LEADERSHIP

IS CALLING

HELPING LATTER-DAY SAINTS BE BETTER PREPARED TO LEAD AT HOME, AT CHURCH, AND IN LIFE

LEADING SAINTS

PAVES THE WAY FOR MORE CONFIDENT AND PREPARED
LATTER-DAY SAINT LEADERS THROUGH:
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Connect Leaders

We connect Latter-day Saints from around the world in order to share the most effective leadership ideas, thoughts, and scholarship. That way the leaders in Spain can encourage leaders in Spanish Fork.

Enhance Leadership Ability

We make available educational opportunities to enhance leadership ability at no cost to Latter-day Saints.

Present Leadership Scholarship

We seek out leadership scholars to help Latter-day Saints have the most relevant and current research in order to overcome any organizational hurdle.

Celebrate Divine Guidance

We celebrate restored governing priesthood keys, spiritual inspiration, and living prophets, which are sacred sources of divine leadership, and recognize that all leadership direction yields to this divine source.

In the past nine years of existence, Leading Saints has connected Latter-day Saints to leadership principles through podcast episodes, written articles, and virtual conferences reaching individuals around the globe.

The products (services) offered by Leading Saints are neither made, provided, approved nor endorsed by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Any content or opinions expressed, implied or included in or with the goods (services) offered by Leading Saints are solely those of Leading Saints and not those of Intellectual Reserve, Inc. or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Board of Directors

Kurt Francom

Executive Director

Bio

Kurt Francom is the founder and executive director of Leading Saints and manages the day-to-day efforts of Leading Saints and is the host of the podcast. Kurt graduated from the University of Utah in 2008 with a degree in Business Marketing. He ran a web development company for 5 years before focusing on Leading Saints full-time. Kurt currently lives in Stansbury Park, Utah with his lovely wife Alanna. They are blessed to have three children. Kurt has served as a full-time missionary (California Sacramento), as a bishop, 1st counselor in a stake presidency, and elders quorum president.

Dan Duckworth

President of the Board

Bio

Dan Duckworth is the author of “The Power Equation: How to Get People to Do What They Won’t Naturally Do”. He speaks, teaches, blogs, and podcasts on positive deviance in leadership, organizations, and change. He lives in Saratoga Springs, Utah with his wife, Jolene, and their six kids.

Team

Lillian Angelovic

Lillian Angelovic

Director of Operations

Bio
Lillian Angelovic lives in North Salt Lake, Utah, and served in the Japan, Sendai mission. She studied journalism and creative writing at the University of Utah and homeschooled her three (now-adult) children, and spent many years working nights as a hospital security officer and getting nerdy as part of the FanX Comic Convention social media event team. Today she is a volunteer coordinator at Intermountain Medical Center and loves helping people serve one another. Her favorite church non-callings are second-hour-meeting commenter and Trek poster designer. Lillian also reads books, grows things, and writes award-winning poetry.

Beth Young

Written Content Manager

Bio
Beth is a convert of 41 years; served a mission in North Carolina; has been married for 31 years to her sweetheart, Bob Young; has 5 children and one grandchild.  She raised her family in Texas for 25 years where she served in various capacities in her community. This service included 18 years in Texas PTA; assisting several non-profits and developing relationships for the Church with local City management organizations. She has served in a variety of ward, stake and regional leadership positions including Young Women, Relief Society, and Public Affairs. She loves writing and inspiring others to make changes to their physical, mental and spiritual health.

Advisory Board

The Leading Saints Board of Therapists helps us bring Latter-day Saints the most researched based thought and solutions related to issues such as addiction, depression, and mental illness.

Beckie Hennessy, LCSW

Bio
Beckie Hennessy was born and raised in West Valley City, Utah where she currently resides with her husband of 14 years and their 3 children. Beckie has been a therapist since 2007 and currently owns BRICKS Family Counseling, Inc. She has recently started a podcast called The Path of Imperfection and has written a book called Ministering Through Connection. Her best days are spent with her family as they watch movies together, blow bubbles in their chocolate milk and laugh until tears come. She loves to read, is a Pinterest addict and enjoys taking naps when she’s able.

