Forty-five years ago, I was serving a mission in Calgary, Alberta. While there, my companion and I moved to an apartment across the street from a grocery store. While in the store one day, we were asked what we were doing by the man in the meat department. He had seen us about town carrying two books. We explained we were missionaries for the Church and asked if we could meet with and teach him and his family. The man, Dio Freeze, agreed, and a date and time were set up. After about three meetings, I was transferred to another area.

Years later, in 1994, my wife, Joy, and I were serving in the California Roseville Mission. While there, I met a young missionary from Calgary. We asked him if he knew the Dio Freeze family. He said he would ask his father. Just before Christmas that year, we received a telephone call and later a letter from Brian Freeze, son of Dio Freeze.The letter from Brian, a member of the Raymond 6th Ward, Raymond Alberta Stake, read, in part: "Just a note to thank you again for being the missionary that helped bring my parents into the Church. I have often given talks relating to the story of my parents' conversion and noted how thankful we were for those first missionaries and how surprised they would be if they could see the impact of that single family joining the Church.

"Dad had great faith. My parents went to a lot of different churches after they were married but were dissatisfied with them all. One day in particular he was walking across the tracks in Calgary and was thinking about the question of baptism. Some in the church he was attending thought it was necessary; others didn't. He was confused. At the time, he was smoking, and thought, `This isn't right,' and threw the cigarettes over the bridge into the river. He then said a prayer that if there was a true church that he be led to it. The next day, two young men came into his store - an Elder Vernon Montgomery . . . and an Elder Harris.

"Over time, my parents met with the missionaries and read the Book of Mormon. On finishing it, my mother said, `This book was not written by a man.' On September 18, 1949, they were baptized . . . ."

Dio Freeze's testimony grew. He was called to serve as a stake missionary and later as district president of the missionaries in Calgary. He served in many different positions until his death in 1991. His grandchildren are now serving missions and attending BYU.