Childhood

Dieter F. Uchtdorf was born in Mahrisch Ostrau, Czechoslovakia, on November 6, 1940.  He was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and was called to be second counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. on February 3, 2008.

Dieter’s father, Karl Albert Uchtdorf, was drafted into the German Army during World War II and immediately taken from his wife and small children. Dieter was the youngest in the family and didn’t understand where his father was going, only that his father was taken away from him. Dieter’s mother Hildegard knew then that she would have to care for her family alone during a time when the war in Europe was endangering them at every turn.

With the Allies in the west and Stalin’s forces in the east, Hildegard wanted to get as close as possible to the western front. She took her children and left for Zwickau, Germany. Fortunately, her husband survived the war and joined his family in Zwickau; however, Karl had become a bitter opponent for both the Nazi and Communist regimes. The Nazis were now destroyed, and Stalin now controlled the lives of the Germans as a result of the postwar division of Germany. Karl’s political position put the family’s lives in danger, so for the second time in seven years, the family left everything they owned and, in spite of the danger, made their way to Frankfurt, West Germany.

Dieter remembers this period: “We were refugees with an uncertain future…I played in bombed-out houses and grew up with the ever-present consequences of a lost war and the awareness that my own country had inflicted terrible pain on many nations during the horrific World War II” (“The Global Church Blessed by the Voice of the Prophets,” Ensign, Nov 2002, p.10).

As a young teenager, Dieter would ride his bicycle to the Frankfurt Airport and gaze at the planes. As he watched the planes and was allowed by the airport staff to look into the cockpit, his love of flying grew. He dreamt of one day feeling the freedom of flying in the skies.

Conversion

Through the clouds of turmoil that engulfed their lives, still the silver lining shined through. It was while the family was in Zwickau that they found the Mormon Church. “After World War II, my grandmother was standing in line for food when an elderly single sister with no family of her own invited her to sacrament meeting. . . . My grandmother and my parents accepted the invitation. They went to church, felt the Spirit, were uplifted by the kindness of the members, and were edified by the hymns of the Restoration. . . . How grateful I am for a spiritually sensitive grandmother, teachable parents, and a wise, white-haired, elderly single sister who had the sweet boldness to reach out and follow the Savior’s example by inviting us to ‘come and see’ (“The Opportunity to Testify,” Ensign, Nov 2004, p.74).

Education

At the age of 18, Dieter was educated in engineering, followed by six years in the German Air Force. Then, because of a mutual relationship between the German and United States governments, Dieter entered fighter pilot training school in Big Spring, Texas, where he earned wings in the American and German Air Forces. The most considerable achievement at the school for Dieter was winning the coveted Commander’s Trophy, this for being the outstanding student pilot in his class.

Marriage/Family

Harriet Reich had been four years old and living in Frankfurt near the end of World War II. She remembers a handsome American serviceman who passed her on the street and kindly offered her a stick of gum. She took it tentatively and never forgot the young man’s face and his friendly gesture. Ten years later, two Mormon missionaries knocked on the Reich’s door. Harriet opened the door as her mother forbade the missionaries to enter. Seeing the same kind of look on the face of the missionaries as she did on that of the serviceman, Harriet begged her mother to please let them in.

The missionaries left a copy of the Book of Mormon ( a companion book of scripture to the Bible) with certain passages marked for importance. That night Harriet’s mother read the Book of Mormon. Harriet recalled how her mother’s countenance changed almost immediately. Since the war had ended, Harriet’s mother, newly widowed and the mother of two little girls, was depressed and unhappy. But as her mother read from the Book of Mormon, Harriet saw light return to her eyes. When the missionaries returned they asked, “Did you read the marked scriptures?” “I read it all,” Sister Reich said, “Come in. I have questions I want you to answer.” Harriet, her mother, and her sister were baptized into the Mormon Church four weeks later. “Life changed for us that day. Once again we laughed and ran and found happiness in our home. I owe it all to the gospel of Jesus Christ,” explained Harriet.

