Elder Combs - Second Companion

With only one month in Forestdale, Elder Fogg is assigned a new companion from Highland, Utah - Elder Combs. First order of business - to give each other a haircut.


Excerpts from a letter/email:

"Elder Combs (the new District Leader) and I can't drive the car because Elder Gines used all the miles for the month. So it's raining... and riding through puddles that were deeper than the pedals...all good and fun until my handle bars broke and I crashed into a bush. So we say a prayer that we will find a way to fix my bike and just around the corner was a construction site that had an allen wrench...the power of faith. We have a baptismal date with a kid named Truman. He is a way cool kid."

Elder Gines - First Companion

For a new missionary, the first companion or 'trainer' is tasked with introducing the realities of mission life. Elder Fogg was fortunate to have Elder Gines from Riverton, Utah .

Excerpts from emails:

"My companion is Elder Gines. He is a cool kid, training me well. The weather here is different - random down pours, but we have a car! We only have to ride our bikes if we run out of miles, so thank heaven for that cuz its toasty here...Sometimes we talk with preachers and ministers and i get frustrated because of the hardness of their hearts. "They speak close to God with their lips but their hearts are far from him. Having a form of Godliness, but denying the power therof." I've been to a lot of different churches. And all of them are still segregated. How sad. Well, i love and miss you all."

Forestdale - 1st Area

Elder Fogg standing by a large Aloe-Vera plant outside his apartment in Forestdale, Alabama - his first area.

Excerpt from his first email from Alabama:

"How is everybody? good? That's great. Right now I'm serving in an area just west of downtown Birmingham called Ensley. Our residence is in Forestdale though because its too dangerous for the missionaries to live in Ensley. Its pretty much the ghetto of Birmingham. But there are some really nice people here just waiting to hear the gospel. The ward is very small, and mostly black. Some people down here speak an-yo-cn-bery unstan' w't dey is sa'n. It almost is a different language. Im startin' to get it though. My companion is Elder Gines. He is a cool kid, training me well. Well, i love and miss you all."

114 Crabapple Lane Apt. F
Forestdale AL 35214

The MTC

The 'District' after a long day of studying and taking calls at the call center. Pictured are Elders Fogg, Sanchez, Hall, Durfee, Medina, Mosey, Smith, and Wright.

Excerpt from email:

"I only get a limited time to e-mail once a week. So don't get too excited. I just want to tell you i love you and miss you. Keep me updated on special events."

-Elder Eric Douglas Fogg

Family

Family is the most important aspect of Eric's life, so he enjoys sharing the eternal nature and importance of the family to the people of Alabama. We are proud of his decision to serve a full-time mission for the LDS Church, and we look forward to his safe return home to his immediate family of 6 (parents, two sisters and a brother-in-law) and his extended family of 35 (grandparents, 5 uncles, 5 aunts, and 24 cousins).