President’s LetterYOUR DONATIONS MAKE A DIFFERENCE • WINTER 2013

P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S AG E

E N D OW M E N T G OA L G R OW I N G E N R O L L M E N T

By President J. Lawrence Richards

It’s amazing how many young people at LDS Business College say “I don’t know why I’m

here.” They think they came because we are small and have the Church influence. These qualities may have enticed them through the front door, but then they find something totally

different. They learn that the Lord brought them here for a specific purpose.

The Lord has His hand in drawing clear dis-tinctions between the four Church universities and college—what they do, who they serve, and how they serve. He then brings individuals to

the appropriate institution, one by one—just as He ministered on earth—based on their capa-bilities and potential covenants made before coming to mortality.

He brings them to develop skills, chipping

Polishing the diamonds in the rough

The goal is to fund more than 1,700 scholarships for a year. The college currently provides a little more than 1,600 scholarships. Please see graphic on the back page.

More than 2,200 students registered for winter semester, one of the greatest enrollments on record.

L D S B U S I N E S S C O L L E G E

Continued on page 2

off the rough edges and polishing them until they “become a smooth shaft in the quiver of the Almighty,” as Joseph Smith said.

The brilliance of the college’s history comes from the stories of these diamonds in the rough. Many of our students aren’t really sure who they are or what they can do. They don’t see their own potential brilliance. Our donors provide the financial means so this precious polishing pro-cess can take place.

One of these diamonds was a student who came from eastern Utah. Because of previous life and educational experiences she lacked con-fidence that she could be successful at college. With faith and a desire to improve her life, she enrolled in our entrepreneurship program.

She was very shy and sat well fortified in the distant back corner of her business class where she hoped to not be called upon. She didn’t do anything to draw attention. The instructor noticed her reticence and approached her qui-etly. After hearing her story, he promised that he would stay with her and that they would suc-ceed together. She ended the class with a confi-dence-building A–.

On another occasion, a part-time faculty member encouraged her to get involved. She told him an idea she harbored about packaging a pancake mix from her grandfather’s recipe. It had proven successful years before, but because of various difficulties the mix was no longer produced.

As she worked through the program she began producing the mix by overcoming obsta-cles with new confidence and knowledge.

Today, she is a very different person—confi-dent, self-assured, gregarious— prepared now to adequately provide for her three children as a single mother.

She came here penniless. She couldn’t afford an education. Her miraculous transformation took place because someone reached into their wallet and gave from the heart. This is not about a pancake mix but about empowering a life.

We had a similar experience with a young man whose wife was gluten intolerant. He began creating gluten-free recipes and was encouraged to start an online subscription. Companies that made gluten-free products began sending him products to test and eval-uate. He now has a thriving business and was recently ranked 15th of 25 top entrepreneurs in

Utah in a contest of young entrepreneurs spon-sored by the University of Utah.

He wouldn’t be there were it not for donor assistance. Our donors are the key to polishing diamonds and unlocking dreams.

We say to a student, “Come here and we will help you discover your gifts and talents. Then we will add practical skills and teach you how to tell your story.”

To do that we take what the market needs and develop students with résumés, capabilities, and skills to compete. We are about building self- reliant people and then families who, in turn, can strengthen communities and the Lord’s Church.

We figure we are “tweeners.” We’re between youth who need to become self-reliant and capable and a marketplace looking for skilled employees with the character traits reflected in the 13th Article of Faith.

So we stand in between and say, “Bring the character traits you’ve developed, and we’ll add the skills needed in the marketplace.”

However, we cannot perform that tweener function without the blessing of donors who share that same vision.

Nearly 90 percent of our students get jobs upon graduation. The field they graduate in is not as important as becoming lifelong learners capable of being promoted. They’re likely to have a half-dozen careers in their lives. Their technical skills need to adjust; their characters need to remain constant.

Those character traits taught in the Church programs and reinforced at the college will help them have a disproportionate impact for good in the marketplace. It will bring distinction to the

Church and distinction to their communities and put them in a position to build the king-dom. We need help to do that.

