--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associations collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 19 number: 6 published: 1916-04 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: "Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associations, \"Mutual Work,\" *Improvement Era* 19, no. 6 (April 1916): 565–568." source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1906unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera1906unse start_page: 565 end_page: 568 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1916-04) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1906unse publication_year: 1916 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1916, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Mutual Work Mutual Work Special Y. M. M. I. A. Officers' Meeting A special meeting of the superintendents and other stake andward officers of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associationwill be held in the Barratt Hall, Saturday morning, April 8, 1916, at10 o'clock. All Y. M. M. I. A. officers, and members of stake presi-dencies and bishoprics are specially invited to attend. Joseph F. Smith,Heber J. Grant,B. H. Roberts.General Superintendency. The M. I. A. Conference in June Preparations are being made for the June Conference of M. I. A.to be held on June 8, 9, 10 and 11, and the General Boards haveadopted the following schedule of meetings for that occasion: Thursday, June 8, will be devoted entirely to meetings of theBoy Scouts and Bee Hive Girls A joint officers' meeting will be held Friday morning; and Fridayafternoon will be devoted to try-outs in public speaking and musicat two o'clock. On Friday evening a social will be given in the DeseretGymnasium the details for this and for other meetings and activitiesto be arranged by the committees in charge. Saturday morning and afternoon separate officers' meetings of theYoung Men and Young Ladies will be held and it is likely that somespecial meetings of the officers will also convene on this date. Satur-day evening the grand finals in music and public speaking will takeplace in the Assembly Hall to be followed by the presentation of "TheDughter of Jarius" by the combined ward choruses of the Pioneerstake. On Sunday morning there will be a fast and testimony meetingof the M. I. A. officers including the General Boards and visiting of-ficers, from 8:30 to 10:20, and this will be followed by a general of-ficers' meeting to which the public is invited, commencing at 10:30.In the afternoon a meeting in the great Tabernacle will be devotedto instructions from the general superintendencies of the three auxil-iary organizations. In the evening a general meeting will be heldin the Tabernacle at which Elder B. H. Roberts is to speak on thesubject: "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holynation, a peculiar people." Committees have been appointed to attend to the details of thevarious divisions of the work, and it is expected that one of themost interesting and instructive conferences ever held will be en-joyed by those who attend. A slogan for the associations will alsobe adopted for this year and in this connection it is worth while forthe officers to remember the slogans for the past two years.—WeStand for a Sacred Sabbatli and a Weekly Half Holiday, and We Stand 566 IMPROVEMENT ERA for a Weekly Home Evening. Further details of the program will befound in the daily press and in the May numbers of the Era and Journal. Stake Work Be Definite Our field secretary is always harping on being "definite." Hewants "something definite." Evidently the stake superintendent whosent an answer to the stake work committees request which followshad not heard of Kirkham's wants: The Stake Work Committee wanted the officers to "Name someY. M. M. I. A. problem, or problems, that you wish to have con-sidered at the June General Conference." The answer came in thesewords: "There are several things we would like help to master." The Aim of the M. I. A. Elder Aubrey Parker, of Shelley stake, submits the following,under the play of letters in the above title: The Mutual Improvement Associations point our young peopleto the way of higher and purer things. It provides the means ofpromulgating the gospel among the young men and women who arethe future leaders in "Mormonism." The M. I. A. is an admirablemedium for teaching the gospel in a pleasing and acceptable way tothe young. The immature mind cannot grasp the profound signifi-cance of many of the gospel truths, hence, we need for the youngto have these things presented to them in a way which has an elementof appeal to youth. The M. I. A. does it. The need of this auxiliaryorganization was seen by the early leaders of our Church, and thewant filled. The aim of the M. I. A. is to make better men and better womenof our young men and maidens. It is to show them the beauties ofa religion, that pre-eminently indicates a righteous life. The aim ofthe M. I. A. is to help make our young men better missionaries, betterpreachers and expounders of the truths which the world stands inneed of. The aim of the M. I. A., in class-work, is to help our youngmen and young women "make good" in their life-work. The aimin instituting a "reading course' is to get the young started to read-ing good, moral, ethical, spiritual and historical literature. The aim of the vocation department is to help young men tochoose their life-work rightly, and to aid them in showing itsvalue and necessity. The aim of the Boy Scout movement is to help the boys to thepossession of a "sound mind in a sound body" without which they arehandicapped in life. The aim of the M. I. A. is to help our young to help themselves,to help each other; and to develop the best that is in them to theirown exaltation and to the glory of their Creator. The aim of the M. I. A. is to teach to the young the great sig-nificance of the mighty truth that "To be clean is to be pure." Social and Summer Work Suggestions from Some Stakes In answer to the question sent to the Stake superintendents in MUTUAL WORK 567 February, and which were to be answered by March 1, the followingstakes reported on question No. 3: What plans are being consideredin your stake for Summer Work? It may be of interest to the superintendents who did not answerthe committee's question to read the suggestions of others on whatthey are to take up. Quite a number of the stakes reported they wereabout to consider the subject, and had so far no definite plans. Yellowstone—Socials, athletic contests, base-ball league and afield day, for our summer work. Utah—Juniors are preparing extensive farm work, under super-vision. Uintah—Scout work. Pioneer—We are going to devote our entire time during the sum-mer to scout work. Deseret—Most of our wards held weekly meetings last summerand we are planning the same this summer. Liberty—Scout hikes and summer camps and rally in gym-nasium. Blackfoot—Summer activities will be confined to scout work andbase-ball league, besides the monthly joint meetings. Oneida—Vocational work, scout work and circuit programs. Raft River—Programs and socials. The athletic department isplanning for base-ball and field meet. Malad—Scout work and monthly joint meetings. RICHFIELD M. I. A. SCOUTS Cross country run. Observe the ladder formation.Troop No. 1. Rov Chidester, Scout Master. 568 MPR< >VEMENT ERA Saloon Becomes Gymnasium The young men of Panaca,Nevada, under the leadership ofBrother J. R. Smith, have madea gymnasium out of this formersaloon building, and have equip-ped it with wrestling mats, punchbag, boxing gloves, etc. Wheremen once let whiskey rob themof their better selves, the youngmen are now rallying for health-ful exercise and wholesomeamusement. Special Activities Officers are invited to readcarefullv the instructions givenin the March Era, concerningthe preparation of the report onSpecial Activities, to be sent tothe General Board. Please notethat all reports must reach theGeneral Secretary by May 25, orthey cannot be considered. TROOP TWO, PRICE M. I. A. SCOUTS With Arthur S. Horsley, Scout Master, and Dr. H. B. Goertzman, Deputy Scout Com-missioner, Carbon Stake