Senior Couples Respond to Needs of Those They Serve

Meet Elder and Sister Parke.  They were arrived in Ghana almost 18 months ago to serve in the Ghana Accra Temple.  Every two weeks they spend hours preparing for the arrival of the Ghana MTC missionaries so that their clothing is the right size and is waiting for them.  Once in the temple, they are the people responsible for the organization the experience the missionaries will have within the temple.

Elder Parke served in the same mission as I did 45 years ago.  I taught Sister Parke in the MTC prior to her serving in that same mission, the France Mission.  With this French background they are able to ably assist the Ghana MTC missionaries.

On Sundays, when the temple is closed this good couple is assigned to help in a local branch.  While serving in one of the units, they recognized a need and prayerfully determined how they could meet that need.  That is what Senior Couples do.  In this case, the Parkes noticed that a newly called branch president who was paralyzed from the waist down, could not reach the podium.  Using his contractor's experience and years of handyman work, Elder Parke arranged for the construction of a platform upon which the branch president could rest so that he could address the ward.

President Azumah uses his new platform to address his branch

The details of this story are quite remarkable and you can read the full story in the Deseret News at http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865630778/LDS-senior-missionary-serving-in-Ghana-builds-pulpit-for-paralyzed-branch-president.html?pg=1.  The title of the article is:    LDS senior missionary serving in Ghana builds pulpit for paralyzed branch president.

Elder Parke, who will return to Utah with his wife in the fall, said that being in the right place at the right time so he could help President Azumah will be a highlight of his mission.

"I found myself with tears in my eyes and a feeling of deep gratitude in my heart to realize that I was a small instrument in the Lord's hands in helping this young branch president in accomplishing this great work he was called to do," Elder Parke said.