Michelle Kenyon White and Family in Texas

2012 brought quite a few changes in our lives.  Steve finished school in June and shortly thereafter we moved to Texas for a job opportunity.  Steve is working as an Engineer for an Oil and Gas company-National Oilwell Varco.    We are loving it here!  We are in the northern part of Houston in an area called The Woodlands.  It reminds me a lot of the mission as far as the weather and scenery goes.  The people are wonderful as well.  

On December 29th we had a baby boy!  Jack Allen White.  He was 7 lbs 12 oz and 21 inches long!  He has been such a delight and we have loved having this new addition and new chapter in our lives.  We have been truly blessed.  

Christmas 2012

Dear Missionaries from the FTM Mission,

    At this holy time of year we pause to send love and remembrance of our time of service together in the Florida Tampa Mission.  As time passes, we are thrilled to hear of your  lives, your loves and your contributions.  You are in our thoughts often and we are grateful to see your lives unfolding with "an eye on the ball", quote Elder Wirthlin.  

Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy and productive New Year.   We share with you what we call, "The Principle of Restoration."

The Principle of Restoration

The “how”

Alma 41: 8  “…the way is prepared

that whosoever will  may walk therein

and be saved.   The Savior and the gospel

The “consequence”

Alma 41: 15 

For that which ye do send out shall

 return unto you again, and be restored…

Alma 41: 14

Therefore, my son, see that you are merciful

unto your brethren; deal justly, judge

righteously, and do good continually; and if

ye do all these things then shall ye receive

your reward; yea, ye shall have mercy

 restored unto you again; ye shall have justice

 restored unto you again; ye shall have a

 righteous judgment restored unto you again;

 and ye shall have good rewarded unto you again.

Love,  The Coltons (and youngest grandson, Jackson)

Romance Lives - Hess Style

Roxanne and I had had a long-standing agreement that at the first major snowfall we would hike Rock Canyon together.  As such, going on a hike in the snow was not only not unusual, but actually expected.  After having prepared the engagement snowman, I hurried back to my apartment.  She arrived a few minutes later, and we embarked on our hike.  Right as we stepped off I told her we were going to take a detour up our favorite hill.  We had just been up that way the night prior, but I insisted that the view in daylight was amazing (it was, in fact).  We got to the top of the hill and kept moving around the circle up to the corner where lay the snowman.  She noticed the note by the road and stopped to stoop down and read it.  It read "Dear bystander, Please help the poor snowman, his heart has been turned to stone!  Gain access to the heart stat! -The Snowpeople."  She mentioned that being interesting, and that someone else can take care of that.  I pulled out her snowgloves (which she had given to me just prior to this) and handed them to her, an expectant smile on my face.  She said "I'm not even qualified to perform heart surgery!  One of us would have to be certified.  You're not certified, are you?"  I told her "actually, I am a certified snowman cardiac surgeon.  You may perform the operation under my supervision."  Thus, at my insistence, she proceeded to pick away at the snowman's heart.  That was slow-going and became impossible as the snow was too hard-packed, so she began to kick and pick at the snowman with her foot.  Soon she dislodged the bag (which she believed to contain an actual stone) and she raised it victoriously to the sky, only to discover (to her horror) that it contained an engagement ring box.  Thrusting it in my direction she demanded "Gabe, do you know what this is?"  I recall thinking "what an odd question.  Why yes, I do know what this is—it's your engagement ring."  Instead, however, I simply took it from her, opened the bag (dropping to one knee), and then opened the box. 

Seth Wilson and Kendra Hofheins to Wed

Seth Wilson and Kendra Hofheins have chosen November 17, 2012 as their wedding day.  They will be married in the St. George LDS Temple.

Caleb Nelson to Marry Abbey Gail Leishman

Caleb Robert Nelson and Abbey Gail Leishman have selected November 17, 2012 as their wedding day.  They will be married in the Vernal Utah Temple.

Hurricane Sandy

        What happened to Faye?  We weathered it without a drop of rain or even a scant breeze.  But Hurricane Sandy roared through the East Coast like a freight train bent on destruction.

     Thank you for your phone calls and emails asking about our safety.  We "weathered" the storm with a 24 hour power outage, some branches scattered and leaves blown from the trees.  Other than that it was just a few moments of feeling like we might get our roof blown off and then settled into a very bad wind and rain storm.  However, we just returned from  Connecticut to visit our daughter and her family who live there.  Driving up on Friday, just four days after the storm hit, was a site to see.  Literally hundreds of utility trucks were on the road from as far south as Georgia.  Semi trailers carried generators.  The gas lines along the New Jersey Turn Pike stretch beyond a hundred cars long.  Returning home today found signs at the service stops stating that only license tags ending with an even number could get gas today.  Policemen were stationed there to keep the peace.  The destruction we saw in New Jersey and Connecticut was severe.  So, dear FTM's, we were lucky to have missed such an event while serving in Florida.

Catching Up at Mission Reunion

          It was a delight to gather on October 5th, 2012 to renew friendships and cherish the days of our service together in the Florida Tampa Mission.  We treasure our association with each of you and are grateful and interested to hear of your lives and see your continued growth.  It is also a delight to meet spouses and now children too.   You are the next generation ready to take the helm and we see we are in good hands.  We love you.