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No coward soul is mine,

No trembler in the world’s storm-troubled sphere;

I see heaven’s glories shine,

And faith shines equal, arming me from fear.

—Emily Brontë

Young Storyteller

Elaine Hales, 12, of Ellensburg, Washington, was selected as one of 27 children from the Northwest to tour the Soviet Union as a Young Storyteller for Peace. They visited schools in several cities in Russia and performed the stories they have prepared.

In addition to storytelling, Elaine enjoys singing, playing the piano, reading, and needlework. Elaine is a Beehive in the Ellensburg Second Ward, Selah Washington Stake.

On a High Horse

Jodi Berg knows her way around a rodeo arena. She has qualified to compete in the junior finals on several rodeo circuits.

Jodi competes in five different events but her specialty is the barrels. She won the Junior Barrels for the year. Her horse Pocco is her particular friend and partner. With Jodi’s victory, Pocco was named Junior Barrel Horse of the Year.

Jodi is a member of the Valleyview Branch, Peace River District, Canada Calgary Mission.

A New Book from the New Era

Priesthood in Action brings together the best articles and short stories printed in the New Era about the Aaronic Priesthood.

Articles in the book offer new insights into serious Aaronic Priesthood duties such as passing the sacrament, assisting with home teaching, offering service to ward members, and preparing to preach the gospel on a mission. Personal experiences with young men in sports, work, and school illustrate how some Aaronic Priesthood holders have dealt with obstacles. The short stories explore some situations that often confront young men in their teens.

Heartwarming, real-life incidents about Aaronic Priesthood holders are told by General Authorities, adult leaders, and the young men themselves. This compilation makes interesting reading for both young men and their advisers and parents.

Creative Writer

Michelle Antrobus of Frisco, Colorado, won a creative writing contest sponsored by her school district. She took first place in the junior high level.

Besides reading and writing, Michelle enjoys art and working with young children. She served on her school’s student council.

Michelle is Beehive class president in the Frisco Branch, Golden Colorado Stake.

Art and Athletics

Robert (Bobby) Harris of Roy, Utah, is a well-rounded student. He was quarterback on the football team and a pitcher on the baseball team. He was honored by being selected for the All-State Academic Football team. In addition to his athletics, he has won many art awards.

Bobby served in several leadership positions. He was student-body president of his high school and served on the seminary council. Bobby is in the Roy 12th Ward, Roy Utah Central Stake.

Video Yearbook

Eight young men, all from the Sunnyvale Fourth Ward, Santa Clara California Stake, took on the ambitious project of producing a video yearbook for their high school. The proceeds from the project would go to the ward missionary fund.

With the help of their adviser and a small video production company, they acquired the equipment they needed. They approached the principal of the high school with the idea, and he agreed to the project.

With some training from the personnel at the video production company, the young men learned how to shoot and edit the tape. They wrote a script and asked a friend to help them with a musical score.

After 50 hours of shooting and countless hours of editing and dubbing music, the finished hour-long video was offered for sale to students.

The money earned from the sale of the tapes was not the only reward of the project. In working with their nonmember student friends, the priests of the ward were able to talk about the Church.

Vocational opportunities opened up as the young men gained experience. One of the priests felt he may have found an area he would like to pursue in college after his mission. And they all learned how to work hard to make a project succeed.

In addition, the project increased the friendship among the young men. They grew closer because of their shared interest and felt they were making a real contribution.

Top Athlete

Todd Herget was named most valuable player and top defensive player of the winning Southern Alberta football team. Besides his ability in sports, Todd is an excellent student and appears on the honor roll of his school.

Todd is a priest in the Lethbridge Seventh Ward, Lethbridge Alberta East Stake.

Head Over Heels

Lisa Fisher earned first place in three events in Girls’ Class III gymnastics of northern California. She finished the northern state championships first in floor exercise, uneven bars, and tied for first in the All-Around competition.

Lisa is an outstanding student in her school. She also serves as a counselor in her Beehive class presidency. She is a member of the Orangevale Ward, Citrus Heights California Stake.

Celebrating YW

The Young Women of the St. Clair Branch, Dunedin, New Zealand, held a special fireside to celebrate the founding of the Young Women Organization. They performed musical numbers, gave talks, bore their testimonies, and presented a short film.

Along with the seven Young Women participating on the program were five nonmembers. The Young Women invited their parents and all members of the branch, in addition to several investigators.

Taking Aim

Travis Hamby of Burley, Idaho, took first place in the Youth Barebow Field Competition sponsored by the National Field Archery Association.

