Before Ryan Tremblay came home from West Virginia three weeks
ago, he wondered how drastically his hometown might have changed
over the course of his two-year absence.
Hollister – Before Ryan Tremblay came home from West Virginia three weeks ago, he wondered how drastically his hometown might have changed over the course of his two-year absence.
“I was glad to see that almost everything was the same,” he said. “The Target turned into a Super-Target, and there are a few new buildings here and there, but it’s pretty much the same town as I left it. That’s comforting, in a way.”
Tremblay, 21, was born in Gilroy but moved to Hollister at 9 years old when his family came in pursuit of more affordable housing, like so many families did in the latter half of the 1990s. Though he was actively involved in school activities in middle school and high school, Tremblay describes himself as a “really laid-back kid,” a trait he says may have sometimes worked against him.
“I always had pretty good grades, but I could have done better,” he said. “I just did enough to get by, and in college it was kind of the same thing … I needed something to wake me up.”
That wake up call came in the form of a lot of paperwork. After Tremblay graduated and spent a semester or two at Gavilan College, he had the opportunity to undertake a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints – the faith he was raised in. After a lengthy application process and, says Tremblay, copious amounts of prayer, he received word that he would be shipping out to West Virginia where he would spend 24 months preaching the good word.
“West Virginia is different from California in a lot of small ways,” he said. “Mostly the people there are more humble and friendly. If we were out in the cold, even people who didn’t want to listen to one word we had to say about the gospel would invite us in to warm up and chat with us about our families.”
Life as a missionary definitely took Tremblay a little time to get used to. Missionaries are paired up with a buddy who they remain with at all times, which can strain even the friendliest of folks. As opposed to the small-town environment in Hollister, Tremblay was now forced to get along with fellow missionaries from all over the world, and people from all walks of life that he would meet in West Virginia. Still, he believes the experience was a valuable one, and ultimately an enjoyable one as well.
“I got to meet interesting people I never would have met otherwise. Some of the other missionaries are my best friends now,” he said. “Not only did I benefit from a lot of spiritual growth, but physical growth too. I learned how to lay foundation, work with bricks, anything that people needed help doing, and now I have those skills to offer.”
Since he’s returned home, catching up with family and old friends has been a top priority for Tremblay. Much of his time is spent hanging out with his two sisters – the three went surfing for the first time together earlier this week.
Tremblay plans to re-enroll in Gavilan College where he wants to begin studying to be an engineer, though he has not decided yet which particular branch of engineering he wants to pursue. In the meantime however, he’s enjoying just looking for work and re-acquainting himself with his hometown.
“It kind of seems like my whole life was leading up to that mission,” he said. “And now that it’s over, it’s a weird feeling. I’m glad I did it, but it feels really good to be home.”
Danielle Smith covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or ds****@***********ws.com
