Wankiers to Serve Mission in Uruguay

• By Kendra Evensen kevensen@journalnet.com
 

For the original article on the Idaho State Journal's website, please visit here.

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• Gordon Wankier, the manager of Zions Bank’s Blackfoot Financial Center, is retiring from the post he’s held for nearly a decade, but he’ll continue using some of his skills in the future.
  Wankier and his wife, Renee, will leave on Dec. 14 to serve a two-year mission in Uruguay for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While there, they will be assisting the mission president with book keeping and other management responsibilities. And they will also have opportunities to do some proselytizing, he said.
  Wankier believes such work is important because it’s one of the last things Jesus Christ asked his disciples to do.
  “The last thing he said was go preach the gospel to (all the) world. That’s what we do,” Wankier stated.
  He says he will miss the work he’s been doing for years and the many friends he’s made a long the way. He will also miss his 16 grandchildren. He gets emotional just thinking about being away from them. But he also he believes in what he’s doing.
  “Your grandkids aren’t the reason to stay, they’re the reason to go, (because you) love them and want to set an example for them,” Wankier said.
  Even though he will miss some important milestones while he’s gone, Wankier noted that he will be able to keep in touch with his grandchildren through online video chats.
  This will be Wankier’s second mission for his church. As a young man, he also served a two-year mission in Argentina.
• He’s looking forward to the chance to do so again — this time with his wife by his side.
  “(I’ll get to) spend the next two years exclusively with my wife. We’ll get to be together every day and share our lives,” he said.
  He’s also looking forward to meeting new people and seeing some new places.
  “You grow to love the people. That’s what it’s kind of all about,” he said.