MormonNewsroom.org features stories from its 80 international Newsroom websites as well as those from around the United States to share what members and leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints around the world are doing to better to serve their communities
Zimbabwe: Church Apostle Pledges Support to Country’s Vice President
Elder Neil L. Andersen, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, met recently with Zimbabwe’s vice president, His Excellency K. Mohadi, to pledge support for the country’s improvement.
Elder Andersen said the significance of the meeting with Vice President Mohadi was to “express to him our desire to help improve Zimbabwe.” He noted that Vice President Mohadi had made a specific request for support with the development of clean-water wells in more remote areas of Zimbabwe.
Read more of how the Church plans to help on the Zimbabwe Newsroom website.
Mexico: Women Leaders of the Church Visit Mexico
Counselors in the Church’s three women’s organizations met with and spoke to Latter-day Saints in Mexico recently. They were there attending to the needs of Church members.
The leaders included Reyna I. Aburto, second counselor in the Relief Society general presidency; Michelle D. Craig, first counselor in the Young Women general presidency; and Cristina B. Franco, second counselor in the Primary general presidency.
Find out more about their visit on the Mexico Newsroom website (Spanish).
Switzerland: Clothing, Food and Hygiene Items Gathered to Help a Community
People in need living in the community of Wettingen, Switzerland, were grateful to receive help from members of the Church.
Clothing was collected, colorful scarves were sewn and decorated with ornate patterns and Christmas-wrapped cardboard boxes were filled with paper and pencils, hygiene items, toys, rice, pasta, sweets, a keyring, scarves and a Christmas card.
Go to the Switzerland Newsroom website (German) for more information.
India: Church Members and Resources Come to City’s Aid
Latter-day Saints in the city of Kerala, India, worked together with LDS Charities, the humanitarian arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and with the Adventist Development and Relief Agency ADRA to relieve some of the suffering due to major flooding this year.
Hundreds of members of the Church gathered in meetinghouses in Chennai, Bengaluru and Coimbatore to assemble more than 2,000 shelter, hygiene and basic kitchen utensil kits and load them onto trucks to be delivered to Kerala.
Read more about how neighbors helped neighbors on the India Newsroom website.
USA: Thousands Participate in Angel City Celebration in Los Angeles
Residents in South Los Angeles are the beneficiaries of the annual Angel City Celebration held each December. The Franklin D. Roosevelt Park serves as the venue for the event where toys, food, resources and services are provided to youth and families.
The event, held from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., served an estimated 5,000 people. More than 1,250 people came early enough to have a free pancake breakfast, and children were treated to an artificial snow hill and the chance to ride a snow disk.
The Mormon Newsroom website has more details of the celebration.
Australia: Relief Society Prepares “Smilie” Supplies for Salvation Army
Members of the women’s organization of the Church, Relief Society, were excited to participate in their annual Christmas service project. “I really love the feeling I get when I serve in our community with my friends in Relief Society,” said one Latter-day Saint woman.
The service included packaging more than 130 “smilie” Christmas food hampers full of donated treats and other useful items. The women made 178 polar fleece blankets and assembled maternity and hygiene kits which were all donated to the Salvation Army.
There’s additional service project information on the Australia Newsroom website.
Singapore: Interfaith Service Makes a Difference for Seniors
Latter-day Saints joined volunteers from three other religious organizations to befriend seniors at an interfaith event called “Harmonies in Sync.”
They worked with members from the Masjid Al-Istighfar Mosque, Arulmigu Velmurugan Gnanamuneeswarar Temple (AVGMT), and the Tampines Chinese Temple to take care of 30 seniors in wheelchairs from the Bethesda C.A.R.E. Center at the Gallop Kranji Farm Resort.
Read what the community’s mayor thought of the project on the Singapore Newsroom website.
Portugal: Lisbon Temple Receives Angel Moroni
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is building Portugal’s first temple. One of the signs that the sacred structure is near completion is the placement of the angel Moroni statue on top of the temple.
The statue of Moroni is an iconic symbol of the Church of Jesus Christ that stands atop most of the 150 currently operating temples across the world, including 12 in Europe.
Go to the Portugal Newsroom website (Portuguese) to gain an understanding of the statue’s significance.