31 – 40 years old

November 10th, 2011 by admin

7 Comments

I Too Must Give

I Too Must Give

Kirsten Monson

During a trip to India in May 2010, mother-of-five Kirsten Monson discovered the beautiful artisan work of the local women and determined that she would provide a way for their work to reach a receptive market. The result was Elevita, a site that sells products from artisans in developing countries and then funnels all of the revenue back into the local communities. In this interview, Kirsten talks about the status of women in the countries she serves and the drive she feels from the Spirit to help them.

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September 21st, 2011 by admin

16 Comments

Unconventional Miracles

Unconventional Miracles

Lindsey Redfern

When Lindsey Redfern and her husband were told they would never be able to bear their own children, Lindsey wondered why she was denied the opportunity to be a co-creator with her Heavenly Father. But because of her husband’s professional experience and a number of miracles along the way, Lindsey discovered the joys and challenges of open adoption and now helps others to navigate that same path.

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August 24th, 2011 by admin

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A Champion Inside and Out

A Champion Inside and Out

Claire Harries

Involved in fitness training since high school, mother of three Claire Harries recently became a body-building champion in Holland. A native of South Africa who recently moved back to her home country, Claire talks about how body building has contributed to her mental and spiritual strength, her competitive nature, and her talent for entrepreneurship, including a surprising business for a body-builder: cake decorating.

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August 10th, 2011 by admin

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Over the past 18 months, as the MWP volunteers and I have asked over a hundred women to tell us the stories of their lives, we’ve been repeatedly surprised by how often childhood sexual abuse has been a part of their pasts. Because many interviews at the MWP examine women’s reactions to challenging circumstances in their lives — from disease to infertility to family losses — we felt that examining faithful LDS responses to childhood sexual abuse would be in keeping with our mission. In this collection, you will find three very different anonymous accounts of childhood circumstances, followed by an interview with Julie de Azevedo Hanks, an LDS therapist.

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August 2nd, 2011 by admin

14 Comments

Snapshot Portrait: Amanda Lythgoe

Snapshot Portrait: Amanda Lythgoe

Manchester, CT, August 2, 2011

The hardest choice I’ve made in my life was when… …at the age of 19 I chose to follow the promptings of the spirit and place my baby for adoption. A sweet baby boy, just two days old, lay on the hospital bed between me and his birthfather.  I held his tiny hand as I [...]

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July 28th, 2011 by admin

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…Somewhere He Opens A Window

…Somewhere He Opens A Window

Dagmar Patricia Kollmeier

As an ambitious young lawyer pursuing her doctorate at The Hague, The Netherlands, Dagmar was introduced to the Church through her roommate. After serving a mission at age 29, Dagmar landed her dream job on the Yugoslavia Tribunal at The Hague, only to give it up when she was specifically recruited to work instead in the Church’s public affairs department for Europe. Now as a mother and wife, Dagmar still works part-time as a general counsel to the Church in Frankfurt, Germany. It has sometimes been painful and lonely for her to follow those doors that have been opened to her and leave behind those that have been shut, but she believes the Lord is aware of her and is making use of her tremendous skills.

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July 20th, 2011 by admin

19 Comments

As Sistas In Zion

As Sistas In Zion

Sista Beehive and Sista Laurel

Sista Beehive and Sista Laurel started their blog, As Sistas in Zion, as a way to keep in touch with each other and express their sense of humor. But because they invite others to laugh with them about what it means to be Mormon, and specifically, what it means to be an African-American Mormon, their blog has grown. It’s not all fun and games with these two though: They speak honestly about the loneliness and misunderstandings they’ve faced as a cultural minority in the Church and how humor, friendship, and faith keep them going.

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July 18th, 2011 by admin

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Snapshot Portrait: Merinda Cutler

Snapshot Portrait: Merinda Cutler

Austin, TX, July 18, 2011

The first time I realized Heavenly Father loved me was when… I was in college, attending classes during the summer term when campus was quiet, slower, and a little lonely. In that extra time on my own, I started wondering if everything I had been taught all my life was really true, or if I’d just been brainwashed. I wondered if there was a God at all.

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June 30th, 2011 by admin

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Missy Martz, a former atheist, is married to a marine who has been deployed five years out of their eleven-year marriage and is presently stationed in Okinawa, Japan. She talks about her incredible conversion as she traveled around the country in search of meaning, and then discusses how the gospel has balanced her life and supported her during difficult times while she is far from home and family while her husband is deployed for long periods of time.

