Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Elder and Sister Wakolo’s Goodbye–May 30, 2014

June is the month of goodbyes here in Fiji.  It’s the mission pWakalos - Farwell012residents exchange time.  Elder and Sister Wakolo have been called to serve as the new mission president in the Arkansas, Little Rock Mission.

For the last two months the service center has been planning a surprise party for them.  Everyone was under the threat of death if they leaked the secret.  And amazingly enough they did it.

And so on Friday night his wife only wanted dessert on their “date night out”, and then they got the call from their daughter that her brother had left her home alone and she was scared.  So they dropped their movie plans for the evening and flew home, only to find a house full of people and food.  They surprised him!!

They had enough food for a small army and each department had planned a short entertainment.  The evening began with what they called a “grogless kava ceremony”.  There was no kava, but the ceremony was so fun to watch, the best we’ve seen.  Then speeches by the Wakolos and then the highlight of the evening – the entertainment.

He told us that the Church Historical Department is looking into it, but that they think that he is the first person to be called from the South Pacific Islands to serve as a mission president in the U.S.  What an honor for him, and what a great experience for those missionaries.  We told him that all he has to know is how to say, Y’all!  And he would be set!

Elder Wakolo’s comment for the last few months has been, “save that until June 16th and then I don’t care!”  So the theme of the evening was “I Don’t Care!”  Nothing like a little entertainment to bring out the secret personalities.

Then the food!  No one left hungry.  It was a fun evening.  And at the Monday morning prayer meeting Elder Wakolo said, “It was a wonderful party, don’t do it again!”

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