"EnJOY To The End"

"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and en[JOY] to the end, behold, thus saith the Father; Ye shall have eternal life." 

2 Nephi 31:20 

August 2 - 15, 2026

We had some sweet experiences in Mbale and Busia during our last few weeks of our mission. It's always good to look back to see how the hand of the Lord was there.  

We didn't have wifi service  in our apartment for about 10 days, it felt like longer.  That meant that if we needed wifi to work we had to go to the Mbale church building.  Several things happened because we went there that blessed our lives.  Here are 3 great examples:

We met Denis, who became our friend and we hired him to wash our truck so that he could earn money to go on his mission. We spent some time with him one day meeting his father, who is not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ, taught a short lesson and answered questions about missions. Then we took him to the Central Market to meet Emmanuel who we buy produce from.  Denis can help the couple who comes to Mbale after us to find a good source for fresh vegetables. We felt honored that Denis trusted us to talk to his father and we know we can count on him to help the next senior couple missionaries get acclimated quickly by having help navigating some unknowns.

Our friend Denis

Walking the streets of Mbale with Denis

Denis' father and brother, Denis, Elder Kaiser

As mentioned before, we met Jacob and Monic (pronounced Monica), who we felt an immediate kinship with.  Some people are meant to cross paths, even for a short time.  We are sad that our time together was limited.  They are a powerful couple full of light and happiness and desire to do the Lord's will. Our connection might not have happened if we had not been at the church building using the wifi. We love them and are forever grateful for their kindness in welcoming us to Mbale.

Sister and Elder Kaiser, Jacob, 2 daughters, Monic

We also met another member, Peter, who was visiting from Jinja.  He stopped by the church building for a few moments and while there greeted us.  We found out that he is a Bishop in Jinja but grew up in Mbale and was in Mbale to check on his mother.  We knew that Jinja is a hot spot for producing and providing items that tourists want.  We asked Peter if he could recommend anyone who makes beaded bracelets with the Ugandan flag and include a personalized name.  He did, it was his wife Concy!  We had a great connection with Concy via WhatsApp.  She made 12 bracelets, one for each grandchild including the little one on the way. She also made one for each of us so we could match our grandkids.  Peter was one of the last members that we had contact with when leaving Mbale.  He drove 2 hours to check on his mother and brought the bracelets to us the day before we departed Mbale.

You may call these encounters a coincidence.  We call it a tender mercy of the Lord.

Our last Sunday in Mbale we decided to go to the Mugiti branch.  Peace, was departing for her mission in 3 days.  We were departing in 2 days.  When she arrived at church she came and sat with us.  It felt nice that she chose a seat with us knowing the chapel was full of people who love and cared about her.  It was fast and testimony meeting.  She had been asked ahead of time to share her testimony but when it came time to do that she was emotional and had to gather herself together.  Once she approached the pulpit she bore a sincere testimony about the Lord being with her through all the trials she went through in preparing to serve a mission.  There were a lot of others who bore testimony saying they prayed for Peace as she was going through her trials.  It was a Spirit filled testimony meeting.  We were honored to be there. It was a great way to end our last Sunday in Mbale District.

Peace with her brother and their Grandmother who raised them both.

For Sunday School a young adult woman who is deaf came to sit by Sister Kaiser.  She was very cheerful and never stopped smiling despite her limitations.  She could not hear the lesson but she turned the pages of the Come Follow Me book one by one looking at the beautiful art work and photos. If only we could all be so loving and cheerful despite our trials.  She brought more light into our day as our hearts grew heavier knowing we would soon be gone.

Our beautiful new friend

On our way home from church we stopped by the Mbale building to meet up with a young father, Michael, who is a counselor in the district presidency and works with tourists in Uganda.  He reached out knowing we were leaving and wanted to give Elder Kaiser a parting gift.  He orders hand made woven ties from Ghana and knew that Elder Kaiser likes African ties.  The ties he showed us were beautiful. Elder Kaiser accepted one as a gift and paid for 2 more.  Elder Kaiser wore one of these ties on his last Sunday in Kampala.  

Sister and Elder Kaiser and Michael with his cute son.

