Have you ever become known for something even though it was only a small part of what you've done in your lifetime? After watching the latest Book of Mormon video, I wonder if that is how Ammon the missionary would feel about being known as “the guy who cut off the arms."

The following was originally published in LDS Living magazine in February 2015. This month marks the five-year anniversary of when Jensen Parrish lost her mother, father, and two brothers while serving her mission. We are republishing this article to commemorate their lives and to reflect on the powerful lesson's Jensen shared following her sudden loss.

When an LDS family lost a brother and son suddenly when he was hit by a truck, one of his brothers had a surprising reaction, writing this touching and inspiring letter to the person who will receive his brother's heart.

Jill was born and raised in the small town of Heber, Arizona, where God chose to concentrate a high percentage of “salt of the earth” people. Raised by two great parents, one Latter-day Saint and one who doesn’t believe in God, her 50/50 upbringing shaped her perspective on God, families, the gospel and the Church (pssst they aren’t the same thing). She graduated from ASU in ‘97, worked a while, then stayed home to raise kids, and in 2014 jumped back into the workforce where she created and ran a youth program for kids who have a loved one with ALS. She has a super cool and genuinely nice husband (Kristin’s brother) who is a really good psychiatric nurse and amusing storyteller. They have four very fun kids each with hair that spans the neapolitan ice cream spectrum (strawberry = redhead) which draws amused comments from most people. She currently lives in Spokane, Washington, where God prompted them to move during a pandemic because apparently He wanted to have more conversations with her. That hope was fulfilled as she honed her skills of sincere and honest prayer conversations because as it turns out, pandemic + teenagers + move across the country = hard. She hearts all the good things in life: road trips, going barefoot, artisan ice cream, and Canada.

Seventy-six-year-old cancer survivor Shepard Adams and his wife, Gracelyn, age 69, were the first to raise their hands to volunteer when the Amite Louisiana Branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was called upon to serve in Hurricane Michael cleanup efforts in Florida. When she didn’t see hands immediately go up amongst the gathering of some of the older couples, Gracelyn said to herself, “Could we do it next year? Well, better do it while we are able and can.” The Amite couple was not alone as they joined over 2,700 Church volunteers from five different states traveling to Florida weekly since the storm hit. Volunteers are hauling debris, chopping up large trees, and tarping damaged roofs.