Slam Dunk with Missionary Spunk

His six feet nine inches of height and his position as star center on a championship European professional basketball team give Stephen D. Trumbo a rather lofty view of things. But when he’s not rebounding, shooting a basket, or running, his feet are planted firmly on the ground.

Steve Trumbo, his wife, Carolina, and their four children live in Barcelona, Spain. Steve and Carolina met when he started playing basketball there in 1982. The local media refer to him as “El Mormon,” a term they use with both affection and respect because of the way Steve lives. The media have reported as much of his life as his modest manner allows: stories about Steve’s birth, his high school and college sports successes, and his marriage in the Frankfurt Germany Temple.

In high school, Steve was a three-year letterman at El Modena High School, where they retired his jersey number and where the Los Angeles Times named him player of the year. A four-year basketball scholarship took Steve to Brigham Young University, where he held the rebound record for many years.

Steve, one of twelve adopted children of Dale and Jo Trumbo of the Orange Third Ward, in the Orange California Stake, has dark features that help him fit in well in Barcelona.

Very much a team player, Steve enjoys his association with his teammates. When he’s around the locker room, the level of the conversation elevates immediately. Well liked by the other players, Steve doesn’t worry about making quick converts. “Right now, they’re too involved in sports, careers, and making money. I’m just planting seeds; I believe the harvest will come later.”

As for now, he is known as a man who won’t compromise for success and who sees himself as a missionary. Steve, who serves as a high councilor and a stake public affairs director, encourages those around him in their missionary work: “I may be highly visible here in Spain, but we all have neighborhoods that will accept us on our own terms if we have the courage to let them know what we stand for.”—Kit Poole, Santa Ana, California

In Spain, basketball player Steve Trubo is known as “El Mormon.”