Why do businesses invest huge amounts of money to educate their employees? They want and need employees who can think, commu-nicate, solve problems, work in teams, and are skilled in their chosen fields.

This college is poised to help address these needs through teaching practical skills by those who are performing those skills everyday in the market. With few exceptions our faculty is comprised of practicing professionals in their fields. Our curriculum constantly adapts to mar-ket needs through many touch points, including academic program advisory boards made up of industry leaders in the community. We recently started our first business training program in mediation for practicing professionals.

In this way, we are fulfilling the charge given to us by President Gordon B. Hinckley when LDSBC moved to the Triad Center. He directed us to then “contribute to the vitality of the down-town business district.”

Continued from the front cover

P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S AG E

Polishing the diamondsin the roughFOR STUDENTS, ALUMNI, AND DONORS

We say to a student,

“Come here and we will teach

you skills because good jobs

are waiting to be filled.”

Many of our students aren’t

really sure who they are, or

what they can do. . . . Our donors

provide the financial means so

this precious polishing process

can take place.

A B O U T T H E C OV E R Dan Carter, front center, Adrienne Lauaki, Neal Hooper, and Megan Boone are representative of the 2,200 stu-dents who come to LDS Business College with potential and desire and then thrive under the tutelage of expert instructors and a wholesome learning environment. LDS Business College has taken on a prominent role in preparing many of the Church’s youth and adults to compete in a changing workforce.

Our StoriesDONORS FUND A RECORD NUMBER OF SCHOLARSHIPS

MATTHEW BITTER

There were times when Matthew Bitter would be marching with his high school band around

the football field with his tenor saxophone when he’d suddenly, with no apparent reason, fall into a deep sleep. He’d wake up a little later not remem-bering where he was or how he got there.

“It’s the most odd sensation,” Matthew said.The problem of instantly falling asleep plagued

him all his life. He’d retire early, but still fell asleep in class.

“School was tough for me,” he recalled.

DANgEROUS MOMENTSWork was difficult—and sometimes dangerous.

After his mission to Oregon, while working at a cabinet-making shop, he would nod off at a table saw.

It wasn’t until May of 2011 that he was diag-nosed with narcolepsy, a sleeping disorder char-acterized by an extreme tendency to fall asleep quickly.

He wondered who would hire such an employee and pondered what to do. A project in a business class spurred an idea. He decided to make and market neckties.

EARLy SUCCESSMatthew sold his first ties the very day they were

modeled. He felt he was onto something. His grandmother gave him the run of the basement to set up shop.

She bought the fabric and loaned him the sew-ing machine. He soon had fabric stretching from wall to wall.

Since May 2012 he’s sold about 100 ties at an average of $45 a piece.

Following the completion of his business pro-gram in two semesters he plans to earn a master’s degree in business.

“I like the spirit of LDSBC,” he said. “The men-toring I received here, which I doubt I’d receive anywhere else, has been invaluable.”

IRINA KABDYGALIYEVA

In her young life Irina Kabdygaliyeva has lived in three countries, learned to speak three languages,

and stood at the confluence of major events in Church history in Eastern Europe.

Despite being the major breadwinner in her home—and against seemingly insurmountable odds—Irina left her native Kazakhstan a year ago to come to Utah to study at LDS Business College.

“To get here was a miracle,” she said.Irina was born into a Muslim family in Uralsk,

Kazakhstan, but moved as a baby with her family to Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine, where they met the missionaries.

The family was baptized. Irina followed their example when she was eight years old in 1998, the same year the family was sealed in the Freiberg Germany Temple.

RETURNINg HOMEIrina felt at home in Ukraine and joined in

Church activities where her father served as branch president.

After several years her father felt his family should return to Kazakhstan, this time to the cap-ital city of Astana.

In time, Irina was called to serve in the Russia Rostov Mission. After, she wanted to study at BYU, but her dream lacked financial probability.

Her hope brightened, however, when a mem-ber suggested LDS Business College. After much prayer on Irina’s part, a former ward member offered to sponsor her.

