Jan. 23, 2017 in Exeter, New Hampshire

Hey everyone!!

This was a great week! It started out and, as most of you know I think, I am training Elder M., whose dad was trained by my dad on their mission back in Belgium and France!! It is super cool and way exciting! We are having a great time together!

This week was pretty good, we were able to teach and find which was cool!! :)   C. has been having a really hard time and we didn't heard from her AT ALL this week!! 😦 We are praying for her and hope we'll get in contact with her soon! We taught C. Saturday night and he said he was coming to church, and then he wasn't there!!! We have an appointment with him Wednesday night, but we're going to stop by tonight and just see how he is. He is doing really well though, he had been really sick the last few weeks and was just getting over it, so we're glad he is feeling better! J. is still doing well as well!

We had a few awesome experiences this week that I want to share! So one night Elder M. and I were at Taco Bell for dinner, because that is the best, and we started talking with one of the workers. She was sweeping the floor and putting the chairs on the tables because they were getting ready to close. We just started chatting with her as she was cleaning and eventually our conversation led to the Gospel. We were able to invite her to learn more and she was really excited! We got each others numbers and we are going to go meet this week later on! :) It is cool how there are always opportunities as we are just fun and friendly! :)

We play basketball every Saturday morning at our church building with a bunch of guys, most of who are not members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This last week Elder M. and I were able to give one of the really fun and cool guys we play with who we call The Tree, cause he is huge, a copy of the Book of Mormon and he was totally down for reading it and talking about it next week! Those were two of the fun but not typical "missionary" ways to do missionary work that we had this week.

Love,
Elder Branch :)

Elder M. (the Dad) found this picture of the Theer Family 

from their days in France and Belgium.

Jan. 16, 2017 in Exeter, New Hampshire with a new companion - generation 2 of Elders Morris-Branch

Hey everyone!!! :) 

I hope you are having a great day!!!

So J. is pretty great! We have been talking with her and we will need to move her baptismal date back a bit cause she has some stuff to do, but we are all pumped for that! :)

C. has had a hard week which is too bad, but we're hoping things are better this week. She is way awesome and we keep praying for her and know that things will get better. :)

C. is well too. Elder D. and I went and saw him on exchanges on Monday and we had a good time and he said he was gonna come to church again this week but then he didn't! Because of how the week is going and set plans, we won't be able to go over and see him till Wednesday!

We didn't get to do much finding this week, but we did get to see a few people who we hadn't in several weeks which was nice! :)

I wanted to say, thanks SOOOOOOOOO much everyone for the gifts and cards at Christmas!!!!! It was so touching and I LOVED hearing from you and I am so grateful for all the love! :)

So as many of you heard, I am STAYING in Exeter!!!!! :) I was so happy to hear that! Sadly Elder C. will be leaving to Manchester to be a District Leader in a trio, but I'm glad I got to serve with that stud! :) I will be staying District Leader and I am going to train 🚂!!!! I don't know who yet but I'll find out tomorrow morning! :)

So, story time for this week, I rode a pink sparkle bike a mile and a half down downtown Exeter... J. had a little bike that she isn't using anymore and M. has a neighbor who we are pals with and she has a young daughter. J. said we could take the bike to her, but it wouldn't fit in M.'s or our car! Soooo, next most logical option, have Elder Branch ride it the mile and a half back to M.'s apartment in the rain! M. and Elder C. drove the car and I rode the bike, which ended up having a leaking back tire, so by the time I got there the tire was just about flat! The bike was small so I had to stand up and ride it the whole way which was pretty crazy and tiring, and way fun!!!! ;) It was probably a sight to see, but it was definitely a good experience. 8 out of 10, would recommend in warmer weather. ;)

Hope you all have a FANTASTIC week, please keep me and my trainee in
your prayers, and love ya all! :)
Elder Hunter Branch :)

Last p-day with Elder C.

J.'s pink sparkle bike

M. sent this picture of Elder Branch and Elder Morris as new companions! 

Generation Two of Elders Morris - Branch!!

