The sight was a little unconventional for modern American teens. Still, it had purpose.

Dozens of youth gathered at their stake center pavilion for a Dutch oven dinner, the singing of pioneer anthems and, of course, square dancing.

"Join hands and circle to the left," yelled the caller.

The teens responded, laughing as they awkwardly attempted the movements.

"Do-si-do. Allemande left. Promenade."

Youth leaders joined in.

"Everyone to the center with a whoop and a holler!"

It was obvious that participants were having a good time, the old-fashioned way. But fun wasn't the sole purpose of the event.

It was one of a dozen activities staged since January to prepare the teens for a trek up Rocky Ridge — the site in Wyoming where 15 members of the Willie Handcart Company died in 1856 while traveling to join early Church members in the Salt Lake Valley.

Square dancing, Dutch oven cooking and singing pioneer songs were just a few ways stake leaders hoped that the youth would connect with their pioneer legacy.

Why? It wasn't because all the youth were direct descendants of early Church pioneers. In fact, many were not.

It wasn't because square dancing is a wholesome recreation that would provide an evening of fun for the young people, even though it did.

And it wasn't because taking the youth on a trek was an easy thing to do. Quite the contrary, the countless hours by dozens of stake members represented a Herculean effort.

In reality it was something much simpler: Stake leaders knew the experiences — the lives of the members of the Willie Handcart Company — are a blueprint for the lives of youth today.

The pioneers were united. They used tenacity and faith and patience. They dealt with trials and moved forward. They anchored their beliefs with a firm and unwavering testimony of their Savior Jesus Christ and the Church He established on the earth.

Like Levi Savage, born March 23, 1820, they were loyal. He didn't want to leave Winter Quarters so late in the season. But when he was rebuked by other elders in the Church he pledged his allegiance: "Brethren and sisters, what I have said I know to be true; but seeing you are to go forward, I will go with you, will help you all I can, will work with you, will rest with you, will suffer with you, and if necessary I will die with you" (LeRoy R. Hafen and Ann W. Hafen, Handcarts to Zion [1960], 96–97).

Like Ann Jewell Rowley, who was left a widow with seven children under 12, they had faith. "I had a very real job to do," she wrote. "The children had to be fed and clothed, but the big task and the one I must accomplish, is to get us all to Zion. I must be among the people of my faith and I must get the temple work done for us." (Autobiography of Ann Jewell Rowley).

Like Jens Neilson, a prosperous Danish farmer, they were obedient. Jens could have obtained wagons, and horses to travel west. But instead, he followed the counsel of Church leaders and came by handcart, using the extra money to provide a way for others who did not have the means to make the journey.

And like Jens' wife, Elsie, they had charity and determination. During the 1856 trek along Rocky Ridge, Jens' feet became so swollen he could not walk another step. When Jens asked Elsie to leave him behind and save herself she replied, "Ride. I can't leave you, I can pull the cart" (Elder M. Russell Ballard, October 1996 general conference).

Like the square-dancing youth, all Church members today can learn valuable lessons from the pioneers' lives and sacrifices.?"We cannot add to their glory," said President Gordon B. Hinckley during an October 1997 general conference address. "We can only look back with reverence, appreciation, respect and resolution to build on what they have done. The time has now come to turn about and face the future. This is a season of a thousand opportunities. It is ours to grasp and move forward. What a wonderful time it is for each of us to do his or her small part in moving the work of the Lord on to its magnificent destiny."

As the Church approaches the anniversary of the original Mormon Pioneers entering the Salt Lake Valley this July 24, we can best remember the pioneers with our own faith and courage and determination.

"We honor those who endured such incredible hardships," said President Thomas S. Monson during the 1997 Young Women General Meeting. "We praise their names and reflect on their sacrifices."

However, he continued, "the question remains: What about our time? Are there pioneering experiences for us? Will future generations reflect with gratitude on our efforts, our examples?"

He told the Latter-day Saint teens worldwide that they can, indeed, "be pioneers in courage, in faith, in charity, in determination."

"I hope you young people realize the strength and the power of your testimonies," President Monson said.

Maybe that's why stakes worldwide participate in trek re-enactments every year.

On the 1856 journey westward, members of the Willie Handcart Company became acquainted with their Heavenly Father and His Son.

As youth of a modern stake do-si-doed, allemanded, promenaded and whooped and hollered, stake leaders hoped the pioneer blueprint would be copied on their hearts and souls, that they would realize that Heavenly Father and His Son will — as They were for the handcart pioneers — be with them during their own journeys.