Mormon Life - War tag

The Mormons Sit Out the Civil War

Tue, 01 May 2012 14:55:00 -0600

source: nytimes.com

Mormon Life says: A little church history story for your afternoon. On May 1, 1862, Capt. Lot Smith led a cavalry company of a little more than 100 volunteers from Salt Lake City east into the mountains. Their mission was simple: to help the Union Army guard the overland mail route and telegraph line in northern Utah and what is now southwestern Wyoming against Indian attacks.

Smith’s men, members of Utah’s Nauvoo Legion militia, never engaged any Indians in combat, though they helped facilitate the resumption of the mail in June. Still, the mission was an important one — it marked Utah’s only significant military contribution to the Civil War, and a brief respite in the Mormons’ often-tense relationship with Washington.

LDS youths bring Mormon Battalion to life

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 10:58:00 -0600

source: deseretnews.com

The Mormon Battalion’s original trek through Yuma, Ariz., took place in January of 1847. Those who attended Yuma’s 2012 Silver Spur Rodeo Parade in February were treated to a trip back in time and a lesson in history. More than a dozen young men and young women from Yuma’s 9th Ward, in period clothing with authentic equipment (including a reproduction U.S. Army wagon), walked the parade route to bring alive a part of the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints..

The Silver Parade is the largest local event of this type, and the Arizona Centennial brought additional historical focus. Their efforts were rewarded by receiving the parade trophies for Best Horse-Drawn Wagon and 1st Place Religious Organization. Freddy Martinez, 17, said that winning the awards made him “feel like we did a good job representing the Battalion,” adding, “I know we were noticed ... and in a good way.”

The recognition didn’t stop there. In attendance at the parade was the commanding officer of the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Ground, Col. Reed Young. Young noted that the group was recreating a U.S. Army unit and commended them for keeping history alive. He produced a YPG “challenge coin” and, regretting he didn’t have enough for everyone, called for the youngest member to step forward. Matthew Hill, 14, stepped up and received the coin in a handshake from Young.

Billboard: Why did LDS leader say Mormons are warlike?

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 09:08:00 -0600

source: sltrib.com

Mormon Life says: Have you seen this? Since Friday, drivers on southbound Interstate 15 have been confronted by an LDS Church leader’s claim that "we are a warlike people."

The billboard, paid for by a group of libertarians and constitutionalists, asks "Why did [LDS Church President] Spencer W. Kimball say: ‘We are a warlike people’?" It directs readers to a website that goes into more detail on Kimball’s remark.

Faith and adventure: A patriarch leads a full life

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 11:51:00 -0700

source: deseretnews.com

Mormon Life says: Wow, what hasn't he done?! Not many people would fly more than 1,500 miles for a two-hour interview with a reporter. Then again, there aren't many people who approach life like Robert "Robin" O'Brien.

The spur-of-the-moment trip fit O'Brien's track record as a tenacious go-getter. This veteran of the U.S. Army and former Delta Air Lines pilot has traveled the world. He drove his motorcycle from Atlanta to the Arctic Circle on the unpaved ALCAN Highway. He served in multiple church capacities from elders quorum president to temple sealer. And that is just the beginning of his list of accomplishments.

"I've had a very exciting life," he said, putting it mildly.

Recalling the Mormon who tried to save Anne Frank

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 10:51:00 -0700

source: deseretnews.com

Mormon Life says: This story is worth retelling. In the wake of last week's international media furor over the a reported recent proxy baptism of famed Jewish Holocaust victim Anne Frank in an LDS temple, a noted Jewish scholar is reminding his Jewish readers of a time when the man he called most politically powerful Mormon in America from 1939-41 made a strident effort to save people like the Frank family.

Writing in JTA, which bills itself "the global news service of the Jewish people," Rafael Medoff recounts in detail the efforts of U.S. Sen. William H. King, D-Utah, to pass legislation that would have admitted 20,000 German Jewish refugee children to the United States who were outside the regular immigration quota system.

To Be Civilized

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 09:39:00 -0700

source: segullah.org/blog/

Mormon Life says: I would love to have been in this author's scripture class to hear this lesson. In a scripture class, taught and attended by women in my stake, I was recently asked to read a story written by Paul Sullivan, published in the Reader’s Digest in 1996, about the Cellist of Sarajevo.

The setting was Bosnia, 1992, two months into the Bosnian war that killed over 100,000 people and proved to be the most devastating conflict in Europe since the end of World War II. Before the war, thirty-five year old Vedran Smailovic had been a cellist for the Sarajevo Opera – a distinguished career to which he longed to return.

You Make the Call: Missionary Draft Deferrals

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 09:02:00 -0700

source: bycommonconsent.com

It has been interesting for me to watch the reactions this past week as news stories illuminated yet again the contested territory where the free exercise of religion meets civic considerations and obligations. As I observed other LDS people comment on these stories, I realized that in our recent past, we have experienced something even more egregious and more threatening than being pressured to refrain from performing proxy baptisms for Holocaust victims.

President Henry B. Eyring: A blessing of peace at Christmastime

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 09:27:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Mormon Life says: I love reading about the childhood stories of general authority. Childhood memories are for me the most vivid and the emotions from those times most easily recovered. Just a few weeks ago, I walked through heavy snow that reached above the tops of my shoes to stand next to a fence that now surrounds the yard of the house in which I lived as a boy.

My daughter and her husband stood at my side. We had driven through the storm from their apartment in New York City to the town of Princeton, N.J. Our purpose was to recover and create memories. Since she was a little girl she had heard my stories of that house and the happiness I had felt living there with my mother, father, my older brother and my younger brother.

Pearl Harbor devastation: Missionary recalls bombing

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 09:43:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Mormon Life says: In remembrance of Pearl Harbor Day, here's a neat story from an LDS missionary serving in the Hawaiian islands during the bombing. On Sunday morning, Dec. 7, 1941, Elder Wayne M. Winegar had just listened to the radio broadcast of "Music and the Spoken Word." The Mormon Tabernacle Choir had sung the words, "All is well."

And all did seem well for the missionary serving his second year in the Hawaiian Islands. The day before, Saturday, he had joined with his mission president and others for a conference in Kona, on the Big Island. He was serving then in Hilo as a branch president. Back home in Utah, his girlfriend, Virginia Adams, was waiting for him.

LDS vet recalls attack on Pearl Harbor

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 09:40:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

In August 1941, Bill Jarvis' uncle signed a letter giving permission for the 17-year-old to enlist in the U.S. Navy. The teenager could not have known that he would soon become an eyewitness to some of World War II's most pivotal events — beginning with the "Day of Infamy."

On that day, Dec. 7, 1941, more than 2,400 men lost their lives when the naval and air forces of Japan attacked U.S. Naval and Army forces on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Of the 21 ships sunk or damaged at Pearl Harbor, eight were the pride of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, the battleships. One of those battle wagons, the USS Arizona, still rests in the harbor at her anchor, a memorial rising over her now-decaying hull. Seventy years after an explosion ripped open her bow, oil still rises to the surface at the rate of two to nine quarts per day. Tourists visit the site daily, American and Japanese standing side by side, many tossing flower leis in honor of those still entombed below. (Please see www.nps.gov.)

WWII Refugee to Mormon: Walter Maschmeyer's Journey

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 00:05:00 -0600

by Whitney Sorensen
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: Living as Germans during the uncertainty of World War II, Walter Maschmeyer and his mother became displaced refugees fleeing the bombings. But they also saw plenty of kindness and miracles. At age twelve, Walter Maschmeyer traversed Germany amid the turmoil of World War II. Traveling only with his mother, Maschmeyer saw miles of German countryside during 1945 as they used whatever transportation was available to find a safe place in the war-torn nation. With Maschmeyer’s father on the German front and the Soviet army fast approaching, this journey was both frightening and essential. Only upon the arrival of American soldiers did the Maschmeyer family reunite and settle again into a peaceful life.

Years later, Maschmeyer would make a much longer journey to the United States, where he would find not only a place to settle but a much deeper source of peace—the restored gospel. But all of that took place long after Maschmeyer first saw war as a six-year-old boy in Germany.

Germany during the War
“We experienced almost nightly air raids in Hanover for a three-year period,” Maschmeyer recalls. “Most nights we were down in the basement shelter. We didn’t really know if we were going to get hit or not.” Several times the Maschmeyer family faced close calls when bombs fell and started fires in their building or landed but failed to explode.

Even the daily news was strictly controlled by the German government, but Maschmeyer took a big risk to hear news from a non-German perspective. “I wanted to know what was going on, especially close to the end of the war,” he says. “The German radio and newspapers would not give us trustworthy news any longer.”

Although it was illegal, Maschmeyer constructed a crude radio detector after a friend taught him how. He used this homemade radio to listen to news from the BBC, which sometimes broadcasted programs in German. “I knew it was a dangerous thing to do . . . but I was always curious,” Maschmeyer says. He also created a map on his bedroom wall to track the movement of the troops from other countries.

