¡Menorca!

The Spain Barcelona Mission includes the Baleares Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The island of Mallorca is well-known as the premier vacation spot of Europe, and we have four great branches of the Church. We travel to Palma regularly to hold zone conference, interview the missionaries, and meet with the members and leaders.

But we also have one small branch on the island of Menorca. Elder Chavez and Elder Pynes are serving there. Elder Chavez is the branch president and Elder Pynes is the clerk. We have a small rented chapel in Mahón, a city of less than 25,000 people. The branch was created about 4 years ago to accommodate members from Latin America who had immigrated, and at one time there were about 40 members attending regularly, but with the crisis many of those members have lost their jobs and returned to their country. Attendance over the past year has been about 10-12 and we have had a missionary as branch president for past several months.

Elder Chavez has been asking us to visit the branch, but it is a long trip and a small branch. So he found a compelling reason for us to make the trip: he lined up 10 interviews for patriarchal blessings and 8 interviews for temple recommends (including 4 recommends for the first time)!

So we went to Menorca! It was a busy Sunday (18 interviews!) but we had a wonderful time with the missionaries and these great, faithful members. Including us, and English family visiting on holiday, and 4 investigators there were 39 in attendance at Sacrament meeting! Way to go, Elder Chavez and Elder Pynes!

 Members of the Mahón branch with Elders Chavez and Pynes in the chapel

 In front of the chapel entrance

 Hna. Hinckley, with the harbor of Mahón in the background