Sunday July 19, 2026

We have been back in France for three days, staying at the mission home until our housing in Rochefort du Gard is available on the 23rd.  Our flights were full and I did not get much sleep - Tom slept much better.  Charles de Gaulle was absolutely packed with bodies waiting to board.  

Waiting at the gates

Our flight to Lyon was 1/2 hour late.  The Laters (good friends and office couple) were there to meet us.  We picked up a different car at the mission office, one with lower mileage.  Most of the couples now drive a KIA Ceed.  Pres. Schow sent out a message to the missionaries that they were now allowed to get sick since Elder Spackman was back in the country.

We had two unusual experiences since arriving.  On Friday when we got up, after some thunderstorms overnight, the power was out in half the house including the kitchen and fridge there.  Tom looked at all the fuse boxes he could find without seeing where to reset. He finally contacted the Pres. who was out of town, who contacted the maintenance man in Valence, who contacted Tom with the appropriate info and VOILÀ , all was on.  Second, Tom got an email from our Chase credit card with a possible fraud charge.  This is the card we use all the time, so we hurried and bought some groceries, including Dad’s favorite peanut butter, phoned Chase, and cancelled that number.  Hopefully a new card is arriving tomorrow morning at the mission office or we will be using our debit card.

Yesterday morning we went on a walk to the bakery for some fresh bread, about a mile away.  On our way home we passed this stone inscription, near a building that we couldn't approach close enough to photograph.  After some research, we found out that the building was a country retreat (Castel) of the deputy mayors (échevins) who helped govern Lyon from the 1300's to the revolution.  

When a devastating plague hit the region in 1643, the Mayor (prévôt) and the four Echevins made a vow that if the Virgin Mary would spare Lyon, they would make an annual procession with offerings to the Fourvière Hill (site of the old Roman forum).  The city was spared and the mayor and city officials still hike up the hill annually, now to the basilica built there in 1896.  It's a climb!

We both feel very comfortable being here although I had forgotten how small the parking spots are and I still don’t understand what is said in Sunday school.  Ecully Ward was very welcoming this morning.  We are happy to start our new adventure this week.  There are 8 couples left in the mission, three of them leaving before November.  In Sept. Tom will possibly be adding the Paris North Mission to his medical assignment.  He does not know yet how the other Pres. wants to do things but we’ll make that transition when we get to it.

Our Inter-mission Report, July 12, 2026

This is the only blog we will write from America before returning to Avignon, France for the last 9 months of our mission. We have immensely enjoyed reconnecting with family and friends from medical school and 3 previous missions. I will share parts of three or four of those…

We spent a week in Utah at Rhonda and Marcus’ house. We often stay with them because they do not have a dog and we feel so comfortable with each other. Our reason for being near Highland was to celebrate Eden’s graduation with honors from Lone Peak  High School. Eden is the oldest child of Neal and Candice who was born on the autism scale and has had every kind of therapy to learn how to conquer those triggers which isolate her from learning as others do. She has worked hard, earned the  5 honors chords on her gown and showed great poise in her class of 800 at the Marriott Center. She has been accepted at the University of Utah in their honors program. We are proud of her work ethic and amazing accomplishments.  We give special credit to her mom for her enduring love and  endless hours of service to Eden. 

Our next adventure required driving 2500 miles from Jacksonville  FL to Alberta, Canada via Rochester, MN. We met with Footes, Ferraras, and Shermans, eating, laughing and sharing experiences for five hours. It was so good to meet with friends who we have worked with in the Church and love what we love. In Alberta, we spent quality time with my five siblings, Tom’s two siblings and several friends, all of us recognizing that we are not as young as we used to be.

 Then our 5 children arrived in Waterton with 3 of their spouses and nine of our grand children and the party began. What great fun hiking Bear’s Hump, going horse back riding, climbing Crypt (one of the top 20 day hikes in the world) laughing at old slides, eating good food, performing Lead Kindly Light a cappella in church, walking to Cameron Falls, and trying to skip rocks in the lake.

