On Target Letter of
Vaughn J. Featherstone, LDS Young Men General President

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The First Quorum of the Seventy
47 East South Temple Street
Salt Lake City, Utah 84150
July 1990

Dear Fellow Varsity Scouts:

A Zen master invited one of his students to his home. He poured a cup of tea and continued until it spilled on the floor. "Master, you must stop pouring; the tea is overflowing. It's not going in the cup." The teacher replied, "That is very observant of you. The same is true of you. If you are to receive any of my teachings, you must first empty out what you have in your mental cup." My young friends, clear your mind of all other thoughts today. I would speak to you of greatness. Benjamin Franklin wrote, "Be industrious and frugal and you will be rich. Be sober and temperate and you will be healthy. Be virtuous and you will be happy."

Greatness is in each of us. It surfaces when we put God first, when we have the integrity to keep his commandments. Greatness comes through service; it comes from obedience, from hard mental and physical work, and from being honest and trustworthy. Great men are reverent to God.

Your generation will exceed ours in greatness. There will be those among you who will do wonderful and magnificent things. There are those among you who will be prophets, apostles, temple presidents, mission presidents, stake presidents, bishops, high councilors, and other church leaders. Philo Farnsworth, a Mormon, invented television. I grew up with Kay Whitmore who is now the CEO (top man) in the great Kodak Company. Don Staheli from Hurricane, Utah is the CEO for Continental Grain Company. Bill Marriott is the CEO of Marriott Hotel Corporation. Another Latter-day Saint, Anthony Burns, heads up the Ryder Trucking organization and Black and Decker is headed by Nolan Archibald. All of these great men are LDS and we all grew up a few years back in the same generation.

Your generation will accomplish work as great as Abraham Lincoln's 'Emancipation Proclamation', Columbus' discovery of America, Washington's victory in the Revolutionary War, and that of other historical leaders. You will solve the world's hunger problems, discuss space travel and other major problems facing mankind. You will live through the most trying time ever in the history of the world. You will be true when those around you buckle or falter.

Your greatness, however, will not be measured by all of the above. You will be great if you keep God's commandments, serve a mission and marry a sweet, clean girl in the temple. You will be great if you work hard at whatever vocation you choose and give your employer the best you have. Some will be great in high places in the Church, some will be great in government and politics, and others will be great in professions, vocations, or private enterprise. You will be great when you cling fiercely to the 'iron rod' and never compromise your principles.

Again, I remind you that you will do magnificent and wonderful things. Today you are standing on top of a great mountain peak; tomorrow when you are grown, you will stand on another mountain peak of greatness. We will meet you there at some future day. God bless you.

With faith,

Vaughn J. Featherstone
Young Men General President