Irina received a returned missionary scholar-ship the first semester. She now has a sophomore scholarship.

Irina has a reputation on campus as the friend of the friendless.

“I feel this school helped me find my way in life,” she said. “I didn’t know if I could do this when I arrived. I love this school. It is just right for me.”

AMRAM MUSUNGU

Amram Musungu ran everywhere as a child in Kenya. He ran seven miles in the morning to

school and then back that afternoon. Sometimes he ran home for lunch, even when he knew his mother didn’t have food.

He was 14 years old when he shook the hand of the first white man he’d ever met—a Mormon missionary who contributed to his conversion. Several years later he served a mission among his countrymen and Tanzanian neighbors. When he returned home from his mission, the family killed a chicken for a feast and granted him the honor of sitting on the lone wooden chair.

THE UNIMAgINABLEAmram had heard about LDS Business College

from missionary companions. In a leap of faith, he did the unimaginable by applying for a passport, then for acceptance to LDS Business College.

He arrived in Salt Lake City with $50 in his pocket and a knap sack with his scriptures. He landed a 20-hour a week custodial job at LDS Business College, to which he wore a dress shirt and tie.

BREAD AND ORANgESThese were simple days of surviving on bread

and oranges, he remembered.From the time LDS Business College opened

the doors in the morning until the lights were switched off at night, Amram was cracking the books.

He graduated in two years with three degrees and an accounting certificate.

“The instructors and staff at LDSBC planted good seeds in my heart. I commend LDSBC to anyone. Had I gone anywhere else I would have missed the best learning,” he said.

Today, he is earning a PhD, sings in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and is employed as an accountant. During the evenings he and his wife, Noelle, help African refugees in Salt Lake City.

Eileen Whiting: ‘They believe in me’Life changed in an instant that night in July

2008 when armed gunmen burst into our home in Johannesburg, South Africa. I sud-denly felt new desires for my life and family when I saw a gun pointed at the head of my teenage son.

I always had a testimony of the gospel. But to keep peace in a marriage with a nonmember who had strong feelings against the Church, I didn’t attend meetings for 30 years.

But after these four masked gunmen broke into our home with AK-47 assault rifles, I real-ized things had to change. These gunmen were trained, organized, and ruthless; they were not neighborhood gangs merely roving around.

That night I was home with my daughter Tammy and son Calvin. They forced us to sit on the couch. It tore me apart to see a gun held to the head of my son. Then two men grabbed me and demanded that I show them the main

bedroom. As we were going upstairs, I prayed so hard to Heavenly Father to keep my children safe. I felt an instant calm. I had sud-den confidence everything would be well. I felt like someone was with me, put-ting his arms around me.

The gunmen took what they wanted, which

Continued on back cover

Calvin and Eileen

Terry Wall makes you feel like you are the most

important person in his life. And, given his genuine nature, you probably are.

After 27 fun-filled years with LDS Philanthropies, he and his wife, Heidi, will close his

donor liaison book and begin a new phase of life by serving others while poolside in retirement.

Terrance Jon Wall started working with LDS Philanthropies in July 1986, serving first as regional director and then as major gift manager until his current assignment in Salt Lake City as the “all around good guy” working with LDS Business College.

Each January he would consider the coming year and the long list of needs that required funding and wonder if there would ever be enough resources.

Yet, each December, he would look back on the year with amazement at how the Lord of the harvest filled His storehouse by calling upon those willing to share.

He counts among his greatest blessings the opportunity to work with consecrated donors—people who know the purpose of life and the road to happiness.

He always found it a thrill to help students establish their lives, and, in the process, he came to trust in heaven’s guiding hand.

For Terry, life was meant to be lived by rising early and working late, with lots of happiness in between.

A fter working for 30 years in philanthropic causes,

Kerry Belnap has seen first-hand and up close the bless-ings of consecrated giving.

The sum total of his 19 years of experience working with LDS Philanthropies is

that everyone lives better when their lives are based on charitable giving.

As the newly appointed executive director of development for LDS Business College, Kerry comes with his personal connections to the college. His daughter is a professor of English, and, years ago as a student at the University of Utah, Kerry attended an LDS Business College ward.

