The demolition of the buildings across the street from our apartment in Lyon

There was a fire in the building on the corner across the street from our apartment so the building is being torn down to make way for a beautiful hotel and apartment complex. We have watched the progression of the demolition with interest.

A Missionary Thanksgiving Dinner

On November 25th, the day before Thanksgiving, we had an early Thanksgiving dinner for the missionaries on their preparation day. Everyone brought something for the meal. Since there were no turkeys available until December, we had rotisserie chicken. We had the "full meal deal" of mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, jello, green salad, chili with cornbread on top, baguettes, mixed vegetables, banana cream pie, apple tarte and pumpkin pie with whipped cream. There were twelve of us: four sisters, six elders and the Badgers. It was truly a day of Thanksgiving!

Saturday, November 21-Dance at the Center

On Saturday evening, after a full day of ice skating, lunch, practicing Christmas carols, and a fireside, the Young Single Adults (YSAs) decorated and set up the music system for a dance. They had a buffet table for all the snacks that had been brought. Afterward, when it was too late to have loud music in the building, they came upstairs and played games until almost midnight.

Preparing for the Thanksgiving dinner at the Center for Young Adults

On November 20th, we had a Thanksgiving dinner for the young single adults. Young adults from St. Etienne and Grenoble were also invited. Initially, the table was decorated and set for around 26 people. Sister Henri, Sister Georges and Sister Favel assisted with the dinner. In the bottom picture, Elder Nelson is stirring the huge pot of mashed potatoes for Sister Henri. The menu included salad and bread for the first course, turkey and mashed potatoes for the entrée and pumpkin pie and apple tarte for dessert.

The Thanksgiving program was provided by the missionaries

When most of the people had arrived and were seated, the salad and bread were served. Then there was a program presented that explained how the celebration that we call Thanksgiving originated in America. The sister missionaries even explained how the American Indians arrived on the North American continent. Elder Badger was the great Indian chief and Elder Tracy was the Pilgrim. Sister Jordan and Sister Wiseman were the Indian maidens.

The dinner and afterward

We just kept adding tables, chairs and place settings as more and more people arrived. We had set places for 26 and ended up with more than 46. There was plenty of food and it was enjoyed by all. After the clean-up, the young adults still wanted to hang around and visit. We had to shoo them out of the door at 11:30 P.M. We are so glad they enjoy being together.

The visit of Sister Hanson and Sister Gutherie

On November 10th, Sister Hanson and Sister Gutherie, Outreach Coordinators for Europe, came from Frankfurt, Germany to train us and our Outreach Council. They arrived on Tuesday morning and offered to take the Badgers to lunch. We were treated to true Lyonnais cuisine at the Petit Carron restaurant. Afterward, we took them sightseeing up to see Fourvière, the grand cathedral that sits on the hill overlooking Lyon. We also saw the ruins of a Roman coliseum that is still used today for productions. It was a rainy day, but we still enjoyed the sights. The interior of the cathedral was magnificent. There was so much gold, mosaic tile work and statues that it was difficult to take it all in.
The final picture is of the two sisters. They did a great job training us as a council.

Dinner at Marian Koné's home

On Sunday afternoon, November 8th, we were invited to dinner at Marian Koné's home. She fixed us a wonderful African meal of couscous, fish, sauce with vegetables and meat and five different cheeses for dessert. Jeanine and Stephan Courtis were invited also. Marian's children are Marie France and Nicolas. The woman sitting next to Marian is a friend that dropped by as we were sitting down to eat. I did not get her name. At the table, we have Elder and Soeur Badger, Jeanine, Stephan, Nicholas, Marie France, the neighbor and Marian.