Cameron Falls

The riders prepare to mount up

The hikers

The Crypt trail and falls - not for the faint of heart!

 Some of the things that most impressed me:

Cousins living together and liking each other

Cousins doing the dishes without being asked—special kudos to Elizabeth and Simon

Roses and thorns- Jonah’s comments showed great maturity

A foot and hand rub from Emily 

Watching Cam and Jonah building a dam in the freezing Red Rock Creek

Ivy taking pictures - some very dramatic

Ethan and Asher providing great bass for the ensemble

Scott playing appropriate chords for Eensy Weensy Spider

Sitting by the big fire place in The Barn watching the FIFA World Cup

Waking up to pumpkin waffles with butter milk syrup and bacon 

Each person introducing themselves at the Hicken family reunion

Watching the full moon rise and the fireworks from the Raymond Cemetery

We got to know each other better and made some great memories.

July 2 we all headed out by car: Erin to a Rushforth family gathering in Idaho, Ben to a 50th anniversary celebration on Vancouver Island, Neal already at home so Candice and Tommy could go to Orlando for volley ball, Hugh to N. California to prepare for the Tarpenning family reunion and Tal back to San Antonio and his new job. We made it back to FL in four days and have been shopping and  packing to leave for France.  Thank you all for coming. The only thing that would have made our time together better would have been if Candice, Tommy, Eden, Kristina and Hailey could have been with us. Love to all.   G &G Spackman

Sunday May 10, 2026

Our last week in Chalon has been an emotionally draining and physically exhausting adventure. Like the ancient Inca tribes, I have enough faith in an afterlife that rather than finalize a goodbye, say au revoir - until we meet again. We have learned that distance does not negate love of our brothers and sisters - not in Edmonton, Cardston, Pocatello, Rochester, Accra, Daloa, or Nairobi. Chalon sur Saône will be the same.

We had some interesting experiences these last few days. Thursday we made a trip to Lyon to the mission home to store a load of stuff for Avignon. We left cooking pots and bowls for large groups at the office. I was supposed to get a crown on a tooth that afternoon but the dentist had to remeasure for the lab. She was quite surprised that we were leaving the country for two months on Friday. We figured out that next Tuesday is the only possible day for this to happen.

Friday, May 8 is the day the war ended in Europe. We were at the cenotaph for that remembrance. Afterward the mayor presented Bro. Landré with a medal and certificate honoring his service to the community.

We met his sister and a couple of nephews and he received lots of attention. We were supposed to smooze but excused ourselves to meet the branch president and wife for lunch. They took us to their favorite restaurant, a quaint little open air place among the trees next to a stream. It was quite heavenly listening to the birds and such a pleasant three hour meal.

What a lovely last hurrah with them - at least until August when they are coming to visit in Avignon.

Saturday we attended a baptism for 8 year old twins in our branch.  We do not have a font so must travel to Dijon where there is an actual chapel. It is about a seventy minute drive north and is the border of our mission. I lead the singing. Tom accompanied me, also the Soeurs singing a duet, and was on the program to bear his testimony. It was heartfelt and the little girls listened intently. My favorite part was a member from the Dijon Ward playing ‘When Jesus Comes Again’ on her harp.

When all was finished, a woman about my age approached me and said Larry Spackman was her first bishop in Calgary when she joined the church at age 17. She served a mission in France and Belgium in her twenties and was so impressed with the commitment of the members that she wanted to live around them. After her mission, she used to pray that she could help build Zion in France. She ended up marrying a Frenchman who joined the church at 35 and her prayer became a reality. Her husband now has some severe health problems and he is her mission at the moment. What a sweet lady.

From there we headed to see our widow who had just arrived home from the hospital after having surgery on Thursday. We had already said our goodbyes but wanted to cheer her with some flowers and see how she was doing. I said to her ‘The next time we see each other we will be younger and more beautiful.’ She promptly replied ‘And I will have my teeth.’ With that we all laughed, gave hugs and left.

