Sister Companions at the SLC Airport Sister Tyler (rear) Sister Perry (middle) Sister Steere (front)
Kyleigh left for Japan on Monday, Feb. 23. We were able to talk to her when she was at the SLC airport. She said they had a crazy morning. They took a bus to the TRAX station and then took TRAX to the airport–with all of their luggage–at least 30 missionaries going to Japan and ALL of their luggage! Not to mention all of the other missionaries! There was a lot of missionaries leaving that day from the MTC–a lot of missionaries. There were about 30 missionaries that were leaving for Japan that day.
When they arrived at the airport, they were told the flight they were going to connect to in Portland was stuck/cancelled in Texas. So the Lord’s hand was guiding the events, because they were then told the flight the were taking from SLC to Portland would be the connecting flight to Tokyo. Once they arrived in Portland, they would not have get off the plane, they would just refuel, get the connecting passengers, and then leave for Tokyo. So that left them at the airport for a couple of hours. There were so many missionaries leaving that day that Kyleigh could not find a phone to call. We were expecting her call at 7:00 am but we did not get to call until 8:30 am. It was so good to hear her voice and know that she is doing well!
She sounds like she is doing well. She is looking forward to arriving in Japan and getting to work! The group of missionaries would all fly to Japan together and then would part ways in Tokyo. (see above picture of her and her companions at the airport). She said that they would have a 15 hour flight. arriving in Tokyo on Tuesday at 3:00 pm. They would have a 4 hour layover in Tokyo–some of the missionaries would to to Kobe, Fukuoka, etc. She would be the only sister traveling with two elders to Nagoya. They would take a flight to Nagoya, and then a train to meet up with the mission president. We thought we were going to be able to hear from her again when she arrived in Tokyo, but we have not heard from her. We are trusting that she is doing well and getting used to the new culture. We are sure that the last few days have been a whirlwind for her! But she will do well! We are very anxious to hear from her this weekend as the p-day in Japan is Monday, which is our Sunday. The time change will be somewhat hard to remember. Japan is 16 hours ahead of Utah time! Thank goodness for smart phones that allow us to know the time and weather in Japan.
We are very grateful for her sacrifice and for serving the people of Japan. Kyleigh has a very strong testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and will be a truly AMAZING sister missionary. We are very grateful for her example and for her willingness to be a missionary!
sisterkyleightylernagoyajapan 