The stake missionary program, which links stake and full-time missionaries, has infused a whole new sense of purpose in stake missionary work and has resulted in bringing more people into the gospel fold.

Stake missionaries are trained withfull-time missionaries and become partners in sharing the gospel on the local level. Stake missionaries make a major contribution to the success of the work in finding and fellowshipping new contacts, while leaving most of the teaching to the full-time missionaries, according to Missionary Department leaders.The program now widely followed is outlined in the Stake Mission Handbook, distributed at the end of 1988 and the start of 1989.

The handbook instructs stake missionaries that "your highest priority is finding people through your own personal efforts."

The stake missionary program came in for a change when stake seventies were released in October of 1986. At that time, missionary work had been the main part of the long-term calling of a seventy. Today, the stake mission president is a proselyter and leader. Stake missionaries, like full-time missionaries, wear name tags, study the discussions, and sometimes attend training meetings conducted by the full-time mission president. Efforts are fully correlated through ward and stake meetings. Stake missionaries often pair up with full-time missionaries in the evenings, and on Saturdays and Sundays.

Leaders describe this pairing as drawing upon the strengths of both groups of missionaries: the enthusiasm and motivation of young adults is joined with the wisdom of experience; and the appeal of being visited by someone from far away is blended with the familiarity of having someone come calling from next door.

This remains an advantage after the full-time missionaries are transferred. The stake missionary continues fellowshipping the investigator or new member.

This program has also led to members being more motivated as they work with men and women of their own ward, as well as the full-time missionaries.

It has, said leaders, infused a whole new sense of purpose into stake mission work.

Consider the experience of Ella Rondeau, of Nashua, N.H., who was associated early on with stake missionaries during her recent conversion.

She was grieving over the death of her 21-year-old daughter when a friend suggested she look into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

"You really should look into it, Ella," the friend said. "It is really comforting."

Her friend sent the missionaries by, and Ella found them to be "fantastic young men. Especially Elder Lamont Hamilton; he really got me started," she said. "The missionaries were about the age of my daughter, and they really taught me what the gospel was all about. I learned that you don't just die and have no more life. You must be born, and you must die, to continue doing God's work. I felt my daughter had done what the good Lord asked her to do, and He had called her back.

"I felt so much better. I felt so warm in my heart. I felt that this is what I really wanted."

As she attended Church, she was introduced to Wayne A. Wright, ward mission leader of the Nashua 2nd Ward, who helped teach her the gospel. He attended her baptismal service, and, when Elder Hamilton was transferred, he continued teaching her the new member lessons.

One day during the recent holidays, her car wouldn't start. Brother Wright happened to drop by with a small Christmas present. He helped start her car, and wished her a Merry Christmas.

"He's always there," she said. "I can call him any time if I need someone to talk to. The members are all so caring."

Brother Wright, who has served for about nine months in his calling, observed that "the stake mission program is much more well-organized that it was a few years ago.

"It seems like now we are on the leading edge of missionary work. Once we get the members committed to missionary work, we can really magnify our work." His goal is to follow the handbook and "try to do what we are supposed to do. What would Christ do? I think He would be thoughtful. We try to help the Lord's work where we can."

Elder Darin Hansen of the Massachusetts Boston Mission, from Taylorsville, Utah, who also taught Sister Rondeau, said stake missionaries are an asset.

After she was baptized, "the transition was no problem at all," he said.

Melchizedek Priesthood holders from the two Nashua wards are assisting Elder Hansen and his new companion, Elder Jeff Needham from North Carolina, in "splits."

"We have much more success when we work with someone from the ward," Elder Needham said. "Many people think we are so young we don't understand what we are saying. When they see a 30- or a 40-year-old who backs us up, or even expands on what we say, they listen more.

"If we involve more members, we share the gospel with more people. I have seen it happen."

Don Atkinson, mission leader in the Los Altos California Stake, said his stake missionaries avoid special, one-time projects to involve members in missionary work.

"We find that if we do missionary work in the normal course of life, we get more done than if we do something special," he said. "We try to make missionary work part of every activity."

For example, one couple whose children have grown up and left home, regularly invites a non-member family to their home for family home evening. The family home evenings have become highlights for both families. And some home teachers in the stake have begun making monthly visits to non-member neighbors. Leaders conducting ward meetings presume non-members are in attendance, and make short explanations about things members take for granted, but which might be confusing for newcomers, such as separation to classes in Sunday School opening exercises.

"We try to fold the people of our community into the fabric of our wards so if they become interested in the Church, we will have a bridge to walk across and open their hearts and teach them the gospel. The people who are the Lord's elect will have an opportunity to hear His voice."

Pres. Evan D. Porter of the Orlando Florida Stake pointed to significant benefits that come from the close correlation of stake and full-time missionaries.

"We all become aware of the status of specific mission accomplishments, or the lack of them. That reporting process with the zone leader helps us stay aware of the progress. If the work doesn't meet expectations we are able to respond more quickly.

"One of the things I am seeing is that the stake missionaries feel like they have specific direction."

The program also helps ward members know that finding and fellowshipping investigators for full-time missionaries depends upon their efforts.