WIM James Messenger

We met the Messengers while in Granada, who are attending medical school there.  Brother Messenger graduated with Nate from Timpview High School.  And his little brother, Mark Messenger, is good friends with Brad and Jessie.  It was great to get to know them and to meet their precious children.  Their oldest, James (the little boy in these videos) will be approximately 10 when they finish their schooling.  Since Parker is almost 10 and Todd is now starting his new MD postition, we were able to reassure them that their hard efforts will all be worth it!  Our love and prayers are with them in their grand adventure!

James reminds me so much of Ben at his age - always ready to share a story from the scriptures...  complete with amazing gestures and expressions!  In the second story he calls the prophet a king, but other than that he's got it all figured out (with a little help from Dad)!  Don't you love it?  :)

WIM - Goodbye Gamiettes

Hello friends,

This month started off with a surprise birthday party for Elder Lindorf.  I was trying to keep it low key but mission moms have a secret calendar.  I must be special though, because not everyone gets cake at the mission home for their birthday.


Sister Lindorf is the real reason I got a cake.  She's been teaching the Gamiette children voice, piano, and guitar lessons weekly for the past several months.  They go home to Guadeloupe in two weeks when their dad, our Mission President, will be released.  We have grown to love this exemplary family and will miss them dearly!

Singing Happy Birthday with Terry!

I think Jenny is missing a few candles if this cake is for me!

I may be 62 but I can still jump over a broom handle backwards.  Can you?

Terry is the singer - studying lyrics

Tom is a beginner at the piano but learning

Amy is the youngest and extremely precocious.

Both of the older girls are preparing to go to BYU in January.  The first to leave the nest....

Cora Lee aka "Coco" is an accomplished pianist

Jenny plays guitar with Sister Lindorf accompanying on the piano

We will miss this wonderful family but look forward to new experiences with President and Sister Mehr at the helm beginning in July.

Last week we moved into a larger apartment.  It's much more spacious and light than our old place downstairs, with plenty of room for our office.  We even have a futon for the occasional guest.

Where's Waldo?

This little guy is the Bishop's son.  He's taken a real liking to Elder Lindorf who misses 17 grandchildren everyday.

Our tiny Couva ward is still home base whenever we're in town.

The school year is wrapping up and plans are in the works for Seminary and Institute graduations.  We will be attending several over the next two months.  Next week we go to Grenada for the first one.


We wish you the Lord's choicest blessings and success in all you do.  We are happy in His service.


Elder Lindorf

WIM - Les Crêpes, Les Bagettes, et Euros

Hello Friends,

This past week we had the opportunity to visit "France in the Caribbean": the beautiful island of Guadeloupe.  This is the "island hopper" aircraft we're boarding.  On the way there, we stopped at St. Lucia and Martinique.  On the way back we stopped at Dominica and Barbados.  Direct flights don't happen here!  When we landed in Martinique, we had to get off the plane, go through immigration (even though we never left the airport), and then get back on the very same plane in the same seats!

We're getting on that?

One of the pirate ships used by Captain Jack Sparrow, currently moored in St Lucia

We spent a good part of our travel day in St. Lucia and did some training with the Seminary & Institute teachers there.  There are two branches of the church here, one on each end of the island.

Guadeloupe is called the butterfly island because it's actually two islands smooshed together.  That's not easy to capture in pictures so I've included an arial view.

Here are the Bennions.  I wanted you to see how easy it is to be happy when you're a Senior Missionary!  Behind them is the rain forest of Basse Terre (lower island).

We visited a river and waterfall in the rain forest.  Since I take most of the pictures, you get to see a lot of Sister Lindorf.  She's the star of the show but if you look closely you'll see me by the waterfall.

One of the most interesting dynamics of this visit was that everything was in French.  I was able to understand and communicate better than I thought I would after 40 years!  (France, Paris Mission 1969-1971).  This is one of our French speaking Seminary classes with our S&I coordinator, Hector Alvarez in the background.  His native language is Spanish.  He also speaks English (as a second language) and a tiny bit of French.

Pretty in Pink

If you've never played Crows & Cranes then you won't understand what's going on here!

This is not a post card.  We really did have the pool to ourselves.

Where's Waldo?

Can you find the iguana in this picture?

Sarah, on the right, is our S&I secretary for the Mission.  She also teaches this Seminary class once each week.

It was amazing to be able to go to the boulangerie and buy real french bread and pay in Euros.  Guadeloupe is not independent like many of the other islands.  It actually IS part of France, so its culture is very different from Trinidad and other Caribbean islands.  

We are happy to be serving in this part of the Lord's vineyard.  Everyone we meet is very friendly (even the French)!  Our Seminary students are gaining a love for the scriptures and a love for the Lord as a result.  We are truly blessed!  

