Lunch with Senior Missionaries

We are so grateful for the senior couples who are serving in the Tennessee Knoxville Mission. It’s impossible to describe here the difference they are making and the great amount of good they do. Back in September we introduced you to Elder and Sister Jentzsch, Elder and Sister Sawyer, Elder and Sister Boyer, and Sister Young who all continue to serve in the mission. Since then, we have welcomed four new couples to the TKM!

Elder and Sister Chris

First, we want to introduce you to Elder and Sister Chris from Santa Clara, Utah. They started their mission in November and will be serving with us for the next 12 months. They are assigned to the Hendersonville (North Carolina) Branch where they work with the Micronesian members there. We love how they have fully embraced this assignment and jumped right in. They love the Micronesian people and they are greatly loved by them. They have picked up right where the Henningson’s left off in helping the youth in the branch prepare to attend the temple and serve missions.

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Elder and Sister Hillman

Elder and Sister Hillman, from West Jordan, Utah, are serving in the office and will be in the TKM for the next six months. We wouldn’t be able to survive without these office couples and the Sawyers and the Jentzschs couldn’t have been happier to see the Hillman’s arrive. We served with the Hillman’s in the West Jordan Utah Westland Stake and know them really well. At the October 2023 General Conference, they heard Elder Rasband’s talk titled “How Great Shall Be Your Joy” where he invited more senior couples to serve missions, and they immediately called us and asked how soon they could come. That talk was given on September 30th and they were in the MTC on November 27th. That tells you all you need to know about the Hillman’s, their desires to serve, and especially their commitment to respond to the invitations from prophets and apostles. We love them and feel so grateful they are here.

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Elder and Sister Christensen

Elder and Sister Christensen are from Hooper, Utah. They arrived November and will be in the TKM for the next 12 months. They have been assigned to the Lakeway Ward in Morristown, Tennessee. This ward has started up a Spanish group. Elder Christensen served as a young missionary in Chile, but said he could no longer speak Spanish. That didn’t stop them from being assigned to this wonderful ward with this little Spanish group, and Elder Christensen said he has been amazed at how fast his Spanish has returned. Sister Christensen has even learned to share her testimony in Spanish. We love the Christensen’s…and the missionaries REALLY love the Christensen’s. When they sent in their application, they said they felt impressed to put the Tennessee Knoxville Mission as their #1 preference (yes, you can do that!). We are sure glad they did!

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Elder and Sister Markli

Elder and Sister Markli are from Clinton, Tennessee and will be serving as Temple Construction missionaries for the next two years where they will help with the Knoxville Tennessee Temple. We are so excited about this and feel so grateful to have the Markli’s in the TKM! In their new role, they are in the process of opening up a welcome center at the site of the temple where there will be a small trailer with information about the role of temples in the Church of Jesus Christ. As people come by the temple site, they will be greeted by the Markli’s who will be able to share more information about temples. The groundbreaking for the Knoxville Tennessee Temple is January 27th, so more to come about the Markli’s and their exciting role as senior missionaries. Click here to learn more about temples.

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Right after Christmas, we were excited to gather all \ the senior missionaries across the mission for lunch. We decided to meet in the middle at a little deli in Morristown, Tennessee. This group is a mighty army for good…and if you would like to join us, there is many more needs for senior couples in the Tennessee Knoxville Mission. We would love to have you join us! We are very grateful for every one of them.

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Elder Boyer took this picture of us at the Senior Missionary Lunch. We are happy and having amazing experiences as we serve with these wonderful people in Tennessee.

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