CONNECTING LINKS

Esther Hi’ilani Candari is an artist and advocate who was raised to love global community and sharing resources with those in need. She finds fulfillment in connecting people with opportunities and expanding representation in visual art. What’s your bio? I was born and raised in Hawaii. My dad is an immigrant from the Philippines, and […]

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WE ARE MADE FOR THIS

Carol Lynn Pearson’s first collection of poetry was self-published in 1967, and the print run of 2000 books sold out in just a few days. Since then, she has published over forty works – poetry volumes, memoir, gospel commentary, and theater productions. Among her notable works are Goodbye, I love you, The Ghost of Eternal […]

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SELF-LOVE, BEAUTY, AND DIVINITY IN BLACKNESS

Melissa Tshikamba always wanted to be an artist but did not see many people of color depicted beautifully in illustrations and paintings. So she changed that in her own work. Tell me a little bit about yourself. I’m from Alberta, Canada, a small town called Fort Saskatchewan. It’s more up north. I come from a […]

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RADICAL ACCEPTANCE OF MENTAL ILLNESS

May is Mental Health Awareness month. Fiona Phillips and her husband have supported multiple family members experiencing mental illness. Their experience is being put to good use as they serve as Area Medical Advisor, supporting the health needs of full-time missionaries in California. Tell me about yourself and your family. I am currently serving as […]

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Power of Art on Culture

A series of career steps in arts administration and management led Mykal Urbina to the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, a nonprofit organization committed to displaying and performing art by Latter-day Saints from around the world and sharing it with the broader public. She was recently named Executive Director. Tell me about how you came […]

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DEFINING SUCCESS

Elizabeth Atuaia and her siblings attained success in the performing arts as the pop music group The Jets from 1985 to 1990, performing around the world, having two of their albums certified Gold (selling over 500,000 copies), and one Platinum (selling over a million copies). But she always defined “success” differently than people might think. […]

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THROUGH THE EYES OF A MOTHER

Rose Datoc Dall is a painter whose art has been recently featured in multiple books produced by LDS-affiliated publishers. Throughout her career, she has focused on a woman’s perspective in presenting scenes from the New Testament, particularly the life of the Savior and His mother, Mary. When and how did you start painting? I’ve been […]

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EMBRACE YOUR PURPOSE AND THE JOURNEY

Following a spiritual prompting that came from the clear blue sky, Emily Farmer walked into a senior care facility in her neighborhood to play the piano. She became instant friends with one of the residents, a 99-year-old man called Mac, and discovered he played the harmonica. They played music together for the residents and were […]

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Yearnings of the Soul

Dana Willard is the blogger, designer, and sewist behind MadeEveryday. She is well-known in the sewing community for fun fabrics and quick and easy tutorials. When the COVID-19 quarantine was announced in the United States, many sewists contacted Dana for guidance in making fabric face masks to stem the spread of the virus. The make-a-face-mask […]

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Clarity and Connection

Amber Richardson is a storyteller with many credits in many mediums. She has produced a YouTube series, “Splitting the Sky,” and a podcast, “On Sovereign Wings.” She has performed in festivals and plays, such as “Mother Wove the Morning” by Carol Lynn Pearson. One of the common threads running through her creative work is the […]

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Straight to the Source

Since she was a small child, Ashley Bryant Miller knew she wanted to be an actor. It wasn’t until young adulthood that she knew she wanted to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Her profession and faith came together when she was asked to be one of the narrators […]

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Creating Zion

Maryan Myres Shumway uses art, music, and teaching to build community and cultivate “Zion” wherever she is. She has traveled all over the world, living most of the year in Qatar and spending summers in the United States where she and her husband run a girls ranch. Maryan is the oldest of nine children, and […]

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Threads of Faith

As a seamstress with a special spot in her heart for the traditional Chilean cueca dresses, Maria Teresa Toro Valenzuela knows how to modify and improve on a good pattern.  Having been ‘born of goodly parents,’ Maria Teresa joined the church as a young mother.  Threads of love of family, country and the gospel now run through […]

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Los Hilos Del Amor

Una costurera con un lugar especial en su corazón para ” la cueca,” los trajes típicos chilenos, Maria Teresa Toro Valenzuela sabe cómo modificar y mejorar un buen patrón. Después de haber “nacido de buenos padres,” María Teresa se unió a la iglesia siendo una madre joven. Los hilos del amor por la familia, el país y el evangelio ahora se entretejen […]