On Monday, 3 August we were invited to attend our last Mbale Zone Council, it was actually our first and last ZC.  The Mbale zone is quite spread out so the meeting took place on zoom which suited our situation well.  We stopped our packing and cleaning and were able to participate without any travel time involved. 

We were asked ahead of time to bear a brief testimony and Sister Kaiser gave a little short bit of counsel to the young missionaries in her departing message about traditional marriage vs temple marriage.  If you want to hear the long version then you need to contact Sister Kaiser about that.

"...Were it not for these things that these records do contain, which are on these plates, Sister and Elder Kaiser could not have convinced so many [of the Africans in Gulu, Mbale, and Busia] of the incorrect traditions of their fathers; yea, these records and their words brought them unto repentance; that is, they brought them to the knowledge of the Lord their God, and to rejoice in Jesus Christ their Redeemer."  

Alma 37:9 

On Tuesday, 4 August we were ready to depart.  Honestly, we will not miss the physical apartment but we will miss the people.  We put all of the things we wanted to leave behind for the next missionary couple in cupboards and closed them with zip ties. The landlord was having the apartment painted after we left.  We didn't want anything to go missing or get ruined. Elder Kaiser packed the truck and we left Mbale.

2 of the 4 closets that we packed up and left for the next missionary couple. 

After we got on a straight road to Kampala Sister Kaiser read aloud from her journal starting with the Promised blessings that our daughter in law Michelle wrote down when we were set apart by our stake president. It was a good time to talk and reflect as we walked down memory lane. We discussed the early days in Gulu until we were waved down to pull over for by a police officer.  Elder Kaiser overtook a vehicle and crossed a faintly painted solid line as the officer watched from the side of the road.  In the end we didn't have to pay a ticket but we did "pay for the officers lunch." There was no pleading, just polite conversation and it didn't slow us down much.  

"...And a mighty change was also wrought in their hearts, and [the Kaiser's] humbled themselves and put their trust in the true and living God." 

Alma 5:13 

We got to Kampala and met Sarah who made a sling bag for sister Kaiser during the first week in Uganda when she realized that hers was mistakenly left at home. We gave her fabric to make Elder Kaiser a scripture case cover. Let us know if you ever need the contact for a cheerful friend in Kampala who can sew and brighten your day.

Well before leaving Mbale we asked permission from President Balilemwa if we could stay at the Bells since they had an extra room and the Balilemwa's did not.  We managed our way through the rough Kampala traffic and drove to the Bells home.    

On 5 August we were up early to fly to Kenya. Our flight changed time but we called ahead to the drivers on both ends of the flights and the temple to let them know we would be arriving a few hours later than planned. No problem.  We re-met Timothy from our first few days in Uganda. He was the one who sat with us for several hours at the police station when we were getting our visa's. We have thought about him a few times in the last year and were glad to get updates on his life.  His job situation improved since becoming a full time church employee as a driver after the mission split.  

Timothy is humble, helpful and genuine. 
Too bad we didn't have more time with him

To prepare to fly to Kenya we had to register twice for Ebola Registration, once with the country and once with the airline. We had a 20 min power nap on the tarmac waiting for our turn to depart. 

Another tender mercy happened when we got out of the airport.  We couldn't find our driver and he couldn't find us.  A man approached and greeted us saying, "Hello Sister and Elder Kaiser" and shook our hands.  He is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ and was at the airport for a passenger pick up job.  He took over communication with Amos, our driver, and it was all sorted in a short time.  We thanked the new friend as we moved to the car that Amos was driving. 

There are many modern buildings in Nairobi

Our take on Kenya is that is is much more developed in Nairobi than Kampala.  It seems very modern but once you get down to the street level the poverty and scraping for money each day takes place just like much of Kampala and Uganda in general.

Kenya Nairobi Temple

We were delighted to see the steeple of the temple from the highway as we got near.  Our driver took the toll road to get us there as quickly as possible. We put our things in the patron housing managers office, Rebecca, and went straight to the temple. Our friends from Gulu, William and Jennifer and their children were waiting for us.  We found out a week before we left Mbale that they had been approved to be sealed as a family. We were both thrilled to know that we would see one another there.  They asked us to be their witnesses.  Of course we said yes.  We met the temple president and after the proper procedures were witnesses at the sealing of William and Jennifer and the sealing to their two young children, there is another child on the way that will be born in the covenant.  We couldn't stop smiling. It was a celestial day.

