Wit and Witness

“How do I get into this church?” That’s what Goro Yamada asked after investigating the Church in Japan following World War II.

“After two years, no one had asked me about baptism, so I finally asked them,” recalls Brother Yamada, who had learned of the Church through his contact with servicemen. “I had attended church and studied with lots of different members, but no one ever brought up the idea of getting me baptized.”

Goro and his wife, Eiko, moved from Tokyo to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, twenty-four years ago. They returned to their homeland for three years late in the 1970s when they were called to preside over the Japan Fukuoka Mission. The Yamadas have four sons, all of whom have also completed missions to Japan.

Brother Yamada has most recently served as deacons quorum adviser in the Midnapore Ward of the Calgary Alberta South Stake. “It’s an important and enjoyable calling,” he remarks. “But the winter camp … well, the temperature went to twenty below zero!”

As Brother Yamada has served as a leader in the Young Men organization, his warm wit and genuine concern for people have won their love and respect, just as they did with the missionaries he presided over, and with all who know him.

“Eiko and I have always loved the outdoors,” he adds. “We love spending time in the beautiful Canadian Rockies, hiking in summers and cross-country skiing in winters.

“We are grateful that the gospel enhances our appreciation of the wonders of nature, and we witness the hand of God in it all.”—Lane Johnson, Salt Lake City, Utah