To this day Ann Monson Dibb can still remember a room in the Canadian Mission home, exactly as it looked in 1961. She can think of the walls and the carpet and the furniture. Most important, she recalls the feelings she felt there as a 7-year-old little girl.
"I can still remember kneeling down and praying beside my bed and a Spirit of Comfort coming over me," she recalled.
The event — the first time she had ever felt the Spirit and knew that the Lord was mindful of her individually — became the cornerstone of her testimony.
"I have been blessed in having multiple experiences throughout my life that have added to my knowledge of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that my Heavenly Father is mindful of me."
Now as a member of the Young Women general presidency, she hopes she can help young women all over the world come to know that the Lord is also mindful of them.
Sister Dibb was sustained April 5 as second counselor to Elaine S. Dalton. Mary N. Cook was sustained as first counselor. Sister Dalton and Sister Cook had previously served as counselors to Young Women General President Susan W. Tanner, who was released in April. (Please see Church News profiles on Sister Dalton in the Dec. 7, 2002, Church News and Sister Cook's profile in the June 9, 2007, Church News.)
The only daughter of President Thomas S. Monson and Sister Frances Johnson Monson, Sister Dibb grew up in a Latter-day Saint spotlight. Her father was bishop when she was born. He was called as a mission president when she was 4 years old. And when Ann was 9 years old, her father was ordained an apostle, on Oct. 10, 1963, at age 36.
"Having my father always in positions of responsibility in the Church has been a great blessing in my life," said Sister Dibb. "With that service he would share examples and stories. He would take us with him to visit 'his widows.' (There were 84 widows in the ward over which President Monson presided.) And it wasn't just a gift at Christmas time. As a child, I remember it was a lengthy conversation. Of course at that time I didn't understand the importance, that it was more than just the gift and the remembrance. It was the sharing of time. It was a feeling of value.
"So I think of the many stories I have heard him share over the years, as well as observing the support that my mother always gave to him, and that is a great part of my testimony. And I am grateful for that."
She is also grateful to her mother who watched over their home while her father was gone on Church assignments and to ward members who encouraged the family.
"I had wonderful Young Women leaders," she recalled. "I am still close to them."
Take, for example, Carol Scott, a former Laurel leader. "I still know her phone number," said Sister Dibb. "I call her often and when I do I am still strengthened."
She is also grateful for the example of several of the young women she worked with in the Church and how their testimonies have sustained them through difficult trials. "These young women have become my heroes."
Sister Dibb said she has recently been recalling her youth. "Remembering is part of our gratitude to our Heavenly Father," she said.
She remembers her heritage, the experiences she has had with the Spirit and the words of the prophets. She remembers the day President Harold B. Lee told her to always remain as pretty on the inside as she was on the outside. She remembers her father's devotion to service, visits with her grandparents and her mother's example.
"My mother never sought for any attention," she said. "She is a quiet, reserved, wonderful listener."
And when she traveled the world with her husband, Sister Monson told her daughter that one place always stood out above the rest as her favorite: home.
Sister Dibb visits her parents' home often. She knows the walk up the driveway and what it feels like to open the front door. She knows where her parents will be sitting. "When they see me they welcome me in love," she said.
Sister Dibb said she keeps special remembrances of her children — a rose and thank you notes, among others. That way she can think of her children often, even though all but one are grown and out on their own.
Roger A. Dibb, Sister Dibb's husband, said that, like her father, Sister Dibb has a great memory for people, "their names and stories."
"She is always writing notes of encouragement and thanks to others, visiting those who have been an example to her or talking to acquaintances on the phone, and making cakes and pies for someone needing a lift or a reward," he said.
The real treat, Brother Dibb added, is that when his wife serves others he usually gets a pie, also.
"We are not exactly alike, soul-mates like the popular world talks about," he said. "Rather, we both have great complementary traits and talents. Together, we make a pretty good team."
Roger Dibb and Ann Monson met at BYU, when he drew her name from a bowl of names for a "secret friend." After a wonderful courtship they married. Brother Dibb finished his accounting degree and the family moved to North Carolina where he served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. Two years later they returned to Utah.
Determined to also earn a college degree, Sister Dibb continued her studies via BYU Continuing Education and, after three children and eight years of taking one class a semester, earned her degree in elementary education.
Life for the Dibb family — which eventually included four children — has been what they describe as wonderful, although not always easy. Once the family lost all its possessions to fire; Brother Dibb waged a successful battle against cancer; and they have had other struggles.
"Looking back, we can see that God has blessed and directed our lives in so many ways," said Brother Dibb. "That does not mean we have not experienced hardship and sorrow; in mortality we all do. But life together has been wonderful, our family is precious to us, our testimonies are strong and the future is wide open with promise."
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