Hi, I'm Brooke

I'm a southern girl at heart. I'm a wife, a stay-at-home mom of two, and I love chocolate. I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I graduated with a degree in elementary education and taught 3rd grade one year. I met and married my husband while in school. We decided to start a family shortly after I finished teaching and I'm lucky enough to stay home with them. I have two children who are 3 years old and 19 months. Life is busy and sometimes overwhelming, but it's an adventure worth taking.

Why I am a Mormon

I was raised a Mormon and I just always knew it was true. When I was 14 though, I went through something really terrible that rocked me to my core. I started to question my friends, my family, and everything I believed. It took me a few years to get settled in again. I was talking with my dad on the phone once I had gone away to college and he pointed out that the Atonement is for everyone; not just the sinner, but those hurt by the sinners' actions too. That was when it hit me. That was when I felt closer to my Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ than ever before. I said a really long and deep prayer after that, and that was when I really knew the church was true. I know God is aware of each of us and He knows our hearts, our desires, and our pains. Our Father in Heaven loves all of His children and I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior. It is through His atonement that all mankind may be saved.

Personal Stories

Please explain the part prayer plays in your life?

There's a special place in my heart for prayer. I pray every day for help. I have a strong testimony that not only does Heavenly Father command us to pray, but he actually listens to all of our prayers. Of the billions of people on Earth, he loves each of us enough to hear our prayers and to answer them. I have learned that He doesn't necessarily answer our prayers the way we always want Him to, but He does answer.

I bought my first car right before I met my husband and I remember walking out to my car right after I'd been handed the keys, and I thought to myself that I'd drive it until I had kids and it was time to get a minivan. I knew I wanted to get married and start a family relatively soon. Well last year, it came time to buy a minivan and my husband and I had been debating about which car to trade in. We went back and forth trying to decide and there were definite pros and cons to each. As I was driving home right before we were to leave and get our new minivan, that memory hit me like a ton of bricks. We had been praying to know which car we should turn in, and I knew in that instant that that was our answer. Heavenly Father knows us and knows our thoughts. He knew, in that moment, that bringing up that memory would speak to me. I had a feeling of peace and comfort and I knew that was what we should do.

We are commanded to pray over everything, from our families, to our jobs, and our lives. God doesn't care what kind of car I drive, but he cares enough about me to answer my prayers.

How I live my faith

I teach the 6-year-olds in Sunday School each week. We discuss basic points of doctrine like prayer and how to be like Jesus and follow His example. I hope they are learning to be good and kind and follow Christ's example. I think my favorite part of working with young children is singing time! I love the children's songs and I love watching and listening to how excited they get about certain ones.

What is the Relief Society?

Brooke answered...

I don't know what I would do without Relief Society! Aside from its spiritual purpose, to look after the women (and families) both inside and outside of the Church and to build faith, it's a place of fortification.

I know I can count on the women in Relief Society to be there when I need them. If I need help with anything, from caring for a sick child, to preparing an event, I know I will have help from the Relief Society. They're a great strength as well as an enormous well of knowledge and experience. In the Relief Society in my ward, there are teachers, nurses, mothers and grandmothers, and women with doctorate degrees. When I moved here with my family two years ago, it was the women of the Relief Society who befriended me first. I live hundreds of miles from my nearest family member, but I'm not worried because there are women in the Relief Society just down the street. I have honestly wondered to myself how in the world I would get anywhere without Relief Society!
Dave answered...

Established in 1842 for women 18 years old and older, the Relief Society is the oldest and largest women's organization in the world. The motto: “Charity never faileth.” President Julie B. Beck has taught us: “Relief Society should be organized, aligned, and mobilized to strengthen families and help our homes to be sacred sanctuaries from the world. I learned this years ago when I was newly married. My parents, who had been my neighbors, announced that they would be moving to another part of the world... This was before e-mail, fax machines, cell phones, and Web cameras, and mail delivery was notoriously slow. One day before she left, I sat weeping with her and asked, ‘Who will be my mother?’ Mother thought carefully, and with the Spirit and power of revelation which comes to women of this kind, she said to me, ‘If I never come back, if you never see me again, if I’m never able to teach you another thing, you tie yourself to Relief Society. Relief Society will be your Mother.’ Mother knew that if I were sick, the sisters would take care of me, and when I had my babies, they would help me. But my mother’s greatest hope was that the sisters in Relief Society would be powerful, spiritual leaders for me. I began from that time to learn abundantly from women of stature and faith.” (Daughters in My Kingdom, Pages 96-98.)

I have learned that the women of the Relief Society build faith and personal righteousness and help those in need. They have strengthened my family and my home.

To what do you attribute the growth of the Church?

Angela answered...

I think the Church is growing because people see that there can be a better way to live, that they don't have to be bound by the chains of addiction, pornography, dysfunction and broken homes. We know that the most important thing in this world is the family and the future of this world is found in the lives of the children and teenagers we see on the street, in our malls and schools. The best thing we can do is teach them to be honest, upright and moral citizens who can contribute to the betterment of society. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that the family is incredibly significant--so significant that God wants us to be families forever, even when we die. This is huge for many people in the world who realize that their children can really be with them forever. There is tremendous comfort in that, and I think this is why so many people are drawn to this Church. It provides hope and peace.