Senior missionaries give meaningful service while they spread the gospel, but who would have thought that service could be so Halloween-festive?
While serving in the Illinois Nauvoo Mission, senior missionaries Brother and Sister Gibson helped prepare for the Bootiful Nauvoo celebration on Oct. 29.
Among other things, the celebration is known for the 500 intricately carved jack-o-lanterns that line Mulholland Street.
Image from the Beautiful Nauvoo Facebook page
"What does that mean for the missionaries... not much we just sit around donating, organizing, and distributing 1,100 bags of candy and thousands of bags of kettle corn," Brother and Sister Gibson posted on their mission blog. "It is a non-stop, two-day effort to get all of this ready. And then there is the matter of cleaning and carving, along with the townsfolk, 500 pumpkins to line the streets with. So we cleaned and cleaned during our time and filled several five-gallon pails with the innards."
Photo courtesy of Mindy Ford Gibson
In addition, the senior missionary couple helped with a Halloween parade, decorating horse trailers.
And many were sure to appreciate the senior missionary couple's efforts, when, according to their blog, "The sleepy little town of Nauvoo erupted into a sea of people as the celebration began."
While their family back in Utah missed them on Halloween, they appreciate the service Brother and Sister Gibson continue to give on their mission while sharing the gospel.
"Although it is hard missing out on the traditions with grandparents during the holidays, we love to hear about their own adventures in the mission field," family member Mindy Ford Gibson says. "It brings a greater depth to our testimonies of service and the joy that this brings. We will forever be grateful for their examples to us and our children."
Lead image courtesy of Mindy Ford Gibson.