For the next two months we will be blogging occasionally, not weekly. We will be in Florida, Utah, and Alberta, then returning to France on July 15. Au revoir Burgundy. We will miss your stunningly green hills and hedgerows, your historic chateaux, your vineyards, your river, and most of all your people. We will remember your beauty.  

Sunday May 3, 2026

Our last morning in Berlin we ate whole cardamom buns for breakfast and Christy got us on the train to the airport. We had our carry ons checked, compliments of Air France and have learned how we can get on the plane with group one. We tell them our age and they say ‘Welcome  aboard’. It was a late night arriving home  at 11:30 

Tuesday was an unpack, do laundry, get groceries, make granola day. I cleaned the freezer and planned our meals using what we have for our last 2 weeks in Chalon. The next three days we cleaned windows, kitchen cupboards, wallpaper, the oven, and the wooden dining chairs. Also helped the elders start cleaning their cupboards. I threw out three frying pans, chipped dishes, spices from 2021 and many things they have never used.

I have been thinking about 3 different things this week. Who are we going to include in our visit to Utah? What is going to Avignon (packed separately) via the mission home, what are we taking to Florida that stays there and what  activities are we planning  for the family reunions in Canada? We have started packing. Third, how do we best support those who are dealing with heartbreaking challenges? 

Today was one of my hardest goodbyes with the widow I have loved since the first time Tom took her the sacrament. For ten years she has only left  her house in an ambulance. She speaks French and mine is very limited but somehow we connected. She actually stood up so we could hug and weep on on each others shoulders. I will miss our visits and the sacred times we shared spirit to spirit. It reminded me of saying goodbye to the couples in Rochester who stayed to clean up after our going away party. I could not speak, only hug and cry. We had invested 30 years of our lives there and raised our children there and were leaving it behind. How we love and remember those dear friends.  That was 17 years ago and Tom and I have lived several different lifetimes since. 

Sunday April 26, 2026 Berlin

It is so strange hearing German spoken with smiling eyes or hearing the words of the Sacrament prayers in that language. Until visiting Berlin this week, most of the German I had heard were words from movies or documentaries on World War Two. It requires a paradigm shift.

Berlin is on a plain, with forests (we walked and ran in them), lakes, and beautiful treed streets, and a horrific history.  The plan was 1000 years of glorious reign by a superior race instigated by a Viennese immigrant adopted by a country humiliated by the their defeat politically and economically by the First World War.  It is a beautiful city now, mostly new, with 3 1/2 million people thriving under democratic government.

Ben and Christy have been so accommodating since we arrived. (I have  walked  29.9 miles).  We travelled to Potsdam, unspoiled by the war, to see the Dutch Quarter from the 1700s and the King of Prussia’s Summer Palace.  We have visited the Brandenburg gate, Jewish Museum, the Stasi Museum and the Topographies of Terror, Checkpoint Charlie, and the Berlin Wall. Sobering.  I was especially aware of the personal stories recorded - one father had written a poem about living, to his young child headed to England on a kindertransport and another asking when he could come visit his 5 yr. old epileptic daughter at the hospital for undesirables.  You know the end to both stories.

We delighted in two concerts: two solo violinists with piano at the Berlin Philharmonic performing Beethoven, Mozart, Ravel, and a medley from Carmen, and an outstanding Orgelvesper  at Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church with readings from Mathew plus the Lord’s Prayer and selections from Buxtehude, Bohn, Bach, and Mendelssohn on the organ.  I must mention the  bonus couple on the train playing harmonica, guitar and bass.

At the same time, a sixty year old women came on with her bike.  That may not sound amazing to you but she was also carrying a 5’ blossoming fruit tree.  I could not quit giggling. How was she going to get that to her house? 

We have eaten sour cherry and tonka bean (outlawed in the US) ice cream at Jones, Turkish kabob, rhubarb squares from Markthalle Neun, manti, and could easily develop an addiction to cardamom buns.  Christy taught me how to cook leeks in potato soup or include them in roasted vegetables.  We found blueberries like you have never tasted, 2 euros for 1200 grams, mandarins 1 euro a kilo and green grapes for 2 euros a kilo.  We really hit the jackpot at the outdoor market.  Everything was delicious.