This secret source of news came in handy as the war drew to a close in 1945. Maschmeyer’s father had begun mandatory military service in 1944, so Maschmeyer and his mother lived largely on their own. Because of his radio and map, Maschmeyer knew how quickly the Russian troops were approaching Germany. “At least we could make some preparations in case we had to evacuate very quickly,” Maschmeyer recalls.

Refugees on Many Trains
The evacuation order came on January 18, 1945. Twelve-year-old Maschmeyer and his mother evacuated by themselves from Beuthen, where the family had moved in 1942. “We were on a dilapidated train consisting mostly of box cars and a few passenger cars with blown-out windows,” Maschmeyer describes. They took the last train out of the city.

Wind and snow blew in through the broken train windows, and the heaters on the trains did not work. Maschmeyer and his mother used sleeping bags to keep warm, but most on the train were not so lucky. And traveling by train was anything but rapid. “The train would travel a few miles and then suddenly we’d stop for a day or even a day and a half,” Maschmeyer recalls. “We were concerned with the Russians catching up with us. This could have happened at any moment, so we were very uneasy.” Often the tracks were being rebuilt in front of them, a major reason for the delays. On this stop-and-go journey, soup was provided at makeshift kitchens along the tracks, but this was usually their only source of food.

Maschmeyer and his mother disembarked in Glogau, where Maschmeyer’s father was stationed. The family enjoyed a few days together before further evacuation was ordered. Leaving their husband and father this time, Maschmeyer and his mother were uncertain if they would ever see him again.

When they stopped in the village of Burg, government officials assigned Maschmeyer and his mother to live on a local farm. After walking about a mile and a half, they knocked on the door and were greeted by the farmer’s wife. She assigned them to live in an upstairs bedroom with little heat, the best the couple could provide because they were already housing other outcasts.

Life on the farm was primitive compared to the Maschmeyers’ city living conditions. “We were no longer regular people,” the young Maschmeyer realized. “We were now called refugees.” For instance, indoor plumbing was not an accommodation for war evacuees. Instead, everyone living on the farm used an outhouse with a heart-shaped hole in the door that allowed snow to blow in and settle on the seat. “We got used to it,” Maschmeyer says. “You went into the outhouse and out again as quickly as you could. Comfort—of course that was nonexistent.”

One thing the Maschmeyers did have on the farm was food. The farmer had plentiful supplies and generously shared them. Even as refugees, Maschmeyer and his mother got to know their host and hostess, sometimes playing canasta in the evenings. The farmer and his wife even gave Maschmeyer a gift for his birthday, a mug that Maschmeyer kept for many years.

One day while walking into town, Maschmeyer and his mother encountered a group of Russian troops—the army they had been fleeing. Frightened, they hid in the doorway of a shop as the soldiers passed on horseback. Later, they discovered that these troops were fighting on the German side. Nevertheless, the arrival of these troops signaled the end of the Maschmeyers’ time at the farm.

Amid the ever-present trials, miracles also occurred in the lives of the Maschmeyers. All refugees were to board a train bound for Dresden, but as Maschmeyer and his mother were about to board, they heard a familiar voice—their former neighbor. She told them to board her train, headed in a different direction. That night, February 13, 1945, Dresden was heavily bombed from the air. Always grateful, Maschmeyer says, “I am in awe about how the Holy Ghost saved my life on so many occasions.”

Having avoided disaster, Maschmeyer’s refugee journey soon ended in the city of Clausthal. He and his mother lived there for several months until they returned to Hanover at the end of the war. While in Hanover, Maschmeyer’s father returned and the family was complete again. “We had lost everything we owned, but we had the great opportunity to make a new start,” Maschmeyer says.

Coming to America
In 1954, Maschmeyer and his family received a visit from some family members who lived in America. These relatives told him about an opportunity to work in a travel agency in New York City owned by another family member. Several months later, Maschmeyer's found himself at the Frankfurt airport, saying goodbye to his parents. The flight to America took 19 hours, and Maschmeyer’s plane made several stops before landing in New York City. Despite the travel time, Maschmeyer says, “I was thrilled the whole time.”

Maschmeyer immediately began noticing the differences between his new American lifestyle and the German one he left behind. Eating extra-large hamburgers, riding in brand-new automobiles, and even owning a television were all new to him. “It amazed me so much how easy and comfortable life really was,” says Maschmeyer. “I saw a future here.”

Maschmeyer’s future changed forever in America when he found the restored gospel. He met a Latter-day Saint woman named Nelda while living in New Orleans. They began dating, but she insisted she would marry only someone of her faith. So he began attending church with Nelda and meeting with the missionaries. “Then much to my surprise,” Maschmeyer says, “Nelda gave up her job and left New Orleans. She said she didn’t want to influence me either way.”

