Yesterday, Friday, we unpacked and began putting things away. We like the apartment, and it is bigger than we anticipated. In the afternoon we drove to Burlington, IA, which is about 30 miles away, to buy groceries and some household items.

This evening we attended a dinner at the stake center for all temple missionaries. There are 33 couples serving for six months and 20 couples serving for one year. The missionaries come from 31 different temples.

On Wednesday, April 27, we went to the Independence Missouri Visitor Center. We then toured the Community of Christ (formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) Temple located across the street from the Visitor Center. Also located nearby were two sects that broke from the Church: the Church of Christ (they own the Independence Temple site), and the Remnant Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints (they broke from the Reorganized Church when the RLDS decided to ordain women to the priesthood.)

We then went to the Harry S. Truman Library and home, also located in Independence.

We spent the night in Hannibal, MO.

LDS Visitor Center

Community of Christ Temple

Church of Christ

Remnant Church Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints

Harry S. Truman Library

Truman Home

On Thursday, April 28, we toured the Mark Twain Museum and historical sites in Hannibal, MO. We then drove to Quincy, IL. The museum in Quincy has a room that pays tribute to the citizens of Quincy for the assistance they gave to the Saints when they were driven from Missouri.

We then drove to Nauvoo where we attended a short orientation and moved into our apartment.

Mark Twain Museum

We learned the following about Samuel Clemens' use of the name, Mark Twain. "The 1850s river pilots did not have modern navigational aids. When entering shallow water, a man was sent to the front of the boat with a lead weight tied to a rope. He tossed the weight out in front and let it sink to measure how deep the water was. A series of knots were tied in the rope at measured distances. A mark is the same as a fathom on the ocean, six feet. Twain means two. The knot at 'mark twin' thus meant twelve feet. For the river boats, twelve feet was safe water. Years after leaving the river, Samuel Clemens remembered this river term which could be interpreted as 'safe water ahead' and adopted the nom de plume of 'Mark Twain.'"

Museum, Quincy, IL

President Gordon B. Hinckley said the following about Quincy: "In the annals of our Church, the city of Quincy and its citizens will always occupy a position of the highest esteem. We shall always be grateful for the kindness, the hospitality, the civility with which your people met our people who were exiles from the state of Missouri. When Governor Lilburn Boggs issued his infamous extermination order, our people were compelled to leave the state of Missouri. It’s almost impossible to comprehend in this day and time that such a thing could occur. But the fact is it did occur, and
they traveled across most of the state of Missouri seeking asylum, not knowing where to go or what to do. And the citizens of Quincy welcomed them, took them in, sheltered them for the winter which
was all about them until they were able to find a place up the river in Nauvoo, where they established that beautiful city on the Mississippi."

The museum has a display of old Nauvoo Temple keys.

"The historical society received a collection of sixteen Nauvoo Temple keys decades ago from descendants of Artois Hamilton, who operated the Hamilton House Hotel in Carthage, Illinois, at the time Joseph and Hyrum Smith were martyred on June 27, 1844. Following the murders, while many residents of Carthage fled fearing retribution by church members, Hamilton remained behind to prepare coffins for Joseph and Hyrum and sent the bodies back to Nauvoo for burial. When the Latter-day Saints were forced at gunpoint to leave Nauvoo in 1846, Brigham Young, who would subsequently become church president, gave the keys to Hamilton. The gesture was done 'out of gratitude to him for sending the bodies back to Nauvoo.'"

Yesterday, April 26, we drove from Council Bluffs, IA to the following places in Missouri: Adam Ondi Ahman, Haun's Mill, and the Far West temple site. We then spent the night in Independence, MO.

Adam Ondi Ahman means "the place or land of God where Adam dwelt." It is where Adam and Eve lived after being expelled from the Garden of Eden (Independence, MO). There was only one other visitor at Adam Ondi Ahman when we were there. There was a sense of peace and holiness about the place. Below are some of the photographs were took.

"Selfie"

The valley as seen from Adam Ondi Ahman.

Looking for heart-shaped rocks.

The following photographs are from our effort to find the Haun's Mill Massacre site. We had a physical address that took us on a gravel and mud road. We drove as far as I felt comfortable, then we walked about 700 yards, only to be stopped by a field.

After more internet searching we learned that the actual millstone had been moved to the town of Breckenridge (about 11 miles away) and displayed in a community-sponsored memorial. We drove to Breckenridge and took these photographs.

These photographs are of Breckenridge's business district, located across the street from the millstone memorial.

It was much easier to find the Far West Temple site. It too was a peaceful and holy place.

