We're Here in New Zealand! 

Beginnings. We arrived on January 13, extremely tired but ready to begin our new adventure. This is us on arrival at the office the first day. Note my fanny pack--not too stylish, but good for a 19-hour plane trip. 

Here is a map of the Pacific Area missions:

The Pacific Area Office and the senior missionary apartments are in a northern suburb of Auckland named Takapuna. From our apartment building (but not from our own apartment windows) we can see downtown Auckland.

Our office building is in a small downtown area of Takapuna--just 1 km from our apartment.

On our walk to the office, we can choose to get off the streets and walk through the Patuone Reserve. We usually go this way because we enjoy looking at the foliage and birds from the boardwalk.

Sheep. Our first Saturday here, January 18, we joined our senior missionary zone for an excursion north to Sheepworld, which turned out to be a very small operation with a field of sheep and a small petting zoo. However, we enjoyed watching dogs gather the sheep; and our show host did a great job shearing one sheep. Because Larry grew up on a farm with sheep, he was chosen to sweep the wool into two piles--okay and dirty. Here he is:

Sheep are a big deal in New Zealand, although the numbers have been declining for a decade. In 2024, there were 23.6 million sheep and 5.3 million people in NZ. That's a ratio of about 4.6 sheep for each human.

Our Ward: We have been assigned to attend the Panmure Ward in Auckland. Two of the wards in the building, including ours, are English-speaking, while the third is Tongan-speaking. Our bishop is from Fiji, the first counselor is from the Cook Islands, and the second counselor is from Korea. New Zealand, and our ward, include a mix of people from all over the world.

Now, back to the office. A big wing on our floor is being renovated, so people are displaced for awhile. For example, the three Area Presidency members are having to work from home. Larry and I shared a small cubicle for the first two weeks, but now we will be working from home for a little while because a new senior couple needs our cubicle.

A note on the light side: We found signs similar to this in public restrooms in Germany and Hong Kong. Here is our office's version:

This is good advice for all of us, at home or abroad!

And now a few words from Larry:

I am the consulting psychiatrist for large geographic areas of the church--North Asia, Asia, the Philippines, and the Pacific. These Areas cover missions from Pakistan in the west to Tahiti in the east, Mongolia and Japan in the north to Australia and New Zealand in the south.  So far, I have been consulted by Area Medical Advisers (AMAs) and Area Mental Health Advisers (AMHAs) on the care of 22 missionaries when they had questions or issues they wanted my help with. Usually I deal with those by a thorough chart review and exchanging calls with those providing more direct care. Four times, I have needed to talk with the missionaries directly due to concerns about possible psychosis or suicidality. So far, all have been effectively treated and a few safely escorted home for more intensive care. 

In conclusion. We are grateful to be here. We hope to contribute a small part to bringing people to Christ in such a lovely, friendly place. We look forward to the open house for the new Auckland Temple from late February until late March and the dedication on April 13. 

All our best to all of you! Elder and Sister Dewey (aka Larry and Teresa)