Nine months later, Maschmeyer called Nelda, who was living with a sister in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with a big announcement—and a big question. “When I told her I’d been baptized, she said, ‘That’s wonderful.’” But Maschmeyer didn’t stop there. He immediately asked when they could get married. Two weeks later Maschmeyer and Nelda were husband and wife. They would eventually welcome a daughter, also named Nelda.

Although Maschmeyer became a United States citizen in 1962, he’s never forgotten his German heritage. He’s journeyed back to Germany many times and told his family about his days growing up there during World War II. He’s glad that Germany recovered from the war and became a strong nation again, but he praises the United States just as highly. “I’m so grateful that I came here. This is the only free country in the world. What country are people going to go to for freedom?”

To learn more about Walter Maschmeyer’s life or to share similar experiences with him, e-mail waltermaschmeyer[at]gmail[dot]com.

Book review: Details lives and faith of German Latter-day Saints under Hitler's regime

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 13:32:00 -0600

source: MormonTimes.com

Life for German members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during World War II includes sacrament meetings interrupted by air bombers and many of their priesthood leaders being drafted into military service.

"Under the Gun: West German and Austrian Latter-day Saints in World War II" brings that experience to life in gripping detail. The book by Roger P. Minert tells hundreds of stories of people of faith who lived under Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich.

Years of faith and effort for members of new stake in Guam

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 10:31:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Mormon Life says: Read this for the incredible photo gallery. Nearly 800 local members unanimously raised their hands in approval as Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve called for a sustaining vote to create the first stake in Guam — the Barrigada Guam Stake — during a conference held on Dec. 12, 2010.

Members of the Church representing a handful of languages and cultures filled the Barrigada meetinghouse to capacity, while members on the island of Saipan, in the Mariana Islands, participated in the special occasion by teleconference. During the meeting, Elder Perry explained that the name "stake" is derived from an Old Testament verse: "Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes" (Isaiah 54:2). In Moses' time, the stakes held the curtains of the tabernacle. In the Church, a stake represents an anchor for the gospel of Jesus Christ (the tent).

Tennesse Relief Society makes 'soldier' dolls to hug

Mon, 27 Dec 2010 09:38:00 -0700

source: MormonTimes.com

To give support to the members of the military from their community, the Relief Society of the Athens Branch, of the Chattanooga Tennesee Stake, created "Soldier Dolls" for the 117th Military Police Battalion in Athens, Tenn., earlier this year. The dolls are made with pictures of the soldiers for their children to keep while their parent is away on military duty. Photos of individual soldiers were ironed onto fabric, which was then made into a doll-shaped pillow.

Elder Perry visits Guam and Saipan, remembers serving in WWII

Fri, 10 Dec 2010 08:43:00 -0700

source: guamnewswatch.com

Ambassador thankful for Church's humanitarian work

Tue, 07 Dec 2010 11:20:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Once a Kosovo refugee, Avni Spahiu is now an ambassador to the United States from that nation who on Nov. 16, expressed his gratitude to a General Authority for the humanitarian service given by the Church during the dark days of a decade ago.

The expression came on Nov. 16, while the ambassador was a guest lecturer at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.

Ross "Rusty" Butler, UVU international vice president, who hosted Mr. Spahiu's visit, related the story.

Military missionaries: Mormon soldiers spread the gospel in post-war Japan

Tue, 07 Dec 2010 10:57:00 -0700

source: deseretnews.com

Mormon Life says: A great piece for Pearl Harbor Day. They wore dog tags, not name tags, and instead of white shirts and ties, they were recognizable by Army fatigues and dusty boots. As occupation troops in Japan after World War II, soldiers were tasked with evaluating the damage, beginning the rebuilding process and organizing the transport of soldiers going back home.

Yet, for LDS Army servicemen like C. Elliott Richards and now President Boyd K. Packer, their military experience became more like LDS missions as they dedicated themselves to teaching and testifying to former enemies about the love of Jesus Christ.

"If there is true love and understanding of our Heavenly Father's plan, then it doesn't matter what color people's skin is," said Richards, who since his Army days has served as an LDS mission president of the Philippines Cebu Mission, an LDS temple president of the Jordan River Utah Temple with his wife Margaret as matron, and still meets weekly around Salt Lake City for lunch with fellow LDS soldiers who served in Tokyo. "The souls of (Japanese) people are just as rich and inviting and needing as anyone else's."