His responsibilities include directing an LDS Philanthropies team that raises funds for LDS Church charities such as Humanitarian Services, the Perpetual Education Fund, the Temple Construction and Temple Patron Assistance Fund, the Missionary Fund, Church History, and LDS Business College.

“I like the unique mission of LDS Business College,” he said. “It does enlighten minds. It does elevate hope. It does ennoble souls, just as their mantra says. The administration is pro-gressive and personable, and the faculty is a list of experts.”

Much of Kerry’s indomitable spirit for chari-table giving stems from an experience he had as a teenager while visiting the Sacred Grove when he came to know the truth of the Restoration.

Our StoriesDONORS FUND A RECORD NUMBER OF SCHOLARSHIPS

Terry Wall leaves a legacy of goodwill as he retires

Banner year for Business College donations

Kerry Belnap has dedicated his life to charitable giving

C O N TACT I N FO R M AT I O N

Craig V. Nelson, VP of AdvancementLDS Business College95 North 300 WestSalt Lake City, UT 84101-3500cnelson@ldsbc.edu(801) 524-8103

Kerry BelnapLDS Philanthropies50 E North TempleJSMB 2ESalt Lake City, UT 84150-6911belnapkr@ldschurch.org(801) 240-6068

PUBLISHER: Craig V. NelsonMANAGING EDITOR: Kerry BelnapDESIGNER: Anthony PerezPHOTOGRAPHy: Mark Philbrick, Shaun Stahle

was mostly electronic things, and left us unharmed. That night, after everything calmed down, I knelt in prayer with an intensity I’d never felt before and thanked Heavenly Father by promising to make amends in my life, to set my life right—no matter the cost.

HORIzONS OF HOPEI don’t know if I understood then the depth of

all that I was committing to do and to endure, because soon after, my life fell apart. Everything went wrong. Just when I was at my end with frustration and despair, new problems vexed my optimism and hope, like the dissolution of my off-keel marriage.

But good gradually came. I felt calm and relieved to be out of my marriage.

A year later my sister suggested I study in America. I wanted to go, but I felt apprehen-sive. I would have to start a new life in a new country with new people who would detect my Queen’s English.

I was unaware of LDS Business College at the time, but while I was applying for BYU, an LDSBC prompt popped up on my com-puter screen. Miracles followed, my visa was approved, and I was accepted to LDSBC.

I was shocked but elated. I learned that the Lord guides us even though we don’t realize it.

The blessings never stopped. I now live in Utah County and attend LDS Business College. I received the Horizon of Hope Scholarship. This scholarship came when I was totally at a loss for what to do. I can never thank donors adequately enough. Continuing my studies without the anxiety of wondering where the next penny will come from is a major relief.

I know every single parent studying here is grateful for the financial help provided by gen-erous donors. I’m sure each is willing to make any sacrifice to improve the lives of our families.

Yet it would be impossible—absolutely impos-sible—without assistance. I could never fully express my gratitude. Words fail. Compassion from gracious donors has healed me.

I have a dream to help children. I love chil-dren. They bring immeasurable joy. I want chil-dren to feel Heavenly Father’s love.

There are children out there who need me. I know this.

I prayed to be in a place where I would be sur-rounded by members of the Church and where I could do whatever work the Lord had for me. Now I’m encompassed by righteous members.

My life has been blessed with many angels along the way. So many of them are at LDS Business College. They believe in me.

Continued from page 3

Eileen Whiting, center, poses with her family in South Africa. A scholarship for single mothers helped her accomplish what she could not do for herself.

2007

$377,671$435,653

$394,687

$685,156

$1,610,586

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

1,635 100%SCHOLARSHIPS wERE AwARDED

IN 2012

OF EvERy DONATION gOES TOwARD

SCHOLARSHIPS

74% OF MALE STUDENTS ARE RETURNED MISSIONARIES

32 SINgLE MOTHERS wERE AwARDED SCHOLARSHIPS

$1,341,116