Of One Heart: Recent Episodes
Bryan H Murray
Members of the Anacortes Ward share their life stories.
Music courtesy of Addison Kirk https://addisonkirk.com/
Listen in as Gordon recalls the difficult times he experienced serving in the Vietnam War and how that experience helped him connect with God. Listen as Gordon tells us of growing up in the back country of Canada where he learned to fish and hunt at a young age.
Listen as Pat tells us of growing up in an idyllic community near Juneau Alaska, enjoying the out doors and the ocean. Learn about his military service in Vietnam during the latter stages of the war and how his testimony of the restored gospel was reawakened after his military service while he was attending college. He tells us how he has felt the protecting influence of God throughout his life.
Having been born and raised in Anacortes, Wendy tells of some fascinating history of the area. Listen in as she tells of growing up on Fidalgo Island and swimming to the island on Campbell Lake to camp. Learn why she got the nickname of "Mountain Woman". Learn why she would sit with Elder Bednar and his wife during high school football games in Arkansas.
Listen in as Jill delightfully tells us of her growing up years in Ogden UT. She tells of her love of music, playing piano and percussion throughout her life. Jill studied nursing after high school and used that skill to support her family for many years. Jill has recognized the hand of God in her life many times. She is a talented musician and poet and she during this podcast she shares a beautiful poem she wrote about her life.
Listen in as Steve tells us of growing up in upstate New York along the Erie Canal. Despite sleeping his way through high school in a classroom cupboard, he went on to graduate college and become an accountant. He tells us how his life changed after joining the church after 17 years of marriage to his wife Chris who had been a life long member.
Listen in as Karen tells of growing up in coastal Oregon in a rural setting where she honed her skills as a deer hunter! She tells us how she always has felt God's presence in her life and eventually joined the church in California after she met and married Norm Buker. Karen has lived all around the world and eventually chose to make Anacortes her home.
Listen in as Sharon tells us about growing up in Wisconsin in a loving family, loving the cold weather, the Green Bay Packers and playing pickup hockey games with the neighborhood kids. Sharon recounts how a serious car accident when she was a college student transformed her life and fortified her faith.
Join us as Nancy tells us of her life as a ski bum in Montana for three years as a young adult! We learn about how she met the love of her life, her husband Ed, and how he has been a great influence on her growth and development over the years. She tells of meeting the missionaries and how joining the church has changed the trajectory of her life.
Listen to Melanie tell of her growing up in Tacoma and sneaking into art classes with the college students and being scared of the mummies on campus at UPS. She tells of being so terrified of leaving on her mission that she hoped an angel would meet her at the entrance of the MTC and tell her that her sacrifice had been accepted and she did not need to enter the MTC but could go home!! The angel never appeared so she completed her successful mission to Ecuador. She also gives us the inside artist's meaning of her recent drawing that was accepted into the church's worldwide art competition.
Listen in as Brian recalls growing up in Idaho and the many times he felt the hand of the Lord in his life. He tells us of the transformative effect of serving a mission to Switzerland. He tells us how he met Cynthia in a Humanities class at BYU soon after his mission and then finally decided on a course of study in marine biology and pursued an advanced degree.
Listen to Bill Weaver recall his upbringing on the Jersey Shores of Atlantic City, and his early love of the beach and surfing. He tells of the life changing impact of his service in the Vietnam War and how he was then prompted to search for truth which led him to gain a testimony of Jesus Christ.
Listen in as Marie Painter tells of growing up in Idaho near Rexburg, working the potato fields and helping on the family farm. Marie tells of moving to Anacortes and finding a home in the small Anacortes Branch that has grown since, but the feeling of family in the ward has been consistently present.
Bryan tells of growing up in Southern California playing sports and going to the beach. He tells how his life was influenced by a good group of church friends and goodly parents. He also tells us how he and Kristine met and married and started a family that continues to grow.
Listen in as Kristine tells us of her experience of growing up with 10 siblings in a close knit family in Connecticut. She recalls how she spent her childhood reading all the time and how family tragedy shaped her faith.
Marrianne describes growing up in idyllic Elk Ridge, UT in a busy family of 9 children. She tells of her experiences living in London in her teen years for 2 years and how she loved going to college but after 6 years decided it was time to move on. She enjoyed pursuing a master's degree, but realized her greatest fulfillment has come with raising a family with her sweetheart Kevin.
Morgan describes growing up in idyllic Swan Valley Idaho at the foot of the Teton Mountains as one of five children. He tells about being a nervous nellie as he asked his future spouse for a first date...which she declined (gracefully). He tells how becoming a father has changed him, for the better.
Todd tells us about growing up on a busy dairy farm in Idaho and how that absolutely shaped his early life. Early is key here as his day routinely started at 3:30am to milk the cows as a boy growing up on the farm. He describes how a mission call to Japan changed his life and opened up his palate.
Michael tells of spending summers in his youth on Orcas Island with his mother. He tells how he got to know the sister missionaries and was receptive to their gift bag of chocolate and a Book of Mormon. He ate the chocolate and read the book and gained a testimony. His advice to his posterity is to not to spend too much time looking in the rearview mirror or you won't know where you are going.
Don tells us about growing up in Downey, CA and how a good group of mormon friends influenced him to serve a mission in Rye Colorado where he experienced rural life for the first time. He tells of meeting and dating Deni his future spouse and how he proposed through a glovebox in the car!
Listen in as Heidi describes growing up swimming all the time, completing high school on her own early, and then how her faith developed as a young student at Ricks College. She tells of love at first site when she met her spouse and the many things she has learned in her life raising a family.
Listen to Patti talk about reading War and Peace along with The Diary of Anne Frank when she was just 9 years old! She talks about how she hears the whisperings of the Spirit in her life and how that led to joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Listen in as Ramona describes growing up in Rural Idaho, with one year during high school living in Louisiana and the cultural adjustments there. She tells of meeting her future husband while a freshman at Ricks College and how they struggled as starving students for years and how those years of struggle have yielded a beautiful family with 25 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren and counting. She also explains how she is learning the rules of being a great grandparent.
Listen in as Norm talks about driving a farm tractor at age 5 and learning to sail on his bicycle at age 10!! He describes his life long quest to find out who he really is.
Join us as we listen to Heather Kargbo tell us about her adventures around the world, and learning to be patient and trust in the Lord.
Listen to John talk about his growing up years in central Utah, marrying his childhood sweetheart, and the early years of the Anacortes Ward when he served as bishop.
Listen in as Carol Scott tells us about growing up in the "colony" in remote British Columbia, and how she developed her love of music and found herself working as a border agent for the Canadian government.
Listen in as Avi recounts growing up in the paradise of Fiji and how he "took care" of the goats on his farm growing up. Avi tells us about pursuing his dream of obtaining an education finding his true love (Marci) along the way.
Listen in as Kathy Webster tells us stories of growing up on a farm in Bellingham and attending high school in Minnesota. She tells us of joining the church and meeting her husband Willie here in Anacortes when it was just a branch.
Kaylene tells us about her growing up years in Texas and Washington. She tells stories from her missionary days in the Czech republic, and how she loved the single scene in Seattle post graduation. She explains how after deciding to settle down, she met her husband and how they have created a great partnership to raise their children in the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ.