A Retired Couple Becomes Converted on the Open Road

Contributed By By William F. Love, Church News contributor

  • 10 June 2014

A retired couple becomes acquainted with the Church after taking to the open road in their RV and watching the Mormon Miracle Pageant in Manti, Utah.

Upon retirement, Henry and Carol Goodrich intended to “full-time” RV. To do this, they needed to get a campground membership; it turned out that they were assigned to a campground in Mt. Pleasant, Utah. During some of their free time, they decided to attend the Mormon Miracle Pageant in Manti, Utah.

“On our visit to the pageant ... we found no place for supper except a turkey dinner at the Mormon Church,” said Brother Goodrich. Having heard a lot of misinformation from various leaders of other churches, he had determined the Church was some kind of cult or, at best, a church that required membership to get in. Reluctantly, they accepted an invitation for dinner at the local LDS meetinghouse. At dinner, a gentleman across the table introduced himself. Brother Goodrich recalls that he wasn't very responsive to the Latter-day Saint at the dinner and was borderline rude.

Around the temple grounds, they were confronted by protestors with picket signs, warning them about the “misinformed” Mormons. Carol Goodrich went and got literature from the Church and returned with a bookmark with a picture of Jesus and some children on one side and the Articles of Faith on the other.

The Goodriches were impressed by the pageant, and they had many questions. As they walked up the dark streets of Manti to find their truck, a loud voice called out, “Henry! Carol!” It was the gentleman who introduced himself at dinner. He asked if they enjoyed the pageant and wished them well on their trip.

After leaving Mt. Pleasant they headed south to St. George. During their time there, their truck’s transmission started making a clanking noise and died. The repairs took a week, so they rented a car and began a quest to learn more about the Church. They visited the temple visitors' center, Brigham Young's winter home, and an LDS meetinghouse. Needless to say, their hunger to know more increased.

During the summer and early fall of 2012, Sister Goodrich became acquainted with a young LDS man who worked at the same grocery store where she worked. At the end of the summer, this young man, Jacob Golden, received his mission call and invited the Goodriches to a sacrament meeting before his departure. They attended the meeting.

In December 2012, they began meeting with the missionaries, and on May 11, 2013, they were baptized. They have since received their patriarchal blessings and are preparing to go to the temple.

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