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June 9th, 2011 by admin

11 Comments

Dressed for Success

Dressed for Success

Athelia Woolley LeSueur (CK)

When health challenges derailed CK’s dreams of being a dancer, she resourcefully pursued another interest, fashion design, which led her to start her own business: the modest dress company Shabby Apple. CK’s vision for her company stems from her belief that fashion can be a powerful tool for emphasizing women’s femininity and even their spirituality, as well as a tool for charitable giving. Recently married at 32, CK reflects on how the process of starting her own company has led to her mature views on marriage.

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April 20th, 2011 by admin

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Julia Klebingat grew up in Riga, Latvia, which was then part of the Soviet Union. Introduced to the Church when Brigham Young University’s Legacy Dixieland Band performed in her hometown, she married at 19 and attended Ricks College. Julia recounts the culture shock she experienced getting married, joining the Church and moving to the United States in such a short time, and the blessings that have come into her life since that time. She is preparing to move from Frankfurt, Germany, to Kiev, Ukraine, to serve alongside her husband, who will preside in the Ukraine, Kiev mission.

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February 23rd, 2011 by admin

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Melissa Puente is an Emmy-winning television editor and a mother of two sets of twin boys, ages 4 and 2. With four boys under three, Melissa felt tension in her home that didn’t reflect her gratitude at having her children safely with her. She challenged herself to read parenting books and document her responses on her own website, Learning Mommy. She now takes her education as a mother as seriously as her education as a TV editor.

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February 9th, 2011 by admin

58 Comments

Marching to Her Own Drum

Marching to Her Own Drum

Elaine Bradley

Elaine Bradley is the drummer for the rock band Neon Trees, which released their first full length album, Habits, in 2010. Their first single “Animal” has climbed to #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Alternative Rock Chart. Elaine discusses her journey towards spiritual honesty as a rebellious child and then as a missionary in Germany and now as a musician fulfilling her life’s artistic passions.

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February 2nd, 2011 by admin

28 Comments

Sydney Young has five children, but she has never been pregnant. In this interview, Sydney describes her journey through four open adoptions and the assumption of guardianship over one teenager. She exemplifies devoted stewardship over children who have not been birthed to her, but who have been sealed to her.

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January 26th, 2011 by admin

28 Comments

A Spotlight on Faith

A Spotlight on Faith

Erin Chambers McKay

Erin has loved being theatrical since she was a little girl. She had her first agent at age thirteen, and, after graduating from BYU, she moved to Los Angeles. As a working stage and film actor in L.A., Erin reflects on the challenges and joys of her business.

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January 12th, 2011 by admin

39 Comments

Four years ago, Bethany’s husband shared some startling news: He was addicted to pornography. As mother to four young children, Bethany had to continue to be mom, but she also chose to dedicate herself to her husband’s recovery. Recognizing she needed time and space to heal herself, Bethany sought out support systems and drew closer to the Lord. Bethany speaks about the need to tend to her own wounds, as well as support the man she loves.

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January 6th, 2011 by admin

10 Comments

Experimenting On The Word

Experimenting On The Word

Elizabeth Krider

As a graduate of Caltech with a PhD in Chemistry, Elizabeth Krider understands science. She also understands that spiritual experiences are real. Elizabeth uses her knowledge of science and her faith in God to ask questions about how the world works, and she is now passing along that skill of scientific deductive reasoning to her children so that they, too, can understand the world around them.

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December 8th, 2010 by admin

26 Comments

Being Her Own Role Model

Being Her Own Role Model

Lyn Beckstead Greenwood

Trained as a chemical engineer, professional female role models have been hard to come by for Lyn Greenwood. That hasn’t stopped her from having a successful career at ExxonMobil. But the lack of role models has forced her to pave her own way as a single working mother and later, once she remarried, forced her to build up her own confidence in the kind of mother, worker and friend to others that she wanted to be.

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December 1st, 2010 by admin

6 Comments

Enthusiasm and Endurance

Enthusiasm and Endurance

Kovács Ildikó

Introduced to the gospel as a teenager in her native Hungary, Ildikó had to wait four years to be baptized due to her family’s disapproval. Ildikó discusses the challenges of joining a community that is still small in Hungary, marrying another Hungarian member and raising her three children in the Church there. She expresses confidence in the Savior’s role as head of the Church, the practical and spiritual safety that comes from living by its principles, and benefits of raising her children in the gospel.

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November 17th, 2010 by admin

41 Comments

Peace Through Conflict

Peace Through Conflict

Sahar Qumsiyeh

Raised near Bethlehem, only a few blocks away from the birthplace of Jesus Christ, Sahar Qumsiyeh intimately knows places that are considered holy by many religions. However, this significant area is marked by conflict and war, and as a Palestinian, Sahar faced barriers (both figurative and literal) to joining the Church. In this interview, Sahar describes how her introduction to the Church and understanding of the gospel enabled her to overcome the feelings of anger and frustration that accompanied her life in this turbulent region.

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