Thursday, August 6, 2015

From SC to the MTC

Hard to believe the day arrived when Elder Clancy set off for his mission to Colorado. A bittersweet day for sure!! We deeply appreciate all who supported him (and us) in this huge endeavor. Now, let's all support Tyler over the next two years as he gives his time and talents to serving the Lord. A mission is a huge sacrifice, but comes with so many blessings.

So first things first....
1.) We will use this blog to help everyone keep up to date on Elder Clancy's experiences in Colorado Springs.  He prob won't have time to write to everyone, but I am SURE if you write him he will deeply appreciate it!
2.) So many of our friends and family members are not of our faith so if you have questions - ask away!! I'll do my best to answer everything to the best of my knowledge.

DAY 1 - Tyler flew to Utah. He stayed overnight with our dear friends, The Groesbecks, before entering the MTC (Missionary Training Center). You'll find that we LDS members have a ton of lingo that we sometimes forget is not familiar to others. Again, if I say something that is not clear, just ask for clarification!! While in UT that first day, Tyler hung out with our friends and just acclimated to the 2 hour time change.

DAY 2 - This was the "big day" - Elder Clancy was scheduled to enter the MTC at 12:45 p.m. so the Groesbeck men (who have all served missions themselves in various places: Indonesia, California, Mexico and Hong Kong) took Tyler to breakfast at a UT fav place: Kneaders. After that they took a few pics at the Provo Temple and then drop off time approached.

For those who are not used to mission experience, you literally drive up to the curb at the MTC along with the others in your assigned time drop off zone, unpack your bags and say a quick goodbye to your family. Tyler thought long and hard about this tradition and that is why he chose to have our friends drop him off instead us of us flying to UT.  He just did not want us to say our goodbyes at the curb! (I CAN SEE THE WISDOM!! ha ha) Now most parents won't hear from their son for a few days but us, we were VERY fortunate b/c we have a sweet and kind friend named Chris (who we met through the Groesbecks) who manages the cafeterias at the MTC (remember Missionary Training Center). Well, Chris has been an angel to me. He was there to greet Elder Clancy upon his arrival. Oh how much that warmed my heart!!!!
For all our Beaufort friends, there is a sweet connection between Chris and another Beaufort family which shows you how small this world actually can be. Chris's sister is married to Coach Mullen's Uncle. SMALL WORLD, HUH???

So back to the story about Elder Clancy and the MTC....
The MTC is his "school" prior to his mission. It's the place where he gets training on how to teach, how to manage his time and how to bring people to Christ. It's intense b/c it's a mere 10 days to learn 2 years of training, but it's also a place of growth, joy, inspiration and believe it or not - a lot of fun!!  You'll see his letter in the next post. On the day that Tyler entered the MTC, he was one of 613 young men/woman entering full-time missionary service. Pretty wild!! The MTC can hold up to 4,000 missionaries at a time. Blows my mind to think about it! Because Tyler is NOT learning a new language, he and the other English speaking missionaries stay for the shortest amount of time - 10 days. Those who are learning a second language (52 languages are taught there) will stay at the MTC for 12 weeks or more. (And there are a bunch of MTCs around the world, but this one is the biggest - I think!!)
You can read more about the Provo, UT MTC here: https://www.mtc.byu.edu/themtc.htm
Here is a video from a UT TV station: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuUe-F0spFI

Tyler has been in the MTC for 8 days now and I was privileged to get some fun pics but sure was looking forward to his first letter...


He's official!

Getting his name tag

One of the biggest things about your time in the MTC, is the assigning of "a companion". (Another LDS vocab word - I told you there is a learning curve here ha ha) A companion is to be with you pretty much 24/7 for the rest of your mission. The companion you are assigned to at the MTC will not stay with you your entire mission, but rather only during your 10 day stay. They WILL go to the same mission as you but since you are both new missionaries, you will be reassigned a more experienced companion once you arrive in Colorado; someone who knows the area where you will serve. That companion will be your trainer. (More on that in a week or two.) 

Tyler companion is Elder Schlitters from Michigan. Funny thing is when I posted the picture of the two of them on FB, a friend Jessie Richmond who was a FORMER MISSIONARY WHO SERVED RIGHT HERE IN BEAUFORT commented and said, "Hey, my Dad painted the picture in the background!" I was stunned. Small world once more - or as I call those experiences TENDER MERCIES. Anyway, his Dad did in fact paint that beautiful picture. Here is his website if you are interested. I know I WAS! :) www.ronrichmond.com


Tyler's district (a group of missionaries who study together while at the MTC. This group is made up of missionaries going to both Idaho AND Colorado Springs. Tyler met the sister missionary in the Atlanta airport on his way to UT. She is from Kentucky.

MORE TO COME.....







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