Sunday, November 9, 2014

Annie - Leader and Friend

Monday, Nov. 1

We got into some heavy rain going to Amman today.  The local people are very grateful for the rain because they have had a long drought.  In town we splashed through big puddles and got soaking wet going into the Orange Cell Phone store.  It took us a long time to find a parking place.  Traffic was terrible and we spent most of the day sitting in the car going nowhere.  The Hammonds spent all day with us and we are very grateful.  We could never find our way around without them.





The reason we went to Amman for the second time in three days is because the Strongs and the Hammonds were giving a dinner for their dear friend Annie Majocopian and her husband Husam.  Annie heads up the Al Hussen Society that works with handicapped children.  The founder is Queen Abdula whose husband is the king of Iraq in exile.  Annie is good friends with the queen and is one of our key partners in Jordan.

The other two couples and us spend a lot of time developing relationships with influential people/partners.  We're amazed at how many leaders in the country have been influenced by the Church.  Approximately 200 people have gone to BYU on scholarships and come back to occupy leadership positions in Jordan. Some of these people are influential judges in the Jordanian court system who have gone to BYU law school for a year to earn a masters degree in international law.  We can't proselyte, but the Church has had a positive influence.

Annie's husband is leaving tomorrow for a job in Arabia.  He'll be gone for a few years, and everyone wanted to tell him goodbye.  Sister Hammond gave him one of the new hymnbooks in Arabic and he was thrilled.  The couple is Christian and has attended our church twice.  We met them at the hygiene kit service project the first day we were here.

We enjoyed the company of a great lady.



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