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To Shine a Light

Listen to this interview at the Mormon Women Project podcast, available on all platforms. Elizabeth Ostler is a theater-maker, activist, and professor living in Brooklyn, New York. She specializes in directing and puppetry, and in coaching others on how to tell their stories. A survivor of childhood abuse and of an abusive marriage, she dedicates her […]

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Open To All Possibilities

Anoush Anderson discovered a love for science when she was young, and her curiosity about the workings of the world motivated her to pursue an education and career in the sciences. She recently completed her PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics. Taking a scientific approach to life, Anoush has felt empowered to try new things […]

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A Divine Commission

Angela Johnson grew up with a burning desire to become an opera star. She wholeheartedly pursued that goal while she raised a family, until a powerful spiritual impression changed her life path. Entirely self-taught, she is now an accomplished sculptor who uses her gift to share her testimony of Jesus Christ, including in a permanent […]

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Hummingbird

At five feet tall, Esther Yu Sumner has a big vision for life. The 39-year-old marketing professional, now a published children’s author, is always in pursuit of her next creation—her energy and creativity has led her friends to call her a “hummingbird.” Whether she is sewing an apron for her niece, making grape juice from […]

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To Create is Our Birthright

Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick developed a strong testimony of faith and a love of singing at a very early age. These gifts helped comfort her through the death of loved ones, and saved her own life on multiple occasions. Charity is an opera singer, an author, a recipient of two double lung transplants, a survivor of […]

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The Creative Impulse

Erica Glenn believes in the power of music and the healing process of creativity, and has seen from experiences around the world how creativity fosters communities. She started composing her own music from a very young age and has written and produced her own musicals, including The Weaver of Raveloe, which was performed at the […]

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A Quest for Self-Knowledge

Luisa Perkins began reading and then writing stories as a young girl as a way to find peace and escape from a troubled home life. She is now an acclaimed author who has published many books and essays, including Dispirited and The Book of Jer3miah: Premonition. Her latest novel, Prayers in Bath, centers on an […]

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Dressed Like A Queen

At age 16, Rosie Card seemed to be living the dream: she was a runway model traveling the world. The experience has given her unique perspective into how women view their bodies and how Satan uses our bodies to distract us from our abilities to gain skills and be creators. Now, Rosie is focusing her […]

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Collect, Preserve and Share

As the Global Acquisitions Curator for Art for the Church History Museum, Laura Allred Hurtado has a unique understanding of how art impacts our worship. She also understands how vital it is to increase the representation and breadth of women in our artwork, and she has made some revolutionary strides in rectifying this dearth that impact […]

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A Life in Full Color

As a refugee of the Spanish Civil War, Aïda was raised in France with two families: her Spanish family of birth and her adopted French host family. Her love of languages and art led to a rich life of creation as she wrote and illustrated children’s books and raised three children in Ottawa, Canada. As her sight has failed her in her later years, Aïda continues to fill her life with beauty.

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Une Vie Pleine de Couleurs

Read this interview in English. En tant que réfugiée de la guerre d’Espagne, Aïda fut élevée en France par deux familles : sa famille espagnole de naissance et sa famille Française, qui l’avait accueillie. Son amour du langage et des Arts l’ont guidée dans une vie riche en créativité. Elle a écrit et illustré des […]

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On Listening, Music, and What it Means to Be Human

Catherine Ramirez is a professional flutist and teacher whose music has been described as spiritual, elegant, acrobatic, and earthy. When she speaks about her musical achievements, she’s modest. But when you hear her play, her passion is hard to hide. She shares how her Latino heritage influences her perspective and performances, and how we can all learn lessons from music when we stop to listen.

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A Family Production

Erin Morley has risen to become one of the most celebrated opera singers in the world today. With her four-year-old daughter in tow and often her husband too, Erin travels the world to sing leading roles in the world’s greatest opera houses. In her interview, she talks about her education in voice and opera, the joys and challenges of raising her daughter on the road, and the carefully constructed balance she and her husband have at work to support their busy family life.

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The 3 Browns

Deondra, Desirae and Melody are three of the 5 Browns, a piano performing quintet composed of siblings. The sisters all attended The Juilliard School together and tour and perform with their brothers, gaining the highest accolades in the classical music world and performing in some of its finest venues. Three years ago, their father was sentenced to ten years in prison for sexual abuse involving the girls, and Deondra and Desirae founded the The Foundation for Survivors of Abuse, which focuses on changing the statute of limitation legislation across the country.

