My ward (congregation) loves to party. One of our annual ward parties is the Ward RoundUp. Here was the flyer for this year’s RoundUp. I love the Ward Round Up!

I have attended over 20 RoundUps in my life and every one was memorable. My favorite Ward RoundUp memory was when I was eight years old the Primary handed out squirt rings at the Go Fish! station and all of the kids my age would fill them with fountain water and squirt each other when we found each other during a game of hide and seek in the ward building.

Our Ward RoundUp is an annual activity that has a country theme and anyone who has ever lived in the ward is invited to come back – thus the name “RoundUp.” A lot of people who grew up in the ward come back to visit with us. It is always fun to see who shows up! Every year, the RoundUp has activities for the kids, dinner for over 200 people and yummy fried scones with honey, jelly, and powdered sugar.

As part of our traditions our ward hosts:

• Hay rides behind an ATV in the parking lot
• A Cake walk
• A Petting Zoo

One year, there was square dancing with a professional caller! That was great — tons of people there joined in the dancing.  There were over 50 people doing the “electric slide” which was hilarious because I’ve known these people for decades and had never seen many of them dance. As always, the entire community, not just LDS Church members, were invited.

OK, you Mormon women who are lurking –share with our readers! What are some of your ward’s traditions? How do having traditions bring communities closer? If you aren’t Mormon, tell us about the kinds of parties/gatherings/community events you enjoy. Does your community do things that bring people closer together and help offload the stresses of life?

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**Please note: The answers in “Ask a Mormon Woman” and (other content on this site) reflect the thoughts and perspectives of the administrators at Mormon Women. Although we strive to have our content consistent with the Church’s doctrine and teachings, we do not speak officially for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. For official information about or from the Church, please visit www.mormon.org or www.lds.org.

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For more Ask a Mormon Woman questions/answers, please click here. To submit a question, simply leave a comment, or email us at gmail with the username ‘mormonwoman.’

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While visiting with my friend, she asked me some questions regarding where I would attend church after moving to a nearby town.

Kathy: “So I hear you’re moving.”

Me: “Yep.”

Kathy: “That’s too bad.”

Me: “Yeah, I know. I really loved living here.”

Kathy: “Mrs. P (our daughters’ kindergarden teacher, who happens to be LDS) said that when you move you’ll be attending church at her building instead of the Mormon church down the street.”

Me: “That’s right. There is another LDS meetinghouse closer to our new house so we’ll be going to church there from now on.”

Kathy: “But I heard your Dad is the bishop of the ward that meets at the building nearest us. Won’t that be hard to attend church in a new place without your family?”

Me: “Sure, I’ve grown up my entire life in this same ward. I love these people, my entire congregation, like they are family members.”

Kathy: “So why would you do that? Why can’t you just go to whatever church you want to?”

Me: “Well, there are a couple of reasons. First, in our church, the same doctrine is taught all over the world. So changing ward houses does not change what is taught in Sacrament meeting, Sunday School or Relief Society. My children will have the exact same lessons as well. Second, my Dad will not be the bishop forever. In our area, bishops only serve for 5 years or so and then another worthy man will be called to serve in his place.”

Kathy: “But if you love all the people in your congregation, why not just keep attending the ward with the people you grew up with regardless of where you live?”

Me: “Well, if everybody did that, there would be huge numbers of people attending the same congregation because it’s ‘fun’ or ‘comfortable’ there. By following the guide to attend our assigned ward we get to ‘lift where we stand‘ and learn to serve the people who live around us. I’m sure we’ll grow to love these new people as much as the old congregation. And if everyone follows this guide, then the entire church will be blessed for their faithfulness with the opportunity for service.”

I’ve lived in the same ward all of my life, so I had a tough transition moving out of my “home” ward. For six months I attended my old ward while living outside of the ward boundaries, but my husband and I never felt good about it. We finally decided to make the move spiritually as well as physically. Last week was our first week in our new ward. And guess what? We loved it.

After making that good decision, my husband read this Ensign article about a woman who was only going to live in a ward for three months and how she made the best of the three short months she was there. This article made him wish that we had made the decision to change wards even sooner. One thing we LDS people always say after attending church while traveling is “The church is true no matter where you go.” I guess that saying now rings true for me here, there and everywhere. Even when everywhere is just down the road.

**Please note: The answers in “Ask a Mormon Woman” and (other content on this site) reflect the thoughts and perspectives of the administrators at Mormon Women. Although we strive to have our content consistent with the Church’s doctrine and teachings, we do not speak officially for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. For official information about or from the Church, please visit www.mormon.org or www.lds.org.

For more Ask a Mormon Woman questions/answers, please click here.

Do you have a question you would like to submit? Simply include a comment below, or send an email at gmail with the username ‘mormonwoman’

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