Baatarchuluun Tumurbaatar

“My father was taken ill in 1985. (I was born in Khovd in 1980 and came to the city in 1985). The following 17 years he was disabled, and all our life burdens fell on mother’s shoulder. I was 12 and the country was transitioning from Socialism to democratic society in the 1990s. As the eldest son in the family with two older sisters and one younger brother, I was responsible for providing. Hence, I stood in a long queue like big brothers do to get a loaf of bread and other essentials on the ration card per household, and it was tough and arduous at times when whole crowd would fight for food. My father used to empathize with me and encouraged me saying I could get over it.

When I was 12-17 years old, I used to help my mother to sell fried dumplings: we prepared them together during the day and at night I did my studies and homework. There was lot of labor in my childhood and frankly speaking, I had hardly any play time like other children. I had to work hard and dedicate my time fully to help my parents. Later, I went into physical labor such as unloading wagons, etc. As I started working at an early age, I had money in my pocket from the dumpling sales. Looking back, I realized the greatest value I inherited from my parents is habit of hard work and honesty.”

“My father passed away in January 2001. This was the hardest time in my life. I was very lonely, asking myself important questions of life. As my father died, there was no one who could pay my tuition fee. In Mongolia, parents pay for their children’s school and youth lack possibilities to resolve their tuition issues on their own, unlike in some foreign countries.

So, I dropped out of school and two to three months later I met a high school friend Byanbadrakh who took me to an international education fair for a company and then to “a place that sends its members to America,” advising me to respond positively with a “yes” answer to all of their questions, so that I could go to the US within a year. I was excited to hear about this opportunity after going without anything to pursue and decided to join the church right there.

The following week, two missionaries came to teach lessons, and I was full of desire to become a member. I was baptized quickly only after fourteen days. As the friend suggested, I answered yes to every question the missionaries asked. So, I joined the church at a peak of excitement and now started blending in the community and had a new pursuit.

Four months later, I received a call from the bishop of the Songino branch to be the 1st counselor. Later that day I asked myself questions such as why I was going to church for the first time. I knelt and asked for myself if the church was true or if the Book of Mormon was true, and the Holy Spirit revealed to me the testimony that they were true. From then on, my thought of going to America vanished, or in other words, my perspective on the church changed, and I served my calling wholeheartedly.”