New faces!

This year, the Seattle Institute was blessed to receive two new CES sister missionaries and a new instructor! They are incredible and have already contributed so much to the institute. Come by the institute, and take one of their classes to get to them better. In the meantime, members of the leadership committee put their interviewing skills on the table for all of us to get to know them better!  Thank you to Alex, Katie, and Kendhall for their creative interviewing approaches!! 

Sister Iskenderian the Fantastic

October 2011

In the words of Alex

If I could change my name to anything that I wanted I would be named Sierra.

I was born on 18 June 1942 and baptized in 1950. But I know I don’t look that old.

Of course my favorite day of the year is today, and especially if today is Thanksgiving.

If I could be anyone from the Book of Mormon then I would be Jacob. Why you may ask, because he was a young and handsome young man steadfast in the gospel. He was a quiet man, not always in the limelight but steadfast nevertheless.

I love Earth, it is my favorite Planet.

What do I love about Seattle? The waterways… water is cool! And also, of course, the young adults of the institute. However, I do miss my grandchildren.

Speaking of my grandkids, if I were to describe my family I would say that we love to have fun and laugh, but we also have our share of drama.

I went to college at the College of the Sequoias in California.

My favorite family tradition is the fact that we celebrate everything. Whether it’s Christmas or Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we will celebrate.

In my future novel my main character will be a Captain Kid (probably not a pirate) and his quest would be to travel the world rescuing children from ail and every injustice, joining his motley crew of justice fighters. (Captain Kid and the Lockness Monster coming in 2012)

My favorite apostle is President Eyering because he is so tender and soft spoken, but very serious about the gospel and his love for it. He’s in the forefront of the church but was not self-appointed but simply accepting his call from God.

**We are so grateful to have Sister Iskendarian at our institute! One of her greatest gifts is her ability to reach out and personally connect to others. She is a living example of love and charity . 

Great interfaith experience!

This week I had the opportunity to go with a few other Institute students to the weekly meeting of the UW Interfaith group, Bridges.  The topic of the meeting was the relationship between religion and culture and we discussed things like "Can religion exist without culture?" with about five other people from various religious backgrounds.  I was really impressed by the amount of truth that was shared by the students from other faiths, especially the insights of one student on the purpose of religion and faith which he summarized as bringing about a change within ourselves for the better.  It was a humbling experience to remember that truth can come from anywhere, not just church-sponsored meetings and activities.   I would encourage any interested Institute students to come to the Bridges meetings! They are held on Thursdays from 5:00 to 6:20 in Savery 131.
-Maggie Brown

Meanderings...

So, institute has been pretty fantastic thus far this school year. I have been fortunate enough in my schedule to take the class on Teachings of Brigham Young and also Pearl of Great Price. Both have been incredible experiences full of learning and inspiration. My favorite, though, has definitely been delving into the Pearl of Great Price, studying and learning more about the creation, where we come from, and the purpose of our own creation. I have loved being able to feel the spirit more in my life, which has in turn led to more success in the academic field.

Also, last week here at institute we had the TURKEY BOWL! Pretty much my favorite event of the year. Imagine, thirty two teams playing in a double elimination flag football tournament under the lights in Husky Stadium. Remember that scripture that says "stand ye in holy places"? Welll, I am pretty sure that this qualifies. Hats are off to the team from U3 otherwise known as "The Dawgfathers", as they won the tournament for the third straight year.

Long story short, this place ROCKS! Come join my institute class at 1:30, Monday and Wednesday, as we need more people.

Thanks for reading!

Bryan Briggs