Youth in Akron

In the summer of 1967, a small family traveled to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Parks to enjoy nature and each others company. On the way home, the mother, father and their two teenage daughters, Marivene and Martha stopped in Salt Lake City. They took a tour of the visitors center and attended the Promised Valley Pageant at the foot of the Salt Lake City Temple. Marivene describes a “feeling of conviction that swept over me as I looked down at the people on that simple stage with the temple so beautifully lit in the background.” Martha still had 50 cents to spend and so purchased a copy of the Book of Mormon. Both Martha and Marivene began to read the book on their trip back home to Stow, Ohio, just outside of Akron. Marivene remembers being “fascinated by the Joseph Smith story and the introduction to the Book of Mormon” and feeling a strong identification with Joseph Smith and his search for the true church. Very soon after arriving a home, two missionaries knocked on their door. Marivene and Martha’s mother politely told them they were not interested. Marivene, having overheard the converstation reread the Joseph Smith story that night and having been taught to pray by her parents, asked the Lord about the truthfulness of this story. Several months passed and the same scene replayed itself, the missionaries knocked on the door only to be turned away and a wondering by the young sisters how and when they would be able to learn more about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith.

Allan had just been transferred to Akron. His experiences in his last area left him just a little disheartened. But his new companion was a hard-worker and very strict in obeying the mission rules. Dad recalls the experience with this companion as a sort of “retraining.” Soon though this companion would be transferred and Allan would receive a new companion, Elder James Leavitt. Dad remembers “Then I got a companion that was from central Utah. Rather interesting guy. He had care packages that would be sent to him by his family ever so often that had beef jerky and dried fish, all kinds of strange things. And he would talk an awful lot about his pride and joy, which was his car, and about the life back in central Utah, in Delta, Utah. But he would work. We would get out and do the work. But he would sure spend a lot of time talking about his favorite things back in Utah and his life back there. In fact, it got to the point where he and I kind of got into a scrap after a while over a couple of things. The mission president was telling me that 'we've got to learn to work these things out. Our companion is the most important person that we've got to work with right now. So we've got to work out a meaningful relationship here.’ So my companion and I decided that we were in the wrong, both of us, and we needed to repent and to fast and pray and to try to get the strength to do the missionary work. So that is what we did, we fasted and was trying to do the right things, and that’s when we had the most success of all.”

At about this same time, the Youth Pilgrim Fellowships of the Community Church of Stow decided it would be beneficial to study other faiths. Two young members of this group, who also happened to be sisters suggested they invite the Mormons to come and address their youth group. It had been almost a year since the missionaries last called on the Marivene and Martha’s home but now was a chance to learn more about this peculiar church. The group agreed and gave the sisters the task of setting up the appointment. Marivene recalls, “I remember we looked up the Mormon’s in the phone book. ‘Mormons’ referred us to ‘The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ and ‘The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints – Reorganized.’ We had no idea which one we wanted, so I closed my eyes and stuck a pin in the book. I like to believe that the Lord guided that pin, and we called the number for the chapel. There was no answer, so we called the number that said ‘if no answer call…’ and spoke to a gracious women who identified herself as Arlene Walsh, the wife of the bishop. She explained that the ‘elders’ usually were sent to meetings like this and that she would be happy to have them call us.”

Allan and his companion had received phone calls like this before. They had a lot of success teaching youth groups in this area, but up to this point, only seeds were being planted, there had not yet been any serious interest. And so, after setting up an appointment with a young girl named Martha to come talk to another youth group, Allan and his companion decided to fast and to pray that this experience would be different, that the Lord would soften their hearts that they would come to know the message they would teach is true.

The appointment to meet this youth group was for a Saturday morning. Marivene recounts, “Since the deacons in the Congregational Church were old men, we naturally assumed that we would be speaking to two elderly gentlemen. Accordingly, the Saturday morning, we changed from jeans into skirts and blouses so as not to offend their antiquainted sense of propriety. Imagine the surprise when Martha announced their arrival and ushered two young men into the room! Elder Leavitt introduced his companion as Elder Allan Kjelstrom.”

“We discussed open versus closed communion, statements of faith and modes of baptism,” Marivene remembers. Allan recounts “We felt the spirit there, and it was the spirit that was answering [their questions]. We would have an answer immediately. As soon as someone raised any kind of question. Even if it was a difficult one…we would have a very good and reasonable answer.” The two elders would pass out copies of the book of mormon and invited all to learn more. Marivene describes, “There were four of us that took the first discussion. A young man named Dave, Cathy McMillan, my sister Martha and I all met at the McMillan’s with the elders. Everyone was interested throughout the discussion. Then came the challenge, ‘when you know that this is true, will you be baptized?’ Dave and Cathy flatly refused, Martha agreed, pointing out the conditional ‘when’ and I said, ‘if I know this is true, of course I’ll be baptized, but that’s a big if.’ I did not realize at that time that I already knew it was true from my prayers. Martha and I took the next two discussions in our home. I can’t remember many of the details , but I remember the feelings I had as we sat around the dining room table and listed to the gospel. I lived for those Friday evenings and the powerful spirit I felt when the elders came in the house. It was as if they brought heaven with them into our dining room.

Marivene continues, “I began to study the scripture more often in preparation for the discussions. We read the pamphlets and we prayed and as I prayed, I felt the hand of the Lord guiding me, and I was filled with peace. My peace was to be short-lived. One afternoon my father asked Martha and I to come talk with him in the family room and I knew something important was about to take place. He told us he could no longer permit us to take the discussions. He said something to the effect that it had come to a choice between his wife and his children and there could be only one choice - - his wife. I can't remember ever seeing my father cry previous to this time, and I've seldom seen tears in his eyes since. I was stunned… [but] determined to find a way around the ultimatum. Eventually, Martha and I decided the Stow Public Library would be a suitable place to continue the discussions, and we finished the discussions there.”

True to Dad’s love and reverence of books and reading, he and his companion decided to donate a copy of the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price, the Articles of Faith, Jesus the Christ and Gospel Principles to the Stow Public Library, Stow High School Library and Akron Public Library. They would also check out and “lose” some copies of anti-Mormon literature and then pay the fine to the library. In time, Allan and James were transferred, but each would arrange a meeting with Marivene and Martha to bear one last testimony of the restored gospel to them before departing. The sisters would spend the next two years studying the books Allan and his companion had donated to the high school library and finally getting baptized after turning 18.