Branch-Morris Companionship Video from Sister Blair

Jan. 9, 2017 in Exeter, New Hampshire

Hey family and friends!

First of all, I'm SOOOOOO sorry my last few emails have been nonexistent/small!

I am doing well!! This has been a great, hard, and miraculous transfer! Being District Leader has really stretched me more than anything before and I'm still working on trying to do all I can.

We currently have 3 people who have set baptismal dates here in Exeter!! The ward members are so excited and so are we! There is so much good happening right now and I hope I stay! Transfers will be next Tuesday so we find out this Saturday what will happen. I bore my testimony this week and talked about how there are "Good things to come". I shared the story found in the Mormon Message "Good things to come." I have come to LOVE this ward, the town of Exeter, and all the good people here that I have met and taught.

Mormon Message: Good Things to Come

So, we have J. who I have talked about before. Her date to receive the ordinance of baptism is March 18th. C., a really cool guy who has been coming to church with us the last few weeks has a date for February 25th, and a lady named C. who we met a week or two ago is going to be baptized on February 4th!

So with C. I want to share her story. We were contacting people for a holiday food drive that the ward was doing. The people needed to be at their homes at a certain time so we could drop the food off for them, and while trying to confirm all of those, there were several who wouldn't respond to phone messages, so we were asked to go confirm with these people. After talking to one of them, we saw a lady who had lots of things she was trying to carry into the apartment. We asked her if we could help and she was really thankful! That was C. She is in her 30's and has lots of health problems, but she is really nice and cool! We shared a Christmas message with her and set a date to come back. Fast forward a week and we have gotten to meet with her a time or two. We invited her to church and she was kinda hesitant, so we asked if we could do a church tour with her that night. She really liked the building and it was good to show to her. I had a feeling to invite her to be baptized while we were there at the building, and she said that she might, but she wasn't sure yet. That night M.B., a member of the ward, drove her home and they stopped for pizza on the way. As they talked during dinner he told her about all the ways the church and Jesus Christ had blessed his life since being baptized a few years back. That really touched her, and the next morning at 9am she called us and set a baptismal date for February 4th! :) It was such a cool experience! We have the Elders from the Derry area here today and Elder D. and I will be meeting with C. again tonight! :)

So there is a lot more, but I am out of time, so I will talk to you all next week! LOVE YOU ALLLLLL! :)
Elder Hunter Branch

Jan. 2, 2017 in Exeter, New Hampshire

Hey pals!!! :)

The people that texted you those pictures live in the Derry ward, but they are super cool and nice! I've only met them at Jeanie's baptism and last P-day, but they are neat!! :)

J. has sadly been sick all week, but we started going to her house and bringing chairs into her room and teaching her!! It was pretty awesome!! :)

C. is still doing really well too! He came to church again and really liked it! Elder C. and I spoke this week which was really cool! C. is having some hard stuff going on right now but he is doing really well and is loving the gospel! :)

We met two people named C. and N. this week and they are awesome!!! They have been taught before by the assistants in Manchester a few years ago, before moving to Seabrook. They are having a really hard time in Seabrook but hope to move soon.

Sorry guys, I'm out of time, but I have lots of pictures for next week! 

Love you all and happy new year!

Elder Branch

(Note from mom...)

Hunter didn't mean for this next part to go in the blog. Sorry handsome, I just love it too much, had to include it. What a kind-hearted guy ;) 

Hey mom, could you send 2 more of the red/coral ties that you sent to me a few months ago? C. LOVES it, and he wants to get one! He had a really hard time when the missionaries he'd know before got transferred, and it would be a nice thing to do to get him a tie so whether I'm transferred or not, he feels really loved! The reason for the other would be for Elder C., then we all three could have matching ties, and that would be sweet! ;) I can pay for them if needed. It is the reddish/coral colored one with little whitish dots. 

I think it was off tie-coon. 

Thanks so much, sorry I have been horrible at writing!! :(  I'll try to do better!