The past few weeks have continued the parade of amazing people coming to the Hyde Park Chapel. Last post we mentioned the visit of Alex Boye’s mom to the chapel. Alex then came in on the following Sunday, October 9^th. He baptized his mom that afternoon and then did a devotional in the chapel that evening. The house was packed. Nearly 500 people showed up for this event. Alex did not disappoint as he told of his gospel conversion, experiences in the church and sang a couple of songs. He involved the audience and kept them entertained for two hours. The next day he came to the chapel and spent time with our VC staff. He helped one of our companionships with a lesson and then he sang with some of our sisters and President Stevens (he knows Alex from their Tabernacle Choir days together). Then he came the next day and just hung out at the chapel for a while.

The following Sunday (October 16^th) Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife came to the Hyde Park Chapel. He was not on any specific assignment but came to visit a former missionary companion who is a senior missionary here (he did have an assignment elsewhere in England the next day). He spoke at the Britannia (YSA) Ward sacrament meeting. He then met with the senior missionary couples serving in the local area (about a dozen couples) for an hour of Q&A.

The next day Elder Bradley D. Foster, a General Authority Seventy and Executive Director of the Family History Department, came to the VC and spent some time with us. It was exciting to share with him and his companion, Stephen Rockwood, Managing Director of the Family History Department, things in the VC as well as show them our Teaching Center where our sisters our teaching people all over the world. They were in England to meet up with Elder Cook and attend a Family History event elsewhere in England.

Today we were visited by Matthew Holland, President of Utah Valley University. We had the privilege of showing him and his two companions around the VC and the chapel. They are here in England for a stained glass exhibition that was at Oxford University yesterday and will be here in London this next week. The exhibition will be permanently placed at UVU in Orem, Utah.

We also continue to have great experiences with other guests who come into the VC. We have had several more baptisms in the chapel (including another Chinese young man today) and around the world (in the Philippines and Wisconsin). We have many people who come into the VC not really knowing what it is or who we are. And before they leave they are intrigued and want to know more. We look forward to many more baptisms in the future.

We haven’t been able to do much sightseeing lately but we have made it on a few walks. Fall is definitely here as our high temperatures barely reach 60 degrees now. The leaves are turning colors and the daylight hours are diminishing (we now have less than 11 hours of daylight compared to 17 hours just a few weeks ago). The VC continues to be open 9 to 9 every day and the gospel light shines brightly there at all times. It is such an honor to serve here.