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As fits the holy Christmas birth,

Be this, good friends, our carol still—

Be peace on earth, be peace on earth,

To men of gentle will.

—William Makepeace Thackery

Court Intern

Mark Paredes, Bay City Ward, Midland Michigan Stake, served as a court intern to Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice G. Mennen Williams. He contacted Chief Justice Williams while serving as assistant attorney general of Boys’ State Government Seminar. In addition, he attended a political science institute for the gifted sponsored by the Michigan State Board of Education at Wayne State University and was voted Most Involved Participant.

Mark is an excellent student and plays on an indoor soccer team. He served as first assistant in his priests quorum.

A Time for Giving

Christmas is a giving time of year for the young people of the Mt. Pleasant Second Ward, Mt. Pleasant Utah Stake. The youth were involved in service projects that helped emphasize the true spirit of giving.

With the bishop’s approval, the Young Men and Young Women held several fund raisers to buy a member of their ward a new wheelchair. The gift was presented to Sister Sadie Barney during the annual ward Christmas party.

The Mia Maids of the ward spent weeks collecting pictures of all the children of the ward, which they used to make special Christmas tree decorations. The ornaments were presented to the parents after they were used to decorate the ward Christmas tree.

In a combined effort to include the entire ward in their Christmas service projects, the Young Men and Young Women supplied 12 small Christmas trees to special members of the ward, some elderly and unable to get a tree for themselves and some who simply deserved a little extra cheer. The Young Men cut the trees, attached stands, and arranged to deliver the trees. The Young Women procured lights and decorations. The highlight of the evening was the surprised looks on the recipients’ faces as the youth went caroling to deliver the trees. One brother commented, “Why, no one has ever brought me a Christmas tree before!”

Student Adviser

Robin Bucaria, along with nine other high school students, served as a student advisory member of the state board of education representing all public school students in the state of Alaska. She was listed in Who’s Who of American High School Students and was selected for the Youth for Understanding summer exchange program to West Germany.

Robin was also selected as the Elks Teenager of the Month and as a participant in the Close Up Foundation Program in Washington, D.C.

President of her Beehive, Mia Maid, and Laurel classes, Robin also has served as Young Women secretary in the Cordova Branch, Alaska Anchorage Mission.

Righteous Influence

Ken Bradford, 15, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, really made a difference by standing up for what he knew was right.

Ken had won two gold medals in wrestling and his coach told him he had an excellent chance of taking first place in his division at the state meet.

When Ken found out that part of the meet would be held on the Sabbath, he told his coach he would not be able to participate in the Sunday matches. Ken came in first in the Saturday matches, but he received the second-place medal in the meet because he did not finish the competition.

The following Monday, Ken’s coach said that he would change the rules so future tournaments would not be held on Sunday.

Ken is an honor student and also on the pole-vaulting and soccer teams. He is a member of the Santa Fe Ward, Santa Fe New Mexico Stake.

Honest Boy

Nathan Ator, 13, of Farmington, Utah, was skiing at a resort near his home when he found a $100 bill in the snow. He turned the bill into the manager of the resort.

No one claimed the money, and the bill was sent to Nathan with a note from the manager: “We admire Nathan’s honesty and wish there were more people in the world like that.”

Nathan is a deacon in the Farmington 13th Ward, Farmington Utah Stake. Besides skiing, he enjoys football, soccer, and gymnastics.

Showstopper

Leah Robinson belongs to the Showstoppers, a vocal-drama performing group from her high school in Willingboro, New Jersey. An outstanding vocal music student, she was chosen for the All-State Chorus as first soprano and for the All-Eastern Chorus (12 states).

Leah has excelled in lead roles in her high school musical productions and sings in the Moorestown Ward choir and the Pitman New Jersey Stake choir. She has served as Mia Maid president and is vice-president of her seminary class.

Student Winner

Derek Wright of Afton, Wyoming, was named as a United States National Award winner in English by the United States Achievement Academy. He was nominated by his high school English teacher.

Derek is the first assistant in his priests quorum in the Afton Third Ward, Afton Wyoming Stake.

Third Generation

Rob McDonald of Nampa, Idaho, enjoys school, sports, music, and Scouting. He is a member of the National Honor Society. He plays on his school’s basketball team and was first-chair drummer in the school band.

Rob also followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, becoming the third generation to earn the rank of Eagle.

Rob is a counselor in the teachers quorum of the Nampa Seventh Ward.

Scout Service

Rodney Fuhriman of Moraga, California, devoted more than 140 hours of his summer vacation to installing a sprinkling system in a local historic spot. He offered his services to the Hacienda de las Flores in order to fulfill the community service section of his Eagle badge.

Although the project took a lot of hard work, it was appreciated and noted by the community.

Rodney is an honor student and outstanding athlete competing in cross-country track and tennis. He also enjoys snow skiing and waterskiing. He serves in the Orinda Ward, Oakland California Stake, as the secretary in his priests quorum.

Two Michelles

Michelle Miller and Michelle Meeks, both of the Edmonton Sixth Ward, Edmonton Alberta Canada Stake, won recognition playing for a championship soccer team.

The South West United team won the Edmonton city and the provincial championships and took fourth in the national championship. At the Calgary International tournament they defeated the California state champions to take tournament top honors.

Michelle Miller played center half for the team. She attends seminary and is in the presidency of her Mia Maid class.

Michelle Meeks played right half for the team. She is also in the presidency of her Mia Maid class. She is an accomplished pianist and is active in other sports.

Even though the two Michelles were the only LDS players on the team, their coach tried as much as possible to schedule games and practices so that they did not conflict with church activities.

Art Winner

Every time Jared Burton Ikihega, 12, of New Zealand, looks up a telephone number in the directory, he sees something familiar—his artwork on the cover.

Jared was one of 20 winners in a national competition to produce a picture for the local telephone directories. His artwork, a linoprint which he called “Looking over the East,” is a view of houses in Porirua East from his school.

Jared’s entry was selected from nearly 600 entries in his area. But this isn’t the first time his art has been recognized. One of his pieces was included in an exhibition of New Zealand school children’s art in Paris. Another work was chosen for a brochure for the Wellington Social Welfare Department.

Jared is a member of the Porirua East Ward, Wellington New Zealand Stake.

Talented Musician

Paul Pisano won the Idaho State Music Teachers piano competition. At regional competition he was selected as an alternate for the national competition.

Paul also was a member of the All-Northwest Choir and a National Merit semi-finalist with a nearly perfect grade-point average.

Paul is a priest in the 31st Ward, Pocatello Idaho Chubbuck Stake.

Scottish Stars

David and Steven Crook, outstanding academic students of the Dundee Scotland Stake, have both excelled in soccer.

The youngest player on a men’s team in Perthshire’s amateur premier division, David is the team’s top scorer. He was asked to join the team after attending practice with an older brother. He was also the top scorer for his school’s team.

Following in his brother’s steps in athletics, Steven was named his school’s champion table tennis and badminton player as well as the all-around boys’ sports champion. Aside from school, he is involved in rugby, basketball, Scouts, and a local running club.

The Crook brothers are members of the Perth Branch.

Michelle Miller; Michelle Meeks

Christmas ornament photos by Grant Heaton