When Estonia was occupied by communist Russia in 1941, Maret Schultz was 7 years old. Soon after the occupation, young Maret and her parents were among thousands exiled to Siberia. Her father was taken from the family and they never saw him again. Within a short time, her mother died of starvation, leaving two little girls as orphans to endure the bleakness and cold of Siberia.
They managed to survive, and after nine years were allowed to return to their native Estonia. In Estonia, Maret met and married Heinrich Schultz, who had also spent several years in Siberia. The couple made their home in Tallinn, Estonia, then a part of the Soviet Union.When the first missionary efforts began in Estonia in 1989, they were among those who accepted the gospel message and were baptized.
Brother and Sister Schultz were members of a tiny branch that was organized in Tallinn that grew to more than 100 members over the next year and a half. After the government changed and the borders opened, branch members were excited with the possibility of visiting a temple.
Brother and Sister Schultz were part of the first group of Estonians to make an excursion to the Stockholm Sweden Temple. They arrived at the temple on Nov. 30, 1992.
At the temple, Sister Schultz received her own endowments, and later was baptized and received the ordinances on behalf of her mother. Brother Schultz likewise was proxy in behalf of Sister Schultz' father. Afterward, they were part of a proxy sealing for her parents. Sister Maret was sealed to the parents she had lost so many years ago.
Sister Schultz spoke of her anguish of 50 years, wondering why her family had been destroyed. She told of the joy she felt of knowing that though her family could not be together on earth, they were yet an eternal family.
She shared her gratitude for the gospel of Jesus Christ, through which she learned that she could be part of these sacred ordinances that bind families, including her parents who she loved so much.
This heartwarming experience is a vivid reminder of the importance of the work we perform in the temples for both the living and for our kindred dead.
