Wednesday, April 21, 2010

UPDATE!

Soooo....slight change of plans! A few weeks after recieving his call Trey was contacted with a change in his mission call. He is still going to Africa but he will now be serving in the UGANDA KAMPALA mission. Here is a little background info.....

The Uganda Kampala was organized July 1st, 2005, under the direction of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve. It was created from a division of the Kenya Nairobi Mission and became the 341st mission of the church. Currently the mission encompasses 4 different African countries: Uganda, Ethiopa, Rwanda and Southern Sudan. There are branches but no missionaries in the latter two countries.

Uganda is known as "the Pearl of Africa". It is a small country in east Africa, covering about 90,000 square miles (roughly the size of the state of Oregon). It is a fertile land with much rainfall and is fruitful with two growing seasons. Tropical fruits are grown in abundance. The country is landlocked, but has several large lakes, as well as the Nile River, which flows through the region. It lies on the northern shore of Lake Victoria, the second-largest fresh water lake in the world. Uganda is a very poor country with a population of about 30 million people. They speak dozens of local languages, but English is the official language of the country. The Kampala Uganda stake was organized in January 2010; there is also a district in Jinja.

Ethiopa is one of the largest countries in Africa. It is also the oldest independent country in Africa. The capital, Addis Ababa, lies in the highlands at an elevation of approximately 8000 feet. The country is also blessed with regular rainfall, although it has been the site of some of the worst droughts in recent African history. It covers an area of about 425,000 square miles (roughly the size of California and Texas combined) and has a population of about 75 million people. It is the second most populated nation in Africa. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is the dominant religion, and Amharic is the official language. But many people in the capital also speak English. The Addis Ababa district was organized in 2009.

Rwand is known as the "Land of A Thousand Hills". It is situated in the heart of Africa, and is a tiny, landlocked nation with the greatest population density of any country on the continent. It is a beautiful, green land which is rapidly recovering from its tragic history to become one of the leaders of the East African community of nations in terms economic growth and political stability. It has recently switched from a French-speaking nation to having English as it's official language and as a result was added to the Uganda Kampala Mission in 2007. The Kigali Rwanda Branch was organized in 2008.

Sudan is the largest country in Africa and is currently under the the authority of a 2005 Peace Accord which gave semi-autonomous status to Southern Sudan. Southern Sudan was put into the Uganda Kampala Mission in 2008. The Juba Branch was organized in 2010.

Trey will still be entering the Provo MTC on the same day.

We are very excited for Trey and know that this truly is where he is meant to serve. We know you will do awesome Trey!

2 comments:

  1. I can't believe my baby brother is going to Africa for two years! Good luck Trey and always remember how much we love you.

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