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It was a day of high adventure and deep reverence.

Today we drove from Mitchell, SD to Winter Quarters, NE (Omaha); then to Kanesville, IA (Council Bluffs). The two sites are 12.5 miles apart and separated by the Missouri River.

Winter Quarters, NE Temple (dedicated by Gordon B. Hinckley on April 22, 2001)

Winter Quarters Visitor Center.

The Temple and the Visitor Center are across the street from each other.

Kanesville Tabernacle

Below is a summary of what we learned today:

• In 1846, about 12,000 members of the Church crossed southern Iowa and settled temporarily on both sides of the Missouri River.
• Winter Quarters was the headquarters of the Church until the first group of pioneers left for the Salt Lake valley in 1847. Kanesville then became the headquarters.
• The Mormon Battalion was mustered six miles southeast of Kanesville in July 1846.
• Brigham Young stayed for three weeks in the Salt Lake valley, then returned to Kanesville. Upon his arrival, he directed that the Tabernacle be erected. On December 27, 1847, he was sustained as the second president of the Church.

Mt. Rushmore, SD

Today we drove from Casper, WY to Mt. Rushmore. The monument is impressive, and the Black Hills are beautiful. Construction of the monument began in 1927 and was finished 14 years later at a cost of $1 million. Below is something we learned about the monument's meaning: "The four American Presidents carved into the granite of Mount Rushmore were chosen by the sculptor to commemorate the founding, growth, preservation, and development of the United States. They symbolize the principles of liberty and freedom on which the nation was founded. George Washington signifies the struggle for independence and the birth of the Republic; Thomas Jefferson the territorial expansion of the country; Abraham Lincoln the permanent union of the States, and equality for all citizens, and Theodore Roosevelt, the 20th century role of the United States in world affairs and the rights of the common man."

After our visit to Mt. Rushmore we drove to Mitchell, SD to spend the night.

Friday, April 22, we had dinner with my three brothers and their wives at Maddox in Brigham City, UT. Beginning on the left: Bobbi and John (75); Janeil and Rolfe (80); Carrie and Duane (82); Nolan (71) and Sandy.

Martin's Cove, WY

Today, April 23, we stopped at the Martin's Cove Church-operated Visitor Center and learned about the 10 handcart companies that traveled from Iowa City to Salt Lake City. The two companies we are most familiar with, Martin and Willey, crossed the plains in 1856. They left late in the year and encounter serious deprivations. The Willey Company was about 100 miles ahead of the Martin Company. The Martin Company was found by the advance party of rescuers near Casper, WY. After their rescue, the Martin Company traveled about 56 miles to Martin's Cove where they spent five days due to severe weather before moving on to the Salt Lake valley. 57,000 pioneers used wagons to cross the plains; 3,000 used handcarts.

The following was written by Elizabeth Horrocks Jackson Kingford, a Martin Company survivor: "I have a desire to leave a record of those scenes and events, through which I have passed, that my children, down to my latest posterity, may read what their ancestors were willing to suffer, and did suffer, patiently for the Gospel's sake. . . .I hope, too, that it will inspire my posterity with fortitude to stand firm and faithful to the truth, and be willing to suffer, and sacrifice all things they may be required to pass through for the sake of the Kingdom of God."

We moved out of our apartment in Laguna Niguel on Monday, April 18, and drove to Redlands for the night. On Tuesday, Rick Albee, our Redlands home teacher, helped us unload the U-Haul into a storage unit. Our car is full of everything we think we will need for the next six months.

We stayed in St. George, UT Tuesday night, Wednesday morning we visited the Taits in Hurricane, UT. Robert Tait was second counselor in the Redlands California Temple presidency; his wife, Kathryn, was an assistant to the matron.

We will stay two days with Robyn in Orem, and have dinner with my three brothers and their wives on Friday. This Saturday we will continue our eastward trek.

Robert Davis, president of the Laguna Niguel California Stake, set us apart as missionaries today. He is a dynamic leader, and it has been our good fortune to know him and to receive a blessing from him as we were set apart.

We will be set apart as ordinance workers in the Nauvoo Temple shortly after arriving there.

We leave for our Nauvoo Temple Mission in two weeks (April 18, 2016). This adventure, which has been anticipated for two years, is becoming real.

Our mailing address is:

Nolan & Sandy Kerr

P.O. Box 310

Nauvoo, IL 62354

Email addresses and mobile phone numbers will not change.

We have enjoyed the past six months in Laguna Niguel. Frequent trips to the beach, the scenery, and the people in our ward and stake have all contributed to wonderful memories.