We had a most unusual meal after ward conference today. There were lots of salads and desserts but also two pizza ovens with two bakers making and cooking fresh pizza.  Christy was cutting them as they came out.  There were fresh flowers on the tables and a pour your own drink stand.  This was all outside on the lawn in the trees behind the red brick church built in 1950.  This raised the anti for meet-and-greet in the future.

We thank Ben and Christy for a week of new experiences, and expanded perspective, but mostly for their time, their conversation and their goodness.  We may never visit Berlin again but we have memories for a lifetime.

Brandenburg Gate

Walking in the forest

Sculpture in Sans Souci Palace garden

Buying rhubarb squares at Markthalle Neun

Section of the original Wall at Topography of Terror exhibit 

The organ in the new Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church

Checking out Checkpoint Charlie

Saturday April 18, 2026

There is excitement and then there is excitement.  Last Sunday, the branch had a little surprise going away party for us.  Kate was included as well since it was her last Sunday in Chalon, being here for 7 months.  Lots of finger foods and fresh fruit and presents.  I am taking the gifts to the U.S. in May adding to what I bought months ago for myself - black and white polka dot cutlery.  Pres. Catogni was effusive with his praise and the branch was very generous.  Fortunately, we did not receive any live Guinea hens that we need be concerned about (sometimes given in Africa).  

Pres. Catogni

We have invested nineteen months of our lives here and have learned so much from them.  I am brought to tears thinking about leaving this place but know it is time for a new assignment.  Jacob 4:10 "Wherefore brethren,  seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand. For behold, ye yourselves know that he he counseleth in wisdom, in justice and in great mercy over all his works."

Sr. Landré, Kate, Sue, Bro, Landré, Tom

We found a new couple who just moved from Tahiti and need both our beds .  I cleaned out the kitchen and the balcony and they took everything from dishes to planters this morning and will come back for the rest on May 11 when we move.  Our stuff will reside in the mission home in Lyon until we return in July.  

We talked to both Elder Later and Elder Delbar about the place we had found to live.  Each suggested that we ask the owner if he would be interested in a long term rental.  He was.  We said we would need to see it first.  He suggested we come yesterday so Thursday we drove to Lyon to get my tooth checked again and then travelled south to an adorable hotel in Villeneuve called La Magnanerais for the night.  Absolutely charming; rock walls, climbing ivy, shutters, marble bathrooms, beautiful gardens, and glorious birds chirping in the evening sunlight.  I was in heaven.  I hope there are chirping birds in Heaven.  

Our room at upper right

The hotel garden

The next morning we prayed that the Lord would confirm that this was where He wanted us to be and headed off.  The place was spotless and quaint.  As soon as I walked through the door, I became very excited.  This spontaneous energy can’t be conjured up and almost can’t be contained. Tom was talking about serious things like reliable internet while I was looking through cupboards etc.  The owner was very accommodating about rearranging furniture, bringing in a table or desk for a work area, updating to a faster speed if needed etc.  We each knew this was the right place.  It looked and felt like France.  The owners’ great grandfather had built the house and attached barn about 1840 surrounded then by grape vines and olive groves.  Now it was surrounded by a ten foot rock wall in the middle of a village.  We would be living in the remodeled barn. We were delighted to be part of it and it would become a part of us.

Interior view of the new apartment

Unfortunately when we arrived home and read our mail, we were slammed with a multi- thousand dollar special assessment on our condo In Florida.  Such is life.  Opposition in all things.  We will work it out.  We know God is still in control.

 We hope life is good at your house and that Spring has come.

