Elders Digerness - Coming and Going

As our summer is coming to an end, we have been blessed with additional family gatherings, grandchildren going back to school, others beginning post high school education, and two grandson brothers trading places as full-time missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  We have been blessed in every way.

Elder Joshua Digerness being set apart, Elder Joseph Digerness being released

Let's start with the missionaries.  Elder Joshua Digerness began his full-time mission on August 11, 2025, beginning with Home based MTC in our home.  He is now in the Provo MTC, awaiting his visa to go to the Harare Zimbabwe mission in Africa.  It appears that he will have a visa wait experience in Austin, Texas.  His brother, Elder Joseph Digerness arrived home from his mission in Honolulu Hawaii on August 23, four days after his brother Joshua entered the Provo MTC.  In each case we were blessed to listen to them speak in Sacrament Meeting and be with them with their stake president when they were set apart (Joshua) or released (Joseph).  These are some of our greatest moments as grandparents.  We love these two young men and are so happy for the choices that they have made and the service they have rendered and will render.

Let us start chronologically. Joshua chose to do one more "Especially for Youth" conference the week before his mission.  That led him into his mission on a spiritual high.  He had served as a temple ordinance worker for two days the week previous.  His talk was amazing.  He talked about asking his father when he was nine, if God exists. His father asked him, "What do you think?"  That led him on a journey that brought him to his mission service. He shared the struggles and personal revelations that helped him to prepare for his mission.  We are so proud of him.  After his talk his mother hosted a luncheon at the park.   That night he was set apart as a full-time missionary and the next morning he began his Home MTC.

Joshua with some of his friends at the park

Many enjoying the food

Joshua sitting next to his next older sibling, Jon

Joshua with his mother and some of his siblings after getting set apart as a full-time missionary

For six days we were able to pick Joshua up from his home and host him for his Home MTC.  He would have time downstairs in relative peace as he held his Zoom meetings. We were able to see him at lunch time and breaks.  Then his mother would pick him after she returned from work.  This is the second time we have done this with a grandson and we love it!  It gives us a little more one on one time during these special moments of their initial missionary service. 

Picking Elder Digerness up each morning

Learning from his MTC teacher and district 

Meeting with his companion, also going to Zimbabwe

Eating his lunch in our home

On his last day of Home MTC before saying goodbye 

As a tender mercy, on the Joshua's last day with us in Home MTC the Church released official dates for the open house and dedication of the Zimbabwe Temple, being in January and March of next year. We thought that timing was pretty special. 

We were able to receive weekly emails from both Elders Digerness for two weeks.  Then Elder Joseph Digerness arrived home on Saturday morning, August 23,  early on a red-eye flight from Hawaii.  We were able to be with him and were able to listen to the inspired words of his stake president before he was officially released. 

Elder Joseph Digerness listening to and following along in the scriptures while being taught by his stake president, with his sister Evelyn at his side.  Note that his missionary picture is on the board, right above his head in this photo. 

The next day, Joseph spoke in sacrament meeting.  He did a wonderful job of tying his mission experiences to the topic of "the light of Christ".  We loved hearing some of the detailed experiences about new converts that he was instrumental in helping join the Church during his mission.  We heard more details than we had from his emails.  We are glad to have him home and see the tremendous growth that he himself has received during his two years on his mission.

Joseph, giving his sacrament meeting talk after returning home from his mission

After his talk, we enjoyed additional time to talk a little bit more with Joseph during an open house at the park.  His mother has put on two of these in the last three Sundays and is getting pretty good at it.  His mind seems very able to move onto his next priorities in life, such as starting school at Utah State in Logan, Utah the very next day.  

Lunch with Joseph, family, and friends

Joseph has finished his release, message to the high council, and sacrament meeting talk within 30 hours of getting off of the airplane from Hawaii.  Within 10 hours he will be getting situated in his Aunt Kari's house in Nibley, ready to start at Utah State the next morning

Baptisms for the Dead:

On Saturday, August 16, we ended up with a unique opportunity to go to two different temples to do baptisms for the dead with different grandchildren. 

The Saturday of Joshua's MTC we went up to Hyrum, Utah to celebrate the 6th birthday of our granddaughter, Emily.  Since we were going up we scheduled a temple visit to do baptisms for the dead with her sister Ellie.  Ashton would have gone with us but had a funeral of a grandmother to attend.  We had scheduled this early in the day, since they had a ward activity that night. 

With Ellie at the Logan Temple

After scheduling our temple visit in Logan, we had a request from our granddaughter, Abbie, to do baptisms again in the Salt Lake Valley.   Also our grandson, Jacob, had asked us if we could do baptisms in the Draper Temple since his brother Jasper had never been to the Draper Temple. When I looked at the schedule, I saw time available on Saturday, August 16 in the evening.  Doing it in the evening opened up an opportunity to do one more temple trip with Joshua.  This time he could perform the confirmations since he was now an Elder.   So we finished our visit in Hyrum and drove back to South Jordan and then were able to have five grandchildren with us as we went to the Draper Temple.   This was especially unique since Joshua was a set apart full-time missionary.  This was the first time that he had performed confirmations.  We let him perform the confirmations for all 35 of the individuals who had just been baptized. 