Exclusive: Escape from Rwanda: The Impossible Story of John Bizimana

Tue, 26 Oct 2010 01:02:00 -0600

by Erin Barker
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: Bizimana escaped Rwanda, joined the LDS church, and founded a charity called Voice of Africa--all before age 24. People fill the tent and stand outside its edges to watch Voice of Africa perform. The members’ bright costumes, strong dancing, and energetic personalities enthrall the crowd. A young man with a microphone engages the audience. He jokes about African men’s strength, yet he’s modestly wearing a black tee-shirt. John Bizimana is confident, charismatic, and carries himself with maturity and experience beyond his twenty-four years.

The group is at the KSL Book Festival to promote John’s memoir Escape from Rwanda: a True Story of Faith, Hope, and Survival, but you get the impression that it’s not about him.

John takes time to introduce each of the eleven members of Voice of Africa by name and nationality, and during one song he stands so far in the background while his friends perform that you can barely see him singing and clapping in rhythm. It’s not about John.

At least, not according to John: because he continually looks beyond himself.

When I spoke with John a few days before the performance, I was impressed by his positivity and humility. Throughout our conversation he alluded that life is difficult for everyone, as if his has not been any more difficult than others’. But John’s trials exceed most American’s worst imaginings.

In 1994, just months after his father was killed in a car accident, seven-year-old John and his family fled the Rwandan genocide with only the belongings they carried. They trudged past scenes of violence and death to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo), then traveled through Tanzania and Zambia before finally finding refuge in Zimbabwe. Tragedy struck John’s family again when his mother died from cancer and malnutrition. At first his mother’s friends cared for John and his younger brother and sister, but eventually the Bizimana children were left in an orphanage.

In fact, a portion of the proceeds from Escape from Rwanda will go to the Emerald Hill Children’s Home where John and his siblings lived for five years. I inquire about his decision to donate to the orphanage, and he is perplexed that I even have to ask. For him, giving back was second nature. “I grew up there,” he says. Instead of taking the opportunity to showcase his generosity, he explains that the orphanage runs on donations, largely from Europe. He speaks with admiration of the head nun, Sister Gabriel Flender, a German woman who has chosen to devote her life to this orphanage in Zimbabwe. Again, it’s not about John.

This isn’t John’s only way of giving back. For the past two years he has performed with his friends in Voice of Africa. “We’re not professionals,” he says humbly, “but...it’s a way of reconnecting with our cultures.” The group also has a charitable component: they raise scholarship money for their members who are mostly African college students. In addition, they hope to spearhead a larger-scale humanitarian project in Uganda.

John did not initially set out to tell his own story. When an older woman suggested that John write a book, he declined saying, “I’m not famous.” But John’s story so moved the woman that she offered to write the book if he would dictate his experiences to her. Her willingness to sacrifice her time impressed him.

“It never occurred to me that, you know, this was...a story that was worth telling until someone else pointed it out to me,” he says. John didn’t accept her offer. He still didn’t consider writing his story until months later while doing an internship in Switzerland.

“I just had this strong impression that I needed to be doing something else,” John says. So he began writing his memoirs.

John’s book narrates not only his childhood experiences in Africa, but his life as a teenager in Europe. John and his siblings emigrated to Belgium when his aunt and uncle legally adopted them. Though reunited with family, they still lived difficult lives as refugees. At a street basketball tournament in Brussels, John met missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He later joined the Church—a choice he says has given him “direction.”

“For me, it’s the religion that brings me closest to God...It has given me answers...that I yearned for when I was a younger teenager.” With characteristic humility, he adds, “My dream is to just one day be a good member of the Church. I’m not there yet, but one day. That’s my goal.”

John has achieved many goals despite impossible odds, including his childhood dream to come to America. At the urging of some friends in Belgium, he set his sights on Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He and his sister pooled their savings to pay for the Standard Achievement Test fee, and he scored well enough to be admitted to BYU.

John considers graduating with a bachelor’s degree in economics his greatest victory in life. He acknowledges that college and the finances involved are difficult for everyone, but John didn’t even graduate from high school. He is the first in his family to attend college, and he did so alone, with his family still halfway across the world in Belgium.

John has thrived on three continents, yet when asked what he is most proud of, it isn’t himself. You can hear the love in his voice as he talks about his siblings. “They were younger than me...and went through the same things I went through, but they remained good kids. They maintained their composure throughout the whole process.”

When you talk to John it is easy to forget that he saw the violence of the Rwandan genocide and survived so many difficult trials. He chooses to focus on the positive. He jokes and laughs and enthusiastically says that he wants to “enjoy life.” When he’s not working full-time, performing with Voice of Africa, or speaking in public, John likes to play soccer, cook, and spend time with his friends.

