The Strength of Youth

The first Hungarians to serve missions in their own country were two young women, Erika Nagy and Bernadett Pálinkás. Although both were first-generation Latter-day Saints, they came from very different backgrounds.

Erika was from a devout Christian family in Nyíregyháza that had received the missionaries when they came to their door. However, the family moved to Budapest and lost contact with the Church. Nagy wanted to learn more and prayed for guidance. One day, she missed her bus and had to walk to the subway station in the rain. There, in a city of two million people, she saw the missionary who had taught her. The lessons resumed, and she and her family were baptized.

Bernadett was raised as an atheist in Dunaújváros. She met the missionaries in the store where she worked and took the discussions and attended Church alone. Soon after her baptism, she chose to serve a mission, despite her lack of family support.

At the dedication of Hungary’s first stake on June 4, 2006, James and Patricia Kathleen Wilde, who presided over the first mission to be based in Hungary, the Hungary Budapest Mission, commended the work of strong young adult pioneers like Erika and Bernadett. “When I think about Mormon pioneers, I think of you,” they said.

As the number of Latter-day Saints in Hungary has increased, young adults have continued to gather and strengthen each other. In 2004, centers for young adults were created throughout Europe as extensions of the institute program. The centers provided a place where young adults could gather, socialize, and participate in activities, as well as attend religion classes.

When a flood struck Budapest in June 2013, young adults from the Buda, Kispest, and Pest Wards were among about 40 Latter-day Saint volunteers who donned yellow “Helping Hands” vests and helped fill sandbags.

International conferences are another source of strength for young adults. From July 21–25, 2015, a conference was held at the Poiana Braşov resort in Romania, where more than 150 young adults representing 17 countries, including Hungary, came together for a week of instruction, fellowship, and activities. “It was well organized,” explained Viktor Vèkony, a Hungarian Latter-day Saint who had recently returned from serving a mission in Romania. “Everything went smoothly, the teachers were wonderful, and the place was sensational! Everything has led to many personal revelations and friendships.”