It was while attending a youth activity at thirteen years old that Dieter first met Harriet. Dieter recalls, “I always loved her. I fell for her from the very beginning. . . . She was a very beautiful girl. She still is.” It was love at first sight for Dieter, but not for Harriet. It was not until Dieter had completed his military duty and had returned to Germany that she began to appreciate Dieter. They began dating and were married December 14, 1962, in the Swiss Temple. Two children blessed this family–Guido and Antje.

Even with his busy professional schedule and with church callings, Dieter’s first priority was always his family. Antje recalls, “When [dad] was home, he was totally devoted to Mom and to us. Of course, everything is exciting to Mom, and Dad makes things exciting. He made everything an adventure–even going to the grocery store. They took us on some of the most exciting family vacations a child could imagine. So as children we were pretty much in a state of excitement one way or the other all the time!” Guido says, “I don’t remember any sermons. I just remember [dad] always being interested in me. We had visits, which were often walks in the evening and, on more special occasions, hikes in the mountains. I loved those times to talk. And in all such situations he taught by example.”

Career

In 1970, at the age of 29, Dieter was made captain with Lufthansa Airlines, a rank he was once told he could never achieve until late in his career. In 1972, he was made manager of the 737 fleet. In 1975, he became director of the pilot training school in Goodyear, Arizona—the principal and most-honored training post offered in the Lufthansa organization. Later his responsibilities would be as chief pilot and head of cockpit crews in 1980, and as senior vice president of flight operations in 1982.

In December of 1973, the president of Lufthansa German Airlines received distressing news:

Five terrorists had hijacked a Lufthansa 737 jet in Rome, Italy, and were making their way to Athens, Greece, with hostages on board. As they did so, 32 people lay dead in Rome, and one of the hostages now in flight was soon to be mortally shot and summarily dumped onto the airport runway in Athens. With guns to the heads of the pilot and copilot and with hostages trembling in terror, the unstable hijackers directed a bizarre path from Rome to Beirut to Athens to Damascus to Kuwait.

In an instant, the president of Lufthansa ordered into the air his chief pilot for the 737 fleet. Thirty-three-year-old Dieter was to take a small group of emergency personnel and follow the hijacked plane wherever the guerrillas took it. In every setting possible he was to negotiate for the release of the plane, the pilots, and the hostages. Then, when all of this had been accomplished, he was to fly the hijacked 737 back to headquarters in Frankfurt.

Fortunately, there was no more bloodshed and the mission was successfully accomplished.

Church Service

While attending fighter pilot training school in Texas, Dieter helped to build a meetinghouse for the local branch of the Mormon Church. Despite all the awards and promotions he received, he always felt that this was much more significant.

Amidst the changes and responsibilities of his career, Dieter was called to be the president of the Frankfurt Germany Stake and then president of the Mannheim Germany Stake. And then in 1994, he was called to the Second Quorum of the Seventy.

Elder Larsen was an Area President for whom Elder Uchtdorf served as a counselor. Elder Larsen says, “Our area in those days covered most of Western and Central Europe, countries that had been affected by World War II. Everyone who knew Dieter loved him instantly, but in those first months he couldn’t have helped but wonder about traveling and presiding in countries where they did not know him and where there were still painful memories about the war. . . . Elder Uchtdorf so genuinely loves people and is so engagingly personable that wherever he went he was embraced literally and figuratively. The gospel works miracles in such situations, and the members of the Church to whom he went were as magnanimous and kind as Dieter was humble, inspiring, and devoted to them” (Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf: On to New Horizons”, Ensign, 2005, p.10–15).

