During a 10-day assignment this month in the South America Northwest Area of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Sister Tracy Y. Browning, second counselor in the Primary general presidency, and Sister Andrea Muñoz Spannaus, second counselor in the Young Women general presidency, saw the faith, love and unity of Church members in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.
Beginning in the cities of La Paz and El Alto, Bolivia, the weekend of Sept. 6-7, the general officers held meetings for children and youth, training for local youth and Primary leaders, and a devotional with Relief Society women.
La Paz sits at almost 12,000 feet elevation — the highest capital city in the world. El Alto is more than 13,600 feet above sea level. This gave Sister Browning something to contemplate.
“Since I’ve been here, being in one of the highest places on the earth, I find myself thinking celestial, as President Russell M. Nelson has taught us to do,” she said in La Paz. “The people here have so much faith, are seeking higher and holier ways to live, and are seeking to come to know Jesus Christ in special ways.”
Primary leaders “are seeking to bless others through their service to God and to God’s Church,” she said, adding that ministering to them and Primary children was a special experience.
“I know that God’s covenant people are found in Bolivia, and I’m so excited for all the houses of the Lord that have been announced and are under construction in this beautiful land,” Sister Browning said.
Sister Spannaus also noted the two new houses of the Lord that are coming to the country — the La Paz Bolivia Temple, announced in 2021, and the Santa Cruz Bolivia Temple, which has been under construction since June 2024.
“What joy,” Sister Spannaus said. “The members are so excited, and there is a beautiful spirit of love and unity. We have held devotionals with the youth and leadership meetings with the youth leaders. The youth were very excited to participate in the devotional. Every time we asked a question, they were eager to raise their hands. And my heart is filled with the beautiful example of faith and faithfulness of the sisters and the members in general in Bolivia.”
Sunday, Sept. 7, was National Pedestrian and Cyclist Day in Bolivia. Each year on the first Sunday of September, Bolivian citizens are encouraged to leave their vehicles behind and walk or ride a bicycle to their destination.
Sister Browning thanked the Church members who walked to the chapel in La Paz — despite the distance or the weather — and made the sacrifice to attend their meetings.
Sister Spannaus said, “For me, that was a beautiful example of how much they love the Lord and want to be there on Sundays.”
That evening, Sister Spannaus and Sister Browning met with women for a devotional scheduled for 7 p.m. Because Pedestrian Day ends between 5 and 6 p.m., and public transportation is minimal, many participants began walking at 4 p.m. to arrive on time. The Church’s Bolivia Newsroom reported that one woman said, “Every step was worth it to hear the leaders and feel the Spirit’s influence.”
Meetings in Ecuador, Peru and Colombia
After their time in Bolivia, the two general officers held focus groups, trainings and meetings for children, youth and leaders in Quito, Ecuador, and Medellín, Colombia, as well as a member devotional in Urubamba, Peru, with members of the Valle Sagrado Perú District.
During the children’s devotionals, Sister Browning gave each child a sheet of paper and a crayon so they could write a good deed they would do that week.
The children wrote things like “I will pray for my parents and siblings,” “I will fast,” “I will pay my tithing” and “I will be faithful to the Lord,” reported the Church’s Spanish-language Newsroom.
Sister Spannaus spoke about helping the youth become lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ and taught about repentance and change in order to head in the right direction.
One of the meetings in Colombia was a Face to Face devotional on Sunday, Sept. 14, for youth ages 11 to 17. They were joined by Elder Juan Pablo Villar, General Authority Seventy and president of the South America Northwest Area.
Bogotá Colombia Stake President Edgar L. Vargas told the Church News about what the youth in his stake learned.
“Some young people expressed that they learned about the importance of centering their lives on Christ and being courageous so as not to be influenced by the world and using the principles in the ‘For the Strength of Youth’ guide to do so,” he said.
