Randy and Tara Celebrate 13 Years!

Towards the end of my mission I was contemplating working in Zimbabwe as a Safari and river running guide. I had a connection there who could easily get me a job in their family-owned company. When I received pictures of the beautiful sunsets and animals there, I was sold on the idea. I then received a letter from my previous boss at Brush Creek Ranch, a working cattle and guest ranch in Wyoming where I had worked the summer before my mission. In the letter I was offered my job back as a wrangler for the summer. I was pretty set on Zimbabwe but still took the two options to my mission president, with whom I was very close, and asked him, "Pres. should I go to Zimbabwe or Wyoming?" Without any hesitation at all, he said, "Wyoming. You need to go to Wyoming." I took his straight forward advice and decided to go to Wyoming. I remember calling my boss, accepting the position, hanging up and saying to my companion, "I have no idea why I am doing this."
I returned home in June (2006), spent a month at home and every time I would talk to my boss on the phone she'd mention this cute, fun guy she had working at the ranch as the head wrangler, a blond haired, blue eyed guy from Mexico. I headed to the ranch July 1st and worked very closely with this "head wrangler" from Mexico. We spent hours together working; building fence, moving cattle, riding all over the 7,000 acre ranch, and entertaining people from all over the world. Of course there was also a little time spent together having fun; swimming in the creek, dancing in the barn on Friday nights, sunrise and sunset rides, wrestling with the kiddos at the ranch, and many long talks in our office (the tack room) talking about life, our families, and our dreams and desires for our lives. We built a strong friendship between us. I remember leaving the ranch after a couple of weeks to go visit a guy from my mission in Denver, Colorado. I remember so clearly Randy's sincere concern for me in taking this trip alone. He fixed me all sorts of food to take and kept asking when I would be back and kept asking me to be careful. I could really feel his love for me and I remember crying the whole way back to the ranch because I was so touched by this genuine and real love and concern I felt from him.
When I got back to the ranch the two of us went on a drive and Randy told me he was in this relationship for the long haul and not just for a summer romance. I pretty much panicked! I had been able to run in the past but I knew I couldn't anymore; I was almost finished with college, I'd been on a mission and the next step was naturally to get married. I had such a deep fear of marriage, because of experiencing a divorce while growing up, but honestly I had never trusted anyone like I trusted Randy. I just knew the depth of his love for me and that is exactly the one thing I needed; I knew he would always love me and treat me with respect and kindness.
Our boss sensed my fears and took me aside one day and said to me, "Tara, you need to give this relationship a chance and find out why you are here and why Randy is here. When I first met Randy, I instantly thought of you. I had offered the job to others but I feel very strongly that you are both here at the same time for a reason and you need to figure out what that reason is. Tara, we can all see in his eyes how much he loves you and it isn't a possessive love but one that is comfortable with letting you be you and have your freedom but he will always be there for you." At that moment it clicked for me. Was it easy from there on out, no way, not with me involved. But looking back I can very clearly see the Lord's hand in our meeting and courtship. What are the odds of finding the one man who completes me in every way, in the middle of nowhere, doing what we both love, and having so many great people guiding our way and bringing us together? We were married April 4th, in the Salt Lake Temple, and the rest is history! 13 years later our love is deeper than I ever imagined!

Rashelle and Frank

What’s up with the Kings

RaShell has been very busy with helping the base community prepare for FIESTA. Fiesta is city wide party celebrating spring in San Antonio. RaShell volunteered many hours decorating the Officer’s Club as the base kicked off the start of Fiesta, lots of VIPs and elected officials were in attendance.

If you have not heard we are retiring from the Air Force. For most of all of our adult life all we knew was Air Force life, now after 27 years Frank is retiring. The retirement ceremony will be on May 27^th, 2010, time is short and we are very busy getting ready for the new adventure. We are very blessed as Frank will continue to work at Randolph AFB in a civilian position. He will be responsible for all simulator and ground school training for all aircraft, it is a very big responsibility.

Megan and Will

As if that is not enough, we have a very busy summer. Megan’s husband, Will, is graduating from Southern Illinois University in early May. Will is amazing, full time student working full time and managed a 3.9/4 GPA! Wait there is more …. we are so excited to be grand parents, Frank says finally he can play with some one his own age. We are thrilled for Will and Megan, July 29^th is her due date.

Mandy

Mandy is at Baylor University in the Air Force ROTC program. This summer, for the month of June, she will be attending filed training. When Mandy is not studying she is training for Triathlon’s. At the end of this month she will be competing in a half Ironman event, swimming 1.2 miles, bike is 55 miles and running 13 miles.

