Articles

Big Questions Come, Follow Me Insights Volunteer Spotlights

Jun 7, 2022

Decoding a Prophet

by Connor Olvera

“We’re working on something that, to my knowledge, hasn’t been done before,” BYU student Bryce Lunceford revealed. Bryce is part of a four student team at Brigham Young University working with the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation. The team members, Bryce Lunceford, Amber Oldroyd, Paul Smith, and Nathan Christiansen, are all part of the Applied and Computational Math (ACME) program at BYU. The Foundation began the Wilford Woodruff Papers Project in 2020 and its missi ...

Jun 6, 2022

Insights in the Papers: Ashlyn Pells

by Ashlyn Pells

Have you ever been stuck at the crossroads between two choices? In 1 Kings 18:21 we find the account of the prophet Elijah confronting the Israelites about their inability to decide if they were going to follow the true and living God or serve a false god. He asked them, “How long halt ye between two opinions? If the Lord be God, follow him.” We aren’t alone in facing difficult choices. Wilford Woodruff was often given challenging paths to follow, but despite that, he l ...

Jun 2, 2022

Taste the Blessings of Missionary Work

by Mele Fangu

“No, thank you. I am not interested.” The woman yelled in Italian from her doorstep and slammed the door shut. With a sigh, my companion crossed off another neighborhood from our list. It was a hot day in July and my mission companion and I were street contacting in a tiny rural town in southeast Italy. Sulking over the disappointment, we slowly walked back to our bus stop. The heat of the Italian summer scorched our faces and necks. Sweat drenched our clothes and hair. Our soles we ...

May 25, 2022

Phebe Woodruff and Ruth: Dedication to Family and Faith

by Kristy Wheelwright Taylor

Covenants have everything to do with family, both creating our families here on earth and receiving assurance of their continuity in eternity. But the process of making and keeping those covenants can be accompanied with loneliness and loss, as both Phebe Woodruff and Ruth can attest.

Read more on Meridian Magazine >

May 9, 2022

Insights in the Papers: Amy Hepworth

by Connor Olvera

“The doctors said I could not live,” Wilford Woodruff recorded. Just after the completion of the Salt Lake Temple, President Woodruff stood at death’s doorstep. Medical professionals gave a bleak diagnosis. However, he was preserved by the hand of God. In his June 24, 1894 discourse, he testified, “My life was spared because this people were putting up petitions in my behalf continually before God. I feel to bless you my brethren and sisters. May He help us ...

May 9, 2022

Volunteers Making a Difference

by Jennifer Ann Mackley

The success of the Wilford Woodruff Papers Project is due in large part to our dedicated volunteers who have shared their precious time and incredible skills. This month we would like to recognize four in particular: Matt Kotter, Jane Johnson, Howard Collett, and Gary Crittenden. Mandy and Matt Kotter In January 2020, when Matt Kotter was introduced to the vision of the yet-to-be-organized Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation, his first question was, "How can I help?" He continued to step up a ...

Apr 24, 2022

Wilford Woodruff’s Vital Question: How Does Eternity Feel Today?

by Jennifer Ann Mackley

Wilford Woodruff once asked, “What is there that can tempt any man to depart from the Gospel of Christ?” This question followed his stated belief in the resurrection, the promise of life with our loved ones, our Savior, and our Heavenly Parents. He said, “We have everything to encourage us. When you think of eternal life; when you think of the heavenly hosts; when you think of those that have gone before us, awaiting the final resurrection . . . [to] enter into His glory, what is there than can tempt any man to depart from the Gospel of Christ?”

Read more on Meridian Magazine >

Apr 11, 2022

Insights from a Stellar Volunteer: Sarah Paul

by Connor Olvera

The words of prophets, modern and ancient, bring us closer to Jesus Christ. Studying their accounts gives us a front row seat to the challenges they faced and how their faith in Jesus Christ aided them. Sarah Paul, a volunteer at the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation, studies the powerful experiences and words of the prophet Wilford Woodruff every day as she researches members of Wilford Woodruff’s extended family. Sarah Paul Sarah graduated from BYU with a degree in history. She con ...

Mar 21, 2022

The Lord was with Wilford and Joseph

by Richard Woodruff Lambert

Children love stories, and as a child my mother Ruth would read to me from a children’s book of Bible stories. One of my favorites was the story of Joseph with his coat of many colors. As I learned about his life it was clear, as the scriptures recorded, that “the Lord was with Joseph“ always.

Read more on Meridian Magazine >

Mar 2, 2022

“O Warren”: When Wilford Woodruff Lost His Best Friend to Apostasy

by Jordan Woodruff Clements

Wilford Woodruff’s experiences, when contrasted with the experiences of his older brother Azmon, and his missionary companion Warren Parrish, provide an interesting case study for those seeking to understand what actions and attitudes will sustain the faith of a young adult or any new convert.

Read more on Meridian Magazine >