If you or someone you know would like to volunteer to come to the West Indies Mission, we could use twice the number of couples that we have now.  Until next time.....

Elder Lindorf

WIM - Two Wonderful Weekends

Dearest Ones...

We had Seminary and Mission business that took us to the lush island of Tobago two times over the past month!  Tough duty, I know!

We stayed in a little hideaway that was delightful.  It was well worth the hike to get UP to our little studio, to have such a beautiful view of the ocean from our balcony.  Since a lot of our work is simply administering from our laptops, we spent a good portion of our time working from our gorgeous precipice.

We had inservice training for our seminary teachers one weekend and teacher training on the next visit.  We no longer have a senior couple on this island (there just aren't enough seniors to go around), so we try to give as much support to the Branch as we can.  We love these dear Branch members and it is only a 20 minute flight from Trinidad.

The next day our Sabbath drive to the church shows off the prolific foliage of the island.

Preparing for the Sacrament

We have a group of 8 saints preparing to go to the temple.  The cost of the trip is such a hardship, that many of the members can only go to the temple once in their lifetime.  However, the Relief Society President is saving up to go to the temple a 2nd time.  So she decided she wanted to attend our Temple Preparation class, too, to prepare spiritually for her special trip.  Our temple is the Santo Domingo Temple in the Dominican Republic and they hold it very dear.

Monday is our Preparation Day, and we visit a beautiful beach that is just a short walk from our room.  Such beauty!

A walk on the beach is just perfect...

Meanwhile, Elder Lindorf enjoys scrambling over the rocks and taking pictures!

His adoring subject...  :)

May the Lord bless you to see His Hand in your life every day!

All our fondest love,

Elder and Sister Lindorf

WIM - Land of Many Waters

Dearest friends,


We've been getting oriented in our new Seminary & Institute assignment. This month we visited classes in Guyana. It had been raining for a few days before we arrived and there was water everywhere.......with no place for it to go. Guyana is called "land of many waters".

Notice they build their houses on stilts for this very reason. This flooding was reminiscent of our days in Thailand.

Business as usual!

We visited a brand new LDS chapel under construction.

Notice the local hardwoods used in the chapel and library below.

This is an Institute Class in Georgetown, Guyana.  Students are eager to learn. 

 Early morning Seminary for high school aged students.  They meet every morning before school.

Even our rented buildings are beautiful!  

Inservice Training - New Amsterdam.  The Dutch originally settled much of this area and tried to drain the land.  Many Dutch names are still in use.  What about Vreed en Hoop?

This is how the parking lot looked when we arrived for Church Sunday morning.  When we got inside the Chapel was full of people!  They don't have cars, but  they still make it to Sunday meetings.

Here's another early morning Seminary class in Berbice, Guyana.  The teacher (far left) isn't much older than the students, but she's a four-year Seminary graduate and preparing to serve a full-time mission.

Cows, goats, and donkeys  graze in the streets and highways.

It saves having to mow the lawns!

Students learn examples from the Old Testament in this Seminary class.  These teachers are very devoted to the youth.  

Horse and donkey powered "trucks".   These are everywhere.

Humanitarian missionaries are teaching the locals how to raise chickens for food and to sell for cash.  In six weeks they can raise 500-600 pounds of chicken from these chicks. 

Have you ever seen a 500 pound chicken?

These two young Seminary students are being honored for having read the scriptures everyday in the past year without missing a single day.  Reading in Seminary class doesn't count - they have to study on their own time.  Stacey's mother is the Seminary teacher.  If they "stay the course" they will receive their own set of special commemorative scriptures.

Even though Guyana is in South America, the terrain is very much like the islands.

This past month also celebrated Carnival (Mardi Gras in the US) which is a big holiday in the Caribbean.   Missionaries stay off the streets during the revelry.

Guyanese children love to get their pictures taken.  Even though they live in humble circumstances, their clothes are clean.  These children live along the river and their mother washes their clothes by beating them against a rock.  No washing machines or even electricity here.

This Seminary class is taught daily Mon-Fri in a home.  Shoes are removed when entering.  This is a sacred setting.

The Guyanese make do with what they have and are happy.  Who needs doors and windows when it never gets cold?   We could learn some valuable lessons from them about contentment. 

In closing I'd just like to share a few thoughts about how great these young people are.  They have testimonies of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and it makes a difference in their lives.  They have served, or are preparing to serve full-time missions.  They have the opportunity through the Perpetual Education Fund to get loans enabling them to pursue a higher education, which  then leads to improved career options.  This generation of youth will be the leaders of the Church in Guyana in a few short years.  

The Seminary and Institute programs of the church are crucial.  We are blessed to be a part of it and we're happy to be serving in this choice part of the Lord's vineyard.

Elder Lindorf