Gerald and Leasa Celebrate 20 years

I “heard” about Gerald long before I ever met him. You see there were girls that I knew that had a crush on him so I got to know of him through them. He returned from his mission in the spring of 1988. He was invited to the Pima Jr. Prom by one of his admirers and I remember walking up to him and my friend at the prom and saying “So this is the guy we have been waiting to meet?” so I got to meet him a good year before we ever started to date. Since my brother was going to EAC, I asked him if he knows this guy named “Gerald Schmidt”? He had met him at institute and they had talked about horses together. Kirk came home one day and told me that he told Gerald that he should take out my sister. I grinned real big and said “You did not!” Gerald had gone to watch his cousin Jeanene Redd play basketball and she was playing against me! He remembers asking someone who I was and he put two and two together and decided to take me out. He called to ask me on a date and I said I would have to take a rain check. I was getting my Patriarchal blessing the next day and I decided earlier that I wouldn’t be out late the night before my blessing. I was way excited that he called me and hoped that he would call back! This was in February and it took him until the end of March to call BACK! Our first date was for his 22^nd birthday, April 1^st! We were together quite a bit after that. I graduated in May from high school and he was sure he wanted to marry me! We were apart most of the summer which was a good thing. This allowed me to realize how much I missed him and that I loved him too! We were engaged before the Fall semester at EA started. We had a longer engagement than normal as I was playing basketball for EA and I was busy with that plus we flew to Chile for Christmas break so I could meet my mother and father in law to be. We were married March 9, 1990, during spring break and just a week after the basketball season ended. That means we are celebrating our 20 year anniversary this month! WOW, how time flies! When you get married, you think you are in love, but now that we have been married 20 years, the love I have for my sweetheart is so much stronger that I can’t express it in words. I can’t imagine what I might say about our love for each other in another 20 years. He truly is my best friend and soul mate. Can I love him anymore than I already do? J

Kerry McNeil Family

Life is busy and crazy it seems day in and day out but we recognize that the Lord is aware of each one of us and is blessing us in the McNeil Family!

Kathy

Kathy stays very busy with keeping things up at home and with her busy calling as the Relief Society President. I have such a love for the sisters of our ward and realize daily how blessed I am to have this opportunity to be an instrument in the Lord’s hand to love and care for such amazing women in this part of his vineyard! I feel of their love and support and prayers and I’m so grateful for that!
My stress release lately is to sit down when I can in the evenings and watch a good ballgame and work on the afghan I started a few weeks ago. After not knitting in 35 years, the desire has been there and I saw an afghan my 1st counselor was knitting and just had to pull out the needles and get going. She couldn’t believe I’d start such a hard project after that many years but it has all come back and I’m having a ball and enjoying every minute I can work on it. Marshelle has already spoken for it.

Kerry

Kerry has been hanging in there bidding every job he can get his hands on, whether big or small! Grateful for the work he is able to get, to help us stay afloat! He is such a hard worker and we love and appreciate all that he does to provide for us. He is currently serving in the Sunday School Presidency and feels he has a pretty cushy job which he does! Kerry’s stress reliever is to get on his Harley and go for a ride. His stress relief adds to Kathy’s increase of stress as she worries while he is gone! He takes that opportunity any chance he gets!

Austin

Austin is loving being able to study at BYU. He’s taking some tough classes this semester that will determine if he gets accepted into the School of Accounting. He recently received a letter of congratulations on his early academic achievement at Brigham Young University! He has been invited to join the Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society and to join the 2010 Freshman Academic Honor Roll. He’s studying hard but finds time to socialize some on the weekends. He continues to love his job at KBYU Broadcasting, translating for them. He called this week to ask me how to make Chicken Crescent rolls because he had a date on the weekend and was making dinner for the date. He’s even made Banana Cream Pies for a Sunday Dessert night a while back. He even impressed himself that he remembered how to make the pie crusts! Grateful he’s not afraid to try his hand at cooking. He’s loving life and having a good time!

Marshelle

Marshelle stays busy with school and work. She is completing some classes of Pharmacology and an IV course to then be able to submit her application to nursing school. She continues to enjoy working for an in home care company and takes care of two patients - one boy with cerebral palsy and a girl who was a near drowning victim when she was 3. She’s Marshelle’s age. I’m so grateful for the sweet love Marshelle has for patient’s like this and that she is able to be a blessing in their lives as she cares for them.
Marshelle was able to go to Hawaii a week ago and had a wonderful time. It was a short trip but gave her enough of a taste of it that’s she’s ready to go again! She says, “I was so excited to go to O’ahu with a good friend of mine named Hannah. Her brother got us a hotel room in the Hilton in Waikiki and drove us around the island while we were there. Her brother is good friends with a football player from the Cardinals team name Deuce Lutui, who was there for a football camp that weekend. We were able to charge all the food we ate in the hotel to his room and the football camp paid for it! Needless to say it was sweet and it was a pretty cheap and awesome trip for me! Some of the places I was able to go for the short time we were there was the temple, BYU, North Shore, the Dole Plantation, Waikiki Beach and many other beaches because of the short time, I wasn’t able to go to all the places I wanted (such as- Peal Harbor & the Polynesian Cultural Center) but I figure now I have an excuse to go back one day!!!!!