LDS missionaries get opportunity for special service for BYU-SMU football game
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- Missionaries from the Dallas South Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints talk to former BYU players Robbie Bosco and Chad Lewis before the BYU football game against SMU at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024.
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- Missionaries from the Dallas South Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sit in the stands before the BYU football game against SMU at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024.
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- Missionaries from the Dallas South Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sing the national anthem before the BYU football game against SMU at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024.
Scott Tanner of Fruit Heights is the president of the Dallas South Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and found a unique opportunity for those under his charge.
It involved the BYU-SMU football game at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas on Friday evening.
“There’s a member of the Church who works with the athletic department staff at SMU and so the opportunity to come to the game presented itself,” Tanner said Friday afternoon before the game. “We said, ‘well, we want to do this if we can sing and participate with service. The game is going to be great. It’s such a great opportunity, but we wanted to be able to do more, so they invited us to sing at halftime, which is so cool.”
The missionaries took the field during the intermission to sing America the Beautiful, but that was just a small part of the effort made by the group.
“We focused on doing service Thursday, Friday and Saturday,” Tanner said. “We aren’t doing it on campus, but we are working with the Salvation Army and other non-profit organizations.”
He said the goal is to benefit the Dallas community.
“Our goal is to shine our light in the community, show that we’re part of the community and we love our country and we love all people,” Tanner said. “It’s a really great opportunity for us.”
The missionaries found out they would be coming to the game a couple of weeks ago and Tanner said there was a noticeable buzz.
“They are loving it,” Tanner said. “They’ve been so helpful and excited and cooperative. Like many service things that we do, we are not actively proselytizing. The only thing we are doing in this setting is letting our light shine. So we are doing everything we can to do that. We want to show our love for Jesus Christ through our behavior.”
He smiled as he talked about the trust he has in the missionaries to achieve that goal while not getting distracted by being at the sporting event.
“They’re really excellent young adults, and they have not disappointed me at all,” Tanner said. “They have just been really doing a great job of letting their light shine, putting on their very best foot forward. I have total confidence in them.”
With the elders decked out in their trademark white shirts and ties, and the sisters in dresses, the block of representatives from the mission stood out from their position in the upper corner of the stadium.
Not only did many BYU fans make their way over to say hello but the group had a visit from former Cougar stars Chad Lewis and Robbie Bosco, both of whom now work for BYU.
Tanner said that he saw another mission president at the game who said that his missionaries are representing all missionaries, that what they did would impact everyone watching the game.
“We hope that is the case, that we are being good representatives of Jesus Christ,” Tanner said.
He wants the missionaries to see this experience as a chance to be their best and show the area who they are.
“I want people to see us and know that we’re just part of the community,” Tanner said. “We’re not strange. We’re not a cult. We’re part of the community. We love Jesus Christ, and we try to show that in how we act towards other people.”
