In Mongolia, many people live in humble, round dwellings called “gers,” also known as yurts.
Representing the Church at an interfaith gathering in 2023, Tuvshinjargal Gombo, likened gers to the shelter and unity that Jesus Christ and His Church can bring.
“Jesus Christ serves as the unifying force that strengthens and brings us all together,” she said.
Gombo has helped bring Jesus Christ, shelter and unity to Mongolia by helping missionaries obtain visas and organizing service projects and interfaith events for years throughout the country.
According to a news release from ChurchofJesusChrist.org, “in recognition of outstanding contributions to the development and progress of the country, the well-being of the community, and humanitarian efforts,” she was honored with the presidential Polar Star Medal on Feb. 28. The award was presented to her by the chair of the district’s Citizens’ Representative Council.
Ger-shaped discipleship: The ministry of Tuvshinjargal Gombo
A book published by BYU’s Religious Studies Center explained that Tuvshinjargal Gombo became the materials management supervisor for the Church’s Mongolian Service Center in 2012. There, she worked under Soyolmaa Urtnasan, a Mongolian Latter-day Saint pioneer who, in 1995, was called as one of the first native Mongolian missionaries. Returning home, Urtnasan was asked to work for the Service Center where she eventually became the first female Service Center manager for the Church in 2009.
Gombo and Urtnasan worked to get visas for missionaries called to serve in Mongolia. To get visas approved, Gombo worked directly with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labor and Central Immigration; even organizing a five-day tour of BYU for a representative from the Ministry of Education.
As the Public Affairs director for the Church in Mongolia, she organized service projects to bless Mongolian citizens. In 2017, she helped provide food for over 750 people at an annual marathon. In 2018, about 100 Church members participated in a National Day of Tree planting.
To unite the Church with other faiths, she also organized 12 major interfaith meetings, numerous smaller meetings and joint services, a devotional with Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and the First Ulaanbaatar Interfaith Dialogue.
In 2023, she spoke at an interfaith gathering alongside Pope Francis and other religious leaders. There, she taught that Jesus Christ is the exemplar of love, forgiveness and selflessness. She invited “all to follow the example of Jesus Christ, to study His words and to pattern our lives after His divine attributes.”
For the past 13 years, Gombo has established relationships with local government agencies, promoted programs and activities, and conducted self-reliance, addiction recovery and English language programs.
She has collaborated with Brigham Young University on English teaching methodology conferences, international law and religion symposiums, food preservation projects, ger insulation projects, and cultural performances on behalf of the Church.
Gombo has strived to follow Christ’s example and, like the ger, bring shelter to those in need.
“May the symbol of the Mongolian ger serve as a reminder of our commitment to follow Jesus Christ, to study His words, to be like Him, and to believe in Him. In doing so, we rely on each other like the nomads on the steppes” she said, adding: “and symbolically welcome each other to stay for the night in our ger, and treat each other to milk, tea, food and airag (a fermented mare’s milk drink often considered Mongolia’s national beverage).”
