Donate

Many people have been asking if there is some place they can donate money. We were never expecting this response and are humbled for your thoughts. We tried to make this as easy as possible for you.

Please contribute to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Mission Fund.

• Check payable to: Matthews Ward
• Send to our Bishop: Jeffery Davis
• 8205 Glamorgan Lane 
• Matthews, North Carolina 28104

Personal checks are also welcome, make the check to Maggie Page, and send it to the same address as above.

Thank you again for all your prayers and love, we can feel it.

~Arica Page

Teenage Mormon missionary from Charlotte dies in Calif. bicycle accident

Charlotte Observer
By Lindsay Ruebens
Posted: Saturday, Oct. 12, 2013

Over the summer, a recent Independence High graduate was excited to start fulfilling his calling to serve a two-year mission for the Mormon church near Los Angeles.

But family and friends were heartbroken to learn Thursday that just two months into his mission, Elder Andrew Page, 18, was hit by a car in California while he was on his bicycle and died.

The crash was an accident and Page didn’t look for oncoming traffic when he made a turn, The Deseret News in Salt Lake City reported. Although Page was wearing a helmet, he died of his injuries, including head trauma, shortly after 10 p.m. in a hospital.

On Saturday, Page’s mother, Charlotte resident Maggie Page, described her son as a peaceful, faith-filled and humorous teen. He graduated in the top 20 of his class, she said, was a Boy Scout and loved playing the tenor saxophone.

“Every single person who knew him loved him, and he was the funniest guy ever,” said his friend, Trevor Jackson. He said he grew up with Page and they played saxophone together in the Independence marching band.

“I know it sounds corny, and a lot of people say this, but he was like a brother to me,” said Jackson, who also is 18 and attends Brigham Young University.

Page’s mother said she doesn’t want anyone to blame themselves for his death.

“I wouldn’t want anyone to feel like they have to live with that,” she said, choking up on the phone. “It was where he was supposed to be. There are sometimes things that happen in our lives, and we don’t know the answers why.”

She said her son was a source of strength for her and his three older sisters, particularly after her husband died three and a half years ago.

“He’s been such a blessing to our family, and it will be a struggle to heal the hole in my heart, but I know... this life is so temporary, and we do have eternity to look forward to,” she said.

Bryant Baker, president of the Charlotte North Carolina Central Stake in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, called Page “a fine young man.”

“He was a person that people liked to be around, and he was so excited about the opportunity to serve,” Baker said.

After committing to two years of service in California, Page had planned to attend Brigham Young University.

Baker said a funeral is planned for 11 a.m. next Saturday at the Charlotte North Carolina Central Stake on Rocky River Road.

Time Flies When You're in the Sun

Oh man! There is lots to be done!

Hey everybody! Hows it going? I have quite an email for ya so sit back and relax and pay attention all at the same time.

First off and most importantly, CONFERENCE WAS AWESOME! I wish i could express how much the talks and analogies meant to me more than "awesome" but my time is short to express the true feelings of my heart. Im glad that Pres Monson laid the smackdown on missionary work with the members. He had a lot of insights on hastening the work last year but this time the way we must hasten the work is through member missionary work. Every member a missionary. They mentioned that at least 3 or 4 times. Its worth repeating. Another talk i really enjoyed was Uchtdorfs talk on Come, Join with Us. It was so amazing. We rewatched it with some investigators on their computer and they were moved to tears. His name is S.P. Hes prolly my favorite investigator right now. The reason for that being is because he said he would be baptized on the 20th! Im super excited. His wife is a recent convert and his son D. is still taking the lessons. D. is still a little hesitant about being baptized. Pray for him please!

Anyways back to conference. Something else that I noticed was that there were a couple talks on the importance of women. Especially the talk from Christoffersen who laid out and said "I dont want the differences between men and women to be erased" and he said " I dont want strong tough women, i want women who are dignified and loyal". Those were prolly some of my favorite lines. For Hollands talk I was really impressed on how he was completely honest in describing what to do when we are depressed. He is awesome. I would have to say that my favorite talk out of all was Uchtdorfs Come Join talk. It is just so inspiring because that is what I am here to do. Some other highlights that were cool were the talks involving; Exclamation Point, The Marble Story, Uchtdorfs Life Alert (Help Ive fallen and I cant get up), and others. I really do love all of them. They are inspired men of God. I especially love Thomas S. Monson and the council that he gives throughout the whole conference; be not afreaid, neither be thou dismayed. The Lord will fill the words of your mouth if you let Him. Conference has a new meaning when you are a missionary. Let us all be missionaries.

