Angelica is a 15-year-old in Barbados. This is the story of how she and her family became members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. On a very warm day in August, Elders Motley and Lee were knocking on door after door when they felt drawn to knock on a particular door.
Peeking out the window, 18-year-old Hannah saw “two white dudes” waiting on the doorstep. Before she answered the door, she called her mother, Nicole, for advice on answering the door. Her mother realize that the two gentlemen were probably missionaries and gave Hannah permission to open the door. She talked with them for a while and then they asked for her phone number. Having been taught safety procedures, Hannah normally wouldn’t give out her number to strangers, but she said, “I felt comfortable and alright giving it to them.” The missionaries set up a time that they could come back and teach when her parents were home.
The missionaries began to teach Hannah, but over time she became busier with work and had less time to listen to the Elders. In the meantime, the two Elders began teaching the neighbors across the street. Each time they met to teach, more and more children from the neighborhood came to listen. One of them was Hannah’s younger sister, Angelica.
She became very interested in what Elder Motley and now Elder Gammiette had to say. As the young men realized how engaged Angelica was, they began to focus their lessons on her. As she read the scriptures the missionaries left with her, she became a light of happiness. Angelica took the Elders challenge to come to church and even joined in youth activities. The Elders invited her to think about baptism. To no surprise, she did want to be baptized. After her baptism, she felt in her heart that it was truly a momentous occasion.
Quite often, after baptism, things start to slow down as the missionaries teach the new converts lessons. This was not true in this scenario. Angelica and Hannah’s mother had listened to a few lessons, and then after attending Angelica’s baptism, Nicole also started to meet with the missionaries.
At the same time, Angelica had an opportunity to attend “For the Strength of Youth 2023.” When she returned, her sister, Hannah, and her mother, Nicole, announced that they were preparing for baptism! Nicole had met with missionaries a couple of years previous. The timing just wasn’t right, she got busy and then lost contact with them when they left the area. This was part of the reason she didn’t mind letting Hannah answer the door when they knocked. Soon the joyous day came when Hannah and Nicole were also baptized.
This is not the end of the story. As Elders Motley and Gammiette continued to teach Nicole and Hannah, Nicole would try to involve her two boys, Zeco and Zaviar. It wasn’t easy teaching a nine- and 13-year-old. The lessons had to be simple yet captivating. Angelica and members of the branch came over to help with the lessons. Eventually, the two boys and Bro. Grant was working toward a baptismal date.
Today each member of the Grant family has a testimony of their own. The love and spirit of the Holy Ghost have grown in their home along with their faith. The missionaries have over time accidently left several Book of Mormons in the Grant home, so they have taken that as a sign that they should share the gospel of Jesus Christ with their neighbors and friends.