Elder Quentin L. Cook was born in 1940 in Logan, Utah. He received degrees from Utah State University and Stanford University. He has been married to Mary Gaddie since 1962 and they have three children. Elder Cook has served in many callings in the Church including bishop, stake president, mission president, and as a General Authority since 1996. He gained a strong testimony as a young man after praying about the truthfulness of the Church following a discussion with his brother.

1. ELDER QUENTIN L. COOK
Samantha Reynolds, Alysa Mayfield, Brittany McEwen

2. Born on September 8th, 1940 in Logan, Utah, where he was raised.
Elder
Cook
with his
parents,
his
brother,
Joe, and
his sister,
Susan.

3. SCHOOLING
 He attended Utah State University and received a bachelor’s degree in
political science
 He attended Stanford University and received a Doctor of Jurisprudence

4. FAMILY
He married Mary Gaddie on November 30, 1962. They have been married for
50 years.
They have three children

5. MISSIONS AND CALLINGS
 Elder Cook has been an apostle since October 6, 2007.
 He was called as a General Authority in April 1996.
 He served in the Second Quorum, the First Quorum, and the Presidency
of the Seventy.
 He served in the Area Presidency in the Philippines, as president of the
Pacific Islands and the North America Northwest Areas, and as
Executive Director of the Missionary Department.
 He has also served as a Bishop, Stake President.
 He served his mission in the British Mission

6. THINGS OF INTEREST/HOBBIES
As a young man, Elder Cook loved
sports, helping his high school teams
win statewide recognition in basketball
and football.
His interests also included debate and
politics.

7. LESSONS LEARNED
Be a righteous example
Be Civil in your discourse
Religious observance in the home
Personal Experience:
I personally have never met Elder Cook, but I love reading his talks and
hearing them from Conference.
-BRITANY

8. SPECIFIC TEACHINGS THAT MEAN SOMETHING
TO ME PERSONALLY
“ What we are speaks so loudly that our children may not hear what we say. ”
This is so true. My husband and I don’t have children yet, but this is something
I definitely want to remember. Even though we don’t have kids yet, this is still
something we should be practicing in our everyday lives. For me lately it’s been
for my little sister’s, they are Catholic, and dress pretty immodestly at times but
instead of telling them that, I try to lead by example when ever I am around
them, because I know that if I tell them to cover up a little more, it’ll go in one
ear and right out the other.
-Alysa
From “In Tune with the Music of Faith” April 2012 Conference

9. SPECIFIC TEACHINGS THAT MEAN SOMETHING
TO ME PERSONALLY
“Let us, therefore, wherever we are on the path of discipleship in Lehi’s vision, resolve to
awaken within us and our families a greater desire to claim the Savior’s incomprehensible
gift of eternal life. I pray that we will stay in tune with the music of faith. I testify of the
divinity of Jesus Christ and the reality of His Atonement in the name of Jesus Christ,
amen.”
This entire talk spoke to me on so many different levels. This is the closing of the talk, I
love the “resolve to awaken within us and our families a greater desire to claim the Savior’s
incomprehensible gift of eternal life” As I said before my husband and I don’t have any
kids yet, and admittedly we are terrible about doing family scripture and FHE, we keep
saying we’ll do it when we have kids. But as I read this talk, it became clear to me that it is
important we start it NOW. The blessings we are missing out on are immense, even though
our family is small, we need to become efficient in these things now so when we do have
kids we will not struggle.
From “In Tune with the Music of Faith” April 2012 Conference
-Alysa

10. ELDER COOK STRENGTHENS HIS
TESTIMONY
When Elder Cook was 15 years old, his older brother, Joe, really wanted to serve a mission. Their father was not active
in the church and wanted Joe to go to medical school instead. Joe and Quentin were very close, and they discussed the
matter together.
“They decided the decision came down to this: If the Church is just another good institution, Joe could help people
better by going to medical school. However, if the Savior truly lived, if Joseph Smith truly was a prophet, if the
Church he organized under God’s direction truly is the Church of Jesus Christ, if the Book of Mormon is true, then
Joe’s obligation was clear. The next morning Joe approached his father with that reasoning and bore his testimony. He
left for his mission soon after, with his father’s support and his mother’s blessing.”
Elder Cook had always had a testimony, but he wanted to receive a spiritual witness to confirm the reality of his
beliefs.
“After he and Joe parted that night, Quentin went to his room, knelt in prayer, and asked for the same witness his
brother had, a witness he desired with all his heart. And it came in a way so powerful that any doubts he had were
swept away forever.”
I found it interesting to learn about the way that one of our beloved apostles came to gain his own testimony of the
savior. It personalizes him to me, and I want to follow his example.
-Sam
http://www.lds.org/prophets-and-apostles/what-are-prophets/bio/quentin-l-cook?lang=eng