The reason that I am sending this on Wednesday instead of Monday is because I WENT TO THE TEMPLE. I didn't know i was able to! I went to the Los Angeles Temple about 30 minutes away. It was so amazing! It was a very cool experience. They had murals on the walls. It was prolly the most beautiful Ive seen, even though I hate to admit it. It was a very special experience and I'm glad I got to go. On the mission you get to go every 6 months. Im glad that i made the cuttoff :)
I gotta get going. Im so glad and grateful to be blessed with Conference, The temple, awesome investigators and even awesomer supporters. I feel the love around me. I hope you know that I love all of you with the bottom of my heart. And thats pretty deep :)

Love you guys!

LoVE, Elder Page

Short Letter

Hey Erbody!

Not much time this week. I am always short on time but this week especially.

My companions name is Elder Ostler. He is from Washington state. He attends BYU-Idaho. He's is RiDiCuLoUsLy good at Spanish. He has been out for a year and he has a firm grasp on the language. I'm glad he is my companion. And he knows his stuff on bikes.

This week was really good so far. I got to teach a man, he was kind of vulgar but we told him as missionaries we dont do that kind of stuff. He stopped immediately when we said that. He then apologized and said that he was testing us to see if we would react differently. I don't know if that was all correct. Anyways it was just really cool to see him get his act together. I wish i could say that he came to church but he didn't. Something that was really cool during the lesson is that while we were teaching I could imagine him coming to church and coming to know that these things are true. I don't know if it was a vision but it was pretty close. Thats why im excited for this guy.

Another really awesome investigator is the dad of a 16 year old boy that I mentioned last time. He comes to church every week and absorbs the gospel like a sponge. He really is a fun one to teach but his only problem is reading. We should always read the BoM everyday no matter what happens. Even if it is just a couple verses a day. At least its something.

Thats the only investigators that are progressing for us. Its tough to come to this realization but the good thing is that we have a lot of references and contacts. We just need to work on contacting the references to see if they are interested in the Gospel of Christ.

Hears my lesson to all of you that i prolly mentioned before. I wish that I had a stronger testimony of the BoM before my mission. When I came out into the mission I had a testimony of the BoM but now it has been strengthened times a hundred. It is the most correct book of any book ever. I continue to learn from it daily and all my questions are answered daily if i continue to read. That is all i have to say about that. KEEP READING! Its manna from heaven.
Stay in school kids. Love the Gospel. Continue to be converted.

Love,
Elder Page

Last CCM Email

Good Afternoon Glorious World and All Who Inhabit It!

Well folks, its been fun. It is sad, but all good things must come to an end. I am leaving the CCM in just a few days and it will be a great yet sad experience. Great because i will actually start doing the thing that i have been preparing for yet sad to leave the great friends that i have made. I will get to make some more friends though. It will be more great than sad, in fact it will be a bitter sweet symphony. But the next time I talk to Mom will be on the phone, I do believe :) It will surely be a great experience.

Anyways this week was a blast as always. No need for details. Alright, alright ill tell ya. You just had to ask nicely haha. Anyways, I dont know if ive mentioned before district 10D in emails past but they are awesome. They were all in our branch together and we bonded for the whole time in the CCM. We did everything together like eat, play, and share spiritual insights. My district looked up to them literally and spiritually. They were all huge and they all had awesome points of view on different aspects of the gospel. Anyways they left this past monday and it was sad to see them go. They were our first friends leaving the CCM. I think this is good for us because it will be the first of many goodbyes. But before they left, we skipped the regular church videos they have on Sunday, and had a district to district testimony meeting. It was a good trade, I believe. It was probably the most spiritual experience ive had in a while. Everybody shared their testimonies and it was a brilliant experience. The Spirit filled the whole room as everybody spoke. It was cool to hear everyones background and hear how the gospel has influenced everybodys life. It was a real testimony builder.

