History of Young Women Theme
 

This information was given by Sister Ann Seamons, who served on the YW General Board for nine years and served with Sister Ardeth G. Kapp. She was also one the ten women involved in the creation of the values

"When Elaine Cannon was released and Sister Kapp was put in as General President of the Young Women, she didn't know what the Lord wanted her to do. She spent months on her knees begging for direction, many, many, hours agonizing and pleading for guidance. It was two months before she had counselors and five months before the board was in place. Shortly thereafter, they were asked to come to an all day retreat. They were to come fasting, bring their scriptures, and choose their favorite scripture to share, They were told to plan on being there eight or nine hours.

There were ten women present from all walks of life. Single, married, younger, older, no children, lots of children, working women, stay-at-home moms. They shared their scriptures. Three of the ten had the same scripture. (D&C l23:ll-l7) Then they had an open discussion.
After nine hours of praying, discussing, and scripture reading, on the board they had:

Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice & Accountability, Good Works, and Integrity.

They sat and stared and wept as it was witnessed to each of them, individually and collectively, "This is what my young women need to come home to me. This is what will help them live my teachings and keep their covenants." These seven "things" didn't have a name. They weren't called values until later. There was some discussion about "obedience" and "honesty" being included in the list. Each of the seven board members took the next six months and totally researched one of the values. They searched for every scripture, talk and article on the subject.

Over the course of the next nine months, piece by piece, the personal progress program was developed. It was made known to the board that it was to replace the existing program.

Sister Kapp was invited to the Priesthood Executive Council meeting with all of the general authorities. It was the first time in the history of the church that a woman was invited. (They now attend once a month).

Sister Kapp presented the values to the First Presidency. She said the first three values have to do with their identity. The next four, their direction. They are in order. The first value is the same as the first principle of the gospel, "Faith". You can't do anything in this life if you don't have faith in Jesus Christ and His plan. All that we do is predicated on faith in the Savior. Once you understand that, you can better comprehend "Divine Nature", that you really are a child of God.  Then you are prepared to grasp your "Individual Worth" and once you have your identity, you are ready to receive direction. You are prepared to cultivate "Knowledge". The more you know, the more "Accountable" you are for every "Choice" you make. Then you are ready to nurture others, build the kingdom, and bless the lives of others through "Good Works". Finally, when you live what you know, you have "Integrity".

I asked what the reaction of the First Presidency was. She said, "They were thrilled!".

Divine direction was received in pieces. During the many months that the work was being done on the Personal progress program, the general board would send the information to the Correlation Committee of the church for approval. It was returned to them many times for revisions. They wrote and rewrote....every single word of the Personal Progress Book has been approved.

The values were introduced at the first satellite broadcast for young women in l984."

Another point Sister Allred made and explained so well was the Young Women in Excellence program.

She said, "The Young Women in Excellence program is an incredible tool.

At the beginning of the year, each young woman should choose a value and immerse herself in it. The question should not be, "What do I want to do?" but "What do I want to become?"

Then if she chooses faith, she'll study faith, she'll pray about faith, she will collect stories and articles about faith, maybe she'll write poetry about faith, she may go interview the Stake President about Faith, she'll get a computer printout of every scripture that has the word faith in it, and by the end of the year, she will have become a young woman of EXCELLENT faith.

Then she will complete a project, to express her understanding of the value she has chosen. The focus won't be the project. The focus is the Value. The project is only a symbol of what she has "become".

I have been serving in this position now for almost three years and I haven't found a greater tool in training ward leaders and teaching young women and their parents the true purpose of Personal Progress and how inspired the program is!

When I spoke to Sister Allred, asking for permission, she e-mailed me a message that I'd also like to share with you. This is a portion of that message:

"Before I was called as president in my ward, I served as a counselor in our stake. We visited all ten ward's YWIE programs. Each time I went, I would come home and think, "Well, that was a lovely talent show, but how does what I just saw fit in with what the handbook says?" I knew there was more. I knew that there was something missing.

The "Value Immersion" Concept came to me exactly as Sister Seamons described the value story. After much agonizing, pleading, and begging for direction. It came in pieces. The Holy Ghost wrote that talk. Not me. .... I was just the instrument. I had girls who were ready for meat. They had been fed milk long enough. The ones who caught the vision experienced
unbelievable growth. It still took awhile for the rest to catch on. But by my last YWIE program, I walked through the cultural hall and wept. Their projects were beautiful and simple and so meaningful.."

I too have felt what Sister Allred has expressed. I want our young women to stretch and grow!!!! I want them to have a greater understanding of what Heavenly Father expects of them. I want them to "become" true daughters of God in every sense of the word. We are still working on this in our stake and I'm sure many of you are working towards this also. I'm very grateful for women like Sister Kapp, Sister Seamons, and Sister Allred who lead the
way for all of us through inspiration and I'm grateful to our Heavenly Father for giving us such a wonderful tool to work with. Personal Progress is a something we can use for the rest of our lives!!!!"