'La primera misonera' calls gospel her life
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SANTIAGO, Chile — Julia Gonzales Rossel, a member of the Church here for 43 years, proudly calls herself "la primera misonera" — one of the first four Chilean sisters to serve as a missionary.
She served in Argentina for two years beginning in 1967, five years after her baptism at age 16. She did not receive her temple endowment before serving, as no temple existed in South America at the time.
Her baptism on Feb. 12, 1962, occurred in the midst of heart problems that required her to be hospitalized. Missionaries continued to teach her in the hospital. One day as she lay in her bed with no hope of going home, she prayed, "Heavenly Father, if what these missionaries say is true, then get me out of here and I will be baptized."
Moments later, a doctor entered the room and told her she could go home. Still confined to bed at home, she was again visited by missionaries, who invited her to be baptized the following Saturday. She accepted their challenge. Her father at first resisted the idea, feeling she was too ill, but relented after sensing Julia's determination. He told her she would not be allowed to be baptized alone, and insisted that two of her sisters be baptized also. A month later, her parents and a third sister were also baptized. A fourth sister was not yet 8 years old.
Soon afterwards, the parents of an American missionary arranged for Julia to travel to Salt Lake City to prepare for heart surgery under the hands of Dr. Russell M. Nelson, now of the Quorum of the Twelve. The young woman was understandably nervous, but Dr. Nelson promised Julia she would return home to Chile alive. Julia stayed in Salt Lake City 10 months, first receiving treatment that could possibly avoid heart surgery, to no avail. The surgery was at last performed. Julia remained in Salt Lake City for several more weeks, picking up English and meeting Hispanic families.
She met her future husband, Antonio Rossel, at an arts center in Santiago two years after she returned from her mission. They were married in 1973, and Antonio was baptized into the Church three years later. In 1976, they and their two young children visited Utah and were sealed in the Provo Utah Temple.
The family attended the dedication of the Santiago Chile Temple together in 1983 and look forward to being at the rededication of the temple on March 12. She served as an ordinance worker before the temple was closed for renovation.
A professional caterer who serves large dinners for missionaries as well as other clients, Sister Rossel is the Primary president in the Esquina Blanca Ward, Santiago Chile Maipu Stake. Her husband served as bishop for eight years. Their son and daughter both served missions, in Argentina and Uruguay, and remain active in the Church with their own families. Ask Julia Gonzales de Rossel what the gospel means to her, and she says simply, "Mi vida" or "my life."
