seen

August 2008 Archive

Two backgrounds, one aim

August 21st, 2008

Kaneko Kaneko (right) discusses a scene from the Mormon missionary feature film “The Best Two Years” with the Myers family, who are members of the church. Mormon missionaries such as Kaneko work for two years.

Elder Kaneko Kaneko came to the United States from the Marshall Islands with a shallow understanding of English and a deep faith.

Elder Shadrack Gore grew up in a rural Idaho town where Spud Day was a school holiday and most of his classmates were Mormons.

But none of that matters as the pair of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints missionaries made the rounds recently in an east Tulsa neighborhood. Hundreds of missionaries go door to door across the nation this time of year. Their missions are as unified as their backgrounds are diverse. They come to talk about Jesus.

Kaneko displays a photo of Joseph Smith in the Book of Mormon. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ.

Kaneko and Gore say the days are long and the weather is often unforgiving in Oklahoma. But they are quick to add that there is nothing they would rather be doing than serving in Tulsa.

“It makes all the difference to know that he was someone that suffered for all of us, and we can do at least a little bit for him,” Gore said. “That’s what helps
me throughout my mission.”

Kaneko plans for the week ahead on a recent Friday morning. After six weeks in Tulsa, Elder Kaneko has been transfered to Carthage, Mo.

One of Gore’s struggles, at least early on, was the formal dress that missionaries are required to wear. Back home in Shelley, Idaho, Gore enjoyed “jeeping” with his friends, skateboarding and playing Jimi Hendrix tunes on his green Fender Squire guitar.

His hair wasn’t always exactly mission-ready, either. For a few months, he wore a 6-inch mohawk with chops.

“I was definitely not as into ties as I am now,” Gore said.

While waiting for his mission call, Kaneko spent his days hanging out with friends, helping check the accuracy of LDS materials translated into Marshallese and spearfishing as often as possible.

Before leaving the Marshall Islands — a small Micronesian island group roughly between Australia and Hawaii — Kaneko worried about leaving his friends and family behind.

“Before I came, I was scared I would miss my friends,” he said. “After I have been out 18 months, I have had many friends.”

Among his newfound friends, Kaneko counts those he has shared the Gospel with and church members.

Gore, left, and Kaneko stop by a home to check in on a woman they had met previously. Church members will often drive the pair to appointments in the evening.

Members of the local ward — the LDS term for a large congregation — play an active role in the missionaries’ lives.

On most nights, the pair eat a home-cooked meal with a family. Thanks to fast food and the hearty cooking of members, Kaneko said, he has gained 30 pounds during his 18 months stateside. He is now up to 140 pounds.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints member Peter Anderson listens to a lesson by Kaneko and Gore, not pictured, following dinner. Members take turns hosting the missionaries for dinner and accompany them on nighttime appointments.

After dinner, members will sometimes go with Gore and Kaneko to their evening appointments.

“It is really nice to have another person there besides a missionary so the people can know what an average, everyday person feels about the Gospel in their life, too,” Gore said.

Ward members also pass along contact information of people interested in learning about the church.

Some members will begin playing an even larger role when they open up their homes for missionaries to stay in. Recently, Gore and Kaneko moved their possessions out of an apartment rented by the church and into a local member’s home to save the church money.

The pair live according to the rules laid out in the small white Missionary Handbook they keep in their left shirt pockets, just behind their black name tags. The book includes instructions on everything from appropriate dress to their weekly schedule.

Monday is preparation day. It is the closest thing they have to a day off. Eight hours are set aside for laundry, e-mailing home and grocery shopping. The elders like to squeeze in some basketball in the church gym, if they have time.

Kaneko, left, and Gore, move their belongings out of an east Tulsa apartment and into a member’s home. The missionaries received a call less than a week earlier from a mission leader with news of the move.

Kaneko knows that his summer job does work. His family converted about 12 years ago after meeting two young men from Utah. The missionaries worked with his family every day for a week.

He saw the most radical change in his father, who was then nondenominational. He quit smoking and drinking and became a devout Mormon who plans to send all four of his sons on missions.

“I was really shocked when I saw my family change, and it touched my heart,” Kaneko said. “After my parents were converted to the church, my dad told me I need to become one of them so I can go out and help others.”