Lisa Goss was a missionary in Cambodia while her brother, Michael Goss was a missionary in Canada. They returned home to Overland Park in time to celebrate Christmas.KansasCity.com
By JOE HENDERSON
Special to The Star
Christmas has always been special in the Jay and Marianne Goss home in Overland Park, but this season it was extra special.
Lisa and Michael Goss returned home from volunteering as missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so they could spend the holidays with their parents and sisters Sarah, 15, and Rebecca, 14. It was the family’s first Christmas together in three years.
Lisa Goss, 22, served 18 months on a mission in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and Michael Goss, 21, was in Alberta, Canada, for two years. Having a son and daughter serving as church missionaries at the same time is unusual but also “a blessing,” said Marianne Goss.
“With both on missions they understood what each was going through and could relate to the experiences they were having,” the mother said. “They wrote each other frequently about what was happening.”
The Goss family attends The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Overland Park.
By JOE HENDERSON
Special to The Star
Christmas has always been special in the Jay and Marianne Goss home in Overland Park, but this season it was extra special.
Lisa and Michael Goss returned home from volunteering as missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so they could spend the holidays with their parents and sisters Sarah, 15, and Rebecca, 14. It was the family’s first Christmas together in three years.
Lisa Goss, 22, served 18 months on a mission in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and Michael Goss, 21, was in Alberta, Canada, for two years. Having a son and daughter serving as church missionaries at the same time is unusual but also “a blessing,” said Marianne Goss.
“With both on missions they understood what each was going through and could relate to the experiences they were having,” the mother said. “They wrote each other frequently about what was happening.”
The Goss family attends The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Overland Park.
Doing voluntary missions for the church isn’t new in the Goss family. Marianne Goss and her brother also served in the 1980s. Jay Goss served in 1979, and his father before him.
The church decides where to assign missionaries, who pay their own expenses.
“I was a little surprised when I was sent to Cambodia because I’d never heard their language spoken and I knew very little about the country,” Lisa Goss said. “But I’m so glad I was there. I absolutely want to go back when I finish college. It was a wonderful experience.
“I’m glad to be home for Christmas. But I do miss Cambodia, especially the 77-degree temperatures there.”
Lisa Goss and other women in her group were full-time teachers of the gospel. She also taught English classes, mostly for teen-agers.
“They were quick learners and excited to speak English with Americans. Learning to speak Cambodian wasn’t a big problem. Writing was more difficult,” she added. “Their alphabet has 25 consonants and more than 30 vowels.”
Lisa Goss, who lived with a Cambodian family, was introduced to unfamiliar foods. The locals seemed to eat all the edible plants that grow near their homes, she said.
“Cambodians live a hard life compared to ours,” Lisa Goss said. “They’re such wonderful people. Family is very important and they believe older people should be highly respected and honored.”
“When they learned my father was in the heating and air conditioning business they said `you must be very rich’ because only the very wealthy have air conditioning in Cambodia. I explained we weren’t rich, that most people in America have it,” she said.
Michael Goss, too, is happy to be back.
“It’s definitely good to be home for Christmas,” he said. “The mission was a rewarding experience. I liked the people we met. Besides the Canadians there were people from Europe and South America. Some moved to Alberta for a better way of life. Others fled because of civil wars and left family behind. I’d like to go back to visit friends I made.”
Much of his time in Alberta was devoted to construction work.
“We helped build and renovate homes, a lot of repair work. We also worked in agricultural areas branding cattle and chopping wood,” Michael Goss said. “It was hard work but satisfying. The area reminded me of Western Kansas.”
One special experience was working with a young family that having domestic problems. He said the couple was thinking about divorce, but later told him they had become happy together.
Michael Goss said his missionary service made him more appreciative of Jesus’ teachings.
Michael and Lisa Goss, both Shawnee Mission West graduates, plan to continue their educations now that their missionary service is completed. Lisa Goss plans to attend Brigham Young University this year. Michael Goss plans to attend Johnson County Community College this spring and then the University of Kansas.
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