Overview of Second Area: Prineville

My second area was Prineville. Home of Les Schwab. It was a smaller town (about 8,500) and our district was a little further spread out than in Klamath. There were only two sets of us in Prineville. The Spanish Elders were in Madras to the north and two in Redmond to the west.

We had a car that we shared with the other Elders in Prineville. We'd switch every other week. This car was also a Chevy Malibu and we named it Jasmine. I was here for six months (October 2005 - April 2006). I had two companions for three months a piece. The first was from Utah. I got along with him. The second was from California and holding the tradition of California companions I had a love/hate relationship with him. We covered the Prineville 1st ward. The boundaries stretched out to a place called Mitchell. We only went out there twice to see what there was to see. There was a gas station (that was for all intents and purposes closed) and a handful of houses. The first time we went we hadn't planned on it being so far and we were pretty much out of gas when we got there. The guy that ran the gas station was kind enough to allow us to fill the car up. He didn't take credit cards so he let us go with a promise that we'd be back to pay him. We went back a few weeks later with some cash to pay him for the gas. They did have Henry the bear in a little fenced in area. I found a hole in the fence and stuck my camera in to take a picture or two. Henry licked my camera lens! I have a blurred picture of his pink tongue to prove it. The gas station had a picture of a card that had a road sign on it that showed the end of the world being four miles and Mitchell Oregon being five.

There was a place called the painted hills out that way so we visited it on one of the trips to Mitchell. The town had a western feel to it. Most the residents were cowboys and whatnot. We lived in an apartment off of a garage behind a members house. Being there for the winter it got chilly and snowed. The members in the house in front of us had three little boys. They were 5, 8, and 11 at the time. It's hard to think they will be 15, 18, and 21 now.

I struggled for a bit in Prineville. While I was here my mission president had to go home for a transfer for surgery. He was diagnosed with Cancer, but the surgery was successful and he was able to return after that transfer. In the mean time the mission president that I had for a week came back to hold down the fort in the mission office.

We got to party with the members for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. About the time the frost was thawing and it was warming up for spring I was transferred to my next area.