Meet Elder Haile

The Ge'ez language and the Amharic language (with more than 240 letters) were the languages spoken in the home of  Amane.  They spent their lives in a small village in Ethiopia, where they ate off the same plate and worked long hours to raise ten children whom they loved very much. From Muslim roots, Makana, with unanswered questions, taught himself to read and write.  He had heard about Jesus Christ and wanted to read scripture. He ended up teaching the scriptures in a Protestant church. One of their sons, Yonas, grew up with a heart in search of truth also.  He married Yergalem, a marriage arranged by their parents.  Into this home came the blessing of three children, the second, Fekadu, is a special young man whom we have come to love.  Meet Elder (Fekadu) Haile.  (high-lee)

Elder Haile has great respect and love for his grandfather who passed away at age 105 this past Oct.  In Dec. his grandma turned 95.   "My grandfather told my grandmother...you can stay at home with the children because that is very important and I will go to work."   Elder Haile told me that if his grandfather had a business lunch and got to eat meat...then on the way home he would buy meat so his wife and family could also eat meat on that day.  "My grandparents had a special relationship and I felt that in their home. I want that same feeling in my home one day."  

Yonas and Yergalem attended different churches. On a Tuesday, the family knelt in prayer together.  Yonas said, "I have some questions but I don't have all the answers."   On Sunday, he left at 10 am and in the evening he came home and shared with his family, "I have been somewhere today..."  

A friend had invited him to attend a meeting with the 'Mormons' and he 'felt something'.  They began studying the gospel of Jesus Christ that has been restored to the earth.  Yonas, Fekadu and his sister Tigist, were baptized in February 2007.  His mother was baptized 2 months later. Young Fekadu, now Elder Haile, was called to this mission about the same time we were.  It is quite a thing of faith for a young man to learn English so he can go to the MTC to be taught Portuguese.  Miracles only happen when they can't!

 For it shall come to pass in that day, that every man shall hear the fulness of the gospel in his own tongue...

(Doctrine and Covenants | Section 90:11)

Missionaries come to the mission field in Cabo Verde with one suitcase in hand for two years.  Needless to say, because of the limits of the airlines here, we are careful what we choose to put into that suitcase!  Elder Haile's suitcase contains white shirts, a few ties, suit pants, as well as two laminated Church News articles.  One is from August 2009 about him being the first young man in Ethiopia to earn his Duty to God award.  If you look closely you will see that Elder Holland 'just happened' to be in Ethiopia at the time for a conference and went to visit the house of this young man, who had earned this award after two years of working on it!  That visit remains a treasure to Feduka. The second treasured reminder is an article from Dec. 2009 sharing the great news about the trip his family took to the Temple in Accra, Ghana to be sealed together forever!

We are working with wonderful young men and young women
Their faith increases ours.  They come from such different lives
and circumstances...to share the same blessing with whoever
has a desire to understand three things.  

Where did we come from?
Why are we here on earth?  
and 
Where are we going?