My daughter is going to girls camp soon, and the stake recently invited Al Fox Carraway to speak.  I have seen people post info about her on Facebook, but wasn’t really familiar with her.  It was interesting to hear her speak.  She is not your prototypical soft-spoken Mormon woman who speaks with a primary voice.  She was LOUD and INTERESTING for a wonderful change.  There are a few Mormons that are able to break the mold of speaking.  Since she is a convert, I guess she can get away with that.  It reminds me that when I was in the Missionary Training Center, our Residence Hall Manager was a dynamic speaker who was enrolled in a Catholic Seminary to become a priest when he converted to Mormonism.  He wasn’t your typical speaker either, and after I came home, Elder Carpenter came and told his conversion story in our stake (which I had obviously heard before.)

I think Sister Carraway would prefer to be called Al.  I like that she is not a typical Mormon, and that she can get away saying things that are very faith promoting, but would probably get shouted down in a regular Utah ward if she weren’t a convert.  I do think she benefits greatly (and gets away with some things) because she is a convert.  She truly has a tremendous faith in the Book of Mormon and in God that is to be quite admired.  It was also evident that she is well-rehearsed in giving her conversion story.  Below are some notes from her story.  The notes fail to capture her humor, her loudness, and her strong faith, although there are glimpses of it.  If you’re not familiar with her, this is a good intro to her conversion story, and her quite admirable faith.  Obviously the notes below aren’t full thoughts, but I think you can get a pretty good idea of what was said. Continue Reading »