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President Smith was the president of the Fiji Suva Mission from 1981 to 1984.
When I was called to be a mission president I assumed that I would go to my former New Zealand mission or to Hawaii
where my former missionary companion was being released. I was disappointed when told that we had been called to Fiji.
But I found that being in that mission turned out to be a great privilege, to learn about Melanesians, Indians, and
Tahitians (in New Caledonia) to add to the experiences I had had with Polynesians in New Zealand and Hawaii.
It was also special to be something of a pioneer in a mission not too well known about in the church.
Fiji Suva Mission Geography, 1981
It was a big mission, covering the Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Vanuatu, Guadalcanal, Nauru, New Caledonia,
and islands in between. In 1981 a new mission In Guam was established, and Kiribati was put in that mission,
so we didn't ever get there. But the mission president from Guam had to come to Fiji to get to Kiribati,
so when our mission was over Kiribati was returned to the Fiji Suva Mission.
We found no Mormons in Guadalcanal. We learned that our church had failed to declare a presence there when it became
an independent country, so we were not accepted as a church.
There were a few members on Nauru, but it was hard to get there.
Shortly after we arrived in the mission the government of Vanuatu expelled all Mormon missionaries in its effort
to do away with foreign influences, but the branch there continued to grow. Missionaries were not allowed to return
until after our mission was over. Yet we ordained local elders, and they held the branch together.
In Fiji we established a new branch in Labasa, and we organized the first stake in the mission in Suva with
Inosi Naga as president.
We had great difficulty getting expatriate missionaries. We were told that we had a quota of six,
but we couldn't find any record to prove it. We had to struggle with the government to get non-local missionaries,
largely because of opposition from other churches. We did manage to get the first patriarch in the history of the mission,
Elder E. A. Strong, and we did call the first local couple, the Maiwiris, to be missionaries.
We did have friends in the government. The Prime Minister, Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, accepted my invitation to give a
fourth of July speech at our Suva First Ward.
In New Caledonia we opened Lifou Island to missionary work in spite of great opposition by other churches.
We also managed to get the government to remove quota restrictions on French citizen missionaries and to double the
quota of non-French missionaries.
Cyclones
Among our most memorable experiences in Fiji were the recurring cyclones. Perhaps Cyclone Oscar in March 1 and 2, 1983
was the worst we saw. It did $100,000,000 damage. Flood waters ran through the main street of Nadi, and 600 hectares of
pine trees that had been planted south of Nadi were destroyed. One of our missionaries came close to dying from drinking
contaminated water. Over 100,000 people lost their means of livelihood and depended on the government for food.
I called the Church headquarters in Salt Lake city to tell them that all of our missionaries and church members were
safe and was asked why anyone should think they wouldn't be (they hadn't heard yet).
Ruth's description of Cyclone Oscar, written in a letter to our family on March 14, 1983, follows:
You probably have not heard because we are such a small portion of the world, but we
have had a terrible cyclone blow us nearly off the island.
As we drove down the south coast this last week with a load of clothes and bedding for the saints who lost their homes
and belongings, the whole area reminded us of the "Land of Desolation," and Wilf said it looked like a war zone.
The cyclone really smacked into Nadi where the international airport is and knocked out all communications in and out
of Nadi. So the international flights were not able to land in Fiji. Hence they were diverted to Australia or
New Zealand. Some of our members are homeless--lost everything except the clothes they had on their backs.
Luckily we lost no lives among our members, but nine people died.
Last week the Assistants drove the van over to the west with clothes and food donated by the saints in Suva.
Our elders were safe but shaken because of the nightmare. The area in Nadi was without water and lights for over a week.
They had to walk to wells to get water, and it was contaminated. The city of Nadi had over four feet of water
flooding the area. We found one elder sick with a high fever and vomiting, so we promptly took him to Lautoka Hospital
where they had water and lights. He is out of the hospital now and they do have water, but they have to boil it.
We brought the elders and the couple from Nadi to Suva to get them out of the mess.
It has been especially hard on the couple, the Andersens, and the boy who got sick who is a Canadian.
The gorgeous hotel we stay in is nothing but shambles-- looked just like a couple of big bombs had hit it.
The whole south coast of Viti Levu was a land of desolation--poles snapped like twigs, uprooted huge trees and those
left standing with their leaves shredded or denuded, the palm trees looked so sad with their long graceful boughs hanging
down dead from the wind, houses and shacks blown to bits, bures toppled, tin roofing strewn everywhere along with debris
of every kind. Houses, churches, schools ravaged, and mud everywhere in the low lying areas.
Roads were blocked with fallen trees and debris, bridges were closed with up to nine feet of water covering them.
As we lay in our bed trying to get some rest during the nights we decided that we were lucky in that it wasn't
snow and a blizzard.
Lifou Opened
On August 2nd two of our top missionaries opened the Lifou Island of New Caledonia to missionary work.
Both of these men are in their late twenties, one a Frenchman (Jean Luc Butel) and the other a Melanesian (Henry Bone),
and they are just right for the great assignment. They are both big and strong, and they are both full of faith and zeal.
The messages I just received from them are excellent, enough to bring tears to our eyes. The big rough Melanesian whose
arms are as big and strong as trees said, "We do work hard so Heavenly Father will bless us with bringing his children
in this true church., The Lord has prepared our path. I can't express with words the happiness which is in my heart,
for Heavenly Father, for his true gospel, which changes the life of men who want to follow him." He knows because
that is just what happened to him. It is wonderful, and it humbles us to be part of it. We have problems, but we
also see greatness all around us.
Maiwiriwiris Called in Fiji
For the first time in the history of the mission we were able to get a native couple on a mission, the Maiwiriwiris.
The wife had been head house keeper of a major hotel in town, and the husband was a detective. They were highly respected,
and they were able to get many inactive members to become active, and they had numerous baptisms. Mature couple
missionaries were very valuable, and a respected native couple was very very effective.
We saw steady growth of the church throughout the mission, and we dedicated three new chapels: Tontouta, Nadi, and Nasinu.
Getting to know the Saints and having a great association with our missionaries made our mission experience a wonderful
part of or lives. May I take this opportunity to say how grateful we are for having had the opportunity to know the
people of the Fiji Suva Mission, members and missionaries. May I repeat what I often told our missionaries. There are
no racial or class distinctions in the priesthood. An elder is an elder no matter what his race or wealth is.
Priesthood standards and blessings are the same for all worthy priesthood bearers and for all worthy women. Associating
with worthy members of the church in the Fiji Suva Mission confirmed my understanding of this fact. The restored
gospel makes very clear the great worth of every human being, and members who live their religion are a blessing to the
world.