Indeed, his friends are the ones who told him he had a gift for raising people’s spirits and indirectly led him to motivational speaking. He hopes to spread his message of confidence and courage full-time someday. “The hardest thing you will ever have to do is not to actually find the resources...it will be to actually believe that you can do it,” he says. John particularly enjoys speaking to youth, because they still have their lives and dreams before them.

Because so many people have doubted him, even in his ability to write a book, he wants others to know that they too can succeed while they are still young. Ever humble, he also says, “I feel like I can’t really tell anything to the older people.”

But this time, John is wrong.

Everyone, young and old, can learn a lot from John Bizimana. His story is miraculous enough to inspire even the most experienced reader. Escape from Rwanda is about John, but it is also about achieving dreams in spite of terrible circumstances. It is about living with hope and moving forward with faith. The book echoes the advice John gives the audience at the conclusion of Voice of Africa’s performance, “If you have a dream, do not hesitate to pursue it.”

Hearts of Courage: Faith and Rescue in Wartime Alaska

Mon, 11 May 2009 18:00:00 -0600

by John M. Tippets
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: In January 1943, after Joseph Tippets and his fellow airplane passengers they would find the Alaska wilderness would be a place of death and survival for them - a place of despair and hope. It would be their greatest test. The Lockheed Electra was losing altitude. Clear skies over Vancouver Island had given way to threatening clouds and turbulence along the Canadian coast. The pilot, Harold Gillam, could see ice collecting along both wings and knew he had a problem.

Suddenly, the left engine sputtered and quit. Gillam picked up the microphone and called Ketchikan Airport, "One engine conked out - expect trouble!" Glimpsing towering peaks directly ahead, he dropped the mike. Moments later, the plane, with five passengers on board, crashed into the side of a snow-covered mountain in southeast Alaska.

The aircraft was part of a fleet owned by the Morrison-Knudsen (M-K) Construction Company of Boise, Idaho. M-K was a large government contractor in Alaska, building everything from roads to airfields, and Harold Gillam was the company's chief pilot. Gillam was well known for his daring exploits in the Alaska backcountry and for his uncanny ability to navigate in bad weather. Among the locals, he was known as "thrill 'em, spill 'em, but no kill 'em Gillam."

Two of the passengers that day, Robert Gebo and Percy "Sandy" Cutting, also worked for M-K, and the third passenger, Dewey Metzdorf, owned a hotel in Anchorage. Passengers four and five were Susan Batzer, a stenographer for the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), and Joseph Tippets, a radio engineer for the CAA and the first branch president of the Anchorage Branch.

For Joe and some of the other passengers, the next twenty-nine days would be a struggle to stay alive in the frozen wilderness - an adventure of faith, courage, and prayers answered.

A Futile Search

The group had departed Seattle about 1:30 P.M. on January 5, 1943. The Japanese had bombed Dutch Harbor in the Aleutians and were still occupying two small islands, Attu and Kiska, so it was necessary to take precautions when flying along the coast. Alaska airfields routinely changed their radar signals to confuse the enemy; Gillam, unfortunately, was using an outdated chart and did not have the new coordinates. In the winter darkness, he was unable to determine exactly where they were; his legendary skills were no match for outdated charts and gathering ice.

Soon after the Electra went missing, the U.S. Coast Guard and Canadian authorities organized an extensive search from Prince Rupert to Sitka, Alaska, in the north. Using the average speed of the aircraft and the time of Gillam's last message, they assumed the plane had gone down within a sixty-mile radius of Annette Island.

On the ground and in the air, freezing rain, snow, and strong winds hampered the search. Bush pilots who had volunteered to help often encountered zero visibility. It was an anxious time for all - the newspapers in Seattle and Alaska were full of the story, but hope was gradually fading. Then, on January 26, three weeks after the crash, the search was officially abandoned; all on board were believed to have gone down in the sea.

At home in Anchorage, Joe's wife, Alta, was convinced her husband was still alive. She recalled the circumstances of their separation: In late December, Joe received an urgent message. His elderly mother down in Utah was gravely ill and not expected to recover. His sisters were asking: could he come soon? Not an easy question to answer from Alaska in the middle of a war - but he would try. A few days later, he was on a flight to Seattle and then on to Ogden, where he made it in time to see his mother. A few days later, Joe was also able to visit with Church leaders in Salt Lake City, who were interested in the progress of the Church in Alaska.

Before returning, he wrote to Alta, "I miss you and love you and thank God for having you as my wife. Godspeed our quick reunion, and I hope I beat this letter to you!" He hadn't made the reunion.

Friends came to console Alta and to gently urge her to take her two-year-old son and return to her family in Utah. But Alta responded that she had been praying and had received an assurance that Joe would be found. No one could convince her otherwise. In Utah, family and friends were praying and fasting for Joe's safety.

