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And some 40 years across a generation
In the world of missions for the global Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it sometimes
seems like a very small world.
Elder Noah Stewart recently arrived in Tallahassee after a stint at the Church’s Missionary
Training Center in Mexico City. Elder Stewart hails from Lohja, Finland, a city of about 50,000,
not far from the Gulf of Bothnia, which separates Finland from Sweden.
His first assignment, in Tallahassee, is to serve in the Church’s Liahona Branch, a Spanish-
speaking congregation that is part of the Tallahassee Stake.
said Elder Stewart.
Sister Ann Rozycki-Fierro, a member of the Church in Tallahassee, learned of Elder Stewart’s
assignment when his father, Steven, posted the news on social media. Steven Stewart served as
an LDS missionary with Sister Rozycki-Fierro some 40 years ago in Finland.
“Steven and I have kept in touch on social media. We note events in each other’s lives and keep
up with each other in that way. When I learned his son was coming to Tallahassee I promised
him we would feed his son a good meal,” said Rozycki-Fierro.
The elder Stewart married a Finnish girl and settled in Finland. Now his son is serving a mission
in Tallahassee, home to one of his missionary associates.
The Church currently has more than 92,000 full-time teaching, senior service and young service
missionaries around the globe. Young male missionaries typically serve for two years and young
female missionaries typically serve for 18 months.
“Missionary work is fundamental to our faith,” said Ben Smith, president of the Tallahassee Stake.
“We believe we have a divine call to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to all the world,” he said.
