“I’m Going to Be One of Your Children Now”

In 1854, after a lengthy sea voyage, Elam Luddington arrived in Thailand, then known as Siam, to open missionary work, only to leave after four months. Over a century later, some Latter-day Saints, employed by the United States government, began weekly meetings in Bangkok. Through their influence, Ningnoi Thitapoora, the first Thai convert, was baptized September 11, 1966.

One American couple, Lewis and June Eldredge, befriended a young man named Anan Tubtimta. After Anan’s mother died, he had many questions about life and death. Anan moved with the Eldredges to a military base, where Latter-day Saint service members provided answers to many of his questions. Following months of informal lessons, Anan was baptized December 24, 1967. Eager to share his new faith, he taught church classes with up to 70 interested teens. When the first full-time missionaries arrived in Thailand in February 1968, Anan lived with them, taught them Thai, and helped translate Church materials. Four months later, Anan, who had been adopted by the Eldredges, was called as the first missionary from Thailand.

Many local people became interested in the Church after meeting the Latter-day Saint service members or local converts. Many Thais considered Christianity to be a lower-class religion, and the prospect of leaving their families’ traditional faiths was daunting. However, although they knew many of their friends and family members would be unhappy, many chose to be baptized.

In 1968, after months of occasional meetings with the missionaries, Srilaksana Suntarahut Gottsche felt inspired to begin reading the Book of Mormon. “I immediately felt the Holy Spirit that softened my heart,” she said. “I knelt down and prayed for the first time to my Father in Heaven.” Upon hearing that Srilaksana had been baptized, her father informed her, “You now die from me.” Ostracized by family and friends, Srilaksana turned to strengthening the Saints around her.

Natthamon D. Limsukon was born in Chiang Mai and, in her youth, had considered becoming a Buddhist nun. When she moved to Bangkok, she rented a room at the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), where Latter-day Saint missionaries rented a room for meetings. Natthamon was attracted by the Saints’ singing and eventually attended a Mutual Improvement Association activity, where she agreed to hear the discussions.

She was impressed with Joseph Smith’s story but wasn’t sure she believed in God as her Heavenly Father. She wanted to wait to have a testimony before accepting baptism. One night, she dreamed about a group of people dressed in white. She asked them whether she should be baptized. One of them told her, “You need to get baptized.” Natthamon soon decided to join the Church. “I’m going to be one of your children now,” she said to Heavenly Father in prayer. Natthamon accepted baptism in November 1969, after which she returned to Chiang Mai. She was the only member there until missionaries could be assigned to her area a few months later.