With our five grandchildren at the Draper Temple, on the baptism side of the temple

A closer up view of us with our grandchildren, including Elder Digerness

It was interesting that the first thing Joseph asked us when we had a chance to talk, was about how many times we did baptisms for the dead with his siblings while he was gone.  This has been a very memorable activity with the Digerness boys.  Joshua also commented on going one last time in his last email from the MTC.  We are so glad that we can enjoy this time with our grandchildren. 

Going away to school:

Beside our missionary, we have a few grandsons beginning their time away from home in the form of education.  This is a growing time for each of them.  All of them are studying on scholarships to make this possible.  James DeVore is in his third year at Penn State but it is his first year living away from home. He will be living at College Station, Pennsylvania.   His younger brother Thomas is starting his college at Vignelli Center for Design Studies in Rochester, New York.  Joseph, will be going to Utah State University in Logan, Utah.  He will be staying with his Aunt Kari and Uncle Michael in Nibley, Utah.  No photo yet for Joseph at school.

James DeVore in front of the Nittany Lion of Penn State

Thomas in front of the Vignelli Center for Design Studies

There are also many of our other grandchildren starting different years of their elementary, middle school, and high school.  We love them all and are proud of all of them, but we are only including post high school education in this blog.  Their Oma sent each of them an individual note for starting their school year. 

More Family Get Togethers:

Summer is a good time to get together with family and this has been a good year for that. In late July, my dear uncle and aunt were in Salt Lake City, perhaps for the last time.  My Aunt Vivian is my mother's youngest sister and has been an angel in our lives.  Her husband, Dale, has been that person that we have always looked up to.  Their children arranged for them to do a special trip to visit with family and friends one more time while they were still able to do it.   Our time, on July 28, fell on Uncle Dale's 89th birthday.  This activity brought all of my brothers that live locally and many nieces and nephews as well as step siblings of my mother.   My brother, Jim and his wife hosted this activity in an AirBnB that they own right next to their house.   What a delightful evening!

Dale and Vivian visiting with two of my brothers

Lot's of family together.  We are blessed that there are only good feeling when we are together.

Vivian with My step uncle, Dean and Paul behind

Jacob and Deb.  Deb meeting Aunt Vivian for the first time and their daughter Debbie, an angel like her mother.

With Dale and Vivian

The following Saturday, August 2, we had our annual reunion of my parents' posterity.  This has turned out to be a good event with great participation.   My brother Jim always grills hamburgers and hot dogs for everyone and all the brothers help support it with other food contributions.  This always includes some of the posterity of my two deceased brothers, Andy and Mike.  We even have my cousin, Chris, who has no other surviving family from her parents and always particpates in our family activities. My youngest brother, Dan, once again drove up from California, just long enough to attend the reunion and then return back to California.  He spent two nights in our home, which gave us a chance to have a little more time with him and his family. We love everyone that comes, but this is an opportunity for me to recognize what great children my parents raised.  I love my brothers who do their best to bless everyone else. We had all living brothers and sisters-in-law in attendance and many of the next generation. As I am now the patriarch of the living generation, I feel great joy in seeing everyone together and getting along so well. 

Plenty of fun and food for everyone

Everyone is in constant conversation with others.

Even these four nieces-in-law who married into the Rueckert name

Our Church Service Mission:

In the middle of our summer of family, we still continue to serve in our Church Service mission, teaching our institute class.   This has been a super uplifting experience for both of us. Every 8 weeks we get a new 7 week class.  Then we have one week off and start again. We are constantly amazed at how close we get with our students.  They inspire us with their faith and dedication.  We have learned that many people struggle in life, but those in our classes are generally those who trust in the Lord and persevere because of their faith.  Their faithful examples are one of the perks of this calling.

This month we had an in person inservice meeting, especially for new teachers.  They are doubling most of the teachers up to have two teachers for every class.  Since we are already teaching as a pair, this change does not impact us. We will start our next term on the week of September 1.

This is our leader, Scott Bird, teaching us how to carry out our duties.  He is an amazing leader and is so kind and loving. 

Just an example of the number of teachers that are in these trainings.  All are doing what we do and have much to give and to share.

Grow Box Garden:

This year I have grown a garden in my grow boxes again.  My cucumber plants have been bearing fruit more than we can eat or give away.  We have had plenty of tomatoes and a few peppers.  I have the biggest cantaloupe that I have ever grown.   Still can't grow Zucchinis.

My cantaloupe growing and hanging in my grow box

Birthdays:

During August we have had a few birthdays in Pennsylvania, James turning 20 and Henry turning 16, but no photos for either of them. When we went up to Hyrum to celebrate Emily's birthday, we had one book sent to her home, because it wasn't going to get to us in time.  When we arrived, neither of her parents had seen it, even though we were told that it arrived four days earlier.  As we talked, they noted that no one had looked in the mailbox.  Emily then went out to the mail box and found her gift.  Problem solved!

Emily opening her package that she found in the mailbox. 

Emily turning 6 with both of her books