A particular situation occurred when the German government was cracking down on some lesser-known religions. Elder Anderson of the Seventy who served with Elder Uchtdorf recalls the situation, “An initial list of ‘sects’ included The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To oppose this serious threat to the work, Church leaders needed the most resolute and reputable German representative they could find to go to Bonn. That was Elder Uchtdorf. . . . His bold, courageous presentation there was so persuasive and articulate and his reputation with Lufthansa so widespread and admired that the German officials giving him audience were somewhat stunned at what they had inadvertently done. They said in effect: ‘If you are a Latter-day Saint, we do not need any more evidence than that. Your church will certainly not be included on any such list of religions in the future.'”

In October 2004, Elder Uchtdorf was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He is the first apostle in more than fifty years who was not born in the United States, and the first ever from Germany. He was called to serve as Second Counselor in the First Presidency on February 3, 2008.

CHILDHOOD

Boyd Kenneth Packer was born September 10, 1924, in Brigham City, Utah. His parents, Ira and Emma Jensen Packer, were the parents of eleven children, with Boyd being the fifth son and tenth child. With a legacy of Mormon pioneers who settled in Utah, he, like his ancestors, exhibited the character traits of of strength, courage, and determination to live the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout his life.

The Packer children all grew up in a home where the gospel of Jesus Christ was taught and lived. The example set by Boyd’s parents had a profound effect on his life, along with the lessons taught early in life to each of the Packer children. When teaching opportunities presented themselves, Boyd’s mother took advantage of them. One such occasion occurred when the Packer house almost burned down. She had stayed home because she had the impression not to go to town with her family. It was the perfect opportunity to teach her children how important it was to follow the promptings of the Spirit.

With the encouragement of his mother to read and study the world around him, Boyd grew to love the outdoors. Often Boyd’s mother would lay out newsprint on the floor for him to draw the scenes he would see in nature. While Boyd loved everything outside, he soon developed a particular love for birds. This fondness for birds has remained with Boyd throughout his entire life. As the years progressed, Boyd developed his talent and was able to create beautifully detailed carvings of birds. When one sees these meticulous carvings, one feels the “sensitivity to the creatures, but also the reverence for the artistry of the Creator.”

Boyd’s father was a skilled and industrious mechanic. The Packer family struggled for many years while Boyd’s father spent time building the business in his garage, and later a motor company. Boyd remembers, “Sometimes in my growing years I thought we were poor. I later learned that that was not true. We just didn’t have any money. We were always rich in the things most significant in our lives.”

As a young boy, Boyd became quite ill, and the doctors believed he had pneumonia. However, after he was well again, he discovered that he was unable to walk. It was not until he became an adult that he learned he had in fact contracted polio.

MISSION/MILITARY

Upon completion of high school, Boyd worked for a time on the construction of the army hospital in Brigham City. When he had reached the age to serve a full time mission for the Mormon Church, World War II had begun.

Instead of serving a full-time Mormon mission, Boyd enlisted in the Army Air Force in 1943. By the age of twenty, he had graduated as a pilot and then went on for training as a fighter pilot. Upon completion of training, he was ordered to the Pacific Theater. When the war ended, Boyd was stationed in Japan and remained there for almost a year.

His experiences in Japan gave him many opportunities to study the Book of Mormon (a companion book of scripture to the Bible) and to be a missionary. Opportunities to share the gospel of peace with the Japanese people became numerous. While in Japan, Boyd also had other opportunities to ponder his future. It was on one of those occasions that Boyd decided to be a teacher.

EDUCATION

Returning home from the military in 1946, Boyd enrolled at Weber State College in Ogden, Utah. He received his associate’s degree in 1948 and his bachelor’s degree from Utah State University in 1949. In 1953, Boyd received his master’s degree from Utah State and, in 1962, a doctorate of education degree from Brigham Young University.

MARRIAGE/FAMILY

It was while he was attending Weber State that he met Donna Edith Smith, also from Brigham City, Utah. Boyd was asked to give a talk in a ward that he did not usually attend. In that ward, Donna Smith was listening quite intently to Boyd speak. Donna thought, “Now, this is the type of man I would wish to marry.” On July 27, 1947, in the Logan Temple, Boyd and Donna were sealed for time and all eternity.

