Ma

With a guitar in one hand and a violin in the other, Camille Nelson Schwendener brought the Switzerland Zürich mission to life with music from 2002-2004. Camille’s fondness of Switzerland led her back year after year after her mission, and it was a guitar, a friend, and faith that brought her back to stay. Camille’s music can be found right here on Spotify!

Along with the seven other missionaries in the entire country of Iceland, Austin Ludwig served in the Denmark Copenhagen mission from 2016-2018. Through a rather rare opportunity of finding an Icelandic family to teach, Austin recognized God’s love for His children. On the last day of his mission while kneeling in prayer, he had a realization about that godly love that he has never forgotten.

On a Sunday afternoon in the seaport town of Mariupol, Ukraine at the close of her mission a decade ago, Megan Armknecht and her brand-new companion set out to visit a sailor. In the surprising encounter that followed, Megan saw firsthand God’s awareness of two sister missionaries and a name in a book.

Upon hearing the devastating news of the death of her past companion's sister, Julianna Carlson composed and recorded a song while on her mission in Salem, Oregon. The process and effective reach of her inspired song, "I'll See You Again" were nothing short of miraculous. 

Junior Banza's mission started long before he put a tag on in 1991. As the first person baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Congolese soil, Junior helped to pioneer the spread of the restored gospel in his home country years before being called to serve a mission in Kinshasa, Congo. When civil unrest broke out in the Congo, he was unexpectedly reassigned, in an unexpected way, to Johannesburg, South Africa.

Called to serve in Rostov Na Donu, Russia shortly after conflict in the Crimea broke out eight years ago, Brunson Smith recounts his first months in Russia as a missionary. What he describes as “being held by God,” Brunson tells how he saw the indescribable divinity in the Russian people. After walking away from his faith post-mission, Brunson embarked on a journey to rediscover it, and talks about it in detail in his Faith Journey podcast episode. We recorded this interview a few weeks before the recent Russian attacks on the Ukraine, and with deep compassion and concern, dedicate this episode to all Ukrainians and Russians, and echo the message of the The First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

Given to her on generous loan from a member of the Church in Görlitz, Germany, the cello Kylie Maag Moon played during Christmastime suddenly took a blow, but was not far from heaven’s repairing hand.

Anticipating a hearty German Christmas feast during his first year as a missionary in Berlin, Germany, Dr. Chris Karpowitz sat down to a widow’s meal he has never forgotten.

While proselyting online and teaching remotely during a global pandemic as a Spanish-speaking missionary in Kennewick, Washington, Hannah Gunther recounts an unforgettable phone call.

From one desert to another, Levi Tua’itanu, a Pleasant Grove, Utah local, recounts the miraculous healing of an investigator in Narrogin, Australia, who then becomes the “Ma” of his mission!