As the Clan Turns

Well once again, I have fallen down on the job.  So much has happened since I last wrote.  I have taken a new job as Associate Dean of Extension at the University of Minnesota.  So as a result, I moved to Minneapolis at the end of September.  Candy and some of the kids will join me after Christmas.

Zachary is finishing out the semester and will not go to school next semester.  He needs to have some sinus surgery and as a result, he will be unable to play the trumpet for three months.  As he is on a trumpet scholarship, it is not going to be possible for him to keep it.  He is working with Southern Miss to come back and return to school after his 2-year church mission.  He plans to put in his papers after the first of the year.  He hopes to return in time to resume his studies in the fall of 2015.  Meanwhile, he will work with the Petal High School Indoor Percussion Ensemble to prep for their run at the World Championships in Dayton, OH in the spring of next year.

Matthew is going to finish the school year at Petal High School.  Just last week, the band took the 6A Mississippi State Marching Band Championships as Grand Champion after a 5 year stretch of 2nd places.  He was on snare in the drum line and is very excited for the Indoor season to begin.  He will join us this summer in Minnesota and finish his senior year before embarking on his church mission in the summer of 2014.

Gabby is 13 and well, 13.  She is crazy busy with school, band, church, and her friends. She is excited about the new adventure in Minnesota but is really fretting leaving her friends.  We promised her that she would be able to go to Mississippi and have friends come up as occasion permits. She is growing up so fast and is quickly becoming a beautiful mature young woman.  It is fun to see.  Of course being a girly girl, Gabby is excited about the expanded shopping options in the Twin Cities.  My bank account already is feeling the strain....

Sam and Luther are also excited about moving to Minnesota.  They are resilient about it all and while they will miss their friends, they are excited to be near the Mall of America and Lego Land.  They are enjoying the 4th grade, Cub Scouts, and getting ready for the big move and the Holidays.

Candy has gone about the preparations for the move with dignity and grace.  I can't thank her enough.  She has shouldered much of the burden of the preparations as I tore some abdominal muscles in September rendering me unable to life more than 10 pounds.  In the process of moving, we also endured the wrath (albeit tempered) of Hurricane Issac.  It was a wild few days of preparation and clean up.  Regardless, we got the house on the market, thanks to Candy's efforts.  Now we are just praying for a quick sell.

Rainier is doing well in school as Southern Miss.  He is a junior majoring in Political Science.  We are so proud of him and his efforts.  He has a sweet girlfriend named Heather.

I was released as Bishop of the Petal Ward (congregation) of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints shortly before I moved from Petal.  It was a wonderful 5 years.  Since arriving in Minnesota, I have undertaken the role of teacher for the High Priests Group in the New Brighton Ward.  I also was invited to sing with the Minnesota Mormon Chorale.  I have enjoyed the last month of reigniting my passion for music and raising my voice high to the heavens.

All in all, I sincerely believe that this move is going to be great for the family.  Like past moves, it is going to challenge us as a family.  However, we are confident that Heavenly Father has and will continue to guide us.  Our cell phones will not change so feel free to continue to contact us that way.  My new office is located below.

Brent Hales
Associate Dean
University of Minnesota Extension, Center for Community Vitality
467 Coffey Hall
1420 Eckles Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108
(office) 612-626-8256

We wish you all the best.

Soooo, I have seriously fallen down on the job.  Much has happened since the last time that I have written.  Here is where the Hales Clan (Mississippi Branch) is.  Life does not stand still nor does the Hales family.  Let's go from the youngest to the most experienced.  Notice, I didn't say oldest.

Sam and Luther are completing the 3rd grade in a couple of weeks.  They have grown so much.  They love playing together (and fighting together).  They love playing with their guys, playing video games, and drawing/reading.  They are so excited for school to be over.  They are looking forward to staying up late, getting up late, and spending excessive amounts of time with friends. 

Gabby is nearly done with her first year of middle school.  The 7th grade is brutal...or so I have heard.  She is officially a teenager (yes we have three of them in the house) and loves the chance to let us know at every turn that she is a teen.  She spends as much time hanging out with friends as possible.  Her bestest friend, Charlsie is a constant in her life.  I swear that she spends as much time with her as she does with us (more with her on the weekends).  She too is looking forward to an extended vacation and seeing family.

Matt is 16, has a driver's permit, and is a drumming machine.  Matt and Zach both competed in the WGI Indoor Percussion World Championships.  You can see their send off show here.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDEo116pnbo  Matt was on the smallest bass drum and Zach was playing all of the sound effects on a pad in the second row.  Matt is looking forward to his junior year where he hopes to become part of the percussion pantheon.  He also plays drums in a Christian rock band and hopes to begin making his own custom drums. 

Zach is getting ready (fixin) to graduate from Petal High School in a couple of weeks.  He was recently named the winner of the John Phillips Sousa Award for the Outstanding Band Member and also the Petal Entrepreneurship Student of the Year at Petal. He placed 2nd at the Mississippi Business Plan Competition.  He received a $2,000 scholarship from the University of Southern Mississippi and will be attending USM in the fall.  He has played with USM's Jazz Band for the past year as a senior in high school.  He will be majoring in composition and jazz.  He will also be playing in the marching band.  It has been a busy year for him.

Rainier just finished his sophomore year at USM.  He is double majoring in political science and French.  He has a 4.0 and was named the outstanding sophomore student in his program at a recent recognition luncheon.  He will be spending the summer studying in France.  He recently finished his commitment to the United States Army and his family could not be more proud to have him serve and represent our family honorably.  He has a great girlfriend and is looking forward to pushing through his degrees and to graduate school.

Candy finished both her personal training certificate and her nutrition certificate.  She spends her time keeping our busy family functioning and trying to get us to live a more healthy existence.  She enjoys running, working out, and fixing up our home.  She has great friends that she has found solace in spending time with them, our family, and doing the things that she loves.

I am still serving as bishop (pastor) of the Petal Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I have served in that capacity for the last 4.5 years.  I love it.  I am still a professor at USM and also serve as the chair of the Department of Economic and Workforce Development.  It is a great existence.  I am constantly challenged and invigorated with my work with youth entrepreneurship http://www.theSEP.org and as President of the Community Development Society http://www.comm-dev.org.  Many doors have recently opened and our family is looking forward to seeking God's will for us. 

We lost one of our family members this year.  Our beloved dog Harley disappeared one day.  It broke our hearts as he had been with us for 9 years.  We treasure the memories and know that God will reunite us down the road. 

Our lives are constantly in motion and we love spending time with each other.  We are hoping to make a long family trip west this summer and expect to get on each others' nerves and laugh a lot too.  We look forward to seeing family and friends and building those strong bonds once again.