Scoon Lives On

Hello everyone!

Hope you had a wonderful week! Today we got our transfer news and Sister Scott and I are staying in the ysa ward! I'm so grateful I get to finish my mission here I love this area and these people.

Highlights from this week:

☆ Kamrynn was baptized and confirmed! YAY! After her baptism, we asked her how it was and she said, "as soon as I went under the water, I felt so much peace. It was like the world stopped for a second. It was amazing." Love that response! Love her and love this gospel!

☆ Our friend, Lorenzo who is getting baptized at the end of this month, came to church for the first time! He said as soon as he walked into the chapel, he could feel the spirit so strong. We haven't even been able to have a second lesson with him but he is so elect. Earlier this week, he was talking to his friend who doesn't believe in God. He told them to "come to my church and you'll change your mind." Haha he's awesome and is so excited for his baptism! Please keep him in your prayers <3

☆ We stopped by our neighbor, Emil, for a second and was able to chat with his friend "Money Penny." She told us how she's met with missionaries in the past but got scared so stopped having them over. But that she actually REALLY wants to learn. Her husband past away a few years ago and then just last year, her boyfriend past away. We were able to have such a good conversation and then SHE asked US to take her number. We're going to be meeting with her tomorrow to talk more about the Plan of Salvation! And she has 3 ysa aged kids! The Lord is truly preparing so many people to learn about His gospel. 

"O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell, which I call the death of the body, and also the death of the spirit" (2 Nephi 9:10). I read this scripture in my personal study this morning and loved it! Oh how great the goodness of our God. He has prepared the way for us and has a perfect plan. As we trust in Him, everything will work out.

Love you all! Have a great week!

Sister Coon

Pictures!

- Kamrynn got baptized!

- lunch date with the sisters! A Vietnam vet came up to us and told us we were having too much fun haha

- Mission Leadership Council

- CUTIE girl + the sisters who found her

- the BEST neighbor making us some egg salad sandwiches

- IHOP with the district

- sitting in an 8 hour long MLC meeting

- exchanges with Sister Wrigley! We set their friend, Vincent, on date!

- district council

Your Missionary Release

01 May 2023

To the Family of Sister Coon,

I am pleased to inform you that Tuesday, June 20, 2023 will be the last day Sister Coon will serve as a missionary in the Nevada Las Vegas Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Sister Coon should meet with her Stake President as soon as possible, at which time, she will be formally released from her missionary service in the Nevada Las Vegas Mission.

Please know that Sister Coon has been faithful and diligent in all the sacred responsibilities she was assigned.  She has also served honorably, representing your family, this Mission, the Church and, most importantly, our Heavenly Father in this sacred calling.

Sister Rodarte and I have grown to love and respect Sister Coon and are grateful for her increased love of our Savior.

I want to express my appreciation to you for sharing your daughter with us, and may the Lord continue to bless you and your family.

Kindest regards,

Miracles x 1000

Hello friends & family!

Okay, I have a lot to say because it's been a second since I've shared the WONDERFUL miracles that have been going on over here in Henderson! It has been SO GOOD!! I love serving my Lord! So here ya go:

☆ Kamrynn is getting baptized TONIGHT!!! YAY! I don't even think I've talked about her yet but she is amazing!! I love her!

Kamrynn's wanted to be baptized for a while and already seems like a member haha. But her parents weren't supportive so she had told us that she wanted to wait until their hearts were softened. A few days after that, we got a call from her saying, "I want to be baptized on May 1st!" She decided that this gospel was something that she loved and knew was true and nothing could stop her from it. Her parents still aren't excited about it but they support her. She's such an inspiration!

☆ If you remember, at the beginning of this transfer, we met this guy who said he wanted to change his whole lifestyle and learn more about the gospel. Well, he is getting baptized on May 21st! He's probably one of my favorite people I've taught on my mission. Just so funny!!!

This week he texted us at 5 in the morning saying, "Got any church stuff going on today? I spent like 2 grand on a church outfit and I'M HERE TO FLEX." HAHA so we decided to show him around the temple! and it was so good!! as we were sitting in the lobby, we asked him how he felt. He said, "it feels like the church, but different. I can feel it in my stomach."

SO basically, he's just the best and calls us "scoon" (Scott + Coon). He still has A LOT of things to overcome but is working on it! Please keep Patrick in your prayers!!

☆ Another story:) About 9 months ago, we felt like we should call this random number on our phone and ended up having a lesson with Lauquaua! We invited her to be baptized right there in that phone call and she said yes!!! But she was living in the West mission so we sent her information over. 3 weeks later, she was baptized! What a miracle!! A few weeks after that, she visited my ward so we could meet! It was so fun. But then we lost touch and I hadn't heard from her since.

This week however, I had the thought to check her profile on areabook and it turns out she moved back into this mission! AND into this ward!! What!!! So we knocked her door that day and had a good ol' reunion with lots of excited screaming and tight hugs haha.

