メリディアン
日本語
帰還宣教師から
From Returned Missionaries
Dwayne N. Andersen-Excerpts from Autobiography
Mission President continued
TEMPLE PROJECT TO THE HAWAII TEMPLE
Shortly after we arrived in Japan, Elder Wade Fillmore, who was our mission secretary, brought a brother Kenji Yamanaka into the church. Brother Yamanaka was an influential man in his sixties. Twice he was a candidate for mayor of Musashino City. At one time he was a candidate for President of Waseda University. (After the temple excursion he was privileged to serve his country on the National Expo ‘70 Committee.) Because of his involvement at these high levels, he had many influential friends in Japan. He had a good command of the English language. Having a range of talents and also contacts with important people in Japan, he was the one who broke through all the many roadblocks, which opened the way for a successful Hawaii Temple excursion.
Brother Yamanaka had been a member of the church about nine months when he became the cultural director for a group of California professors who had come to Japan to visit and study. During bus travels with this group, he discovered that one of the wives was a Latter-day Saint; and so he sat by her frequently to discuss the church. On one occasion she suggested that Brother Yamanaka organize a group of Japanese members to visit Salt Lake City so they could see what the church operations were really like. He became excited about this possibility because he wanted to help the church grow in Japan. He developed a tour plan and presented it to me. During this same time my thoughts were centered on finding ways to strengthen the church leadership in Japan and Okinawa. I had concluded that the most important step for development would be to get the church leaders to the temple with their families. After hearing his plan for a Salt Lake City tour, I suggested that a tour to the Hawaii Temple would be less expensive and of more eternal value to the Japanese leaders. He volunteered to research the cost and other details for taking about fifteen couples to visit the Hawaii Temple. We found that the cost amounted to more than our members could afford, so Brother Yamanaka again volunteered his help–this time to explore some possible fund-raising ideas. This he ably did, but will be explained later.
A few weeks later A Bee-Hive tour director from Salt Lake City visited with me at the mission home. Learning of our desire for a trip to Hawaii Temple, he suggested chartering an entire plane to reduce the cost per person. For this we would need 165 to 170 persons for the trip. A letter was immediately sent out to the priesthood leaders in Japan and Okinawa to explain the proposed temple trip to Hawaii. The estimated cost was about $300 per person, air fare, plus living expenses in Hawaii. The leaders were asked to make a list of worthy members who could prepare themselves financially and spiritually over a period of 18 months for this great temple experience. The faithful members’ responses were overwhelming, for more than the required number expressed a deep interest in the trip. The enthusiasm mounted and the great preparations began in earnest. Brother Yamanaka became the prime mover in making this project a success. He tirelessly traveled from Hiratsuka to Tokyo (about 1 1/2 hours in time) many days each week during the next 18 months to assist in numerous activities involved in such a large project. He gave freely of his time, energy, and resources without receiving any financial remuneration from the church. With his many influential friends and contacts, he was able to remove all the roadblocks and challenges, which seemed insurmountable.