For Joe and his companions, who were still camped out under the wing of the broken plane, it was going to take superhuman courage and determination just to try and survive.

Survival

Back on the frozen mountain, the men were saddened by the loss of Susan Batzer, the only female passenger. She had been badly injured in the crash and died on the second day. Gillam, well experienced in the Alaska outback, had decided he had the best chance of getting out to find help. On the fifth day, he gathered up a few supplies and vanished into the rugged terrain. They never saw him again.

The four remaining men - Robert Gebo, Dewey Metzdorf, Sandy Cutting, and Joe - now examined their options. Robert and Dewey were still recovering from several broken bones and could barely walk. Sandy Cutting and Joe were in the best shape, although all of them were gradually starving and suffering from exposure in the ice and snow. Joe later recalled the circumstances of their dwindling food supply:

I remember going into the plane one afternoon to search for leftovers from the lunch we had eaten just before the crash. I got down on the floor of the plane and went through it bit by bit, picking up crumbs of bread, frozen grapes, and disintegrated apples. I put them all on something and took this little tray back up under the wing where we were living. Given our circumstances, these little pieces of food were really a treat at the time. I thought for a while that frozen grapes must be the greatest thing since home cooking. We didn't have many, but they sweetened our mouths and renewed our spirits just a little.

By the third week after the crash, the group realized their only hope for survival was to somehow move their camp down to a lower elevation where the weather was less severe. With great effort and using one of the airplane doors as a sled, the men managed to make it to the valley floor. After setting up a new shelter at the edge of a forest, it was agreed that Joe and Sandy Cutting should hike out towards the bay and look for habitation. The other two men, unable to walk, would stay in camp with the remaining bouillon cubes and try to keep a fire going until Joe and Sandy returned. It was the most practical plan, but the future for all of them was uncertain.

Throughout his long ordeal, Joe never stopped praying. He later said, "One of the things I prayed for most was that my family would know that I had survived the crash and would hold on until being rescued."

The following days brought a series of challenges. When Joe and Sandy approached the shore of Boca de Quadra, they discovered an abandoned cabin and a small, leaky rowboat on a spit of land called Weasel Point. Finding a can of tar in the cabin, they were able to patch up the boat and make a perilous round trip across the bay to an old fish cannery that looked promising, but to no avail. The next morning, they decided to embark on a much more risky endeavor. After repairing the boat further, they became bold and decided to use a narrow outlet, get into open sea, and try to get to Annette Island. They sat in icy water, bailing as fast as they were paddling, but they kept trying. In Joe's words:

We should not have undertaken that trip. Before we left, I had a clear feeling that we should not go. It was more than a feeling, it was a warning. But we set out and, as a result, we were headed for disaster.
Soon, a violent storm began to develop. The sky turned black and the waves got higher and higher. Nearly full of water, the boat capsized and we were dumped into the bay. Cakes of ice were floating all around us. We lost our overcoats, cooking utensils, everything but the clothing we had on and our rifle.
Our wet clothing was dragging us down and the waves tossed us around. Just for a moment, I lost all faith and was angry with the Lord. Why, I thought, have you let me go through so much, for so long, only to drown here today? But, almost as I completed that thought, with my head barely above water, I found my feet touching the bottom. Pushing off and trying to swim, we kept together and made it the short distance to the shore. But we found only rocky cliffs. . . . It took us more than a half hour to finally grasp a ledge and pull ourselves fully out of the water.
Fortunately, in spite of everything, we had kept our matches in a bouillon cube tin sealed with adhesive tape, and they were dry. We made a small fire and tried to warm our feet. We then set out to try and return to our camp, encouraging each other as we went. After traveling some distance, we saw . . . our old boat. [In it] I found the valuable bundle containing my Bible, Book of Mormon, and documents wrapped in oil cloth. . . . Recovering these . . . seemed to be a small but special miracle.
We . . . worked our way back to our campsite. It had been twelve hours since we had left. As we drew near the shelter, we saw a Coast Guard cutter circling the bay. Wildly, we ran toward shore, yelling, stumbling, and falling in desperation to get them to see us. But the boat went up the channel and right past Weasel Point before disappearing into the fog beyond. . . . Had we listened to the promptings not to start out that day, the boat would have picked us up. If I ever had any doubts that we would be found, it was then.

Alta

It had now been almost four weeks since the Gillam plane had disappeared. The search had been abandoned. Despite Alta's strong faith, members of the branch and the mission president in Portland, Desla Bennion, sadly informed Church leaders in Salt Lake City of Joe's probable death. A letter of condolence was sent to Alta from President Heber J. Grant and his counselors, J. Rueben Clark and David O. McKay. (In a twist of fate, the letter arrived days after Joe was rescued.)

