Ebeye

On Sept 28th, 2013, President and Sister Weir and I boarded a United Airlines flight to the Kwajelein Atoll.  We landed on Kwajelein Island at the Army Missile Base.  We were met by the President Parker of the Kwajelin Branch, who works there.  President and Sister Weir had their military ID and President Parker was able to get me a guest pass to go onto the army base.  It was very manicured and looked very nicely kept.  Our first stop was the food court where we picked up a Subway Sandwich.  Hmm that was so good.  We don't have any fast food restaurants here in Majuro.  While we were eating, we met some of the branch members who were there including a doctor who had previously served there but left for a year or so and now he and his wife are back.  He volunteered to go and check any of the missionaries on Ebeye that I was concerned about.  Wow, that is awesome.

A ship docked in the lagoon

The base was very well manicured and kept.  There were lots of family friendly recreational things available there such as a swimming pool, several beaches, and places to snorkel or dive. 

The WW II memorial on Kwaj

signs giving mileage to many places in the world

There is a dinning room named for Louis Zampereni who was a prisoner on Kwaj during part of World War II.  (Book: Unbroken)

Where the Kwajelin Branch meets

Military Housing

We boarded the ferry headed for Ebeye.  There were a lot of people on the ferry.  A young man from Ebeye  with special needs,  met us and helped us with our bags.  He helps the Elders and actually wears a missionary badge.  They call him Elder Robert

On our way to Ebeye looking back at Kwaj

A little islet on the way to Ebeye

  Coming into Ebeye...the end of Ebeye with a few trees and NTA

Coming into Ebeye

The dock in Ebeye

Sister Weir and I got to go with the Sister Missionaries to teach this family

They have accepted a baptismal date

Kids playing ball

The church  building in Ebeye

The church was made out of an old Bunker

Basketball court on the church grounds

As usual, the children were so cute and  friendly

We got to attend a baptism for two wonderful people

Elder Wilson did one of the baptisms

To get to the lagoon where the baptism was actually held, the whole crowd of church members had to go through a maze of little tiny houses and lean to type houses

The baptism was at sunset and it was beautiful

People watching the baptism

It was very special

I love the children.  I read that over 50% of the 15,000 people that live on Ebeye are under the age of 18.  There were children all over.  They played with anything they could find...cardboard, rocks, sticks, and even garbage.  Ebeye is one of the most densely populated places in the world.  All of these people live on a 1 mile long about 1/4 mile wide island or about 80 acres.  They live in tiny little shacks and lean-tos very close together.  There is obviously a lot of poverty. 

Cute kids in front of the hotel

I loved talking to the children and smiling at them.  It was sad to see some of them with medical issues that don't seem to be addressed.

They do have a small hospital there.  The Marshallese only have to pay $5.00 for a visit to the outpatient clinics.

Kids playing with cardboard

Kids by the ocean side of Ebeye

Kids playing in back of the hotel

The kids played with whatever they could find

Kids on the street

They seemed to be having fun

The Ebeye Hotel

An Ebeye Street

My hotel room in Ebeye

At the restaurant in the hotel

On the ocean side of Ebeye

Sisters Whitney and Mahit came to see us off at the dock

The peer as we pulled away

We have 3 branches in Ebeye.  We have 8 missionaries and are getting a missionary couple soon.  There hasn't been one there since May.  The people are wonderful...so friendly and kind.  Especially the members.  They were really awesome.

The Ebeye peer

Sharks right off the shore in Kwaj

We walked out on a little peer in Kwaj and there were these sharks just swimming around.  It was kind of eery even though nurse sharks are supposedly harmless. 

The Marshall Islands are a shark refuge and there are many kinds found here.  Thee is a nurse shark