William, Jennifer and their children are an eternal family.

It was our great honor to be at the temple with this sweet busy family

After photos outside we moved our luggage into the patron housing apartment that Rebecca had assigned to us. We felt like we hit the jackpot!  The apartment was so nice and the bed was comfy and the water was clean right from the tap.  Everything we might have wanted was there.  We enjoyed dinner and conversation in patron housing with William and Jennifer before going to bed.

The next day 6 August we ate breakfast with William and Jennifer and shared some time with them before they left on their journey back to Kampala and eventually Gulu with all of our love and best blessings to them and those dear to our hearts in Gulu.  The next 3 days we lived a dream, spending nearly all day, each day in the temple doing ordinances. After all of the countless temple classes, and a long break from being able to attend the temple, we realized that we saw the temple ordinances in a new light with fresh eyes and expanded understanding.  The Covenants were the stand outs. Sacred impressions came. 

Another tender mercy was when, to our delight, we suddenly realized that Sister Aloyo from Gulu was coming toward us as we stood near the statue of Christ.  She was one of our students from missionary preparation class in Gulu.  What a delight!  After lunch break we did more temple ordinances and saw sister Aloyo again at the end of the day. She is happy as a missionary.

Sister Aloyo

On 8 August, our last ordinance was to do sealings.  The counselor to the temple president, who performed the proxy sealings had to find people to come help us. Eventually we were able to do all that we had hoped to do. After we finished several workers thanked us for coming, and the temple assistant matron along with others gave Sister Kaiser hugs and the men shook our hands. They were sincere with their thanks but we were so grateful to have been able to spend quality time in the temple. As we moved toward the exit we were in good spirits and met 2 other senior missionary couples in the waiting area. We moved our conversation outside and asked about and listened to how their missions were going. We enjoyed their company even for the short time we had.  

Sister Aloyo came again for one last photo. It was a blessing to see her, she said that she didn't believe that we would ever see each other again.  She was as happy as we were.  Lunch was not available at patron housing so we walked to the mall next to the temple and enjoyed a nice lunch.  After finishing packing we visited with Rebecca, the patron housing manager. She told us about how she wants to feel the Spirit always and how she saved a child's life because she works hard at listening to the promptings of the Spirit. We felt a spiritual link to Rebecca the whole time we were there. 

Our driver, Amos, arrived and suddenly he was reconnecting with a family he taught and baptized while he served a mission in the area around the construction site for the temple. They were at the temple grounds spending time there after doing temple work.  It was fun to witness.

 While driving to the airport with Amos we had a meaningful discussion on marriage, Sister Kaiser gave him her opinions on traditional marriage vs temple marriage.  We flew back to Entebbe airport in Uganda where we met Timothy who just arrived as we exited of the airport. Perfect timing.

The Kaiser's and the Bell's

On Sunday the 9 of August we attended church at a branch with the Bells.  It was fun to turn and see some missionaries that we knew who were sitting at the back of the chapel. We definitely connected with them later. We enjoyed sacrament meeting especially the intermediate musical number sung by primary children, "Gethsemane" with a child accompanist, which was impressive.  He was comfortable in his role. 

We brought Sister Vaifale, on the left, to Gulu as a new missionary,
we knew that she was going to be a great missionary.
She is an Sister Trainer Leader now.  

Elder and Sister Howard are in the Uganda Kampala West Mission office.

We connected several times with them answering questions 

as they prepared to come to Uganda.

Elder Walton next to Elder Kaiser is from Payson, UT.  

The others we met for the first time that day except Elder Griffiths.

We met him way back in November 2025 when we went to Kampala.

Our afternoon was spent with the Bells.  The assistants to the president came for dinner and then they were busy counseling with President Bell.  It was a different vibe with the Uganda Kampala West Mission Zoom meeting than when it was all one mission.  The UKWM has been studying talks about the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  Instead of sharing miracles during the zoom meeting they were sharing insights on what they understood from a selected talk.  We were grateful to be a part of that kind of powerful sharing experience for even just one night.

