HISTORY

A Little History:
Our story begins in Pocatello, Idaho, circa 1972, when the lovely Debby Christensen agreed to a first, though fateful date with admirer, David Croshaw. Long story-short, he bade her follow him, and they went arm-in-arm to the Logan, Utah temple for establishment of an eternal family unit, Generation 1, on May 23 1973.

From their first blissful summer in Salt Lake City, educational pursuits took them to Provo/Orem, Utah, birthplace of Leslie and Rebecca, and to San Francisco/Oakland California, birthplace of Colin and Matt. Then, for establishment of livelihood, expansion of the tribe with Abby and Dana, and for raising/unifying of Generation 2, it was back to the roots in Pocatello for a rewarding sojourn.

In time, driven by a raging, but commonly shared sense of adventure and independence, one-by-one, Generation 2 escaped the homeland to distant regions of the country and the world, each ultimately developing their own tribal expansions by pairing with worthy mates and initiating Generation 3.

Now sensing fulfillment of their purpose in Pocatello, Generation 1 has also left those roots and transplanted to Cascade Idaho, from which base, they anticipate more abundant contact with The Posterity, Generations 2 and 3, in the future. That contact however, awaits fulfillment of a call to LDS missionary service in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, wherein they hope to help the state of the world by sharing the love of Jesus Christ.

So now, including Generation 0 (Grandma and Grandpa Christensen) home base includes Yuma, Arizona, Pocatello, Idaho, Cascade, Idaho, Vancouver, BC, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Spokane, Washington, Boise, Idaho, Los Angeles, California, back to Boise, Idaho, and on and on (Generation 3+) to infinity.

Our Mission Statement:
This is the blog of our eternal family unit. Initiated years ago, it served well as a journal, but even more so, as an archive of our personal interaction. It was a gathering place, a confabulation instrument, a unifying force for four generations of widely dispersed and progressively prolific posterity, and their valued associates. Though it served these purposes well for many years, it eventually took a back seat to new-kids-on-the-block, Facebook, and Instagram, and was sadly forgotten.

We now move to resurrect this blog with an added functional purpose of archiving the missionary experiences of Generation 1, of their movements and activities as they participate with The Gathering of Israel in the land northward. In so doing, we hope that via their own comments and posts, this blog will again serve to gather and unify the posterity and their friends.

As in the past, that the young and vibrant may know the old and tired, that enduring bonds may be fostered and maintained, that experience and encouragement may be openly shared, that posterity may embrace truth, and that hearts may be knit together, we must resist detachment despite our geographic divergence. We shall do so here.
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Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Born in the U.S.A.--- Not


Illegal immigration is all over the news these days, and has been for as long as I can remember, but when do you actually hear anything about the people who do it right?

I found the following (thank you census bureau!):

- Since 1820 approximately 74 million people have been granted permanent residency in the U.S. Some of those people may have been our pioneer ancestors!

- In 2008 approximately 188,000 Mexicans were granted permanent resident status in the U.S. (31,000 Dominicans, 75,000 Chinese and 45,000 Russians)

- I thought I was special marrying a foreigner, but in 2008 35,000 American's foreign spouses were granted permanent resident status.

- In 2008 17,000 foreign babies were adopted by American parents. Almost 4,000 of those babies were from China.

- In 2008, a record number of persons (1,046,539) were naturalized as citizens of the United States of America. The leading countries of birth of new citizens were Mexico (231,815), India (65,971), the Philippines (58,792), China (40,017), and Cuba (39,871). The largest number of persons naturalizing lived in California (297,909), Florida (128,328), and New York (90,572).
Today we leave for Ciudad Juarez. Tomorrow Alex has a medical exam he has to pass, and Friday is his (our) interview with the U.S. consulate (pictured above). If all goes well, he'll have his visa on Friday afternoon and will then be granted permanent resident status the next time we enter the U.S.
Unfortunately, he's not feeling great. He came home last night feeling achy, dizzy and a little sick to his stomach. He's a little bit better today, but it's really not a great time for him to be coming down with something. Thanks so much for all of your letters and support up to this point, but please pray for him...and for me. I think I'm nervous enough for the 2 of us! I'll post again after the interview.

13 comments:

Crystal said...

I am certainly praying. Is Alex ready for the lifestyle change? I know first-hand of people who try to beat the system and just live here illegally (work here illegally, et c.). The legal process is frustrating, time-consuming, subjective (from what I understand), but you are righteous, good people and things are bound to work out... so all that waiting will be over soon! Horray!!

David and Debby said...

we are praying for you, too. let us know. xoxo mom

rebeccaV said...

Good luck guys!! We are praying for you, too. I'm can't wait to hear how it goes!!

Alex Esparza said...

Thank you for your prayers

I'm now a Resident. we just have to wait for FEDEX to deliver my passport and Residency visa

The funny thing is I only had to answer three questions.
#1 Was this picture taken in provo?
(No it was in Monterrey.)

#2 Where was your wife born?
(Provo)

#3 Are you guys Mormon?
(yes)

Then he said, "Raise your right hand. Do you swear to...

and then the last words were Welcome to the United States of America

For more details call Leslie

Alex.

Alex Esparza said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
rebeccaV said...

Yipee!! Congrats guys!! I'm so happy for you!

Crystal said...

That is hilarious. Congratulations! I had no idea Leslie was born in Provo! Were David and Debby still undergrads?

You need to celebrate with a cheeseburger and fry dinner!

David and Debby said...

Alex,
You now get extra points for becoming an official american resident. Welcome to the USA! I know we're already sealed, but I now look forward to also being your blood relative by becoming grandfather to your children. I know you guys have been trying, but now that the immigration stress is out of the way, you can really focus. No pressure though... The future of your family plus your business is bright.
David

David and Debby said...

BTW Crystal, Yes, Leslie an Becky were both born in Provo while we were undergrads, Becky on the day I graduated from BYU.
David

Crystal said...

Wow, what a graduation present!I guess I did not even know you went to BYU! I tell you, I know nothing about you guys!

Jason and Dana said...

Congrats Alex and Leslie. I hope that we get to be neighboors real soon.
Jason

abbynormal said...

Huzzah!!! Easiest interview, ever! I wonder if that guy was Mormon too?

Kristi said...

Yeah! When are you moving to Boise? Soon I hope.....oh, how I would love that! I hope you guys are well. Thanks for the email about Masina's mom, Les. I hear she passed last week....so very sad. I need to send her something soon. Love and miss you....Kristi