That was prolly the highlight of my week. It has set the tone of the rest of my mission. OH! Also something that was awesome is that one of the elders from 10D is the starting quarterback from BYU come 2015! So i can say i met someone famous. Woot woot hahaah. And also it is really exciting to leave this CCM. I dont really know how to explain it. Its like leaving for my mission all over again. I cant wait but i also can, if that makes sense.

Anyways, I love this gospel. I know i should be typing in espanol but that would take entirely too long. Entonces, i love this gospel and i hope you know that by now. I wanna bear testimony of the miracle of repentance and how it can help you. If there is anything that you have done in your life that you are not proud of, you can always turn to God to forgive you of your sins. The miracle of forgiveness, in the opinion of yours truly, is that no matter how bad we can be, God will forgive us of our sins. We just need a broken heart and a contrite spirit. We also need a few other steps but just ask your Bishop for help. He is not there to judge you, but to help you take the necessary steps of repentance. He will be very understanding and help you through the whole process. I bear you this wittness and invite all to repent sincerely, en el nombre de Jesucristo, amén.

Love, Elder Pagína

One Week is One Percent

Hey Erbody!

Yep! You´ve guessed it! Today is Pday again! Isnt it cool to think that each week i write is one percent of my mission complete? Crazy huh?

Anyways this week was awesome as always. It was a pretty regular week to say the least. We heard D. Todd Christofferson in our devotional last Sunday. It was an excellent talk about 3 things that he regrets from his mission and how we can do the things that he regrets. The spirit was so strong when he spoke. It was an awesome experience. We also heard Jeffrey R. Holland a couple of weeks ago. I might of mentioned this before and if i did its worth repeating. Anyways he said that when you come home off your mission, you should never go back to what you were before. You should always be improving in the gospel. I loved that.

I didnt get to write much in my journal this week and now im starting to regret it. Sometimes if i need help to remember what happened this last week i look to my journal. The reason i didnt get to write much is because i was too busy talking to my roomies. I need to be more diligent, not just in writing, but in all aspects of the Gospel. But anyways...

Thank you all for your sweet letters and emails. I love hearing from each and everyone of you. I know you all say that its okay that i dont respond immediately but i wish i could. It seems as if someone makes time go much faster when im on the computer. Also I wanted to tell mom that i just got her dear elder sent from like 10 days ago. It was much needed on a rough day. Some days are awesome as can be but other days can be challenging with all that i must remember. Im starting to learn that the Lord doesnt expect me to be a pro at spanish by the time im outta here but i think it could help :) I know i already mentioned that last week but its still somethin im workin on. This week was a really great week because i decided to take breaks when necessary and it really has improved my methods of study. I actually understand what i learn when i do this and i also dont feel stressed. Theres a method to my madness but there is also madness to my method :)

I want all who read this that i love this Gospel. God lives. He appeared to a boy in the woods and restored his church to the earth! Isnt it wonderful that we are able to share this news with others?! Dont take my word for it, but kneel and pray and ask if the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church. I know that if you do this you will receive an answer and i know that you will feel peace unto your hearts. It is so nice to know that this is the true and everlasting gospel. I cant deny it. Ive seen heard and felt too much. One of my most favorite parts of the day is Personal Study. I get to read the Book of Mormon during this time! It really is a sacred text. It answers so many of my questions in ways that i would never think possible. Its so easy to focus on what i dont know and maybe complain a little bit but nothing will get done. Youll still be in the same spot you were before. But i know that if we put our doubts and fears against the truth of the Book of Mormon, the book of Mormon will comfort and protect us. We must seek diligently and work for our answers instead of waiting for them. Faith without works is dead. I love the gospel and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

My teachers are awesome. My district- i can describe in 3 words- hardworking, loyal, and punctual.... Seriously they are ridiculously awesome. I learn so much from them everyday and I can honestly say that i love them dearly. My life is great at the CCM. I know my mission will be great as long as i am obedient.

Love, Elder Page

P.S. sorry if this email was jumbled :) i luh yah

Woah, We're Half Way There

¡Hola Todas Personas!

