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tice in order to do the job properly. In the early spring of 1982, Gordon
and several other people urged me to run for Lafayette City Council.
There were three vacancies. One incumbent was running for reelection
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government and had been a member of the Board of Fire Commission-
ers for Contra Costa County Fire District for a dozen years. The Fire
District operations had been interesting, but the job of a Commissioner
could be done in a couple of meetings per month. I went to see J. David
Billeter, who was our Stake President at the time and was also a neigh-
bor in Happy Valley. President Billeter urged me to run for the council.
He said that there was a need for more LDS people to participate in
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the Book of Mormon had given to his followers, “When ye are in the
service of your fellow men, you are only in the service of your God.”

I also have great reverence for the counsel we receive time to
time from the Prophet of the Lord. I shall always be guided by a marvel-
ously thought-provoking announcement, which was made by the First
Presidency and published in the Deseret News on September 7, 1968.
At that time David O. McKay was President of the Church and Hugh B.
Brown and Nathan E. Tanner were his Counselors. The statement reads
as follows:

“The First Presidency wish to bring to the attention of the mem-
bers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints their obligations
as members of the communities in which they live and as citizens of the
nation.

The historic position of the Church has been one which is con-
cerned with the quality of man’s contemporary environment as well as
preparing him for eternity. In fact, as social and political conditions af-
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The revelations in this dispensation place a sobering responsi-
bility on us as individuals in seeking out and supporting political can-
didates who are “wise,” “good” and “honest.” Likewise, the health of
our cities and communities is as genuine a concern now as it was in the
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