How many of you remember the "Pioneer Shuffle " and the special "time reporting" of pioneers?

Foolednomore

I started pioneering in my late teens an remember how slow pioneers would walk to the doors while out in circus. Also, they would not really talk to anybody at all. They would start their time as soon as they got dressed an out the door, while us regular shucks started our time at the first door we knocked at. What a joke and a fraud now that I look back. My pioneering only lasted three days. I quit got a real job.

LongHairGal

FOOLEDNOMORE:

I don’t know your age, but be glad you quit and got a Real job!…There are ex-JWs and even PIMI JWs today who wish they made that decision.

When I was an ‘active’ Witness (with a full-time job), I was of the opinion that the Only people who could afford to pioneer were Retirees or maybe schoolchildren on summer vacation.

I felt it was the height of hypocrisy for older JWs collecting their pensions (obviously from the workforce) telling younger gullible JWs to pursue poverty and pioneer.

I knew in my heart these younger JWs would regret it later. I always said I didn’t want to be anywhere near these people when reality hit them..It HAS hit and their retirement age has arrived ..A few younger people back then might have pioneered for a while and then stopped for various reasons most of which were financial. They needed to get regular work. These lucky few could probably retire.

I am so Thankful I ignored all the labeling I got back then. I was considered ‘not spiritual’ because I wouldn’t pioneer/do favors for all the Users.. I perceived real anger towards me!!..As a ‘punishment’ I was hardly invited anywhere, but that’s okay. As an older person it’s absurd to look back at all this stupidity, but I’m very glad today I followed my gut. 👍🏻

NonCoinCollector

3 days of pioneering is impressive. Isn't there now a 70 hour per month total? So you got in your monthly total and slept 2 hours in 3 days. Hats off to you!

Seriously, after working with Pioneers back then, it was obvious they only did it so their husband and dad could be an Elder. Back then our congregation only had a mother and a daughter as regular pioneers while everybody else was just auxiliary pioneers or publishers.

truth_b_known

There are some low rent outdoor apartments near one Kingdom Hall I attended for a long time. Those apartments had these little structures that contained washers and clothes dryers. We would roll by the complex laundromats to drop off an old set of magazines to start our time.

From there it was off to breakfast before the meeting for field service. That was like a guaranteed 10 hours of field service time a week for mid-week service. That's 40 hours a month!

RULES & REGULATIONS

LongHairGirl
I thought it was the height of hypocrisy for older JWs collecting their pensions who were obviously in the workforce telling younger gullible JWs to pursue poverty and pioneer.

I never pioneered in my 40 years in. I was lucky to put in 8 hours per month in field service. I hated every minute of field service. Nothing but doing the dirty work of the Watchtower Society.

My congregation had 2 Elders who owned a construction business and pioneered many months a year. They had sub-contractors who would start and finish their work. They had plenty of money and time to pioneer. Each of their wives pioneered because they didn't have to work for a living.

All they stressed on the podium...''Try to pioneer a couple of months per year.'' Yeah, it's easy for you hound members because your not living week to week. These morons were just like the Society...pound pioneering week after week until some caved in. These Elders would take members off to the side and ask, ''Why aren't you pioneering for the summer months?''

stan livedeath

i listened to the crap at the circuit assembly when i was 16--and wasted several years of my teen age pioneering, which included snooker hall practice and daytime ten pin bowling all counted as time.

that was nearly 60 years ago.

pontoon

In for over 50 years. Elder for 20 years. Proud to say I never pioneered once. Never temporary pioneered, never vacation pioneered, never pioneered for a day, .......not once.

LongHairGal

PONTOON:

I tried pioneering for one day. It was exhausting. Of course, I looked at the older sisters telling me to try it:..married with husbands with good jobs supporting them..Me? Single and supporting myself. No comparison.

I also cleaned a house one day with one of them. Two and a half hours we spent on one house cleaning somebody’s filth.. I looked at this older sister and realized SHE did it for a little extra money. Meanwhile, a MAN was supporting her.. Absolutely NO comparison to my situation.

Again, I’m forever grateful I never lost sight of the fact that I was responsible for my OWN life, not anybody else. I didn’t let cheap talk from these women and other people with different circumstances influence me. It didn’t matter how well-meaning these older JWs were..Most of them have passed away and are not even around to help anybody!

This is the sobering and scary reality of the situation faced by JWs today who listened to this advice to ‘pioneer’ years back and made no provisions for their senior years! 👎

Ding

Delivering a life-saving message at a snail's pace... and with so little time remaining until Armageddon as well...

greenhornet

I never went out in service when I was older. I did go when I was young in my teens. I always hated it. I hated giving talks and hated the written review hated the assemblies. The only part I liked was the "quick builds". Every mouth the service elder called me on my time and I say nothing. He than said you must of talked to some one did you? I said perhaps maybe. So he wrote down 2 hours for me. He did this for years. It has been 25 years now since he called me. I guess he got the massage.

How many of you remember the "Pioneer Shuffle " and the special "time reporting" of pioneers?

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