When asked years later how he handled a growing family and all the responsibilities that come with it, Boyd answered, in  a quite matter-of-fact way, “All of that can be explained in two words: my wife. She’s perfect!” Over the years, Donna was  a profound influence in her husband’s life. Her willingness to have everything centered on the family and her encouragement toward her husband to serve in the Church, in the community, and the education field have warranted much love and respect from Boyd and her children.

Over the years, the Packers were blessed with ten children: Allan, Kenneth, David, Laurel, Russell, Spencer, Gayle, Kathleen, Lawrence, and Eldon.

His family was his number one priority over the years. When he was home physically, he was home mentally, and nothing else took precedence. As his son Allan noted, “He is our patriarch. He’s still a father, and that’s his number one priority.”

The Packer home was filled with numerous opportunities to meet each child’s needs and to help them develop their own talents and pursue their own educational desires.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Being involved with community service was a necessary part of Boyd’s life. He served a four-year term as city councilman for Brigham City. Many lessons were learned during his experiences in local government. He cautioned many times, “experiences in local government taught [me], that many people are willing to pass judgment on the actions of those leading an organization without access to the knowledge that shaped their decisions.” Throughout his life, he often warned others against that error, whether in church, government, or the community.

CAREER /CHURCH SERVICE

During the period when Boyd was pursuing his education, starting a family, and beginning a career, there were also numerous callings to serve in the Mormon Church. Callings as a teacher, assistant stake clerk, and high councilor took an enormous amount of time. Knowing that service in the Church is vital to the eternal progression of an individual, Boyd accepted all callings that came his way with dedication and commitment to do his very best.

Trained and educated to be a teacher, Boyd Packer had numerous opportunities to use the skills he had developed. Not only did he have the education with which to teach, but he also had the ability to draw his students in through the Spirit of the Lord and to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. His service as supervisor of seminaries and institutes of religion for the Mormon Church gave him ample opportunity to personally visit and see those students and teachers in action and to help each improve as a student and as an educator.

In 1949, Boyd began teaching seminary. The old army hospital in Brigham City that he had helped build years earlier was turned into a federally run school for Indian students. From 1949 to 1955, Boyd served as the coordinator of Indian Affairs for the school with the Mormon Church Educational System.

Later in Boyd’s life, he was asked to work with the Church’s Publication Committee, which allowed him to assist in the production of numerous editions of the scriptures: The Holy Bible, Pearl of Great Price, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Book of Mormon.

In 1961, Boyd would be called to be an assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles as the youngest of all the General Authorities. In 1965, Elder Packer was given additional responsibilities as the Mission President for the New England States mission, where he served until 1968.

In 1970, Elder Packer was called to be a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and in 1995 he was called to be the acting President of the Twelve Apostles. President Faust, counselor to late President Gordon B. Hinckley, remarked: “Elder Packer is very much a teacher. While all of the Twelve are teachers, he’s a teacher in the Twelve.” Elder Packer was known for his love of the Book of Mormon and the impact it had on his life. All his teachings were centered on the scriptures. He admonishes: “Stand steady. Keep your faith. I bear witness that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true. God lives and directs His work. The [Mormon] Church is on the right course. It is on schedule. And I bear witness that it is righteously led by a prophet of God.”

Over the years, Elder Packer wrote numerous books, including Teach Ye Diligently, The Holy Temple, and Our Father’s Plan.

Anita Stansfield

Anita Stansfield began writing at the age of sixteen, and her first novel was published sixteen years later. For more than fifteen years she has been the number-one best-selling author of women’s fiction in the LDS market. Her novels range from historical to contemporary and cover a wide gamut of social and emotional issues that explore the human experience through memorable characters and unpredictable plots. She has received many awards, including a special award for pioneering new ground in LDS fiction, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Whitney Academy for LDS Literature, and also a Lifetime Achievement Award from her publisher, Covenant Communications. She has fifty-six published books. Anita is the mother of five, and has three grandchildren.