Travis has been competing on a state level for four years, and this was his first national competition. He plans to continue competing and train for the Olympics.

In addition to archery, Travis enjoys participating in sports at school. He is involved in wrestling, football, basketball, and track.

Travis is a teacher in the Burley Eighth Ward, Burley Idaho Stake.

Starting Seminary

“We’re making Church history,” was the comment from a group of young people in Biggs, California. A seminary class has been started for the first time in their area. The class, taught by Cassandra Quist, meets in a converted barn behind the home of two of the class members, Jeff and Erin Spears. Other members of the class are Randy Curtis, Carry Bassett, Laura Tavis, Jenny Curtis, Darin Richins, Chris Quist, Bryan Newton, Afton Tolmon, Cami Richins, Sherry Schneider, Travis Hill, Jami Curtis, Shawn Morris, Laura Butcher, Lauri Robertson, Lia Newton, Mindy Bassett, and Genet Orme.

Temple Goal

by Daniella Pilgrim and Marleen Van Laere

The youth of the Antwerp Branch in Belgium wanted a goal to work toward. They came up with the idea and presented it to their leaders. They wanted to earn their way to the Swiss Temple and do baptisms for the dead.

With a little help from the leaders of the branch, they faithfully put in hours organizing barbecues, dances, movies, and family home evenings. They were indeed blessed financially, but as the Lord stated that all things are spiritual, additional blessings came to the youth. Without knowing the full effect, they played an important role in missionary work by fellowshipping investigators, and through these same activities created more unity and love among the members of the branch.

The departure date was set, letters written, and reservations made. After the bus trip, the first thing the group of 25 youth and 11 leaders wanted to see was the temple itself. Many had tears in their eyes, for it was the first time they had seen the temple.

The group spent two days doing baptisms. The night before their return trip, they held a testimony meeting, which was one of the highlights of the trip. Testimonies were borne by group members of the truthfulness of the gospel and the joy they felt in doing temple work. The meeting was closed with the group singing, “The Spirit of God like a Fire Is Burning.”

The group returned home safely with wonderful memories of the temple.

On the Cutting Edge

It all began as a challenge issued by the Young Women to the Young Men. The event was collecting wood as a service project for the widows and needy of the Kanab Second Ward, Kanab Utah Stake. The Laurels claimed that the Young Women could haul more wood than the Young Men. The challenge was accepted, and rules and a date were set for what was dubbed the Wood Run.

The rules stated that each team could have as many class members, friends, advisers, or parents as they could muster, but each team could use only three chain saws at any given time. The winner would be the team that could return to the designated place first with four cords of wood.

On the appointed day, the two teams headed for the Kaibab Mountain. The Young Women arrived at the finish line with their four cords of firewood. Finding no Young Men or loaded wood in sight, they returned to their cutting area and began filling other trucks and trailers with wood. About 15 minutes later, the Young Men showed up, fully expecting to be the undisputed champions. Instead they found the Young Women’s wood at the finish line. After the shock wore off, the losing team joined in the spirit of the service project and helped the winners finish filling every available truck and trailer with wood. The group cut 16 cords of firewood to be used as winter fuel by those in need in their ward.

As one young man said, “We provided a much needed service, and we had a great time doing it.”

A Rose for Christine

Christine Huff of Pasadena, California, was named as a member of the court for the Pasadena Tournament of Roses. She was involved in numerous personal appearances as well as riding in the Rose Parade.

Christine is a talented musician. She served as president and soloist of the a cappella choir. She plays the piano and gave a senior solo recital. She also enjoys ballet and drama.

Christine is a member of the Pasadena Second Ward, where she was president of the Laurel class.

“It was a broadening experience to meet so many people,” said Christine of her experience with the Rose Court. “I’m glad I had experience speaking in church which prepared me for speaking before groups in our public appearances.”

Speaking Out

Tom Bown has learned to let his voice be heard. He took first place in the Voice of Democracy speech contest for the state of Ohio. He went on to compete on the national level in Washington, D.C., where he delivered his speech at a Congressional banquet.

Of his victory on the state level, Tom said, “This speechmaker is left speechless. I’ve learned a lot of things in competitive speaking, and I use a lot of the things I’ve learned.”

Tom is a priest in the Centerville Ward, Dayton Ohio Stake.

Elaine Hales

Jodi Berg and Pocco

Robert Harris

Todd Herget

Lisa Fisher

Travis Hamby

Christine Huff with her grandfather