Editor’s note: This is the first of two articles that focus on Latter-day Saints serving at Naval Station Newport and the U.S Naval War College in Rhode Island.
- Part 1: The story of a weekly interfaith devotional that is blessing many lives in many ways (below).
- Part 2: Coming Monday, Feb. 19, an interview with emeritus General Authority Seventy Elder Robert S. Wood, who spent more than 20 years of his career at the U.S. Naval War College.
NEWPORT, Rhode Island — For the last few years, as many as 200 sailors stationed at the U.S. Navy’s Naval Station Newport have been showing up at the base’s Kay Hall auditorium on Friday nights for an hourlong interfaith event known as the Sailors’ Devotional.
The devotional is organized by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but the vast majority who attend are from different faiths and religious backgrounds.
Dressed in camouflage fatigues on Feb. 2, the sailors placed their weapons and gear along the wall and sat in rows of folding chairs during their only free time outside of Sunday’s designated religious service time.
Following an opening prayer, Jesse Daily, a Latter-day Saint who works at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center and serves as a counselor in the Newport Ward bishopric, presented a nondenominational spiritual thought on the healing power of gratitude and engaged the group in short discussion.
The devotional then concluded on a sweet note with tables full of treats, from homemade cookies and desserts to store-bought snacks and chips, provided by missionaries and members. The sailors are not allowed to have candy or junk food, but an exception is made for religious activities. A long line quickly formed, and the food was devoured as the sailors socialized.
Not far from the refreshments was a table with free copies of the Book of Mormon and other Latter-day Saint materials for anyone interested. No proselyting is allowed, but missionaries and members can answer questions if asked, which does happen.
Most of the sailors who attended the devotional are in the middle of the Navy’s Officer Candidate School, a mentally and physically demanding 13-week program. A smaller percentage are in Officer Development School, a five-week course designed to test and train the Navy’s commissioned officers, and other programs.
“All of them are having almost universally a bad day. The drill sergeants are really hard on them. They are having a rough time, and they miss their family. They are out of their element, they are uncomfortable,” Daily said. “Anything to help them get through it really helps.”
Holding a plate of goodies, Officer Candidate Mikhail Scheel, originally from Minot, North Dakota, described the devotional as “a ray of sunshine” that sailors look forward to all week.
“It’s an incredibly difficult time physically, mentally and emotionally. You wake up at 5 in the morning, and you’re constantly doing physical exercise all day,” said Scheel, who felt inspired to join the military after serving in the El Salvador San Salvador East Mission. “ [The devotional] allows us to have social interaction, and it’s a way for us to decompress. It’s really a godsend.”
Along with a moment of peace and spiritual reflection, perhaps the greatest benefit of the nondenominational event is how it provides the sailors with a positive first impression of the Church that will go with them when they leave Naval Station Newport and serve in locations worldwide, said Clark Hartley, a member of the Newport Ward and a medical service corps naval officer who works at the Naval Health Clinic New England.
“They take that positive first impression about what the Church represents, and they take it out into the fleet all over the world,” Hartley said. “Whenever I run into any of these guys out in the fleet on a ship or on shore, we talk about Newport, and they have fond memories of the Church. The influence I believe this program has on the Navy as a whole is impressive.”
The weekly devotional has also been a blessing to members of the Providence Rhode Island Stake, said its President Walter Rehon.
“It has encouraged our members to do more missionary work. Those who take time and attend this on Friday night leave here uplifted and strengthened,” he said. “I leave here a better person every time I visit. We will do all we can as a stake to make sure this continues.”
Naval Station Newport
With its history tracing back to the early 1880s, Naval Station Newport is the Navy’s premier site for training officers, officer candidates, senior enlisted personnel and midshipman candidates, as well as for conducting advanced undersea warfare and development systems. The base is also home to the U.S. Naval War College, which provides more in-depth military education and training for senior officers.
“Newport isn’t just Officer Candidate School and Officer Development School, it’s the hub of naval officer education,” said Jessica Nilsson, Navy Supply Corps School public affairs officer.
How the Sailors’ Devotional started
The first Sailors’ Devotional was started by Steven and Deborah Anderson, who served as Church military service missionaries in the Newport area from February 2018 to April 2019.
With Steven and a son having served in the military, the couple was sympathetic to the rigors of basic training and officer school.
“The training is very difficult and emotionally stressful,” Deborah Anderson said. “We kept praying to know how we could help them get through this difficult time.”
They came up with the idea and received permission in early April 2018 to organize a weekly devotional for the handful of Latter-day Saint servicemen at Naval Station Newport on Friday evenings.
Similar to a home evening, the first devotionals consisted of a prayer, a short video with a gospel message, and a game or activity to help the sailors unwind and relax.
The Andersons also obtained special permission from the base commander to provide treats — something not otherwise allowed in their training programs. Cookies, pizza and other goodies were an instant hit.
“There were times when we first started when we only had three or four members, and I would make four dozen cookies, and they would be gone before we left,” she said.
It didn’t take long for the word to spread. The members’ dorm mates heard what was happening and asked if they could participate. Attendance at the weekly devotionals quickly increased to more than 30 sailors.
Over a year later, there were 100 coming each week, and the devotional was moved to a larger venue. Following a temporary suspension due to COVID-19 pandemic precautions, attendance at the devotional ballooned again to 200.
The Andersons, who now reside in Aztec, New Mexico, rejoiced to hear how the devotional has continued to flourish at Naval Station Newport.
“My husband and I both feel blessed that we found a way to plant seeds,” Deborah Anderson said.
Daily assumed responsibility for the devotional a short time after the Andersons left and has continued until the present time.
