I grew up on a farm in Washington state. I was the youngest of three children and loved helping my Dad on the farm. He had me driving a tractor by the time I was 6 years old. My Dad told the neighbors that I was the best hired man he ever had.
Even though I liked where I grew up, after high school I could not wait to get away from the farm. I attended college for 2 years. Then I decided to move to New York City to work. Living in New York was more of a challenge than I had expected. While I was there, it was difficult for me to attend church and make good friends. I realized that I needed a job and live in a place where I could attend church every week. I returned to Brigham Young University where I met my husband, Phyll. I was introduced to Phyll by his cousin who was in my ward. After a year of dating we were married in the Idaho Falls Temple. Phyll graduated from BYU and we moved to Stillwater, Oklahoma for Phyll to work on his Ph.D. in Agriculture. While we were in Stillwater, I was able to complete my degree.
Phyll's first job was in Lubbock, Texas. We really liked Lubbock and were sad when Phyll was transferred to Kansas. From Kansas we moved to Illinois and then to Nebraska. With each move we felt our Heavenly Father had a reason for us to be in a new place. We have three children, Ashley (25), Aaron (18), and Amanda (13). Ashley lives in Kalispell, Montana with her husband, Mark, and 2 year old son, Noah.
One year ago the company my husband worked for wanted us to move to Johannesburg, South Africa. We thought that this would be a great adventure for our family. As we prepared to go, we began to have some uneasy feelings about the move. Phyll decided that he needed to check into some other job opportunities. He finally decided to take a job in Ralls, Texas with Triumph Seed working on developing new varieties of corn. So in November 2009 we moved to Lubbock, Texas.
As we have moved from place to place, I have been involved with the youth program. I have served as Relief Society President in a singles ward, youth Sunday School teacher, Primary Counselor, Ward Young Women's President and Stake Young Women's President. I felt like I spend alot of time planning and hoping activities would run smoothly. Then a few years ago while we were planning a Stake Activity, the President stated that what made the youth want to attend these activities was the spirit they felt when they were there, not necessarily the activity we did. I began to think about this statement as I planned other activities and talked to the young women. The activities they seemed to enjoy the most were not the elaborate activities but the ones where they felt the Spirit the most. What the young women remembered was how they felt. They kept coming back because they knew their leaders loved them. All of us need to feel that we are accepted for who we are and loved for being the best that we can be at the time. I know that all of our activities will not happen as we have planned them. But I do know that if we do our best, and turn the rest over to the Lord, the activity will be a success. I love working with the youth. I look forward to getting to know the young women and, you, the leaders.
Kathy Cammack
Even though I liked where I grew up, after high school I could not wait to get away from the farm. I attended college for 2 years. Then I decided to move to New York City to work. Living in New York was more of a challenge than I had expected. While I was there, it was difficult for me to attend church and make good friends. I realized that I needed a job and live in a place where I could attend church every week. I returned to Brigham Young University where I met my husband, Phyll. I was introduced to Phyll by his cousin who was in my ward. After a year of dating we were married in the Idaho Falls Temple. Phyll graduated from BYU and we moved to Stillwater, Oklahoma for Phyll to work on his Ph.D. in Agriculture. While we were in Stillwater, I was able to complete my degree.
Phyll's first job was in Lubbock, Texas. We really liked Lubbock and were sad when Phyll was transferred to Kansas. From Kansas we moved to Illinois and then to Nebraska. With each move we felt our Heavenly Father had a reason for us to be in a new place. We have three children, Ashley (25), Aaron (18), and Amanda (13). Ashley lives in Kalispell, Montana with her husband, Mark, and 2 year old son, Noah.
One year ago the company my husband worked for wanted us to move to Johannesburg, South Africa. We thought that this would be a great adventure for our family. As we prepared to go, we began to have some uneasy feelings about the move. Phyll decided that he needed to check into some other job opportunities. He finally decided to take a job in Ralls, Texas with Triumph Seed working on developing new varieties of corn. So in November 2009 we moved to Lubbock, Texas.
As we have moved from place to place, I have been involved with the youth program. I have served as Relief Society President in a singles ward, youth Sunday School teacher, Primary Counselor, Ward Young Women's President and Stake Young Women's President. I felt like I spend alot of time planning and hoping activities would run smoothly. Then a few years ago while we were planning a Stake Activity, the President stated that what made the youth want to attend these activities was the spirit they felt when they were there, not necessarily the activity we did. I began to think about this statement as I planned other activities and talked to the young women. The activities they seemed to enjoy the most were not the elaborate activities but the ones where they felt the Spirit the most. What the young women remembered was how they felt. They kept coming back because they knew their leaders loved them. All of us need to feel that we are accepted for who we are and loved for being the best that we can be at the time. I know that all of our activities will not happen as we have planned them. But I do know that if we do our best, and turn the rest over to the Lord, the activity will be a success. I love working with the youth. I look forward to getting to know the young women and, you, the leaders.
Kathy Cammack
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