On Monday we spent a little time rearranging luggage to get the weight right then spent the rest of the day with the Bells on errands.   They took us to Emirates Grill Restaurant, right outside of a very modern mall.  We had the best meal ever in Uganda!  The food was so good. While we ate President Bell had an informal interview with us since he was not our official mission president, at that point. It was just a comfortable conversation between friends. Later that night we had microwave popcorn from Costco and mixed juice and sprite and played Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza which was the first time the Bells had played that game and Ethan lost his mind laughing and getting into the game.  He was very funny!  We all had red hands from slapping the cards.  It was a great way to spend time together.  

Emirates Grill (#1) in Kampala

The Bells had appointments again in the morning, we had details to manage but also decided that we had room for one more 6 yard piece of heavy cotton African print fabric.  We did not know the area but that does not matter because the best way to find anything is to just go out and look around and hope that something works out.  Elder Kaiser parked in front of a meat shop on a rough road in a little shopping area and suddenly we were surrounded by several young adult men offering to assist us. Sister Kaiser got out of the truck and told them we do not want meat but instead she showed them photos of fabric and asked if there were shops who sold this type of fabric.  Felix became our guide.  He was patient and we followed him around and eventually found the perfect print of fabric. Elder Kaiser gave him a tip.

Uno No Mercy

When we got home we had homemade limeade with the Bells and spent the rest of the evening together.  We ended up playing "Uno No Mercy" and once again Ethan was funny but Sister Bell  and Sister Kaiser thought they were also funny when they skipped the men over and over.  Revenge had it's last laugh as Elder Kaiser won the game in a showdown with Ethan.

We had an appointment with President and Sister Balilemwa on August 12 in the late afternoon.  First, we met in the mission home where we were asked to briefly share mission experiences and our testimonies. It was sweet to think back on and share our mission experiences and was nice to share our testimony about Jesus Christ, the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith, the latter-day prophet who ushered in the restored gospel on the earth. 

President Balilemwa, Elders Hunter and Isaie (who we knew from Gulu)

Sisters Kaiser and Balilemwa

We both regret not been able to spend more time together.

Afterwards we were delighted to go to dinner at a newly opened Emirates Restaurant near the Uganda Kampala East mission home! We ordered the same exact meal.  Devine! It was so nice to spend time with the Balilemwa's and the assistants in a casual setting. 

Elders Hunter, Isaie, Elder and Sister Kaiser and Sister and President Balilemwa

Emirates Grill (#2) in Kampala

After goodbyes, we went back to the Bells home and immediately left for the Entebbe Airport.  They insisted on taking us and we were glad that we had a little more time with them. 

 They took us to the first security point where we said our goodbyes. It did not seem real but it was.  

We took a moment to take one last photo together in Uganda at the airport.  

We had to laugh or we might cry instead.

We had two travel travel hiccups. When we got to the ticketing/baggage check counter all of our large pieces were just barely the correct 50 lb weight.  We breathed a sigh of relief that they were not an issue.  Then the agent asked that we place our carry on and personal items on the scale.  They were over weight!  We were unprepared for this turn.  We were navigating the options when the agents supervisor took over.  He is an evangelist pastor who saw our missionary tags.  He knew something about what our church does in Uganda and wanted to say, "thank you." He put "ACCEPTED" tags on all four pieces so that we wouldn't be questioned.  Sister Kaiser shook their hands and asked their names and said that we would say a prayer for them, they both smiled and we said more than one prayer for them.  

The blessings far outweighed the hard parts, not just in travel but throughout our mission

The second hiccup was expected when we got to Dulles Airport in Washington DC. Once we were in front of the immigration officer he locked our passports in plastic containers and walked us to an area for those who came from countries who required health screening. Uganda was only slightly affected by ebola but US officials and US media has made it seem worse than it was. In Uganda the health department closely worked with world health organizations and rapidly contained the 2 death cases in Kampala and those affected by exposure to those same 2 people who came from DRC. Health officials were vigilant about screening at border crossings and before we left the country Uganda declared that it had been 57 days since the final active ebola case was cleared.  The US is being very cautious around the situation, probably due to the risks and problems in the Congo.   We passed the health screening and made it to Salt Lake City, UT slightly early with compliments of a beautiful double rainbow in a golden sky as we landed.  

