Where to begin?

First I could tell you that she’s a wife of a scientist, a mother of two girls, a college graduate (statistics was her field — yes, they are smart ones in their house). She serves as the secretary of the Relief Society in her ward congregation. But I don’t have photos for all of that. So I’ll tell you that…

…She’s a whiz in the kitchen. I’m the lucky taste tester for many of her creations. Here, she is making freezer jam. YUM.

Oh, I almost forgot. When I took these jam-making pictures, she sent me this disclaimer to include:

I do not make jam because it is on the “Righteous Mommy Checklist.” I make it because store-bought jams taste “burnt.” Freezer jam to me is fresh strawberries in late January. When Michelle posts my pictures also take note of the REALITY in the background – there is a mess at my house.  I was making jam – not being June Cleaver – there were no pumps or pearls!

(I guess I don’t need to say that she has a sense of humor — and is not afraid to be human! Nor does she do things for pretense. She does things that for her make sense.)

…She’s smart (ah, yes, I already said that), organized, and resourceful. She not only has a great food storage (the story of how she got going on food storage will have to wait for another day, but it’s a faith-promoting one), but…

…She also uses it. (Again, she will often use it to bless others, like me. Here is the bread she made for us a while back for General Conference weekend, sharing their family tradition of “General Conference Bread” with us. (Her hummus is also to die for. And I’ll need to ask her if I can share her granola recipe. More YUM.)

I love how she has a vision for things and makes things happen. I wish I had a photo of her with her tool belt on…she’s very handy and can fix anything. She frequents hardware stores and other places where she can get different materials to improve her home, whether that means adding light to a room or sawing wood to create storage shelves or taking metal strips and hooks and turning them into a wall decoration.

…She paints. Also tucked away for another day are photos of more of her paintings. She likes watercolor in particular.

She quilts. She pieced this together from a pattern in her head.

This next painting represents something else she is working on right now — her family history. This painting is from a photo of her grandfather on his farm. She’s working on a book that includes information, photos, and patriarchal blessings of her ancestors. She’s doing this as a gift to her children and her extended family. I’ve really enjoyed hearing about the progress that she is making on this project.

…And she serves others. I’ve been the recipient of her kindness more times than I can count. (But I don’t have to, because she doesn’t keep score. Yet another reason I appreciate her.)

Not too long ago, while a friend of ours was dying of cancer, she helped put together a quilt, and — again creating something with mostly just a pattern in her head — made this awesome card holder so our friend could read notes from people who cared about her.

(This is Pauline with our friend who recently passed away.)

Pauline is the kind of person who does things quietly, not wanting praise or pats on the back. So I know this post is going to make her squirm a little. She only let me take these photos and post them here because she knows how important sharing about the lives of Mormon women is to me.

I hope she also knows how important she is to me. Thanks, friend, for what you do and are.

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In the comments, tell us about a friend who has made a difference in your life.

And, if you know a Mormon woman you’d like to let us get to know, please let us know! We’re at gmail, username ‘mormonwoman’

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Hi—I am Valerie.  I am thirty-two and am married with four children, ages 10, 5, 3 and 7 months.  I love photography, crafts, blogging, teaching, cooking, spending time with family, hiking, playing basketball and discovering new places.

I would like to share an experience I had that tells me that God answers prayers.  I had just graduated with my Associates degree in Elementary Education.  I was accepted to Brigham Young University but had not scored high enough on the PPST, therefore, I wasn’t accepted into the teaching program.  I was not a good test taker, but was a hard worker.  I had a 3.8 GPA.  The worse part was that one point separated me from everything falling into place.  BYU had just raised the test score requirements.  If I had been able to apply for the program months earlier, everything would have worked out just fine.

But here I was, stuck . . .

I prayed to my Heavenly Father and asked that he would help me know what to do.  I was confused and distraught.  I didn’t know where else I would go.  I wrote a letter of appeal to the Dean of Education at Brigham Young University in hopes something would come of it.  In the meantime, I had an impression to return to the two-year school that I had just graduated in.  “Why would I want to do that?”  It would be kind of embarrassing to return, but I felt a strong urge to do so.

I returned and took the classes as if I were going to Brigham Young University.  I decided to not worry about my situation and exercise my faith and put my trust in the Lord.  I also decided that I wasn’t going to stress about school and grades and that I was going to just have fun and enjoy life.  It turned out to be the best semester of my life and on top of it, I ended up with a 4.0 that semester.  I also heard back from Brigham Young University that they had accepted my appeal and that I would be able to start next semester.

Everything worked out and I got my degree in 4 years, despite the minor setback.

I have always been grateful for the power of prayer, for a loving Heavenly Father who is mindful of our needs and hears and answers our prayers.  Sometimes it’s not in a way that we understand at that moment, but in a way that works out in the end.

The post Portraits of Mormon Women: Valerie appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

Karen attended Brigham Young University and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education. She has taught school for 32 years. She said: “I always had the support of my husband and children, and I always felt that I was supposed to be a teacher.”

Right now, Karen serves as the Relief Society President in her ward. She has served in many areas in the Church, and she says that the more she serves in the Church, the more she realizes how important each calling is –how each one was the experience she needed. However, if she could pick, she would serve as the Primary (children’s Sunday classes) pianist!

Karen loves to read almost every kind of book –from Jane Austen to Harry Potter. She also loves to relax by watching movies with her husband. She enjoys hiking and skiing, although she doesn’t do either very often. Some of her other favorite things to do include: scrapbook, spending time with her family, doing family history, and traveling.

One time, Karen had an experience which changed her life:

“I remember one time when I was pregnant and had a miscarriage. I prayed for someone to come and my visiting teacher showed up. My husband was out of town, and I was hemorrhaging pretty badly. My visiting teacher was a nurse and she had her husband give me a blessing. She stayed with me all night, because I wouldn’t go to the hospital because my insurance wouldn’t cover it. She took me to the doctor’s office the next morning. I was in pretty bad shape, but I felt the Lord with me through the night in the form of that wonderful visiting teacher.”

For Karen, the Plan of Salvation is so wonderful! She says that only a loving Heavenly Father would have such a plan. She also knows that she is a child of God who knows her and loves her. On being a Mormon woman, Karen says:

“I have never felt that we as women were less important than men in the eyes of our Father in Heaven. He has blessed us with the power of creation. He has given us the gift of the Holy Ghost, and the Priesthood is such a blessing in our lives. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ and I love the peace it brings into my life. I’m grateful for that blessing and I wish everyone could hear about the gospel and could know what I know. It gives my life such purpose!”

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