1983
FYI: For Your Information
October 1983


“FYI: For Your Information,” New Era, Oct. 1983, 42

FYI:
For Your Information

“It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels he is worthy of himself and claims kindred to the great God who made him.”

—Abraham Lincoln

First Honor

Jason Richardson of the Battle Creek Michigan Second Ward, Kalamazoo Michigan Stake, is the first Scout in his ward to receive the On My Honor award. He also was presented the Sons of the American Revolution Good Citizenship Award. He is only the fifth Scout from the Michigan Southwest Council to receive this award.

Jason is the president of his teachers quorum.

High Diver

Lisa Roderick of the Santa Clara 2nd Ward, Eugene Oregon West Stake, was honored as the best diver in the girls’ division in the state of Oregon. She placed in the top ten her first two years but came out with the gold medal in this year’s competition.

Lisa is also on her school’s water polo team. She is the Laurel class president in her ward and has 100 percent attendance at seminary.

Singing in Chile

Michael Herrey of the Westwood Second Ward, Los Angeles California Stake, was chosen as one of 16 singers in the world to perform in a song festival in Viña del Mar, Chile. The festival is a musical highlight in the Spanish-speaking world. It is broadcast on television in South and Central America as well as in Spain. Michael represented his former country, Sweden, performing a song he wrote himself. For Michael, going to the festival was a little like going home. He served a mission in the Chile Concepción Mission.

Art in China

A young Samoan artist is having her work shown in a special children’s art festival traveling through mainland China. Penifea Ho Ching, 12, of the Nu’uuli Ward, Pago Pago Samoa Stake, had her wood-block print accepted to the World Children’s Art Festival in Peking, China. She also received a special merit award for her print, which is entitled “Sunrise in Samoa.”

Texas Hoopster

One of the outstanding female basketball players in Texas is Cathy Dixon of Duncanville. She is the star of the Duncanville Pantherettes and has led her team to the state championship finals. She is one of the most highly recruited high school basketball players in the nation.

Cathy is active in the Dallas Texas Stake, where her father serves as stake president. She is a counselor in her Laurel class presidency and is an officer in the local Fellowship of Christian Athletes. She often takes the opportunity to tell friends about the Church and to bear her testimony.

Young Scientist

Joi Gayle Daniels of the Charlottesville Virginia First Ward has been recognized by Johns Hopkins University as being an academically talented 12-year-old because of her scores on the National Science Research Associates examinations. She has been selected to participate in workshops sponsored in cooperation with Johns Hopkins Intellectually Gifted Child Study Group and the Maryland Academy of Sciences.

Joi attends middle school in Albemarle County, Virginia, where she lives. She is on the student council and is a cheerleader. She also serves as president of her Beehive class.

Prizewinning Talents

Four young LDS youth recently won top honors in the Idaho Farm Bureau talent competition.

Randall Shirley from Rexburg took the senior division in county, district, and state competition with his original medley of ragtime piano pieces. He also represented Idaho when he performed at the National Farm Bureau convention.

Randall is a member of the North Rexburg 18th Ward, where he serves as assistant to the president of his priests quorum. In school, he is on the cross-country team and the debate team as well as a member of the select choir.

The Benson sisters won first place in the junior division at both district and state competition. Laurie, Shannon, and Bonnie performed a variety act featuring a piano trio. Laurie plays violin and is concert mistress of her high school orchestra. She has served as Beehive and Mia Maid class president. She is also a seminary officer.

Shannon plays the flute and studies piano. She and Laurie both teach piano lessons. She is a counselor in her Mia Maid class and is an officer for her seminary class.

Bonnie enjoys singing and playing the piano and the oboe. She is a counselor in her Beehive class. All three sisters are members of the East Idaho Falls 41st Ward, where they sing in the ward choir.

Dynamic Duo

Spectators at Punahou High School football games may think they are seeing double. But the two players who make such a fine contribution to the team really do look alike. They are twins, the Harrington brothers. Alema and Tau have a good example to follow in their father, Al. Now a well-known Hawaiian entertainer, Al was an all-star football player in his youth. Although he never encouraged his sons to play football, when they made their decision, he was supportive.

