Elder Cook Elder Cook opened this year's conference on a spiritual note by discussing the significance of the Perpetual Education Fund. This program, developed by the Church, will help returned missionaries from 3rd world countries get on their feet There are so many that are in need and have absolutely no hope of economic progression without this program. Many of these young adults leave the Church after serving faithful missions because they lose faith and cannot support their families. It has been said that a religion which cannot improve a man's situation in this life probably won't be of much help in the next. See D&C 104:15-17; 38:25-27; 81:5. Elder Cook also explained the logistics of the program. Loans will be made to active returned missionaries for technical and vocational training. They must work closely with priesthood leaders to ensure satisfactory progress. All loans will be paid back with 3% interest once secure employment is found. The Church wishes to establish the principle of self-reliance among these faithful young people. We can no longer ignore the fact that this is a worldwide church. There are people from very tight circumstances and cannot break the cycle of poverty without need our help. Sister Cook, Elder Cook's wife, encouraged Founders to help the kingdom grow by contributing to the fund. For it is the entrepreneurial spirit which will make this program blossom to its full potential. Finally, Elder Cook spoke of the great need for missionary couples in the Church. He emphasized the fact that it's nice to be a Stake President or a General Authority, but it's even better to be a missionary. Mike Schlappi Mike Schlappi shared several words of encouragement and motivation at the conference. He reminded us to never give up and that all motivation is self-motivated. Good habits will always point us in the direction we want to go and if we're at rock bottom we'll have nowhere to go but up. He also gave some guidelines to focus on to help us. You can learn more about Mike by clicking here. Find a passion 1. Something to do. 2. Someone to love. 3. Something to look forward to. Service 1. If you are at war with yourself, it's hard to be at peace with others. 2. If you help other people get what they want, you will get what you want. Goals 1. If you don't know where you are going, you won't know how to get there. 2. Bad days are OK, bad weeks are not. Don't let a bad day turn into a bad week. 3. To improve yourself, be a better person. 4. Take responsibilit for your attitude. Stuart Farmer Farmer, a BYU student, used his entrepreneurial skills to help the victims of the World Trade Center tragedy. He organized an outdoor movie activity which was held on BYU campus. The event raised over $2600 and some 1800 people came to watch Princess Bride on the BYU track. The amazing thing is that the event was advertised for only ONE DAY prior to the showing of the movie. All the profits were given to the Red Cross. Farmer hopes to start a traveling movie company. The idea is very European and should catch on well in rural America. PHOTOS!!! Click here to check out some great action shots of the conference. You never know, you might be in here!