My Amazing Leaders... I Love and Will Miss Them So Much

"When you save a young woman, you save generations."
-President Gordon B. Hinckley

So many things have been happening lately that have caused me to stop and ponder about the last 4 years. I have had a lot of personal challenges throughout high school, and my leaders in young womens have been there every step of the way. On Sunday in our ward, Ashley, Tori, and I were "welcomed" into Relief Society. What was even more depressing was that they were telling us that unlike how in young womens you are there for 6 years and then you move on, there is no moving on once you are in Relief Society. You are there UNTIL YOU DIE! Well, I have had some amazing leaders in the past and I have just been thinking about all of the stuff they have done for me and the sacrifices they have made for all of the girls in our ward.

Sister McArthur is first up on the list of amazing leaders. Affectionately known as "squirrel" and "Big Mac", this lady has taught the lessons in Laurels. They are amazing and almost every week she had me crying (which is hard to do!) She is so inspirational and I love her to death. And now she is pregnant again! So exciting. The genuine love she has for all the girls she teaches is just extraordinary. She even loves you if you eat her apples. She has helped me to be more proactive and to love myself. She sees such a light in every girl she teaches and it comes across every time you talk to her.

Sister Davis is so amazing too! She is such a great person. Despite her fantastic hair skills, she is not afraid to get down and have fun with all the girls! She was always in young women but she was never actually my leader. She is so hilarious and a kick to be around. She has also taught me a lesson in learning. She is so talented in hair and she recently had the opportunity to go back to hair school. She is doing amazing in her studies while balancing her church responsibilities and her responsibilities as a wife and mother.

(Sister Payne, Sister Clayton, Sister Simpson) This is an amazing pic... I have used it before because these women have such a light about them that just radiates onto everyone around them. I think that this picture just captures that perfectly.


Sister Payne has to be my absolute favorite. We are definitely "Sisters from different Mistas". She is just outstanding. I hope that someday I can have the scrapbooking skills that this woman has. Along with those stellar skills, she has amazing patience- something that I am so weak at. Also, I have gotten to know her husband better too. Just seeing them together, and the love he has for her is just astounding. He will drive round trip like 10 miles just to go buy her a diet coke with lime from Sonic. He is always thinking of her and what will make her happy. I am so using him and my dad as guidelines for my husband someday. But not only that, Sister Payne is so freaking hilarious. She has never actually been my leader either, but she loves all the girls, so I guess I was included in that. She is so creative and organized and I hope someday I can be like her.


Sister Clayton is such an inspiration as well. Despite all that she has gone through, she still is the YW President and is an excellent one at that. What she has gone through has only strengthened her. Like Eleanor Roosevelt said, "A woman is like a tea bag- you never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water." This quote first reminds me of my mother and then second, reminds me of Sister Clayton. I have a great love for this woman- when I served as Laurel President, she only taught me how to serve with love. She is so amazing. When I first found out they were releasing Sister Simpson as Young Women President, I didn't know what I was going to do. My heart sunk. No joke. But when they announced Sister Clayton was called as Young Women President, I was relieved. I remember her amazing lessons as a Mia Maid and I was just so overjoyed to have her in Young Womens again.

Sister Simpson is a great woman too. She and Sister Clayton are sisters. I remember when she was called as Young Womens President a bunch of us went to go heart attack her house. We indeed got caught however, by her husband who is a cop. Dang, it was all Colby's fault. Here's a picture of it because I remember we got all dressed up and were so stoked about the night... we just had to take pictures. Haha... the only picture I could find was of myself, but Tori and Ashley looked great too...

This woman is so funny and I love how she always thinks I am hilarious, because I totally am not! lol But I absolutely love her to death!

Last but most certainly not least... Sister Nish. She is such an amazing woman. I have been able to get closer to her especially over the past year and a half. At girls camp last year I really got to know her and Casey better. I loved Casey so much and it was so sad to see him go- but he is so in a better place now. Her children are so strong too. I have had the opportunity to babysit them for the past few years and Lani asked me to help them after Casey passed away. I felt that it was only a small thing I could do to be there for them after everything Lani and Casey had done for me. She is so strong and takes everything that comes her way. She is incredible and I absolutely love her to death!

So these amazing women have impacted me so much in my life and I definitely would not be the same without them in it. I will be so indebted to them and the service they have provided me. I am so grateful for the lessons and everything these women have done for me. They have taught me how to live my life and how to be more Christlike. They have changed my life and I will miss them all so much when I leave for school. I will miss hanging out with them, texting them, and seeing them every week! I love you guys!