BYU Hawaii Graduation

On Friday, December 17, we drove to the PCC/BYU Hawaii campus and saw a line of tents set up, selling items. We realized that it was for BYUH graduation. Elder Tom Perry from the council of the twelve apostles, was the guest speaker. What a dynamic man he is! His talk focused on the experience that he had as a marine close to the end of WWII. There were quite a few LDS men who were with him on the island of Saipan but many of the men didn't attend church or follow the teachings. Elder Perry and a former missionary companion of his decided to build a chapel to replace the tent that they had been using. As the men heard of this, they all came together to serve in the project of building the chapel. Truckloads of men came at the end of the days after their duties. A miracle happened! These bearers of the priesthood, as they worked and served together, had their testimonies strengthened and their relationships built. They finished the chapel as the war ended and only had one service there. But the purpose of the project had been accomplished!
After graduation, the graduates are given leis (many of them from those tents that we had seen)