Tungkol sa Cabanatuan Mission

There are some 15 missions of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Philippines. I was fortunate enough to serve in the Philippines Cabanatuan Mission. I served between March 1992 to March 1994. I served as ELDER RONDILLA.

At the time I was called to serve in the Philippines Cabanatuan Mission, it was just created. I was one of the first ones to be called to serve specifically there. Currently, the name of this mission is now the Philippines Angeles Mission. This is because the mission home was moved to that city.

The mission covers two entire provinces, namely: Tarlac and Nueva Ecija. It also includes some areas in the surrounding provinces. The areas here are in the primary rice growing areas in the islands. So don't be surprised to see rice fields everywhere. The mission home is located in Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija.

My companions were:

Elder Monteith - MTC

Elder Dixon - Lancaster

Elder Williams - San Bernardino

Elder Larido - Camiling, Birbira, Bacabac

Elder Carantes - San Jose

Elder Lopez - San Jose

Elder Wallace - San Jose

Elder Lazo - Jaen

Elder Hawks* - Jaen

Elder Olsen - Camiling

Elder Quindo -Concepcion

Elder Hawks* - Concepcion

Same Elder

Essentially, I served three different missions. I was in the MTC for a total of 3 months, 2 months for language training (I already spoke Tagalog), and 1 month in the telecentre. After this time I was sent to serve as a visa waiter in the the California San Bernardino Mission. I stayed there a total of 5 months.

When the time finally came for me to pick up my visa, I was flown from California to Vancouver BC. I pick it up at the Philippine embassy. I stayed the evening at the Vancouver mission home. The next day I flew back down to California and was surprised to meet up with a number of missionaries from my original district in the MTC in San Francisco airport. And from San Francisco, we flew to Manila, with one stopover in Hawaii.

In Manila, we rested for a night at the MRC (missionary reception centre). The next day we boarded the bus to Nueva Ecija to the Philippines Cabanatuan Mission home. This is where I met my mission president, Pres. Openshaw. One two hour long jeepney ride, and I was in my first area in the Philippines. The mission adventures that followed are both personal and sacred to me. They are listed in their entirety in my journals. My mission exposed me to many wonderful people and experiences. Some are fun, some are frustrating but all are spirit building. I gained a great love for the filipino people, a deeper appreciation of my heritage. I learned to love without judging. I finished my great mission under Pres. Lawrence.

At the beginning of my mission I remember sitting in that one conference room in Provo and thinking about the next two years of my life. I thought about how long it is going to be. But by the time I was going home, I thought that my mission is so short!! I guess that time does fly by when you are busy. Especially when you are doing the Lord's work and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Pabalik sa aking punong pahina  pumindot dito