The Church recently discontinued the Poptun Guatemala District. Located in the recently created Guatemala Coban Mission, the former district included three branches (Dolores, Poptun, and San Luis) and all three branches continue to function under the realigned San Benito Guatemala District. Missionaries report that the San Benito Guatemala District is close to becoming a stake. The decision to consolidate the Poptun Guatemala District with the San Benito Guatemala District appears motivated to help the area finally reach the minimal criteria to become a stake.
There are now 42 stakes and 17 districts in Guatemala.
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The Alliance Texas Stake was created on 16 February. There are 6 wards in the stake:
Bonds Ranch Ward
Heritage Ward
Justin Ward
Roanoke Ward
Trophy Club Ward
Woodland Springs 1st Ward
The Busay 2nd Branch, Cebu City Philippines Stake, was created on 9 February. There are now 6 wards and 1 branch in the stake:
Apas Ward
Busay 1st Ward
Kamputhaw Ward
Lahug Ward
Mabolo Ward
Talamban Ward
Busay 2nd Branch
The Lobia Branch, Yamoussoukro Cote d'Ivoire District, Cote d'Ivoire Abidjan Mission, was created on 16 February. There are now 9 branches in the district:
Agbanou Branch
Bouafle Branch
Gbeuliville Branch
Habitat Branch
Koko Branch
Kokrenou Branch
Lobia Branch
N'Zuessy 1st Branch
N'Zuessy 2nd Branch
Mike,
I see that the new branch is Busay 2d Branch where there is already a Busay 1st Ward. Is the new branch a different language? Or a neighborhood with insufficient membership for a ward? Just curious. Not a YSA branch or that would be in the name.
Ray, my guess is that they had enough members for a split but not enough priesthood. They might've felt having another branch on the side would help relieve the burden of a large ward with little priesthood. Might be something else, but that is my guess.
I don't think there is a big enough need in Cebu for foreign language, and there aren't really single wards in the Philippines because of travel costs and the need for the YSA in their home wards.
Anyone have an update on Cuba?
My wife is from cuba, there is a branch in havana, lds maps just posted the meetinghouse location. As far as missionary work I havent heard of anything.
Politically recently my wife has said that the castro regime is "becoming" more capitalistic with some recent changes. Once cuba opens for missionary work it will blossom. My mother in law lives near guantanomo bay and has been interested in the church since her daughter moved here, got baptized, and married in the temple. I plan on visiting cuba and when I do il go to the branch in havana.
I Don't know if you already saw this back from 2011:
http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/2011/02/missionary-work-beginning-in-cuba.html
On LDS Maps, is shows the boundaries of the Havana Branch being the whole nation of Cuba except the US owned portion in Guantanamo. But the mission boundaries of the Jamaica Kingston mission on LDS maps only contain the southern portion of the island around the city of Guantanamo. In the long term, it would make more sense to assign Cuba to a mission from the Dominican Republic where the missionaries speak Spanish.
Yes I did see that post, thanks. My wife is from the city of guantanamo actually.and her mom still lives there. Its quite a long distance from havana though.
I had wondered about the Busay 2nd Branch, apparently splitting from what is now the Busay 1st Ward.
The Busay 1st Ward meets in the same building with 3 other wards. It has by far the largest area of the four wards, extending well out of the urbanized area into the countryside. I could not find on Google maps the address of the meeting location for the new branch. It may be quite some distance from the meeting house. So, I think this division may be motivated by distance. It is possible that there was a group inside the Busay Ward, that has now developed to the point where it can now be a branch in the stake on its own.
Thanks, Mike, That sounds right. Distance is often a major factor when wards are divided, especially when transportation costs take up so much of the budget. Groups often get started for the same reason.
I served in the San Benito area in 2000 and 2001 and our mission president was preparing to submit the district to become a stake (to include the Poptun branches). 12 years later, and still working on it. The big challenge was enough priesthood holders to man all the stake and ward callings.
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