☆ Then, we met Lauquaua's mom's fiancé, Rocky, who isn't a member. Sweet older guy. Seriously, just so much love for all these people. We had an amazing pass off lesson about the Restoration with them. As we stated the First Vision, he was glued. His eyes and ears were zoned into the message and the spirit was so palpable. We invited him to be baptized and he said yes!!! It was so funny, as we were extending the invitation, one of the elders jaw dropped because he was surprised that we were inviting him right there! But Rocky was ready and the spirit said go for it haha. Now he's working towards May 12th to be baptized.

These are all such amazing experiences that I'm so grateful to witness. This work is real and it is good! All glory to God! 

Love you all! Hope you're doing well and have a wonderful week!

xoxo sister coon

LOTS of Pictures

 Pictures from the last 3 weeks!

- our recent convert, Audrey 

- teaching mission prep

- exchanges with Sister Wrigley and Sister Jenks pt. 1

- lesson with Kamrynn, Jeremy, and Adi

- zone breakout room 

- hiked to the Hoover Dam 

- pass off lesson with the Elders, Rocky, Kalani, Lauquaua, and her daughter!

- temple walk with Patrick and Erik

- outreach!!

- reunion with Lauquauau after 9 months!

- exchanges with Sister Malmstrom

- exchanges pt. 2

- tired sisters 

- temple walk with Jhervon and Abby

- sportin' the new suit

- exchanges with Sister Eastman

- moutain biking

- that's pretty neat

- street contacting with my long lost cousins (@ Mangum's)

- lunch w Sister Stott and Sister Rigby

Letter from Katie

Hi Annie!

I hope you have had a fabulous week! Earlier this week, I was stalking your instagram account because I miss you and I was loving to look at all of your photos and videos. You are so happy and filled with so much love and joy and that is definitely evident in all of your pictures! All I could think was, "Annie is so pretty!" 

That thought, "Annie is so pretty!" made me think of a talk by Elaine S. Dalton (who was the General Young Women's President when I was in YW's) called, "Remember Who You Are." This talk made a huge impact in my life. She tells of how she learned as a young woman what true beauty is. She calls it "deep beauty"..."the kind of beauty that shines from the inside out. It is the kind of beauty that cannot be painted on, surgically created, or purchased. It is the kind of beauty that doesn’t wash off. It is spiritual attractiveness. Deep beauty springs from virtue. It is the beauty of being chaste and morally clean. It is the kind of beauty that you see in the eyes of virtuous women like your mother and grandmother. It is a beauty that is earned through faith, repentance, and honoring covenants." 

So that's what came to my mind when I saw all your cute and fun pictures this week. You have "deep beauty" sister!!! I know that there are so many people in your mission who have been touched by your love and testimony of the Savior. Keep enjoying every minute on your mission and serving with all of your heart, might, mind, and strength! There's not a day that goes by where I don't think about my mission, give gratitude to Heavenly Father for what I was able to experience, and the testimony I was able to develop on my mission. It brings tears to my eyes thinking about this sacred time to dedicate 100% to the Lord's work. I know you feel (and will feel) the same about the Las Vegas, Nevada mission. 

We love you!!! We think about you and pray for you often! Proud of you!!! 

Love,

Katie

Letter from James

So fun sister coon! Looks like a fun nerf war! haha love you and cant wait to see you this summer! work hard out there.

For my studies this week I have focused on the Resurrection and life after death. I think one of the greatest revelations in the restored gospel is the spirit world! That is one piece of the plan of salvation that all other christian religions completely miss!! DC 138 is an outstanding chapter from Joseph F Smith (Hyrum's son). The revelation was given on October 3, 1918. 

Just to give you perspective- Oct 1918 was the DEADLIEST month in American history due to WW1 and the Spanish flu. Remember, WW1 ended Nov 1918 and had a total of 9 million deaths. At the same time, in 1918 there was a massive global pandemic called the Spanish flu. This pandemic killed over 5% of the world's population (50 million people died)! It was exponentially more devastating than COVID-19!! The total cumulative deaths for COVID-19 (who knows if this number is actually accurate) is 6.9M deaths. That is still a lot of people but that is NOWHERE close to how many died from just the Spanish flu. 

Needless to say, I don't know if there could have been a better time to receive revelation on the Spirit World than in 1918!! What incredible timing the Lord has!

Not to mention Joseph F Smith was well acquainted with death... his father Hyrum died when he was 5, his mom died when he was 13, and he had 10 children die in infancy. So what an incredible blessing to learn that his children would have the blessing of the Spirit World!

I hope you get a chance to read this:

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/introduction-to-family-history-student-manual/chapter-9?lang=eng

I loved sharing this perspective about life after death with my investigators. I hope it helps!

Love you,

James

Happy Easter

- interviews with President & Sister Rodarte

- nerf war for pday

- our neighbor, Emil gave us the sweetest Easter basket

- exchanges with the hermana's!

- exchanges with the sisters!- Easter Sunday :)

Letter From Meg

Annie! I can’t read your emails without tears coming to my eyes. UGH my emotions!! But seriously!! this time of your life is sacred. I am so happy for you and proud of you. 

