Conference tecrus::mormonism

    I vote for leaving it open.
    
    You are use to the activity created by notes submitted by
    Alan.
    
    I check this notes conference every day.  Sometimes I look up old
    notes for a particular issue.
    
    Lee

       I'm a contractor working here at DEC. My contract is up the end of this
week. In the past I have shared things here. I have monitored this conference
for almost a year. In that time I have seen a great tool going to waste. This is
the first time I've participated in a notes conference and I love it. I just
can't get enough of it. The one thing I've seen that I don't like is the times
when conference users have dwelt on the negative. When that happened in the past
I felt like the conference was a waste of time. In stead of building, it was
tearing down. It could be used for great good. We could be sharing our
testimonies, faith promoting experiences and get help and advice to help us in
our current callings. Little of that has been seen here. What would happen if
the Ensign started publishing some of the stuff I've read here. Would we
continue to read it? And what about guest who peek in to check out the Mormons?
What would they think of the note stream about church leaders and how they don't
solicite our advice? 
       Where are the stories about how members have helped their communities in
the flood affected areas? There must be stories? Where are they? This should be
a place where we build up each other and the church. Not a whining place.
       Let all of us commit to use this notes conference for the building up of
the Kngdom of God. With that in mind I offer the following:

      I shared in another note here about how my wife and I took on
responsibility for my wifes second cousin who is 12 years old. We have 4 of our
own children and felt confortable with taking on this added responsibility. The
girls mother who had nothing to do with her for 10 years took her back. It ended
as a disaster and we got her back after 7 months. Since that time Brandi has
adjusted very well to her new, permanent home. We are still persuing legal
guardianship. She is attending young womans and enjoys it. She looks forward to
it. She has dropped the tough guy attitude and has begun to be less selfish and
more loving. Just when we were now settling down the Lord gives us something
new. 
     This Sunday(yesterday) I was approached by a Member of the Bishopric who
knew about my wife and I going through intense foster care training in order to
adopt(see other notes in this conference). He asked me a lot of questions about
foster care. The reason was that he had recently been approached by a neighbor
who has a 16 year old niece who is living with them. The neice has been living
with them since her parents died. I don't know yet how long ago it was that her
parents died, or how they died. This family is now destitute. The father had a
major heart attach recently and is home, but disabled. The wife is also unable
to work. They are currently on welfare. This family also has other children. I
don't know their ages. The wife has confided with this neighbor that they can no
longer take care of this girl. I told him to call me later and I would give him
some names of people to contact. This was just as sacrament meeting was
beginning. In the back of my mind I sensed that what this councilor was really
asking was, "Could you take this child?" I sat next to my wife and gently
wispered in her ear all that this councilor had shared with me. Her eyes lit up
as the spirit confirmed to her the same it had to me. This is what our training
has been for. This is why we were led to the classes that we were. My wife and I
could hardly hold back tears. The Lord was calling us yet again to care for one
of his special children. As soon as Sacrament meeting was over I cornered this
councilor and told him that my wife and I would like to take this young lady on.
They will be contacting the family today to discuss it with them. I don't know
why my wife and I have been given these opportunities, but I am thankful for
them.
     This I know...My redeemer lives and he is in control. He knows what's best
for me, and what will help me to grow. I'll keep you all posted as to what
happens. My last day, unless DEC can find me something else to do, is this
Friday. May you use this tool you've been given wisely, I pray in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen

      Carter...
      Elders Quorum President (almost 3 years now)

    I also vote for leaving the conference open.
    
    I haven't been participating in a while due to my heavy workload.
    However, I find this conference a very useful tool when preparing
    talks & as a general source of reference.
    
    I think however, its best use is that of a missionary tool.  
    It allows investigators to find out for themselves what "mormons"
    *really* believe & it allows them to do this without having to contact 
    the missionaries.  (They might have had a bad experience with misionaries
    of another church & don't realize that our missionaries don't hound 
    people or pester them as some other churches do).  They can be silent
    readers and learn what they want to know about our church.  Of course,
    a better method would be to contact the missionaries or to just drop
    by a local LDS ward.
    
    I, for one, welcome participation of non-members (& members) and enjoy 
    a discussion of what we & they believe - particularly in an atmosphere 
    of mutual respect of each other's beliefs.  Discussions in such an 
    atmosphere fosters understanding & tolerance - which are Christ-like 
    attributes.
    
    If you decide not to keep the conference or if keeping the conference
    on your system becomes a problem for you, please let me know.  I will 
    see if I can move it to my system.
    
    Best Regards,
    
    
    Frank

    I have noticed that many of the conferences I read have been light in
    activity.  Summer vacations?  Overload of work?  Apathy?  Probably all
    three.  I have noticed that the vociferous detractors have been absent
    from this conference for over a year now.  Ah, the blessed silence!
    
    Paul

I don't see any reason to close it, even if it has
little activity.  I contribute occasionally, and
when I have time I enjoy just looking around in it.

dan
Tucson, Arizona

    Keep it open,...PLEASE. Even if traffic is slow I still check it daily.
    
    Thanks,
    
    Frank m
    

     In note 434.2 I mentioned about this 16 year old girl that needs a home. We
met with the Aunt and Uncle last night. They filled us in concerning how this
girl came to live with them, etc. Her name is Marilee(sp?). Her mother comitted
suicide 2 years ago with an overdose of pills. The mother had some severe
difficulties and Marilee had spent a lot of time taking care of her mother. The
mother ended up in and out of mental institutions. Marilee had spent some time
in foster care before her mother died. After the mothers death Marilee wanted to
live with her Aunt and Uncle. They convinced her to stay in foster care until
the end of the school year. She then came to live with them. The uncle has
serious heart problems. He had a heart attack several months ago. Since then the
doctors have been trying to assess the hearts condiotion and the extent of the
damage from the attack.

     We will be meeting Marilee and her Aunt, Uncle and Nieces and Nephews this
Sunday. We've invited them over for dinner. Marilee has already been told that
she has to live elsewhere. She even encouraged the Aunt and Uncle to find
someone before whe got back from vacation. Marilee is going to Southern
California to visit a sister she didn't know she had, some friends and the
foster family that took care of her for awhile several years ago. She will be
back around August 21.

     In the last note I forgot to mention that this family lives next door to
the second councilor to the Bishop. The Aunt and Uncle had approached their
neighbors about any church social services available in the church. The sad
thing is that there just isn't any services for families in this kind of
situation. This Aunt and Uncle made the comment that they hoped to place her
with a good Mormon family.

     We will take Marilee on a trial basis until she feels comfortable and so do
we.
 
    If anyone is interested in the outcome of this they can contact me at DTN
542-3640. If you'd like to call me at home my number is (510) 432-0224. My last
day is still this Friday(tomorrow). If someone contact me then I can keep them
informed and they can keep the rest of you informed.

    Let me state again that you all have a great tool here to strengthen each
other. Use it wisely. God bless you and keep you. Good luck in all you do.

     Til we meet again...
         Carter...

    I would also like to add my little positive vote to keep this open...
    things have a way of changing and activity could pick up depending on
    the participants and I feel like others have expressed before, that
    non-members may be able to get some answers from some "real"
    "latter-day" Mormons in this conference.  This is an oportunity to
    open the door of understanding between us and all of our other brothers
    and sisters in the DEC world who do not know who were are without
    us "preaching" or "teaching", it is a non-threatening way to get
    information without really asking.
    
    I've found valuable advise and help in this note at different times
    even as a silent observer for the most part ...!
    
    Thanks in advance for your efforts in keeping it open !!!
    Mathilde