service heals the heart...

service heals the heart...in honor of travis john kunz our family has decided to do as many kind deeds and acts of service to honor him.  we have been blessed by the many kind acts of service that people have done for us during this difficult time.  tate shares an act of service that he participated in...

this week we did service at a school for kids with disabilities and i had an amazing time!! it was good to see how grateful they were just to see us there and to have more friends!! i love those kids!

 this week i just learned a lot about faith. i learned that really in this life we are going to have a lot of trials and hard times but if we just know that our heavenly father understands and is testing us he will show us miracles in our lives... i have seen tons of miracles in my life lately and i hope that we all can learn to recognize the tender mercies and miracles more in our lives...even through those hard times like we are having in our family! i love you guys and i know that everything will be okay! i know that we will be stronger than ever and that the gospel is real and we really can live with our families forever...what a blessing we have that knowledge in our lives..

THIS WEEK WAS really good! me and my comp are getting along really well and i am excited to be in this sector. we already have found some good families to teach and so i am looking forward to helping them! more info on them later as we teach them more! also in my zone i have a kid from guadalajara who speaks spanish better than me and speaks english better than me hahahah that was pretty funny to find out :)  he wants to know what mission ty served in so let me know! also happy bday hazyl joy!! i love you!!! so this week was way cool i found out that the grants know troy  they are amazing and are actually in my district so i teach them every district meeting haha...very cool!!

hey i love you mom :) thank you for being who you are and an example to me...

love you guys more than you know!!! time is going too fast haha 

elder harding.... 

lEtTeR tO ShElBy aNd kIdS...

lEtTeR tO ShElBy aNd kIdS...yesterday as i was doing the dishes my eyes glanced at the magnet hanging on my fridge.  i had made the magnets for everyone in our family for a reunion a couple of years ago.  it says...

OUR FAMILY  is a circle of strength and love... founded on faith... joined in love... kept by God together... FOREVER

the following is a letter from tate to shelby and the kids...

this last little while i have been hearing and learning a lot about faith... i know that our family has had a lot of trials in our faith this last little while and i wanted to share something that i learned this last little while about that! ... we know that faith is something that gets tried and tried and tried over and over again in our lives and it will always be that way... i know that shelby and the kids obviously have an amazing amount of faith because they chose to stay strong and keep pushing on through this hard time in our lives. i know that right now it is very different for everyone... but i also know that travis is here with us every step of the way and that if we just think of what he would want us to do in our lives...we will be okay. i hope you guys know that i pray for you every single day and that you are not alone. always remember that your heavenly father is there and that his son has felt this same pain and suffering that we have felt as a family this last little while. he loved us enough to pay the price for our sufferings so that we don't have to feel the full effect...he died for us  so that we one day can see travis again and live with him forever! i know that and i promise you that he is watching over every single one of us...i will do my best to make him proud and i know you guys will too! keep holding on and always turn to the savior through the hard times!

 so this week was a really chill week as well because we knew we were getting taken out so we just progressed our investigators as much as we could and left them for the other elders!  we spent a lot of time spending time with the members and keeping them excited and animated. also when we left they gave us SO MANY GIFTS HAHA like a hand knitted pillow with my name in it, a knitted hat with my name in it, shirts with the mission symbol on it hahah it was funny...i love those people...it was really  hard to leave...but this new sector is way awesome!! like i said my new comp is from chile and only has like 3 months in the mission so he is pretty new! i am excited to be his comp. as well i got called to be a district leader so i am excited to learn from my district because the last time i was district leader i learned more from them than they did from me! 

love you mom! just so you know! you are the best mom ever....and if it makes you feel better...im a third of the way done with my mission! love you :) 

love you guys! 

Elder Harding...

iT's GeTtInG cOlDeR...

...iT's GeTtInG cOlDeR...in the dead of winter tate would have his window open and then he would wrap himself like a mummy in his blankets and strategically position his pillows to sleep...crazy kid!   his room was often like a walk in freezer.  the weather is changing in chile...just as we begin to see signs of spring...chile is beginning to cool down.

 its starting to get a little bit colder and it will really start to chill out here in a little and it sucks because there is no heating down here so that will be an adventure!!  i guess all those years of sleeping with my window open during the middle of winter in idaho will help me a little bit don't you think? :)..

                                                                       officially a chilean


 we are getting changed out of this sector  because there is no progression and president doesn't want to waste his time here!   nothing much is going on this week!..i feel like i just got here yesterday and i only have two more thirds to go! hollay time to get to work even more!!! it motivates me so that is good!  like i said this sector is pretty much dead with the missionary work within.... we got a call this last friday and they told us that we will be getting taken out and that if we have investigators who were really progressing fast to pass them to the other sector that lives with us...so that is our main focus this week is to get them progressed as much as we can to pass them at the end of this next week.

