 more
to open soon. Six more duplexes are in the planning stages. 

Memorial Day

Elder and Sister Dunham invited us to visit Punchbowl Cemetery
and then go to the lantern ceremony in Honolulu. 

There was a flag and a lei on each of the graves
 placed  there by scout troops.

 The Punch Bowl is in a beautiful location and is a military cemetery.

We then went to the lantern ceremony on Ala Moana Beach.  The
lanterns were free and people would write messages to their loved ones
on the sides before launching them in the ocean at dusk.

There were over 50,000 people there and thousands of lanterns were
launched. Boats out in the ocean eventually
picked them up.

It was a breathtaking sight. Here is the video.

We were surprised to get a text from our nephew Mark Owens
that he was speaking to some students in a few minutes at the
school. Fortunately, it was a few minutes walk for us. We were
pleased to listen to him talk to the students about his career and
show them some of his amazing photos. They were impressed.

Saturday we did our favorite 22 mile bike ride along the beach and stopped
by the Ocean Fest at Turtle Bay for an acaia bowl.