That Name—Nephi

Ron and Francine Harvey and their five children live in Apohaqui, a small farming community near Sussex in southern New Brunswick, Canada.

They are the only dairy farmers in the province who are Latter-day Saints.

The Harveys joined the Church in 1979 after receiving a copy of the Book of Mormon from missionaries. When Francine read the word Nephi on the first page, she suddenly remembered having read part of the Book of Mormon when she was just a little girl. “We were already searching,” says Ron, “and that one word sparked a happy memory and the beginning of a testimony. The next time I saw those missionaries in Sussex, I stopped them and asked them to come teach us. The rest is history.”

Now serving as president of the 150-member Sussex Branch, Ron maintains, “Latter-day Saints are few and far between out here, but the Church has a great future in New Brunswick. We have good priesthood leadership in the district, our Melchizedek Priesthood activity is very high, and we have strong sisters.”

He adds that the members there faithfully attend the temple, even though it costs around five hundred dollars per person to get to the temple in Washington, D.C. The district meets its temple goals year after year.

“Most of the people here are converts to the Church,” he continues, “so we’re all very thankful to those who send their sons and daughters on missions.”

Foreign exchange students have lived with the Harveys, two of whom have joined the Church—one from British Columbia and one from Malawi, Africa.—Lane Johnson, Salt Lake City, Utah

Family values are strongly reinforced on Ron and Francine’s dairy farm in rural Canada.