We received this email from a member in Caroline's previous ward. As her sister, I read it and knew exactly that they were talking about the Caroline I know. You may recognize some of these attributes in her too.
If you have something nice to say about a missionary in your ward, or stake - let their families know. It was so nice to hear how Caroline is doing from someone who is there with her.
Dear parents of Sister Faulkner (I still don't know her first name!),
I wanted to tell you how impressed I was with your daughter and her service in Moses Lake 10th Ward. I was one of the fortunate ones who got to know and work with your daughter. I wanted to tell you a little bit about her time here and the impression she left.
When she first arrived in Moses Lake, she was ready to go. I have never seen a missionary as excited and fearless as she was. I have seen plenty of excited missionaries, but none as comfortable as your daughter in relating and talking to complete strangers about the Gospel. I know that at first, her brand of humor slightly worried her dear companion. My first night out with them happened to be near Christmas time and my neighbors' houses were decorated festively. After leaving my home and walking out into the street with them to knock on a neighbor's door down the street, I heard your daughter say quietly to her companion in all seriousness, "Ugh! That guy is still over there and he won't stop staring at us." I looked up to see who she was talking about. The only "person" around was a lighted, giant, blow up toy soldier on the neighbor's lawn with his facial expression stuck in a smile. Before I could chuckle, I heard Sister McMurtrey sigh and say, "We talked about this Sister Faulkner. You can't be weird in front of the investigators." But then Sister McMurtrey laughed and I realized it was the first time I heard her actually laugh since she had been in Moses Lake. I think your daughter was a breath of fresh air for her dear companion and it seemed to me, their work became a little more enjoyable because of your daughter. She has a real talent for relating to people and letting them see that faithful followers of Christ can have personalities too.
I also appreciated your daughter's ability to balance the funny with the sincere. In fact, what I most admired about her was her knowledge of the scriptures and gospel principles. If not for this, I probably would not have been impressed to write to you. I wish I had a real example of this, but I don't. All I can say is that in lessons, street contacts, and church meetings, your daughter could always be counted upon to give an on point example from the scriptures or explain a difficult principle in easy to understand terms. And she did so with excitement and real testimony. It was a real honor to be with a missionary that emanated her beliefs as she spoke. She was never stale. I felt the Spirit so many times as I heard her speak and I know investigators did too.
Thank you for raising such a good girl. She is really making a difference in Washington and I hope the people in Walla Walla know how good they have it!
Sincerely,
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I have chosen to keep this person anonymous until I receive an okay from them.
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