Snail Mail

For those of you who have been writing to Whitney I thought I would post some info on where to send your letters now that she is on her way to Russia. (Or will be as of Wed the 24th at 11:25 am!) Of course you can continue to send your letters through dearelder.com. They charge a fee to type your letters and send them to Salt Lake to go in the pouch mail. Or you can mail your letters directly to Salt Lake to to be included in the pouch. I'm not sure which system is faster or less expensive.

Be sure that when sending letters through the pouch you send letters only, (no photos) may be sent to Russia, but color copies of photos are allowed. Missionaries may send a few photos back to the United States occasionally in letters.

Letters should be sent through the pouch in Salt Lake City. The address follows:

Sister Whitney Richards
Russia Rostov Mission
P.O. Box 30150
Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0150

Packages to Russia must be sent through the regular postal service. Airmail deliveries generally arrive in 4-6 weeks. Surface mail is cheaper, but can take from 2-3 months to arrive. We ask that packages contain small, inexpensive and incidental items. WE DO NOT WANT CUSTOM PROBLEMS and expensive or very desirable items might never reach the missionary. If the value of the package is over $50, you will likely pay custom fees. Also, please consider your missionary’s companion when packages are sent. Some missionaries do not receive many packages from home and feel badly when his or her companion receives them regularly. The address for parcel delivery is:

Rostov Russia Mission
Bolshaya Sadovya 39/4
344082 Rostov-na-Donu, Russia

Here are some interesting bits of information about Whitney’s mission that we received from the current mission president. President Harrison is an attorney from Utah and a former Bishop of one of the BYU student wards. “The Russia Rostov Mission" covers the southern part of Russia and our weather is more temperate than the rest of the country. We have some hot weather in the summer and some snow and rain in winter. The countryside is varied and diverse, ranging from rocky beaches on the Black Sea to farmland to large cities. This is a “pioneering mission” where many of the units are still small. We have 18 branches at present. There are about 2000 members of the church in our mission. Currently we have about 80-85 missionaries including elders, sister missionaries and couples.

We will continue to post Whitney’s emails so you can receive weekly updates on her experiences in Russia. We are very excited for her and know that she will be an excellent missionary and will continue to serve the Lord faithfully. Please remember her in your prayers, especially as she begins her travels to Russia tomorrow. Thanks everyone!