April 12, 2026

We have learned much in the last two weeks. The days leading up to Easter were more meaningful than in past years because we tried to make it a Holy Week instead of a holy day.  There were some excellent articles and lectures online discussing the fig tree, the cleansing of the temple, and the last supper (according to John not being a Passover meal), Christ carrying the crossbar, the history and methods of crucifixion, and the idea that the crucified were at street level so that they could not be ignored.  I would guess that was much harder on his mother.  From our Easter service at the church, I was reminded that the purpose of Sacrament meeting talks is not to bestow knowledge but to inspire, through personal experience, ratified by the Holy Ghost, a testimony of the greatness of God and the infinite atonement of his Son, Jesus Christ.

Some favorite studies of the past week from Mosiah 25 & 26: 

‘…because of their unbelief, they could not understand the word of God and their hearts were hardened’

‘As often as my people repent, will I forgive them their trespasses against me’.

On Mar. 30, April 1& 2, we were in Lyon feeding 10 departing missionaries including Sr. Peterson, 20 new arriving, and 60 at the assignment meeting.  It was pretty exhausting. We were grateful to have Friday as a down day to prepare for the marvelous General Conference and Solemn Assembly on the weekend.  During those meetings, I received a sobering personal  revelation about softening my own heart instead of praying for someone else to soften theirs.  Kate joined us at 6pm both evenings for the direct broadcasts.  She listened in French on her earphones while we listened in English.  One of the French translators is in our Stake Presidency.  

The Saturday afternoon session was shown Sunday morning at the church and the new Elders joined us for a roast pork dinner afterwards.  My favorite part was a spinach, strawberry and mango salad.  That was a new experience for them.  In response to my question ‘Why did you decide to serve a mission?’ Elder Scrivens answered that for several years as a teenager he did not feel the Spirit.  As he got older and learned to recognize it, he realized that it had been there all along.  Perhaps his  experience could help someone else.  Elder Cowden responded that it was an answer to his prayer plus his two older brothers had served. We are  enjoying  getting to know these two elders better.

Monday evening Tom conducted the First Monday meeting zoomed to the complete mission.  Four senior couples shared info that all missionaries need to know: electricity and circuit breakers, financial receipts, nutrition, health and budget, and emergency preparedness.  It was well received and all are hoping for a review sheet.  I cooked chili most of the day for zone conference on Friday.  Tuesday and Wednesday we cleaned veggies, cooked another batch of chili and 7 double packages of lardons (precut tiny pieces of bacon) for the sour cream, bacon & chives.  By Thursday when we left for Lyon, everything was ready except chopping onions and scrubbing, poking and wrapping 42 potatoes for baking.  Another senior couple was bringing 20 more.

Zone conference, especially Pres. Schows’ talk, was exceptional.  What matters, using Mark 6, and 7, being a missionary.  You matter (referring to friends), our message matters, I care about you, BE where you are.  

He showed a clip of Elder Bednar teaching at the MTC four months after his call as an apostle.  He spoke about two young missionaries who had come to his home on a Saturday morning when he was in graduate school. They played with his two little kids, had breakfast and after an hour, asked if the Bednar's had anyone they could refer to the missionaries to teach.  He replied, “We will not refer any of our friends to you. You are like two boys not two missionaries.  Missionaries would not waste a Saturday morning visiting members when it is the only day most people are home.  Missionaries would knock on my door and say something like ‘May we share something we have learned from the Book of Mormon this week with you and your family if you have a few minutes?’  Then my two year old could get his copy and make this a family experience. Missionaries would bear their testimonies of Jesus Christ and his church and conclude with the question about teaching our friends. They would leave within a few minutes and go to work.”  The next week the missionaries came back and did just that. 

Pres. Schow also quoted Elder Uchtdorf from October 2014 conference. “Over the course of my life, I have had the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the most competent and intelligent men and women the world has to offer.  When I was younger, I was impressed by those who were educated, accomplished, successful, and those applauded by the world.  But over the years, I have come to the realization that I am far more impressed by those wonderful and blessed souls who are truly good and without guile.”  The gospel is good news and it helps us become good.

The lunch was well received and we were too tired to talk on the way home. We love helping where we can.

Srs. Tew, Cardon, and Bell at Zone Conference

The exuberant wisteria thinks spring is here