Serving in the Family Living Center

The 'Family Living Center' is a place were visitors can come and see how the people in Nauvoo worked and provided for their families and homes. There are many demonstration areas. Bread is made each Monday morning in the Bustle Oven. Each visitor can have a taste of it. It is good tasting bread. I can't imagine making bread by hand and cooking in a brick oven, but there are some sisters who do a marvelous job. Where is my 'Bosch' and electric oven when I need it.

Each family can make a rope to take home with them. This 'Nativity Set' is made out of rope, and displayed at the family center. Rugs are made from the weaving looms, a missionary can have a small rug to take home if he wishes, other rugs are made for the homes and sites. The tree ornaments are little candles that are made here, each child receives a candle and the little dolls are made out of left over threads from the rugs. Also little ropes are tied together for ornaments.

Spinning is demonstrated here, this Sister brought her own spinning wheel and she spins yarn and makes her own sweaters, gloves and shawls. So many talented people. Again I would have to buy mine at the store. But I am making baby booties and baby shawls so I guess I am a little bit Nauvoo period.

Missionaries in Nauvoo

I am sorry we don't have many pictures of E/Williams, but he seems to wear this suit and stay at the mission office each day. But his days are exciting, he always hears of the call center happenings and the referral cards we receive, it is exciting when we can report of someone wanting to have the missionaries contact them. He is doing a marvelous work, he is kept very busy, there will be about 5 new missionaries coming this month, he meets them and trains them. Right now he is trying to finish the year end budget for the mission. All the missionaries love him.

S/Kathleen Hughes and myself served at the 'Sarah Granger Kimball' home together one Sunday. It was a special place for her to be where she was in the General Relief Society Presidency. This little home is where the 1st Rel. Soc. was actually started. Sarah and her seamstress decided to start making shirts for the brothern that were working on the temple. Joseph Smith said he had better things for them to do all so, and that's when he organized the Rel. Soc. I love working with S/Hughes, she is not only a marvelous women she has a great sense of humor. We have served together many times in different capacities.

When the Young Sister Missionaries come back to Nauvoo, just before their mission is complete they get to be in Rendezvous, S/Alexander was Jed and Annie's daughter in our final song of "This little town". She was a marvelous missionary. We loved her.

"Booootiful Nauvoo"

Halloween is a 'biggy' in Nauvoo; each little town around the Mississippi has a holiday they do and for some reason Nauvoo ended up with Halloween. This little town of 1,000 turns into a town of 5,000 for Halloween. The Missionaries as well as a few town people carve over 500 pumpkins and hand out 800 bags of candy.

The missionaries have the biggest popcorn maker you have ever seen, I am sure a couple of thousands bags of popcorn were given out. The missionaries are all this little town have, we keep it going. They have a parade with everyone dressed up. Of course the missionaries can either be 'Missionaries' or 'old Nauvoo period dress', it doesn't quit fit into the rest of the Halloween attire.

E/Williams was an 'outrider' for the wagon that carried the "Nauvoo Brass Band". The stores are all open and the hundreds of pumpkins line the street.

The fantastic carved pumpkins are auctioned off to have money for the next year. It is a fun time. Even our President and his wife came to help.

Along with Halloween the fall colors come they are so marvelous, better than any post card. We are so blest to be in this beautiful area at this time. You know the saints must have loved their little town.

Busy time in Old Nauvoo

S/Williams giving a Bustle oven Demonstration to Devanie. The women would hold their hands on the top brick of the oven to see if it was warm enough, if so they would clean out the fire and then hold their arm in side the oven for 15 seconds to make a better check for the oven. Then they would bake their breads, cakes, pies and crackers. The bread that is handed out each day is made in this oven, just like the saints of old. The bread is fantastic.

S/Williams is giving the candle demonstration to the VanOrden & Redford families.

E/Williams is caught in Zone Conference helping S/Ludwig. She called him up to tell of his bad habits and as she did the YP Missionaries would wrap him up in saran wrap. When it was all done he couldn't hardly walk back to his seat let alone breath. Elder Williams needs to change his bad habits. Thank goodness for a Young Sis. Missionary that had a pocket knife on her. Why is a YSM carrying a pocket knife?

Experiences at the Temple

We as a Mission Presidency take the departing missionaries to the temple, and after have a wonderful meal at the Presidents home. Here the missionaries tell of a special experience they have had while serving their mission. We love this part of the evening. Their testimonies are wonderful. While at the temple one time a temple engineer took us to the tower, up into the dome of the temple, were the bell goes off every hour. We could see out of the windows down to the green fields and the beautiful Mississippi River. What an experience that day; one we will always remember.

The statue of Joseph & Hyrum is special for E/Williams. The VanOrden line of the family states that "Charlie the Horse" was given to Joseph by Peter VanOrden, Charlie is the one he rode to Carthage.

Days In Old Nauvoo

This is the view we can see from our home. The big horses out eating in the field and the red & white barn. In the distance the two steeples are visible. One is the big Catholic Church steeple and the other the Nauvoo Temple steeple. They stand side by side in 'Old Nauvoo', both beautiful, one is not very busy and the other is busy every day. We help them, go to their dinners and the President meets with all the denominations in Nauvoo once a month, there is about 5 different churches in little Nauvoo. We live in peace, we can tell the Lord is blessing all of us.

E/S Williams we're able to work together in the "Webb Blacksmith Shop" on Sunday, which is a rare time. He is usually busy in the Mission Office each day. Here he made a little horse show and gave it to visitors along with a 'prairie diamond', a horse shoe nail ring. We served with another couple, they told about the wagons and making the big wheels for the wagons. It was a great day in Nauvoo.

The corn by our house grows tall as you can see. We are just leaving to go to our show, "Rendezvous" and stop to take a picture. Do you think it is over 10 feet tall. The deer and the raccoons love it.

President and Sister Ludwig keep track of all of the missionaries grandchildren. "If you have that many grandchildren praying for you", she says we will be blessed and all be great missionaries. In one month we added two little grandchildren to that number. Forest Williams, and Kolby Williams. We are so thankful for all of our grandchildren. We love them.

Young Sister Missionaries / Family

President and Sister Williams at the 'Old Stone Bridge', were Joseph and Emma Stood.


After the crowds slow down a little the YSM's (Young sister Missionaries) start preparing to go into the field. They practice proselyting, the missionaries are not allowed to teach here in Nauvoo. The couples have fictitious names and circumstances and we roll play once or twice a week, then feed them dinner once a week. E/S Williams are Karl and Roxanne Fox. She is a member, YW's President and he is a dry Mormon. She has been a member for 40 years, he never joined at that time, but comes to church a little. We have about 4 weeks of this, trying to get this Karl Fox baptized. I am getting a little frustrated with him, will he join or will he not. It depends on how S/Barry and S/Patterson do in their teaching. The 20 YSM's left the 1st of Oct. for their new assignments. Each got a new mission call, Mt., Co., NJ etc. They will return in 6 months to complete their mission in Nauvoo. We love them and are anxious for them to do well in their new mission and to return back to us in the spring.

Shalece, Jade, Devanie and Dalton all visited us in Nauvoo. We were so glad to see them. We had a great time showing them around Nauvoo, visiting the Amish (which Shalece just had to do), and going to Carthage with them. They loved the sites, shows and the temple. E/Williams is telling Dalton about the horse "Charlie" that was given to Joseph Smith by Dalton's G,G,G,G,G Grandfather, Peter VanOrden. He rode this horse to Carthage along with Hyrum, that fateful day.