Ted and Melinda 2011

Dear Family and Friends,
    We greet you with warmest wishes at this wonderful time of the year.  We love the sweetness of this Christmas season when our thoughts turn to the things that matter most in our lives: the gospel, the Savior, our family, and friends. As we contemplate the goodness of the Lord to our family this year, we are overwhelmed by the many miracles, small and large, that have come to us. We are grateful for those precious events and tender mercies and recognize from whence they came. 
    There were many other things this past year that kept us busy and provided opportunities and blessings. Ted sold his insurance business and is now having more time to pursue other things. He says the problem with retirement is, “There are no days off.”  In August he was called to serve as first counselor in a Young Single Adult Ward Bishopric.  Melinda is still teaching first grade and loving it.  In August she was also called to serve in a Young Single Adult Stake as a counselor in a Relief Society Presidency.  We love working with the college age young people.
     Melinda’s oldest brother, Alan, passed away last January. We all loved Alan as a great spiritual influence in our lives.  Her brother Bryce sang the same song at his funeral that he sang at Alan and Joyce’s wedding reception 57 years prior.  Melinda accompanied him on the piano instead of Mom this time, who always accompanied the performances.
      Our family had a great time last summer at Bryce Canyon, and we went on a few motorcycle trips. Ted and Melinda celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in August and had a fun trip to Southern California. Ted, Melinda, Tyler and his son Jordan (Mandy was home with a new baby), Lisa and Jon, and Mandy’ s parents along with friends traveled to Israel in October. We had always dreamed of visiting the Holy Land, especially since some of our children and spouses had studied there at the Jerusalem Center.  It was fabulous and deepened our appreciation and love of the Savior.  We also spent some time in Petra, Jordan and Paris, France.
    We send our love to all of you and your families.  We are enriched because of our association with you. May all your hopes and dreams for the New Year be realized.  And may every day bring you joy and new adventures.

                        Ted and Melinda

Ted and Melinda 2010

 

This year has been wonderful for Ted and Melinda. We have been able to renew old friendships, make new ones, and enjoy the love of a good family. We added a new grandson, and we look forward to another granddaughter to be born in 2011. Our children all live in Utah County now, and so we have the blessing of spending time with the cutest grandchildren in the world. Ted ‘s Allstate Insurance Office keeps him busy, as well as his calling as High Priest Group Leader, and his work as SUU National Alumni Vice-President. Melinda still teaches first grade and loves to have a grandchild, McKenna, attending the same school.  She was just released as Ward Young Women President (which seemed more like a wonderful career than merely a calling).  Melinda and Lisa occasionally do wedding flowers as a fun hobby. We have been able to spend time riding our motorcycle.  We especially love riding to Bryce Canyon, our favorite National Park. In September Ted and Melinda rode a 4-wheeler to the site in Southern Utah where the pioneers cut a hole in the sandstone rock to construct a passage down to the Colorado River (a truly amazing feat). On Thanksgiving Melinda’s brothers and their families enjoyed a wonderful dinner together in Beaver, where there were 80 in attendance.  This December we had a great time with some of our children in Disney World. We finished reading the Book of Mormon by the end of the year (a challenge from our Stake President).  We love the Lord, the gospel, our heritage, and our family and friends.  May every wish of your heart be a reality in this new year- 2011.

Ted and Melinda - 2009

We are always excited for Christmas time to be with family and enjoy the season. We look forward to having Lisa and Jon, Tyler, Mandy, and Jordan, and Monica, Tom and family with us this Christmas season. Christa and Ryan will spend some time in Idaho, and we hope a few days with us.

We are happy to welcome Jon Williams to our family. Lisa and Jon were married in Jan and we are so blessed to have them living close to us in Orem.

We went on the trip of a lifetime with Lisa and Jon this past summer to Africa. We traveled to Mozambique where we spent some time with Jon’s father and his BYU students. We then accompanied the group to Swaziland, South Africa, and Kruger National Wildlife Park. It was a most amazing experience to witness all the African animals you see at the zoo in their natural habitat. Needless to say we took lots of pictures on this photo safari (over 2000 stills and video). We spent several days in London on our way home. If you would like to see some of our photos go to twhitaker.smugmug.com.

We also enjoyed a cruise to Mexico in October. We encountered a tropical storm as the ship rounded the tip of the Baja. There were twenty-foot waves hitting the ship. We met some new friends and saw tons of whales swimming along side the ship.

Melinda’s brother, Alan, suffered a brain injury in April. He was unconscious for several weeks, but has been home for several months and is on the road to recovery. We feel blessed to have him with us still and that he continues to improve.

Ted serves as High Priest Group Leader in our ward. Melinda was called to be the Young Women President in January. (How does someone my age have the energy for such a calling?) We enjoy our church service and hope that we can fulfill our callings honorably.

The older we get, the more we realize how things that matter most to us relate to our relationships with our Savior and with precious family members and friends. Thank you for your friendship, fine example, and love.

Ted and Melinda - 2008

It has been a fast, but good year for Ted and Melinda. We were called as stake youth conference chairmen for a trip to Martin’s Cove, Wyoming. We worked intensively for most of the year to provide 350 youth and leaders transportation, clothing, food, and activities prior to and during the trek. We had a marvelous spiritual experience. We felt the hand of the Lord in every aspect of this calling. This year we joined a gym and are getting up at 5:30 a.m. (nod, nod) everyday to exercise. We enjoyed visiting the national parks from Yellowstone to the Grand Canyon. (Sometimes from the seat of a motorcycle.) Most of all we enjoyed spending time with our children, grandchildren, extended family members, and friends.