This week has truly been a blur. The days run together and I love it. It makes me feel like Im working hard. Its hard to believe that im really half way there (outta the CCM). I love every second of it. Even the tough times.

This week was one of my more challenging weeks. Just so you know, in case i didnt tell you, i have two teachers. Hermana Olsen in the morning time and Hermano Whittaker in the afternoon. FYI Hermano Whittaker was the first ínvestigator we taught at the beginning of our mtc experience. Anyways it was funny to see our investigator teach us how to use the gospel and to teach us about spanish grammar rules. Entonces, long story short, my teachers are awesome. I was kinda mad at myself one day because we had to have a Spiritual Thought with some other class just to change it up a bit, companionship with companionship. Also this week ive felt like ive hit a plateau in my language learning. I didnt feel as if i was progressing in the language. Anyways It was a good experience but the elders we were talking to knew A LOT more spanish than me and my comp and theyve only been here for like a week less than us. I did have to keep in mind that they are in the intermediate class so i shouldnt compare myself to them. I shouldnt say compare but measure up to them, ya know what i mean? After the lesson we had with them i just was frustrated that my spanish is not very good. I want to be fluent right now but it doesnt work that way. I had to remember the wise words that people keep telling me in Dear Elders. The language will come little by little. I shouldnt expect so much from myself at once. The reason i was feelin a bit stressed is because I have to remember a lot of things. How to prepare a 5 min lesson, different aspects of the gospel that we delve into in devos and what not and what- oh yeah spanish. Sorry if this is overwhelming for you to read but heres the good part. My teachers are awesome. They basically said forget spanish. Its the gospel that teaches you. If you learn the language of the gospel, spanish will come to you eventually. Especially hermano whittaker. He took on some questions that the class had and answered them with the scriptures. He said lets read moroni 7 and see if we cant answer our questions. It was awesome because he didnt plan on doing that for his lesson. He just picked out a random chapter and said if you keep your question in mind, youll receive respuestas. It was awesome because we all had different questions in mind and all received answers.

I LOVE my teachers. More importantly, I LOVE the scriptures. That really strengthened my testimony of The Book of Mormon. I have been reading them everyday and recording my thoughts in my notebook. It really is a blessing to see what a significant change can occur if you simply read. In The Book of Mormon, we can learn the answers to any answer we have. REALLY. Even if it is a seemingly petty question, it can be answered. I love learning about what happened to the Nephites once they thought they had it all figured out. They get chastised. I think that our lives are like that too. We think that we have all the answers and that nothing can stop us. But then we get to prideful and maybe start doubting why its necessary to go to church or to read The Book of Mormon. Dios does this to test our faith. Not the doubting part, but this cycle of pride. What good is faith if we only rely on ourselves? We need faith in Jesucristo in order to remember that we dont know everything but through Him we can. I hope that this made sense, and if i get some things wrong, go ahead and correct me Bishop :)

I just need to remember what [the apostle] Elder Jeffrey R. holland said: dont focus on the faith we dont have, focus on the faith we do have and expand from there, the best way forward is not to look backwards.

I love you guys and to answer some questions I´ll say this. Thanks for the offers for a set of Spanish scriptures, but i already have a set. I guess i forgot to mention that I received spanish scriptures, Preach My Gospel spanish, and other stuff on the first day of being here. And just to be clear about the food, I DO like it. I just thought it was interesting that its not stereotypical spanish food. Its really good but you have to be weary of the chicken on bone. And yes its messed my digestive system up a few times hehe :) And im not sick anymore, i finally caught my nose. And today i went to the temple AGAIN. It was awesome. It always is. The Temple is a house of God and im glad i got to go.

BTW i wanted to tell you real quick that traffic here is ridiculous. Everyone goes really fast and they all run stop lights. Also the roads are not very good condition. They randomly have speedbumps so that people wont go too too fast. Its kinda funny. They call the speed bumps dead policemen. And they way you merge is by honking your horn and moving over really quickly. We almost got in several accidents today, but we didnt :) we are all safe.

I love you all! Thanks for the letters that everybody sends! I will try to respond rapidly. BTW im not going to send anything by snail mail. Sorry to disappoint. It takes a while to get to you guys and i dont feel safe doing it. ALright!?!?

Love,
Elder Pagína