Our Setting Apart

On Tuesday, June 23 at 1pm, we were set apart by Elder Todd Christofferson, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, at his office in Salt Lake City.  Elder Carl Cook, a member of the Presidency of the Seventy, also joined us.

Being set apart means to be officially authorized for an assignment.  In this instance, Elder Christofferson, Elder Cook and Steve put their hands on my head as Elder Christofferson authorized me to be a missionary and a mission leader in the Philippines Olongapo mission.  Once we arrive in the mission, I will be authorized to carry out the duties and responsibilities of this assignment and receive the inspiration and guidance needed to carry out my responsibilities.

Family members traditionally can attend the setting apart of their parents as mission leaders but in the age of Covid, we were told ahead of time that our children would not be able to participate.  With the exception of our son Brandon, all of our children were in Utah at the time, and the day before our setting apart, we emailed Elder Christofferson's assistant confirming that our children could not attend and asking if we had any options for them to hear the setting apart.  Early Tuesday morning we received a call from Elder Christofferson letting us know that he was happy to have our children participate.  Our kids scrambled to find babysitters for our three grandsons and we were thrilled to have our children participate in our setting apart.