A LITTLE TENDER MERCY . . .

We are in the middle of welcoming our new summer missionaries here at Mormon Handcart Historic Sites.  We have 20 senior couples who will be serving at Sixth Crossing and 37 senior couples at Martin's Cove.   (These two parts of our site are 60 miles apart and each has its own Visitors' Center, trekking operation, and Missionary Village, etc.)

Today we welcomed Elder and Sister Paulsen to Martin's Cove.  They are from Sandy, Utah, and as they were preparing for this mission, Sister Paulsen knew she had to find just the right kind of shoes to take with her so her feet would not hurt as she trekked along with the stake, ward, and family groups who come here.

She has always liked the NIKE outlet in Park City, so she headed up there with a couple of her grandchildren to see what she could find.  As she entered the store she was drawn to a young man in a wheelchair who greeted her and asked what he could do to help her.  She told him she needed some shoes to trek in (not a very common request.)  He asked where she was trekking and she told him she was going to be trekking in Wyoming for the summer.  He asked, "At Martin's Cove?" and she told him yes, that she and her husband were going there on a mission.  He responded, "My dad is going to be your boss!"  [Not exactly accurate - he is the Director of Mormon Handcart Historic Sites  and the Visitors' Center.]  Then he proceeded to help her pick out several pairs of NIKE shoes that fit well and would hold up throughout a summer of trekking.


Our youngest son Bryan has been working at NIKE for 15 years, and that day he helped one of our missionaries find just the right shoes to bring on her mission.  Today when Elder and Sister Paulsen arrived here, she was full of emotion and tears as she told us how worried she had been about finding shoes that were comfortable, and how relieved she was to have met Bryan, who could tell her exactly what she needed here at Martin's Cove. 

 She has been wearing those shoes ever since she bought them so they would be well broken in before trekking season begins at the first of June.  She says they are wonderful and comfortable.  We can tell that Elder and Sister Paulsen will be absolutely terrific missionaries, and we SO appreciate Bryan for helping Sister Paulsen find some great shoes!

Thank You, Bry!!