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Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon with some of the Latter-day Saint USAFA cadets in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 28, 2023. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.
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By Peggy Kinnaird, Church News
Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon seemed “at ease” during her recent tour and visit to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she addressed the Latter-day Saint graduates of 2023 in an annual baccalaureate service held on Sunday, May 28.
The tradition of the Latter-day Saint baccalaureate service began at USAFA in 2016, when Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was invited to address the graduating cadets in the iconic chapel designed to represent Pikes Peak and the Front Range mountains and the picturesque backdrop of the Air Force Academy.
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Left to right: Second Lieutenant Joshua T. Sorensen, Second Lieutenant Elisabeth R. Lopez, Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon, Brother Derek Cordon and Elder Richard S. Hutchins, Area Seventy, at Doolittle Hall at the United States Air Force Academy Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 27, 2023. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.As part of a full itinerary, President Cordon toured parts of the Academy which is one of the largest college campuses in the nation, consisting of 18,500 acres. During the tour on May 27, she saw Doolittle Hall, which is a visitors center and consists of a nearby path which represents the place where cadets begin their “Air Force journey.”
The nearby trail is lined with placards dedicated to fallen soldiers, which leads to a bridge. When this bridge is crossed, it represents the cadets completing their journey to graduation.
She also toured the Southeast Asia Memorial Pavilion and was given information from tour guides, then-Cadet First Class Elisabeth R. Lopez, and then-Cadet First Class Joshua T. Sorensen, who are engaged to be married on June 3. They both became Second Lieutenants after graduating on June 1.
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Elder Richard S. Hutchins, Area Seventy; Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon; Brother Derek Cordon; Second Lieutenant Joshua T. Sorensen and Second Lieutenant Elisabeth R. Lopez, in front of the Pegasus statue, a symbol of the Air Force Academy, near Doolittle Hall in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 27, 2023. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.Later that evening, President Cordon addressed several hundred youth in a combined five-stake fireside where many were tearful with joy in meeting her and hearing her speak.
“I need to get to know each of you,” she said. “I’m so impressed with who you are and what grand things the Lord has in store for you. I hope you realize that you are loved and known.”
She emphasized that the Lord wants the youth to grow up to be like Him and inherit all that the Father has.
She talked of the theme for young men and women which is found in Philippians 4:13. She said it is 10 simple words that may seem overwhelming, but the last words explain how, “we can be in a space of moving forward.”
President Cordon also spoke of the Good Samaritan and easing one another’s burdens.
“God does notice us, and He watches over us. But it is usually through another person that He meets our needs.”
She then showed a video of an upside-down turtle who was rescued by a group of other turtles.
“I hope you can remember we are sent down to Earth to help others to know Christ, they will remember how you made them feel.”
President Cordon also addressed the combined young single adult wards in Colorado Springs on Sunday morning then continued to the baccalaureate service later that afternoon.
A total of 25 graduating cadets who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints graduated on Thursday, June 1. Seven of those graduates are women.
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Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon addresses the Latter-day Saint USAFFA cadets in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 28, 2023. The cadets later graduated on June 1, 2023. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.President Cordon spoke to an audience of close to 200 people consisting of USAFA 2023 graduates, cadets, family members and dignitaries in the Polaris Room on campus, due to the chapel being closed for renovations.
The service consisted of two cadet speakers, Cadet First Class T. Chase Thatcher and Cadet First Class Camryn C. Slade, followed by an address given by Elder Bruce A. Carlson, an emeritus General Authority and retired USAF general who was also the keynote speaker at the 2019 baccalaureate service.
Carlson said, “The Lord has given us a duty and responsibility to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, never has the spirit of the Lord been more available and never has the gospel been taught with more fullness and clarity.”
President Cordon began her address with an appreciation for being a part of the USAFA graduation and that all who were in attendance were there because they testified of Christ and can have complete confidence in who they are.
President Cordon had a slide presentation showing a picture of Jesus Christ as a baby in the manger as someone who would fight battles of the world, with a quote from Frank W. Boreham, a Baptist preacher from England, that read, “When a wrong wants righting, or a work wants doing, or a truth wants preaching, or a continent wants opening, God send a baby into the world to do it. That is why long, long ago, a babe was born at Bethlehem.”
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A Cadet Choir sings during the Latter-day Saint baccalaureate service at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 28, 2023. The cadets later graduated on June 1, 2023. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.She then showed slides of babies from 1940 who were Elders Jeffrey R. Holland, Dieter F. Uchtdorf and Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Then she showed baby pictures of some of the graduating cadets.
President Cordon said, “The Lord knew who you are in the pre-earth life. To come down in this time and space. You will be a force for good or evil depending on your choices. These babies will have an influence that will change the world.”
She referred to Proverbs 3:5-6, in which there is a warning to, “lean not unto your own understanding, with a promise that, “He’ll direct your path every time we ask.”
President Cordon spoke of the story of the Jaredites in Ether 2:18-19, and how they trusted in the Lord with all their heart to build barges.
But “why would a perfect God give them an incomplete blueprint that lacked air, light and steering? The lack thereof was the opportunity to come to know Jesus Christ,” said President Cordon.
She referred to Ether 6:4 that people must, “commend ourselves to God although the answer hasn’t come.”
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Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon is given a commemorative gift of a falcon statue members of the class of 2023 at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 28, 2023. The USAFA falcon symbolizes freedom, intuition and bravery. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.President Cordon said the cadets should, “Trust in the Lord, come what may.” After showing a video of a sheep getting stuck in a crevasse then released and once again jumping right back in the crevasse, she said, “If you trust in the Lord, He will open up the windows of heaven and there will be miracles in your life.”
“The God of the universe is aware of you. If you trust in the Lord, He will direct your path every time.”
President Cordon closed her remarks by asking everyone in the audience to sing along with a video of “Peace in Christ” and by sharing her testimony.
Lopez — now a second lieutenant after graduating — said her favorite part of President Cordon’s talk was how far the cadets had come since they were babies. “No one knew I would be where I am today. No one knew I would have to go through so much to find the truth, no one expected me to even become a member of the Church,” she said.
“But Heavenly Father did, and He intentionally placed people in my life to help me along the way. Two and a half years ago, I was prepared to end my life, and this Saturday, my best friend and I are getting sealed in the temple. That is just a testimony that Heavenly Father always has a plan,” she said.
Lopez belonged to another faith when she met her fiancé, Sorensen, during the COVID-19 pandemic. They were in the same squadron and got to know each other during the lockdown. Two weeks after suffering a concussion from a boxing class, Lopez went through a very dark period.
She visited Sorensen and they started talking. He asked her if she wanted to meet with the sister missionaries. After doing Zoom meetings every day, they asked her to pray and ask if the Book or Mormon was true. “That night I prayed, and I remember getting such an overwhelming feeling of love and acceptance that I had never felt before.”
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Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon speaks with Second Lieutenant Joshua T. Sorensen and Second Lieutenant Elisabeth R. Lopez, in front of placards with the names of USAFA fallen in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 27, 2023. Photo by Peggy Kinnaird, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company.“Since becoming a member of the Church, life hasn’t always been easy, but now I have something certain to always fall back on when things get difficult,” said Lopez.
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