James and i went and had dinner with my mission president and his wife and one of my favorite companions tonight and they are sacred to me: They were a huge part of my conversion story!!.. New York is also sacred to me!! It was there that i feel i truly came to know the Savior. Now, your mission president, his wife, your companions and the Las Vegas mission will all be sacred to you too. It’s something only another full time missionary gets and it’s so cool. And THATS why I cry reading your emails. The savior is with you in that work in such a tangible way and because I’ve been there it makes me emotional to think someone I love gets to be there too. Pretty one of a kind. :)

You will forever be grateful for your mission as I am for mine and I’m sure of that because you work hard, find the good in the midst of what you and i both know can be very hard, stay HAPPY, and are obedient. 

Last thing, in the Spanish hymn book the song “scatter sunshine” is “siembra gozo” or “plant joy” which i think is a great visual. You are a person who scatters sunshine. Someone who plants joy. At home, too, but especially as a missionary! Keep that up. 

Love you so much Annie girl! Thank you for planting joy in me!! 

Meggers 

Letter from Hope Rowley

Annie!!! I miss you, when my mom told me, me and penny ran over to see it! BTW Penny says hi. When will you come back? I’m doing choir. Happy Easter! (Such an amazing day) When you come back me and my piano will be waiting ! Oh and I have a new baby brother! His name is Bronson Noble! He is sooooooo cute I love him . I hope you have lots of fun! Hope i see you soon!

-Love your fav student Hope

Following Him is the Only Way to Happiness

HELLO EVERYONE!

Happy monday! hope you had a great general conference weekend! wasn't it so good?! this week was INCREDIBLE! we saw so many miracles and it was so fun to get to know my new area and companion:) Foothills YSA is wonderful!

Here's a few of the miracles from the week:

☆ First day in this area, we were walking down a street and ran into this guy named Carlos! Shared a scripture with him and he said yes to wanting to learn more! We then were able to meet with him a few times later that week (which actually was such a hassle finding him because he kept getting lost haha). But on our second lesson, we invited him to be baptized on April 22nd and he said yes! YAY! He's ready for a change in his life and so excited to have a big new family. Please pray for Carlos!

☆ We were leaving an apartment complex Saturday night and there was this guy that was about to get into his car. We asked if we could share a scripture with him and he responded with, "I do a lot of drugs." We said, "well, do you want to change?" He thought about it for a second and said, "Actually, yeah kinda." haha it was awesome!!

That next day, he came to the church to watch the Sunday afternoon session of general conference with us and loved it! After he texted us saying, "...idk you guys are cool if you want me back I'll come back lmk. It's literally like an alternate reality. I like it." WAHOO!! Yes, please come back! We need you! And now he's coming to fhe tonight!

☆ It seriously felt like we had very little time to be missionaries this week but each time we went out, the Lord truly magnified our efforts. We were able to find 12 new people to teach and talk to many others! I know if it wasn't for His help, that wouldn't of been the case. He is good 

Alright, love you all!! Remember what President Nelson said this weekend, "Following Him is the only way to enduring happiness." It's true!! This is pure joy and it's just THE best! so keep putting Christ in the center and everything else will work out. 

Have a great week!

Lots of love!!!

Sister Coon

PICTURES!

- lesson with Carlos!

- our friend, Paul, in my last area who is getting baptized on the 22nd! (And the wonderful Sister Borup)

- General conference watch party

- the sweetest neighbor, Emil!!

- bye to Sister Hildebrandt 

- Mission Leadership Council

- Sister Long & Sister Seibold:)

- my daughter 

- left this guy a card saying "But Christ does understand."

Letter from Dad

Hello Annie Girl,

I am so excited about the new and white field you are heading out to harvest. You are going to love it! As I read your last letter, I noticed a lump in my throat and my eyes getting very moist. I was so excited to hear how you and your comp took the inspired challenge to commit someone to baptism. One every day! Way to be Sister Coon! I love your attitude, faith, obedience and love you have for the Savior. 

I am sorry to have missed your phone call last night. I know it was a very busy day and your superb letter made up for it. 

Did we tell you the missionaries came over last week for dinner and gave a good message? While we were eating, I asked what they were going to challenge us with. I said hey, why don't we call Kevin and Jen down the street and ask if you can share a scripture with them on the doorstep. Jen is going through challenges with alcohol. Kevin said they would take a raincheck. Oh well, we will follow up. 

Utah has received the most snow on record. 700" at Snowbird. We have been praying for moisture, now everyone is saying no more. We are fickle people. I was supposed to fly last Wednesday but the plane turned back to the gate with technical difficulties. Hannah and I will try again this Wednesday evening. Laurie and Marty were to fly home from Ut last Sunday but the plane was delayed until today. Allegiant is truly a discount airline. 

Sunday, in our Come Follow Me discussion, we asked how our personal soil is doing. Are we continuing to prepare it well for the Savior's seed of faith? Hannah said she is reading and praying more. We are committed to reading every night before prayers. I took some seeds and planted them with the Sunbeams. That was cute!

I better get back to work. I love you and live the mission life again through you. Such a great time of life. God is good, He loves all of his children and you are one of His chosen daughters. 

I love you,

Dad

March 28, 2023