The Great Kentucky Louisville Mission

The Fireside Chats were a series of thirty evening radio addresses given by Franklin Delano Roosevelt between 1933 and 1944. Sometimes beginning his talks with "Good evening, friends," Roosevelt urged listeners to have faith in the banks and to support his New Deal. Roosevelt continued his broadcasts into the 1940s, as Americans turned their attention to World War II. FDR’s first fireside chat was March 12, 1933, which marked the beginning of a series of 30 radio broadcasts to the American people reassuring them the nation was going to recover and shared his hopes and plans for the country.

A Fireside is a supplementary, evening meeting in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They are usually held for a subset of members (youth, YSA, SIngle Adults, etc.) of a congregation or congregations in an area, has a single speaker on a religious topic and lasts from one to two hours. . A fireside is most commonly held on Sunday evenings, but may be held on any day of the week. They are often held in a meeting house, Institute of Religion or a personal residence, depending on the number of people expected to attend. Usually, refreshments are served afterwards while the attendees mingle.

Now that you know about Firesides, we can talk about the Mission Home Firesides, held twice monthly, once for English and once for Spanish. It is a bit of a misnomer to call them Mission Home Firesides since they actually are not being held in the Mission Home as of last fall. When we began our three years here, the numbers attending were manageable, averaging fifty to sixty with an occasional ninety in the mix. Last summer, though, those attending numbered ninety on a regular basis, which means we were bursting at the seams, squeezing everyone into the living room of the Mission Home. The night in the Autumn that we stopped counting at 170 at an English Fireside, with many not even getting in the door, the decision was made to move the event over to the church on Eastern Parkway, adjacent to the Mission Office. As a result some of the intimacy has been lost, but at least everyone has a chair to sit on and room to breathe.

The "ticket" for missionaries its to have an investigator or new convert with them. During the fireside, a single speaker or a couple tells of their conversion story or talks on a subject related to faith and conversion. Then the floor is opened to anyone who wants to bear their testimony. SOme of these testimonies come from missionaries or long-time members, but most come from newly baptized individuals or people who have baptismal dates. Occasionally someone will stand who is being taught by the missionaries and that very evening have decided to be baptized. It is an experience that builds the faith of those in attendance.

After the closing song and prayer we serve refreshments thereby enabling people to mingle and thereby buoyed up.

Here are some pictures of past firesides both in the Mission Home and at the church, including some of the wonderful speakers, and the equally wonderful investigators, new members, and missionaries who attended:

Richard Neal, a counselor in the Stake Presidency, told of his
remarkable conversion and the difference it has made in his life

One of the Spanish firesides at the Mission Home

Louisville Temple President, Larry Lunt, is a retired General,
and was President of the Kentucky Louisville Mission from 1990-1993.
He spoke at an English fireside about patriotism and the
Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The dad in this family had already joined the Church
and the mom and two older children were about to be baptized.

Alan and Katy Harvey gave a moving account of their recent conversion

The children all had Future Missionary badges on
so they could be like the older missionaries.

Brother and Sister Howard
Brother Howard spoke at a Spanish Fireside
about his conversion

A Spanish fireside at the Mission Home

Socializing outside the Mission Home

President and Sister Woodbury with Brother and
Sister Smith, who spoke at an English fireside

After a Spanish fireside
The missionaries are Hermanas Kearlsey, Arreola, and Velasquez
and Elders Meisel, Ferguson, Adams, and Howard

and Rita Thorne spoke at an English Fireside.
Their conversion story is wonderful!

Recent convert Felton Spencer and his two nieces

Pablo Marquin spoke and told of his conversion at a Spanish Fireside

Spanish fireside

Some of our terrific missionaries who had
brought investigators to the Spanish fireside:
Hermanas Bunkall, Messerly, Velasquez, Christensen,
Lawter, Okey, and Carnahan
Elders Singleton and Gonzalez