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Choosing God and Abundance

McArthur Krishna did not expect to be where she is. And the path she took to get there was an unusual one. McArthur lives in rural India, an overnight train ride from the nearest LDS Church congregation and a world apart from her former life in Washington DC. But her unique experiences have confirmed to her the importance of maintaining her personal relationship with God and trusting in His ways. The result, she says, is an abundant life filled with vibrancy and delight. McArthur is a co-author of the book, ‘Girls Who Choose God: Stories of Courageous Women from the Bible.’ Writing about women who choose to follow God is one way that McArthur feels actively connected to her faith.

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All Here Together

In her work as a filmmaker, Bianca Morrison Dillard sees storytelling as a way to build community, and a way to help people feel heard and understood. Her views are shaped by what she sees as the essence of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: “Love and inclusion. Everything that is virtuous and lovely and of good report and praiseworthy.” Bianca talks here about honoring the nuance and complexity of individual lives–one of the goals of her current project, the documentary film ‘Far Between,’ which features personal stories about what it means to be gay and Mormon.

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Heart to Heart with Hart

Lindsay Hart is a woman of many talents, and she’s put them all to good use. As a Spanish speaker, she has helped build up Spanish-speaking branches in her area. As a photographer, she photographs children with terminal diseases for a non-profit she founded. She’s also acted as foster mother to her cousin. She’s working towards her own version of her personal best.

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Playing From Her Heart

Tina knew from a young age that music was her life’s calling and she is a professional saxophonist in New York. It took longer for Tina to realize that she is gay, but a period of inactivity from the Church didn’t stop her from paying her tithing every month. It was appreciation and practice of Buddhism that led Tina back to the Church in her remarkable journey back into activity.

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From the Bathtub to Beyond

Inspired by her childhood love of shrinky dinks, Garfield, Disney movies and bathtime, animator and artist Annie Poon has established herself as a premier paper stop motion animator. In fact, one of her films was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In addition to capturing the most magical moments of childhood, Annie has turned her talents towards animating the most violent scenes in the Book of Mormon in her “Die Wicked Die” series. Annie’s new ebook, “Puppy’s Super Delicious Valentine’s Day Biscuits!” is available just in time for the holiday!

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The Heart of His Servant

Siu Man has been a member of the Church in Hong Kong for about 40 years. Despite a congenital heart defect that has kept her homebound for most of her life, Siu Man learned how to read from the Book of Mormon. Today, Siu Man serves her family by caring for aging family members, researching her ancestors and sharing her handiwork crafts with others.

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Her Castle On A Cloud

Sandra Turley lived the dream of many aspiring performers when she was cast in the role of Cosette in Les Miserables on Broadway at the age of 21. She recounts her journey to the stage and how the gospel influenced her decisions regarding career and family. Now “happily retired,” she has taken on new roles, becoming a mother after lengthy infertility struggles, recently releasing a CD of Broadway hits, and inspiring young women around the United States as a professional speaker.

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A Model of Many Talents

Summer Bellessa spent her youth living in Paris, Japan and New York as an international model. So it was an easy transition for her then to start Eliza, a magazine for “women who want to be stylish, sexy, and engaged in the world while retaining high standards in dress, entertainment and lifestyle.” Now as a new mom, she’s shifted her talents to producing and staring in a variety television show with American Idol alum, Brooke White, while continuing to be a representative of her faith.

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The Art of Education

As the Director of Education at Brigham Young University’s Museum of Art, Ann Lambson has made it her life’s work to connect people with art. She uses museum education to engage the local community with art in ways that are accessible and meaningful. Raised in a family that encouraged education and creative thinking, Ann believes the arts are essential to holistic learning and fundamental to who we are as children of God.

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A Measure of the Spirit

Although born and raised in Lebanon, Joumana left Beirut for Paris to complete her studies as an artist. But it was when she joined the Church, through a friend in Lebanon, that she came into her own as an artist. Today, Joumana’s stunning paintings are infused with gospel symbolism and a measure of the Spirit that makes them undeniably moving.