“I think it’s successful because we try to make it as accessible as possible,” said Daily, who understands most sailors likely come for the food. His top goal is to provide the sailors with a spiritual boost “so they can get through another week.”
“I’ve had several sailors tell me, ‘We just have to make it to the next Friday,’” Daily said. “Some have said if it wasn’t for the Friday night devotional, they would have dropped out of Officer Candidate School a long time ago.”
‘My interest in the Church grew’
The devotional has proven to be an effective missionary tool, said K.C. Nilsson, a Latter-day Saint who works as the director of Officer Development School.
“I think this is one of the greatest missionary tools we have,” he said. “In my 20 years of service, it is probably one of the best ways the Church is showing those of other faiths how inclusive we are.”
One example is Ensign Jared Davenport, who started attending the Friday devotional on the recommendation of a fellow sailor in Officer Candidate School. He was impressed by the “wholesome” event and touched by the spiritual messages. For him, it represented a “godly community and sincere worship.”
“My attendance served to fortify my character against whatever slings and arrows of outrageous fortune our instructors had devised for us that week of training,” Davenport said. “From there my interest in the Church grew.”
Davenport began meeting with missionaries and was eventually baptized in Norfolk, Virginia, on April 16, 2022. He is currently stationed in South Carolina. The gospel has helped him to find more joy in his life.
“The little triumphs which I know are not coincidence are apparent and bountiful wherever I go, and many times obstacles seem to be summarily removed from my path no sooner than they appear,” he said. “I have absolute trust that I am being looked after by a presence which cares for me, and that I am a steward of a great tradition in this Church. I believe that there’s a place for me so long as I keep the faith as best I can, which is a boon so great that I can’t really measure it.”
Daily told of another sailor who drifted away from the Church after his mission. He joined the Navy and came to Naval Station Newport, where he heard others talking about the “LDS Night” devotional and decided to check it out.
The young man began attending the weekly devotional and started going to Sunday worship services. There he introduced himself as a Church member and accepted an invitation to bless the sacrament. Over time the sailor returned to full activity in the Church.
“He said when he joined the Navy, he had no intention of being reactivated in the Church,” Daily said.
Officer Candidate Abraham Rais converted to the Church a few years before he joined the Navy. After graduating from college in New York, Rais took a job in Salt Lake City and met missionaries while touring Temple Square. He told them he was on “a journey to find Jesus Christ,” and they gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon. Through nightly study, prayer and spiritual impressions, he realized, “Yes, this is the right Church for me,” he said.
Less than three years later, Rais joined the Navy and was sent to Naval Station Newport, where he has been for over a month. Like the others, he counts the days leading up to the Friday devotional.
“This event is just so wonderful. We are just one big, happy Navy family,” he said. “On the surface, OCS is rough. It’s been a lot of learning. The person I am now, compared to the person I was five or six weeks ago, is night and day. I have OCS and my Heavenly Father to thank for that. I am grateful for what I’ve been doing here.”
Refreshing break
Alexis Randle, of Chicago, Illinois, and Tristan Fuller, of Orlando, Florida, both with the rank of petty officer second class in the Navy, agreed the devotional is a refreshing break from the constant stress of their day. Randle also likes the spiritual thoughts because they are centered on universal truths.
“I do like the messages because it’s not so churchy. It’s very relatable and easy for me to understand,” she said. “And we can talk to each other and just be regular humans.”
Officer Candidate Damiyan Caldwell, from Norfolk, Virginia, temporarily dropped out of the program when his son was in a coma. When he returned, Caldwell wanted to know if they were still having “LDS Night,” and could he attend Latter-day Saint Sunday worship services on the base.
“I think ‘LDS’ is a great way to relax. It’s not any pressure to be denominational. It’s just a great time to fellowship and meet with your fellow classmates, share the same struggles and accomplishments,” said Caldwell, who considers himself to be a spiritual person.
He also loves treats. “I’m an Oreo guy,” he said with a wide smile. “Maybe next time we’ll get them deep fried.”
Member and missionary support
A group of local members and missionaries came to the devotional early, loaded down with bags and pans of treats, listened to the message and served the refreshments with a friendly smile until the hall was once again empty and ready for cleanup.
Elder William Doty and his wife, Sister Mary Anne Doty, military service senior missionaries since July 2022, are often moved by the gratitude of the sailors.
“What lifts my spirits every Friday night are the unsolicited comments about how grateful they are for us being here, for the service that we are providing them,” Sister Doty said.
Mike and Allison Balmforth, local members, have heard similar remarks of appreciation.
“It’s nice, you get that feeling of service, but the best part is when they say ‘this is what gets me through the week. Thank you so much for doing this,’” Mike said.
Expanding this ‘heartfelt ministry’
Maj. Spencer Cooper, a Church-endorsed chaplain for the U.S. Air Force who works for the Church’s Military Relations Division, attended the Feb. 2 devotional. He said the Church Military Relations wants to learn the dynamics of the Sailors’ Devotional and implement similar programs at other military bases.
“Replicating this kind of genuine and heartfelt ministry everywhere that we have servicemen and women in training facilities around the country, and around the armed forces of every country, could dramatically change perceptions of our faith and firmly instill the true nature of our faith in the minds of millions in the coming years,” he said. “We want those leaders, many of whom will also become civic, business and even political leaders after their time in the service, to know that we welcome the support and share in the desire to minister to all different faith backgrounds as we seek to do the work of the Savior Himself and help the hands which hang down.”
This is how the gospel spreads, said Elder Scott N. Taylor, an Area Seventy, who attended the event with his teenage sons.
“When you start something small, but it’s a good thing, it brings light, and it reverberates,” he said. “That’s the way goodness spreads. It’s the way light spreads. So it’s exciting to see in this day and age of the world in which we live.”
