Every year thousands of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints decide to serve missions. The decision to serve a mission is made through prayer, discussion and counsel about when is the right time to serve.
Nathan and Vernice Petty, members of the Church of Jesus Christ in Melbourne, Australia, thought the ideal time for them to serve a full-time mission might be in a few years. However, a phone call from Richard McLean, their local church leader, changed all that.
President McLean learned about a mission opportunity in New Zealand and felt inspired to talk to the Pettys. He felt they would be great missionaries to serve at the Matthew Cowley Pacific Church History Centre.
Pettys Mission to New Zealand
Nathan and Vernice Petty are called to serve as the directors of the Matthew Cowley Pacific Church History Centre. 18 March 2025 2025 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.Even though the timing was earlier than the Pettys had originally planned, they, too, felt this was an inspired invitation to serve. They discussed the opportunity with their family and church leaders and then submitted their application to serve.
They have been asked to serve as the directors for the Matthew Cowley Pacific Church History Centre in Hamilton, New Zealand.
Nathan said, “We feel so grateful for this opportunity. Even though the timing was different than our original plan, we know that now is the time to serve.”
The Pettys are originally from New Zealand but have lived in Australia for the last 40 years. They met at the Church College of New Zealand as students.
Nathan said, “We look forward to serving in New Zealand and returning to a land we love. It will be wonderful to learn new things on this mission, serving in an assignment that is new to us.”
Vernice said, “We look forward to rekindling old friendships and making new ones. It will be an opportunity to do more whakapapa (genealogy) and strengthen relationships with our extended family.
“I’m excited to be able to live back home on whenua (homeland). My mum was raised in Mercer and as children we spent time with our whanau (family) in the Waikato area. We spent holidays up north in Mokau, Whangaruru, and Rawhiti with our whanau (extended family), on dad’s side.”
Most importantly, the Pettys are honoured to be called to serve the Lord and the people of New Zealand.
Whether you are a young or senior adult, there are mission opportunities for you - either on a full-time or service mission. Speak with your local Church leaders about serving.