                                           tate and other elders at conference

  also i want to wish grandma harding a happy birthday and that i love her and miss her!!! just know i pray for you guys alot and love you guys a lot!! have a good week chao!

iT's A fAmIlY tHiNg...

iT's A fAmIlY tHiNg... family is what life is all about.  this past two weeks have been the hardest thing our family has ever had to go through.  with the unexpected death of Travis our little family has been put through a whirlwind.  we have cried more...we have hugged more...we have listened more...we have laughed more...we have hung on to each other more.  we have been reminded that sometimes things happen that we cannot control.  we will be stronger...we will work harder...we will love more...we will remember...we will do our best to be better because of travis's example.

i loved the president uchtdorf talk about everything being a FAMILY AFFAIR. just remember that as we go through this hard time together as a family. we will stick together forever! 

 so one thing i learned this week is how to love more. i literally could feel gods love for a couple of inactive members we visited this week. we went over there house. he is an old man about 80 or so and he has a daughter who is down syndrome. his wife passed away and have been relying on each other for the past couple years. as i listened to them tell us about themselves and talk about each other i could literally feel the love that god has for each and every one of us! always remember that he loves us and is always listening!

 how did everyone like conference! man it was amazing.. i hope everyone got to listen to every session because it was amazing. elder bednar told us in the MTC if we do not know exactly what our prophets and apostles have said in the last conference then WE DO NOT BELIEVE. that's pretty strong but i hope it motivates you guys to listen read and study the talks over again....because if not then we do not believe in the principles they shared.

 i also want to invite karson, kaden, and hunter to all go listen president thomas s monsons talk in priesthood session again and listen to when he asks the young men " are you ready"...DO EVERYTHING YOU CAN YO PREPARE YOURSELF. i regret not preparing more. read your scriptures, preach my gospel, and go to freaking seminary  don't skip like i did a lot of the time. its not worth it and it will make your mission so much harder....i learned the hard way :)  as always i was a trouble maker!!
troy kunz remember that man i met who was your comp in chile....saw him again and he told me to tell you too look for JUAN CARLOS GODOY ARAVENA on facebook and you will find him... he has kinda got a crazy eye....but other than that i am good! love you guys and hope the best for you... 


elder harding! 

letter from my uncle...

The following letter was written from Travis and given to Tate before he left on his mission in a journal he gifted.


letter from my uncle...

Elder Tate John Harding –

*What can I say? It is the night before you leave. You just called and were set apart. I remember the feeling. Tate – I thought I would share a few thoughts w/ you.

*You are about to begin one of the best parts of your life. A mission is awesome. It is hard. It is one of the hardest things I have ever done – but -> it was by far one of the BEST things I have done with my life.

*it is like anything else in life, you will get out of your mission what you put into it. It is up to you. Don't waste time, give it all you got, and come home w/ no regrets. President Hinckley said "Do the best you can. Work hard. Do what is right!" If you think that the last few years went by fast, * A mission is no different. It will be over before you know it. It is special and nobody can take it away from you.

*That is true with your testimony. Your testimony is your own. It will grow and strengthen as you serve your mission and beyond. That was one of my favorite things to share on my mission. They don't need to take your word for it – but they can find out for themselves if the church is true. The church is either true or not. It is that simple. Tate – I know that the church is true w/ all my heart. It has made me a better person, a better husband, a better dad.

*Tate, the priesthood is real. It will humble you if you use it right. Do not be casual w/ the message you share. It is the most important message you will ever share w/ the people of Chile. Don't ever apologize for the gospel of Jesus Christ! It won't always be easy. I heard a quote the other day… "Just be yourself…because tomorrow…you're not going to have to worry about remembering who you pretended to be yesterday." – Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey 2012

*be good to the people of Chile and … love them! A true test of the person you are is how you treat those who can be of no possible service to you. You will make some friends for life. I know for a fact that there are people that our Father in Heaven has prepared for T. John Harding from Pocatello, ID. I know that. And when you meet them… you will know!

*Love the Book of Mormon. There is no more important book. It will teach you about the savior more than anything else. There is power in that book. If your contacts will read from it & feel your testimony, they will know for themselves. As you serve, testify of this book as it shapes your mission.

*Last of all… learn to love to pray.  Prayer is the way we communicate w/ our Heavenly Father. You know that. But it will be, at times, all you have. Prayer has helped me in my life and I am grateful for the knowledge that we have – that HE is real and He knows us personally. He knows what we go through at all times.

Tate – I love you my nephew. It has been fun to watch you grow up and become the man that you are. You are|and|have made good decisions in your life. You have been a good example to me and my wife & kids. Thank you. Good luck, serve hard, and give it all you got. Leave it all there in Chile – it will be a lot harder to come home than to go. I hope you use this journal to create/capture some special times.

                                SURE LOVE YA –

                                                                TRAVIS JOHN KUNZ #2