Akron Ohio Stake News

submitted by Sister Rachel Tefteller

Greetings from the Wadsworth Ward!

We hope that you all will enjoy reading about these amazing individuals in our ward and the wonderful things that they are doing. We are so blessed to have them not only represent our ward, but also our church, and more importantly, the Savior, and we are truly grateful for their example!

Hannah Saylor (recent convert)

Hello! My name is Hannah Saylor, and I am a member of the Wadsworth Ward. I am so privileged and excited to have this incredible opportunity to share my conversion story within this newsletter. I pray that my story can touch hearts, and bring others closer to our Heavenly Father and Savior.  

I grew up with the knowledge that God is real, that He is alive and constantly in our hearts. Although, I did not consider myself to really know God personally. As a young girl, I would attend church every Sunday and a fair amount of Bible studies. (My dad is a pastor, which makes my life just a bit spicy!) I questioned many beliefs that I had been taught growing up, and when I was a sophomore in high school (which was four years ago!!) I made it clear that I needed to find what I believed for myself. It was not until a few years later that I discovered a piece of truth that would spark the flame inside of me to learn more about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I learned that families can be together forever. This doctrine blew my mind, as I grew up learning that my parents would not be married in Heaven, and I would be living in a nice little cottage all by myself there. Those thoughts terrified me! I did not want to be alone; I wanted to be with my family! Heaven was a big fear of mine! Obtaining the sweet knowledge that I could live forever with my family urged me on to learn all that I could about this gospel. I was given my very first Book of Mormon in June 2019 from someone very special. Before I began reading, I prayed to Heavenly Father that I would in some way know that what I was about to read was true. I am thankful that He has answered that prayer every single day since. Some would say I was a bit obsessed with that wonderful book because I could not put it down. I spent every spare moment of my day reading and absorbing the information that I had longed for my whole life. (Considering my circumstances, I have to agree about the obsession!) In two months, I had read the entirety of the Book of Mormon for the first time, and my life was completely changed. My relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ had grown immensely. I remember as soon as I finished, I thought to myself, “I cannot just sit around and do nothing about this.”

While my newly found love for the restored gospel was continuing to grow, I had to pray for a while about getting baptized because my family was very unsupportive of my decision. I knew in my heart that it was the right thing to do, and I asked Heavenly Father a million times throughout my year and a half of investigating, “why is it so hard to do the right thing?” I believe my question was answered in so many ways, but mainly by the peace that would wash over me as I would study scripture and pray. Keeping the Spirit with me as I went through hard days kept me going and continues to help me along my journey. It is a reminder that Jesus is with us at all times, with one of His arms lovingly wrapped around our shoulders. 

I am still ecstatic that on September 5th, 2020, I was baptized! It was a wonderfully bright day that I will never forget. Unfortunately, the trials regarding my family did not end there. I faced pretty harsh words from them about my decision. Some even told me, “this was the worst decision of your life!” Oh, how I disagree! Becoming a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is, in stark contrast, the very best decision of my life. While some burdens seem so heavy, I would face anything to be able to believe in and live like Jesus. I know that through any trial, I have the Savior of the world right next to me, guarding my heart. 

I have an infinite gratitude list, but I would be remiss if I did not share just a few of my favorite blessings. I am so incredibly grateful for my firm and solid testimony of the restored gospel, of our gracious Savior, and of our loving and almighty Heavenly Father. I am thankful for the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost; it is an amazing gift. I am filled with gratitude for a Savior who bore all burdens and pains to save me. What I am most thankful for is my continually growing knowledge of the restored gospel, that I can continue to grow my amazing and huge relationships with Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. I am grateful that I can live my life here for the exact reason I came; Him.

President and Sister Talley (California Roseville Mission)

Greetings from Roseville, California! We are one year into our mission, and the work continues to roll on despite us. We have a great group of young missionaries – around 170 in number. They teach in three official languages: English, Spanish and Hmong. But one day, a set of sister missionaries came upon some East Indians who wanted to hear more about the restored gospel. The problem was, they spoke little English. Their native language was Punjabi. So we now have a companionship devoted to that language as well. We also located a population of Mien people in our mission and have some of our Hmong missionaries learning that language, too. It’s amazing to see how the Lord brings people into our path so that they may hear the gospel message as well. We also have a terrific social media district. They continue to create content for members to share. If you’d like to see some of their work (they have a terrific series of videos entitled Learning God’s Plan), just check out their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/FollowChrist.NorCal. We continue to encourage members to Love, Share, and Invite their friends and families with opportunities to feel our Savior’s love and to remember that anything we do to help others come closer to Christ is missionary work. We’ve also learned that almost any occasion can be an opportunity to invite someone to learn about the restored gospel. Several months ago, on our way home from a zone conference, we were rear-ended by a young man named Jose. There was little damage to either car, but we traded contact information. Later that day, the young man called to make sure we were okay. President Talley chatted with him for a few moments, then told Jose that maybe this accident was no accident and invited Jose to meet with the missionaries. And let’s just say, he is progressing nicely. We love and miss the Akron Stake and appreciate all your prayers and well wishes…especially from the youth! We received some wonderfully delightful notes from them, along with a box of candy. It was great! Stay faithful and share the gospel at every opportunity! The Talleys. 

Sister Ella Foutz (Washington DC Mission)

Sister Ella Foutz is serving in the heart of Washington DC, where she can walk to the monuments on her p-day. She loves teaching people from all over the world and learning about different cultures. Sister Foutz also loves to see how the Book of Mormon gives hope to all who will read it. She is still hoping to share the gospel with a congressman or ambassador! 

Elder Matthew Herron (Mexico Torreón Mission)

After spending about ten months serving in the Texas Dallas East Mission, Elder Herron traveled to the Mexico Torreon Mission at the end of June.  He is busy adjusting to a new country and language.  A highlight of his first few weeks  in Mexico was helping with the local FSY conference.  He is now in San Pedro, Mexico, and is looking forward to serving the people there.

Elder Nathan Webb (California Anaheim Mission)

Elder Nathan Webb has been serving in the California Anaheim since April, after spending six weeks in the home MTC. He was happily surprised to be serving in Elder Richard’s (from the Wooster ward) district upon arriving in Anaheim. He is quickly learning Spanish and has recently taught and baptized a young woman from Columbia. He lives right next to Knotts Berry Farm and can hear the screams from people on the roller coasters from his apartment. Elder Webb has especially enjoyed the many service opportunities he’s had as well as the local food.

Elder Stanley Bingham (Panama Panama City Mission)

Elder Stanley Bingham has been called to serve in the Panama Panama City Mission. He started his mission on July 7th and is currently learning Spanish and preparing to teach the gospel via Zoom at home MTC. He is scheduled to leave in mid-August and has been temporarily reassigned to the Boise Idaho Mission due to COVID issues in Panama.