In April 1992, my husband, Rulon, and I were sitting in our home in St. George, Utah, listening to general conference. We were particularly moved by Elder L. Tom Perry's talk that opportunities to labor in the mission field were plentiful, especially for experienced couples who were needed to work with the newly converted.
In his address, Elder Perry said, "You mature couples have years of experience in studying, teaching and administering in the wards, and this experience is so desperately needed throughout the world."Through Elder Perry's and other speakers' comments about missionary couples made during the conference, we were moved by the Spirit and thought, "What if we are called?"
The next Wednesday, we were asked to attend an interview with our bishop on the following Sunday morning. He told us, "The Lord has called you on a mission."
On Aug. 17, 1992, we entered the Missionary Training Center prior to serving in the Canada Calgary Mission. On Sept. 2, we arrived in Calgary, Alberta, and were assigned to the Strathmore Branch, which at the time had quite a small attendance. The branch's boundaries included the reserve land of the Siksika Indian people, formerly known as the Blackfoot. Many less-active members of the branch lived in this area.
We had the pleasure of bringing souls to baptism and of bringing others back into activity. The Strathmore Branch was made into a ward Feb. 14, 1993, having had an increase of 25 percent. What wonderful, wonderful blessings to feel the Lord's guiding Spirit as we served in our Heavenly Father's vineyard.
We enjoyed our work with the Siksika people. They are a very special people with such sweet spirits and are very spiritually aware. We found many less-active members on the reserve who had not been visited for years, and they felt so good when we entered their homes. We taught them, held family home evenings, reaffirmed their beliefs and increased their knowledge. Our hearts are full; we obtained a great love for these people.
As a result of our love for these people, we extended our mission from one year to 18 months so we could continue serving among these choice children of our Heavenly Father. We were released from our mission in February 1994.
