When President Russell M. Nelson announced the Ulaanbaatar Mongolia Temple during the October 2023 general conference, Sister Mary N. Cook was overcome with emotion.
The temple announcement marked a fulfillment of a prophecy spoken three decades earlier by Elder Neal A. Maxwell — that Mongolia would become “a beacon light.”
Sister Cook and her late husband, Elder Richard E. Cook, who served as a General Authority Seventy from 1997 to 2001, were the country’s first mission leaders.
On the Church News podcast, Sister Cook shared her eyewitness account of the Church’s progress in Mongolia.
From Detroit to Ulaanbaatar
In 1987, Sister Cook met Elder Cook — a widower, father of four and Ford Motor Company executive. Their unexpected romance led to marriage and, eventually, a mission call.
In a meeting with Elder Aldin Porter, a General Authority Seventy and chairman of the Missionary Executive Council, they received a call that would change their lives.
“What I’m going to tell you will strike fear in your hearts,” Elder Porter said. “Mongolia.”
At the time, Mongolia had recently transitioned from a communist regime to a fragile democracy. Conditions were harsh. The Cooks were only allowed a limited amount of supplies for their service in what the Church classified as a “hardship mission.”
Despite the challenge, they faithfully accepted.
A land and people prepared
Mongolia’s path to freedom opened the door for the gospel. One of the key figures was Oyun Altangerel, a courageous librarian and democracy activist who staged a hunger strike in 1990 to protest government repression.
Her efforts helped bring about a democratic constitution — and a few years later, she became one of the country’s first Latter-day Saint converts. Her son, Odgerel Ochirjav, would become the first stake president in Mongolia.
In another series of miraculous events, in Germany, a Mongolian professor named Togtokhin Enkhtuvshin encountered missionaries while researching Christianity. He read the Book of Mormon in a single day and was baptized. Upon returning home, he ran into Latter-day Saint missionaries in a department store — a divine coincidence that connected him with the small but growing Church in Ulaanbaatar. His family became the first Mongolian family sealed in the temple.
When the Cooks arrived in 1994, there were about 70 members. Basic needs like food, water and electricity were inconsistent. They slept on uneven twin beds and did laundry with boiling water and a portable washer. Sister Cook recalled her husband telling her, “Mary, we’re going to make this the best apartment in Ulaanbaatar.”
Despite the challenges, joy and growth followed. Ten to 20 baptisms occurred every two weeks, often in spas or pools.
The first Mongolian mission
Though not an educator, Elder Cook’s business background proved essential. He volunteered to help transition Mongolia’s economy from Soviet accounting to Western practices.
This gave him access to influential government leaders — connections that later helped the Church gain legal recognition.
Sister Cook’s background in education wasn’t wasted either. Having studied to be a principal, she was equipped to support and supervise the young missionaries teaching English in universities.
In 1995, the Mongolia Ulaanbaatar Mission was officially organized, and the Cooks were called as its leaders. With more missionaries arriving the work accelerated. New cities like Erdenet and Darkhan opened to missionary efforts.
Fulfillment of prophecy
Sister Cook recalled when Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited and prayed for Mongolia in April 1993. In his prayer, he asked that Mongolia would remain free and that “Thy work may be firmly established here.” He added: “May Mongolia even be a beacon light to other nations.”
Said Sister Cook, “With the announcement of the temple in October of 2023, I think we can safely say the gospel message has been firmly established in Mongolia."
Religious freedom and public recognition
Sister Cook also shared recent developments that demonstrate the Church’s growing trust and presence in Mongolia. Elder Cook was awarded the Order of the Polar Star — one of Mongolia’s highest honors — in a ceremony in Utah in October 2023.
The ambassador who presented the award, Batbayar Ulziidelger, became a key advocate for the Church.
Humanitarian projects, including Chromebooks for nomadic communities and addiction recovery programs, have deepened the Church’s reputation and outreach. New laws are being proposed that could further protect religious freedom.
The gathering continues
Today, more than 130 missionaries serve in Mongolia — up from just 40 a few years ago. Since Elder Maxwell’s dedication of Mongolia, other apostles have visited the country including then-Elder Russell M. Nelson in 2009.
With a temple on the horizon, Sister Cook said the Lord’s hand in Mongolia is undeniable.
“When I think of my 31 years of blessings, … I recall this scripture: ‘And the Lord will surely prepare a way for his people’ (1 Nephi 22:20),” she said. “Mongolia truly is a beacon light, as are its members.”
She added that her late husband’s greatest desire was to attend the temple groundbreaking. “He’ll be there,” she said, “and I will be too.”