Captain Harold Johnson, Joe's counselor in the branch presidency, and J. L. McCarrey, a lawyer and close friend, came by one day to see Alta. Cora McCarrey remembered her husband returning to the car after having visited with her. He said to his wife that "Alta has either totally lost it and is living in a dream world or she really has had a revelation and knows something that none other can hardly comprehend." A young LDS soldier, Omer Smith, described how Alta kept her home as if her husband were just away on an extended trip. John Arrington also recalled, "I personally visited Sister Tippets at her humble home. Walking up a wooden walkway to the door of a small cottage . . . I expressed the sympathies of the membership of the branch. I will never forget her comments: 'Jack, don't you be too concerned because Joseph will yet be found alive.' What faith she had."

Rescued

Ultimately, amazingly, the faith and prayers of many people were answered when Joseph Tippets and Sandy Cutting were rescued from a remote beach near Boca de Quadra Inlet on February 3, 1943, twenty-nine days after the crash. Joe and Sandy's bonfire was spotted by the crew of a small Coast Guard vessel, the Tucsan, which the captain later said had no real reason to be in that area.

In Anchorage there was pandemonium as word spread through the CAA offices and corridors. "Men were weeping unashamedly; the girls were laughing, crying, and embracing one another. Needless to say, work was at a standstill. Never have I seen such a display of happy relief," said Chandler Griggs, one of Joe's colleagues.

The next morning, despite the doctors' advice, Joe and Sandy insisted on joining the Coast Guard search team and going back into the wilderness to find their two companions. They knew they had the best chance of locating them. When they were finally discovered, Bob and Dewey were barely alive, surrounded by melting snow water. Two days later, they were brought down the mountain on toboggans. Despite frostbite and broken bones, both men would recover their health.

The incredible rescue and story of survival made headlines across the nation, with wire reports and photos in the New York Times. It was welcomed as a story of heroism, courage, and endurance at a time when many were weary of news from the war.

A few weeks later, in March 1943, the Heber City Third Ward chapel was filled to overflowing when Joseph Tippets returned to express his appreciation and to share some of the details of his ordeal. "He recounted his experiences, keeping us spellbound for a long time, giving credit for his survival to the constant prayers on his behalf," said one attendee, Phil Giles.

The Aftermath

In giving all he could to God and country, Joseph rose through the ranks of the Civil Aeronautics Administration, transferring from Alaska to Washington, D.C. in 1947. He helped establish air navigation standards and was involved in the development of Dulles International Airport. The CAA became the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA), and Joseph reached the highest levels of civil service responsibilities as the FAA Western Region director.

In his Church callings, Joseph continued as the Anchorage branch president until 1947, served as a much-loved bishop of the Capitol Ward in Washington, D.C. (1949-1953), and as a counselor in the Washington, D.C. stake presidency (1957-1961).

At Joe's funeral in 1968, FAA Administrator David Thomas, his longtime friend and colleague, told this story:

I was back in the bush in Alaska and an old grizzled prospector came up to me and said, "I hear you're from Washington, D.C." I said, "I am." He said, "It's a big town, isn't it?" and I said, "Yes, it's a big town." He said, "It's probably so large you never heard of a man named Joe Tippets. He was the finest man that was ever in Alaska."

When reflecting back on his miraculous survival, Joe often expressed a hope that his story would inspire courage in others who were facing difficult circumstances, and increase faith in the power of prayer. More than sixty years later, that hope continues to be fulfilled.

Hearts of Courage, by John M. Tippets, was published with Publication Consultants of Anchorage, AK. It available at Deseret Book and amazon.com ($19.95). The author is happy to do presentations of his father's story and book signings for interested audiences. He can be contacted at 817-283-3916 or at johntippets@yahoo.com.

Something more . . .

Scouting Saves a Life

In a 1966 interview on a Salt Lake City KUED TV program, Joseph Tippets told host Neal A. Maxwell about some of the skills that kept him alive. Joe described coming back to Utah a few weeks after the accident to spend time with family and says that one of the first people he went to see in Ogden was Brother Jesse Draper, who had been his scoutmaster. He wanted to thank him for his patience and his teachings, and for his lessons on keeping dry matches! Joe attributed much of his ability to survive the treacherous month in the Alaska wilderness to the skills he learned from Brother Draper.

Joseph then commented to Brother Maxwell that youth leaders should not despair when kids do not seem to appreciate their efforts because some knowledge is getting through. In Joe's case, that knowledge saved his life.