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Contributor: Marlene ??? , Taylorsville, Utah

Several years ago we got this idea from another Ward. We tried it and had great success. We got the Pursuit of Excellence booklets and made an insert which included items for each category. We felt the ones in the booklet were too long-term and tried to make monthly goals.

Then, each month, we asked the sisters to set a goal. In February  we started with spiritual, March - intellectual, etc,  and asked each to set a spiritual goal. At the end of the month, for each sister that completed their goal, we gave them a piece of a nativity set. The first month we gave those who completed their goal a figure of Joseph. This was the difficult part - making the nativity items. We made them out of wood. We got a pattern from the other Ward and our RS President had a jigsaw. I cut out the figures each month (we cut about 30-35 each month), sanded them, traced the detail of the figure and then turned them over to two sisters in our ward who excel at tole painting. They finished them up.

Each month, we gave out a different piece of the nativity scene. We had Joseph, two little lambs, a donkey, a camel, Mary, an angel, a barn framework, a shepherd, and the baby Jesus. We had sisters paint their own barn framwork in the October homemaking and then gave out the baby Jesus in November so their nativity scene could be complete by December. Each month we had about 25-30 sisters who completed their goal. I still treasure my little natifvity scene and put it out each year. It's a great gift for families because the pieces can be handled by children without worrying that they'll ruin them. The biggest problem is getting people to make the pieces themselves.

Each year we've tried something different. The next year we just named a goal each month an encouraged the sisters to work  on their own. We also gave those an opportunity to get a piece of their nativity scene that they missed the previous year.  We had less success with people working without a specific goal.

The third year, we asked sisters to set a goal each month and if they completed it, we had them write their name and month, along with the completed goal, on a piece of paper. We put these in a big box. At the end of November, we had a drawing for a nice quilt (a sister in the ward volunteered to make it) and other donated items. We had the current volume of "The Work and the Glory", some embroidered pillow cases, crocheted hangars, a nativity scene, and a few other items available for the drawing. The first name drawn could take which ever item she wanted, and so on until all the items were drawn. We had good success that year also.

This year we've kind of done the Celestial University thing. We don't call it that, but that's what it seems to be like. We make a packet of goals in each category and set a certain number of points that each sister needed in each category to earn and Associates, Bachelor, Masters, or Doctoral degree. We plan on having a dinner next January and presenting the graduation certificates. We're having the sisters keep track of their own points and tell us what degree they've earned. We hope to make it a really special affair for those who have worked so hard. Again, I have copies of the goals that we presented to the sisters if you want them.

I'm have been education counselor in our Ward for the last 5 years (our presidency was released today) and the Pursuit of Excellence has been my focus. We really feel it's important and that it's helped us to stretch - something we really need. If I can be of any other help, let me know. I'm sold on the program!

Marlene  Taylorsville, Utah