Latter Day Bridge Builders

#047 -- Inside the World's Strangest LDS Mission (Ashton's Mission Experience Part 2)

August 30, 2026·53 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Ashton returns for a deep, personal follow-up to our episode on his unique mission call to the Family and Church History Headquarters mission in Salt Lake, a mission staffed almost entirely by young elders with anxiety, autism, bipolar disorder, and other conditions.He opens up about the good: lifelong friendships, a moving story about scripture memorization, and discovering a long-lost aunt through Ancestry DNA. He also gets into the complicated, including the church's $60 million data deal with Ancestry.com and questions about who really benefits from missionary labor.Ashton shares two regrets he still carries: moments where his authority as a leader shut down a companion's doubts instead of making room for them. Juliet pushes back with sharp questions throughout.The conversation lands on a reflection from Elder Bednar: don't be a specialist, be a generalist, and what that means for building bridges across belief.🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com

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