Florida Orlando Mission 2010-2013: April 2011

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

DISTRICT MEETING AND ZONE LEADERS COUNCIL

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

DEPARTURES

We had nine elders and two sisters go home this transfer. We hate to see them go!

ARRIVALS

We had one sister and six elders, we love the new missionaries!

Friday, April 8, 2011

One morning we decided to walk the Shingle Creek Trail, headwaters of the Everglades watershed. Much of the Shingle Creek Trail is on power-line roads traveling through wetlands and pine woods. A scenic trail with bridges and boardwalks beside the creek itself. The trail is within walking distance of the Mission Home. It was quiet and peaceful, kind of pretty with lots of birds and we were lucky to see this LARGE alligator!

FLORIDA ORLANDO MISSION HISTORY

Florida has a deep Mormon heritage, going back as far as 1843. Traveling elders were occasionally sent into Florida until the Florida conference was officially organized November 1, 1895, which conference was within the Southern States Mission. In 1937, the first chapel in central Florida was built in Orlando. In 1950, the church established what is now officially called Deseret Cattle and Citrus Ranch in Osceola County, southeast of Orlando. Today the Church owns 316,000 acres covering three counties, making it the largest cattle ranch in Florida. Orlando was the second Florida stake, and was organized on February 23, 1958.

On November 1, 1960 the Florida Mission was created out of the Southern States Mission. This was the fist mission for the State of Florida. The original Florida mission was divided into the Florida South Mission July 1, 1971, then later into the Ft. Lauderdale Mission (June 1974); the Tampa Mission being created in 1976, and the Jacksonville Mission in July of 1987.

The Florida Orlando Mission is now graced to have within its boundaries the Church Ranch and the first temple of the church in Florida, the Orlando Temple.