Christmas 2024

Dec 2024

Dear Family and Friends,

Merry Christmas! We are happy to present the 2024 Merrill Family Christmas Letter. To start with the most important:  We’re so grateful to be related to all of you - as family or people who have touched our lives over the years!  Thank you, thank you.

So, how has 2024 been for the Merrill family? It’s been good. After the moves in 2023, we are all settling into New York and Lige has decided that Florida is actually beautiful, not just hot.

Marriner has all the busy-ness of a new job, but really likes it. His first grad student just gave a talk at IMECE - the first to present in ASL ever at the conference! He enjoys the teaching and took 25 students to DC in the fall for the “Deaf in DOD” which was super fun.

But wait, Christine also has all the busy-ness of a new job, too - for the first time in almost 20 years! She is tutoring thermodynamics, fluids and heat transfer for deaf students at RIT, in the same center as Marriner. Marriner and his colleagues were struggling to hire someone who knew thermodynamics and ASL and lived in Rochester and could work part time. Hmm. Finally, Marriner said, “Well, I do know one person…” She works for about 10 hours a week while the kids are at school. Sometimes, she even crosses paths with Dr. Merrill, but their tutoring hours don’t overlap very much. She was very nervous about remembering math and engineering, but it is coming back well, and she remembers why she went into engineering in the first place - it’s really fun to solve complex problems!

Lige is still changing the world, one person at a time as a missionary. He’s using all 5 of his languages on some level of functionality (Haitian, ASL, Spanish, French, and English). Grandpa Norman Turner would be proud. Lige has also fallen in love with the natural beauty of Florida and with being a missionary.  He loves the people he is with and wants to help them come unto Christ and that is really his whole life. We noticed this with the election. You recall that he was very politically engaged prior to his mission. But he barely noticed the election in November - he sent us an email the day before realizing that he wasn’t being a good citizen and asking if one of us could vote on his behalf (ummm, no, Florida Man). We’re proud of his focus on something so much more important!

Ellis and LIllian are loving high school, and are full-fledged music geeks. They had a big accomplishment this year - both were accepted to the All-State band/orchestra! This was a big surprise for Ellis. She decided to go for it last year, and worked very hard to get a level 6 song ready for the audition. But she was competing against a lot of kids from some very strong music programs, and Ellis just started trumpet lessons a year ago. We were really proud of Ellis and Lillian for all those hours of practice and effort. It isn’t easy, but they do it. And we are thrilled when we can listen to them play beautiful music! (Oh! And they both got part time jobs and Ellis is taking calculus at RIT and they are … busy!)

Sam, Martha and Jane have grown so much this year. When we moved last year, they were exhausted, stressed-out and friendless. They worked hard this year on good coping strategies, making new friends, and finding joy again in life. It’s so fun seeing them happy, involved, and ambitious! Sam is doing a great job as a deacon, passing the sacrament at church. Martha was voted into the student council - which surprised both her parents, since we have a long history of failed runs for office on both sides of the family. Jane discovered Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and plays with our favorite dog, Lady Thor, whom we dog-sit occasionally.

You’ll noticed from our family photo that we have a family addition this year!  This is our wonderful friend Tia who stayed with us for 4 months before starting a mission. She just left the Missionary Training Center and flew to start her service in Anaheim, CA. She’s doing great things there. The kids found out it’s not as easy as they thought to have a deaf person in the family, but they found ways to develop a good relationship. Mainly, by playing Uno No Mercy and Minecraft together. We love you, Tia! 

Some other highlights of the year

• Seeing the Northern lights - wow!

• Christine, Ellis, and Lillian totally remodeling the main bathroom by themselves. New tub, walls, vanity, the works!

• Installing an egress window and drain in the basement. As the Merrills say, “What is ‘trench’?” We did all the work ourselves except cutting the hole in our foundation. The last of the dirt was shoveled before it snowed (but after it froze.)

• Our first backpacking trip - about 7 miles round trip, camping at a lovely little waterfall you can play in.

• Helping put together an ASL tour of local church history sites for people from the entire region. It was so fun to see some of our old friends!

• Sitting outside with the gathered extended family under cloudy skies for the total solar eclipse. :) Definitely less spectacular when the sun is not visible at all, but the light level change was still pretty cool.

• Cross country skiing on a freezing cold day - but it’s never cold when you’re burning that many calories!

• Thanksgiving with the 4 Sisters of the Apocalypse Turner family. Sandra hosted with a fabulous snack cupboard and a 3 course fondue!

• Marching in a full-sized marching band for the local 4th of July parade as part of the Merrill family reunion. 56 Merrills. The town of Carthage, IL never knew what hit them. :) Everyone in the family participated. Marriner: trombone, Ellis: trumpet, Lillian: drums, Sam: flute, Martha, Jane and Mom: recorder. :)

Each month this year, we have fasted (one day) and prayed (all month) for something or someone where we feel that we really need our Heavenly Father’s help.  This year has had some big and urgent needs. Many times we have felt that there is nothing we can do but pray and hope. Now looking back, we can say that prayer and hope works. God sees us, knows us, loves us, and is so kind to us. His Son, Jesus Christ, is our Savior and through Him, all things that actually matter are possible.  For those of you still in the midst of struggles (whether we know about them or not), we love you.  Keep going!

Love, Marriner, Christine, Lige, Ellis, Lillian, Sam, Martha and Jane