Some Latter-day Saints have pioneer ancestors going back almost 200 years. Other Church members are themselves the pioneers in their families. In the weeks surrounding Pioneer Day July 24 — the annual celebration of the first wagon company entering the Salt Lake Valley — Church News staff members share stories of pioneers in their families, some from the 1800s and some from the 1900s. This is the fourth in the series.
I grew up living in various places inside and outside of the United States and saw my grandparents only during occasional visits. But my mother often told me stories about her parents — especially how my grandfather joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and met my grandmother.
Manford Wayne Crossen was born in Ohio in 1927 and raised in San Francisco, California. He did not get along well with his mother — and so, before he was 18 years old, he received parental permission to join the armed forces in 1945. Eventually, he attained the rank of lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force.
After World War II, Wayne moved to Idaho to live with his brother Chuck. Chuck’s mother-in-law introduced Wayne to the Church, and he was baptized.
With the GI Bill, Wayne went to Utah State University in Logan, Utah, where he joined the hiking club. While on a hike, Joan Patten slid down the mountain and landed at Wayne’s feet. Joan — a member of the Church from Provo, Utah — had seen Wayne on the street and knew she would marry him.
Upon the engagement, Joan’s father, Leland Stanford Patten, decided he should receive his temple endowment. He did so on the same day as Wayne and Joan’s sealing on June 4, 1951, in the Salt Lake Temple, and returned to the temple to be sealed to his own wife and children.
When I came to Utah in June 1997 to attend Brigham Young University, I hoped to see my grandfather as he fought ALS. The morning after I arrived, I learned he had passed away at the age of 69.
My grandfather valued family history, missionary work and service. He especially enjoyed working in the Bountiful Utah Temple. The Church was important to Wayne because he saw its fruits. He understood life on the outside and felt life was fuller and richer as a member.