Look carefully and you will see the second rainbow

Once we were in sight of the exit doors to passenger pick up we started to run. Rhett spotted us first and we had the best reunion ever with adults and Rhett.  It felt surreal and also normal to hug all of our family members.  We were happy to be with them but we left a bit of our heart in Uganda.

Early on Thursday, 14 of August we left Shane and Susannah's and drove to Chelsea and Cody's house.  We met our favorite little people who were waiting on the curb with homemade posters and hugs for us.  Best reunion ever!!!   

The official greeting from Gavin is complete when you get stickers.

If you read our first blog Elder Kaiser was given stickers upon departure.

A short time later we were released via zoom by our stake president. Tyson said the opening prayer, President Waldrip asked both of us to share a mission experience, then asked for family members to add their perspective of our mission.  Sister Kaiser's Mom, Diana, was called on, then Rhett, The Trio of Girls, Chelsea and then Andrè. We shared our testimonies as asked, then President Waldrip said a few things before he told us to take off our tags.  Elder Kaiser took off Sister Kaiser's missionary tag and Sister Kaiser took of Elder Kaiser's tag.  We said our goodbyes and closed the zoom.  It was okay.  We didn't cry but it didn't feel real either. There have been a few times that Kendra has checked for her tag over her heart.  

We told everyone to wait there and went in another room and put on matching African print clothes made by Pascal from Busia. We came out together and surprised everyone and gave out beaded personalized bracelets to the children and African print ties for the men and showed some of the African print fabric we brought home to make quilts for the families. 

Our 13 year old grandson passed his Grammie up in height.

The rest of our time together our focus was on family time and Finley's baptism.  For Finley's birthday the girls went to a tea party including cousins, great grandma, grammie, aunts and Finley's mom. We had pink lemonade and an assortment of treats in a pink princess room. The boys tried to play frisbee golf but the rain ruined their plans so they ate ice cream at Maceys.  

It was a beautiful day for a baptism on 15 August. Finley looked sweet and sat in front with her parents.  The family and many extended family members and friends attended in great numbers. Finley's 2 girl cousins, both age 9 were witnesses for her baptism. She was confirmed and given the Gift of the Holy Ghost after she was baptized. It was a very happy way to spend our reunion time.  It was a treat for us to visit with so many loved ones at lunch after the baptism. 

Later we had fun at the pool with the family.

We have been asked multiple times if we would go to Africa again.  If we were called, yes, we would go.  Some of you know our story.  A call to serve in Africa was not what we expected, despite that, we said yes.  The Lord was with us.  We saw miracles, we had angels watching over us.  We made many sweet and dear friends, who we had sweet spiritual experiences with and that we love dearly.  We lived a simple life and we didn't mind.  We were there to teach and support the leaders and members but we learned so much from them. They shared their love openly.  They have excellent standards of hospitality and graciousness, it was refreshing and they taught us to slow down.  They Love the Lord with all of their hearts and even though they don't fully understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ they have amazing faith many are ready and hungry to learn more. One sister in Mbale said it well, "I went to a lot of churches before I became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ.  Once I became a member I felt like Jesus Christ was my personal Savior.  I know Him and that is why I stay in this church."  Amen Sister

The pure in heart were the ones we were drawn to, they are full of the Light of Christ.  They are the ones who we miss the most.  There is a bond now between us and "certain people" in Uganda.  Many Ugandan's asked if we would come back to see them.  We said yes, if you all meet us at the temple in Kampala, we will come.  

"The Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise and bringeth about the salvation of many souls."  Alma 37:7. 

Farewell our dear friends.

Safe Journey Until We Meet Again.

We Love You!

"Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not."
Doctrine and Covenants 6:36. 

We will be speaking in our ward at church on 13 of September.  All are welcome to come.  We have a zoom link but you have to contact us personally for that link.