Both boys attend early-morning seminary and maintain good grades. They say their parents are just as pleased by the A’s and B’s on the report cards as when they score a touchdown.

4-Year Trip

Not very many people have to travel 1,200 miles to graduate from seminary. Colleen Ryan did. Colleen is from South Hedland, Australia, and lives more than 1,200 miles or 2,000 kilometers from mission headquarters in Perth. Colleen has completed all four years of seminary with her father serving as her teacher. She attends Hedland Senior High School, where she is on the lunchtime house activities committee. Her hobby is Highland dancing.

Marching to Music

The members of the Sky View High School Band from Smithfield, Utah, march to a different drummer—their own. And they have been rewarded by earning trophies in several competitions. Perhaps their most outstanding was their showing in the Fiesta Bowl National Pageant in Tempe, Arizona, where they won the overall music award and sweepstakes trophy.

The band received accolades in another area.

They were complimented by other guests staying in the same motel on how polite and well behaved they were. Most of the band members are LDS and active in their various wards.

YW Workshop

by Louise Coupar and Nicola Henry

The Young Women of the Maidstone England Stake planned an all-day activity called “It’s Fun to Be Feminine.” When the day began, the floor of the stake house cultural hall was dotted with young women dressed in different coloured leotards doing a physical fitness routine to music. Screams and shrieks filled the hall as they performed all kinds of agonizing exercises. Despite the aches and pains, it was all good fun.

Soon it was lunchtime, and everyone helped to lay the tables as the meal was served. After lunch we all watched a film showing us the correct way to apply makeup and how to look after our skin. One of the Young Adults, who is a hairdresser, talked to us about hair care, which we all tried out on each other.

A discussion followed, and a member of the stake Young Women presidency talked to us on how to mix and match our clothes. This brought us to the final part of the day. We were all seated in the chapel to listen to a few words from the Young Women presidency. Two girls were asked to bear their testimonies, and the meeting was closed with a hymn and a prayer. The activity was enjoyable, and we all learned and benefited from it.

Special Service

Service has taken on a special meaning to the girls in the Copenhagen Denmark Stake. The Young Women were asked to help an LDS family in Poland. They gladly responded and began organizing the first parcel of hard-to-get items to send to the Polish family of four. They sent such items as soap, toothpaste, flour, razor blades, vitamins, and shoes. The parcel was received so gratefully that the girls decided to gather more badly needed items and have them personally delivered by a family in their ward who offered to spend their vacation making the trip into Poland.

The family was able to deliver the items gathered by the girls to the Polish couple and their two sons, who were grateful to have contact with Church members. They were also able to bring the news that a temple is to be built in East Germany.

The Young Women of the Copenhagen First Ward also filled sharing socks made by some California Young Women. These socks, filled by the Copenhagen girls with candy and small gifts, were given to children in Poland.

News of their successful service project has spread, and four other Copenhagen wards have also adopted Polish families. The girls hold work projects to earn money to pay for the postage on the packages they mail to Poland.

Skating Marathon

It was a long night, but the youth of the Bloemfontein Branch of the Sandton South Africa Stake kept skating. The youths sponsored the 15-hour roller skating marathon to raise money for their camp programs. Several nonmembers were participating in the marathon, giving the youth lots to talk about as they made the rounds of the basketball court.

The event drew local media attention as well as support from branch members.

The Sounds of Zion

It all started as an effort by the youth of the Grand Junction Colorado Stake to earn money to send to the Church refugee fund. Richard Lindsay, a talented singer, helped the youth organize a choir to produce and record a tape. The effort was a success, but the group didn’t stop there. The choir has continued to perform together and has increased in size to 18 performers.

The choir performs at stake functions and has expanded to include entertaining at community group gatherings. The choir is finding that its efforts are becoming an effective missionary tool.

Randall Shirley

Left to right: Shannon, Laurie, and Bonnie Benson

Illustrated by Brent Christison