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Une Empreinte de l’Esprit

Née et élevée au Liban, Joumana a quitté Beirut pour poursuivre ses études d’art à Paris. Mais c’est en découvrant l’Église par une amie au Liban qu’elle a trouvé sa propre voix d’artiste. Maintenant, les œuvres éblouissantes de Joumana sont imprégnées d’un symbolisme et d’une mesure d’Esprit qui leur permet de toucher les cœurs des gens. Comment avez-vous avez […]

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The Song of the Heart

Bonnie Winterton had distinguished careers as a conductor and as a professor at the University of Utah, all while raising six children. She feels God guided her musical and personal paths so that she could serve the church as a musician. Although she is eighty-one years old, she continues to teach twenty students, and her goal is to have at least one student when she is one hundred. More important than her accomplishments is her commitment to serving the Lord and to sharing the gift of music with others.

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Never Alone With the Gospel

French sisters Véronique and Adeline both credit their mother with their love of music and the fact that they both make their living in music. Both unmarried, they appreciate the fulfillment that comes from interacting with so many children and embrace the opportunity to have an impact on young lives. They also have an impact on their mother, who they care for in their home. Their generosity of spirit and their willingness to engage deeply with others contributes to their rich enjoyment of a fully productive life.

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Une Vie Pleinement Productive

Read this interview in English. Racontez-moi d’abord un peu comment c’était de grandir dans l’église en France Adeline : Nos parents se sont convertis plusieurs années avant notre naissance. Véronique : Dans les années soixante. Adeline : Voilà, et donc nous sommes nées dans l’église, nous avons bénéficié tout de suite d’une éducation religieuse, et ça s’est très […]

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Dressed for Success

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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Marching to Her Own Drum

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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A Spotlight on Faith

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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Hooked on Creativity

Always drawn to art and the artistic process, Rebecca discovered hooked rugs when the youngest of her six children was in kindergarten. In the years since then, she has produced a large collection of rugs that reflect her spiritual searchings, her love for her children and family, and the joy she finds in creating something that inspires thoughtful contemplation in her audience.

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The Beautiful Design of Motherhood

Gabrielle Blair is best known as Design Mom, the founder of one of the most popular design and motherhood blogs on the web, named as one of Time magazine’s Top Websites of 2010. In this interview, Gabrielle reveals the spiritual and personal motivations behind the blog’s origins and purpose, as well as her own philosophies about mothering her six children and developing all mothers’ innate creativity.

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Cutting With Confidence

Christie moved to New York City by herself at age 20 to work in a salon. Now ten years later, her clients include celebrities and magazine models. Christie talks about battling the stereotypes facing hair dressers and how she has gained confidence in her skills, intelligence and spiritual understanding despite not having an academic education. Christie also reveals how her sister’s death from a heroin addition brought her divorce-torn family together and healed her personally.

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So Much To Do, So Much To Learn

As a young clothing designer selling to Neiman Marcus and Henri Bendel, Maralyn’s clients included Jackie Kennedy Onassis. But because of influential parents and a mission to New Zealand, Maralyn was always grounded in loving others and teaching the gospel. In her interview, Maralyn discusses her ever positive outlook, her life with an inactive husband, and her continual quest for projects that keep her mind and spirit invigorated.

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Singing His Praises

With three small children and a husband in his medical residency, Emily is a busy mother. But she has also committed herself to graduate studies in choral conducting, fulfilling a deep passion for praising God through sacred music. Emily explains why music and motherhood are so important to her, and why she’s chosen to pursue her studies at this point in her life.

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Service With A Smile

“Be useful” is Leslie Graff’s motto. Because of her training as a child life specialist, her youth in Turkey and her experiences on medical missions with Operation Smile, Leslie is committed to a life of global service and philanthropy, which, she proves, is not just for the wealthy. The sale of Leslie’s skilled paintings help fund her family’s giving.

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Lost in Learning

As a teenager in Sophia, Bulgaria, Eva sought for truth and found the restored Gospel. Now a mother of three living in the United States, Eva’s passion for learning continues to drive her personal and professional pursuits: “Lost in Learning”, the culmination of her work as a professional photographer, features the original manuscripts and objects used by the world’s great discoverers as they too sought for truth. Eva homeschools her children so that they can share in her search for knowledge.

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From Dancing to Diapers

Lisa Jones is the mother of two sons, one on a mission and one in high school. But before she was “mom”, she was a solo dancer at the New York City Ballet from 1975 to 1985 and a favorite of the company’s founder George Balanchine. Lisa talks about these two distinct eras in her life and why she was so ready to transition from thinking about herself as a dancer to thinking about someone else as a mother.

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The LDS Women Project

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