“Elder Tad R. Callister,” Liahona, May 2008, 140
Elder Tad R. Callister
Of the Seventy
Resolved to go wherever the Lord sends him, Elder Tad Richards Callister testifies that serving the Lord brings many blessings.
“The Lord helps you even when you feel inadequate,” Elder Callister says. “Every calling is bigger than the person, and the Lord offers His help. Though His guidance is quiet and gentle, He does not leave you alone.”
Elder Callister was born to Reed Callister and Norinne Callister on December 17, 1945, in Glendale, California, USA. He has served as a full-time missionary in the Eastern Atlantic States Mission, bishop, stake president, regional representative, Area Seventy, and was serving as president of the Canada Toronto East Mission when he received his call to the Second Quorum of the Seventy.
Serving as a mission president has been an experience beyond description for Elder Callister, who most enjoys spending time with his family.
“You learn to love the missionaries almost as though they are your own sons and daughters,” he says. “They constantly rise to your level of expectations, and they seem to have unlimited potential.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Brigham Young University, a law degree from UCLA, and a master’s degree in tax law from New York University, Elder Callister practiced law for 34 years with a family law firm in the Los Angeles, California, area.
Applying principles learned in both professional and personal matters, Elder Callister says, “The practice of law has been a good discipline to learn to analyze the core of a problem, recognize not to jump to conclusions, and understand you need to get all the facts before making a decision. Likewise, I believe the Lord expects you to do your homework in the process of seeking personal revelation.”
Elder Callister and his wife, Kathryn Louise Saporiti, met while attending BYU and were married in the Los Angeles California Temple on December 20, 1968. They are the parents of six children.