Tony Overbay, LMFT

Bio
Tony Overbay is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (CA LMFT#92443), a Certified Mindful Habit Coach (CMHC), writer, motivational speaker and the host of the award-winning podcast The Virtual Couch. Tony regularly speaks at corporate training events, schools, and churches in formal and casual settings mixing humor, clinical experience, his faith, and a wealth of personal stories. Tony is a convert to the church, joining at the age of 21. Tony worked at LDS Family Services as a therapist shortly after graduate school in 2007 and continued there for 6 years. Tony moved into private practice in 2013. He has served as a young men’s president twice, taught early morning seminary for 7 years, and started a PASG (Pornography Addiction Support Group) in his stake several years ago.
Andrea Lystrup

Andrea Lystrup, LMFT

Bio
Andrea Lystrup is a licensed marriage and a family therapist based in Tucson, AZ. She owns a private practice that specializes in helping Latter-Day Saint couples and individuals navigate faith, addiction, and sexual intimacy issues. Writing books, articles, and blogs is a passion for her, and her work has been featured in the church Ensign magazine. She is a perpetual Young Women’s leader in every ward she has lived in, and also currently serves as the Tucson Stake Sister Support Specialist. In this role she provides training about abuse prevention and mental health awareness for ward and stake leaders. Her husband is a sports medicine physician in the US Air Force and she is a mom to 3 young rowdy boys.

Feedback

Hello there. My name is KaLee and my husband Neal and I are living in São Paulo, Brasil … I found your podcast just by “accident” while looking for uplifting LDS podcasts to listen to during the day. I just wanted to share with you how much it has helped me. The really amazing part about it is that while I am listening to the experiences of other people and how they lead in the church, and I am prompted about what I can do in my calling, it usually has little to do with what the speaker is talking about. Everything that is said has been great, but it is a true testament to how you are leading the podcast that I am able to receive my own personal promptings through the Spirit.

Thank you for all your dedication. I will share with people down here as well, at least those who speak English.

KaLee

My sister announced to the family at Christmas that she is transgender. She just started taking testosterone to more fully transition. That episode of yours changed my paradigm and led me to spend a lot more time in fasting and prayer. I have a very different outlook now than I had before in how I love and respect my sister.
Anonymous

I really appreciate your work on Leading Saints. I have shared it with all of the Bishops in my Stake and hope that it trickles down in their Wards. I have also advised my entire Ward council to follow your posts.
Chance
Chance

I wanted to thank you for this site. This is one of the first places I landed when I was called as Elders Quorum President back in July. This site makes so much sense to someone like me who is trying to think outside the box and looking for successful ideas that I would have never come up with on my own.
I actually just referred my brother, who is a bishop, to your site and expect that he will find great value as well. Thanks!
Aaron

Leading Saints has had a huge impact in my training as a bishop. Just listening to all these podcasts and reading comments has certainly shaped and prepared me for many things. It influences how I run meetings and how I interact on many levels. I am better at counseling with councils for sure. Leading Saints has been a great supplement to my personal studies and my official church training and experience.
Robert

I’m currently serving as a Bishop. I travel extensively for work and I have to maintain driving 3 hours to the airport most every week. Thank you for your Leading Saints podcasts. I have quite a few of my ward council listening to various episodes that I share with them and some are hooked like I am listening each week to whatever you post.
David

Now I would be pleased to tell you why I love your podcast. I found your podcast last September while browsing to find new podcasts to listen to. I really believe that God helped me find it, even though I am not a church leader, listening has helped me at challenging times in my life. I love the information and experiences from the episodes that I have had the opportunity to listen to so far.
Megan

I want to thank you for this blog and podcast. I have been binge-listening to episode after episode, and truly enjoy the rich, quality content. I enjoy your interviewing style, the guests you have chosen, and the overall tone and message that radiates from each episode.

I have been listening to the episodes with the wives of the bishop, and deeply connected with the interview with Kasandra Merrill. I have only been a bishop’s wife for a year, with a young family, and I have depression and anxiety. When my husband was called, the Stake President told me that I should not hesitate to pray for anything and everything I need- even something as little as finding a parking spot. the message was that Heavenly Father knows and cares about the bishop’s wife as well. Sister Merrill vocalized what I believe many of us go through, what I know I do, and what not everyone comes out the other side from.

Again, thank you for this work. It is so very important, and I especially appreciate every emphasis on building up leadership experience in women.

Amanda

Kurt, I’m happy to support your great enterprise. And wow you have had some great episodes this past month! I get through my morning run without even realizing I’ve been running for half an hour because I get so absorbed in the podcast.

Kevin

I just wanted to give you some positive feedback.  You have had so many great podcasts over the last several months and have really helped me to minister to my ward as bishop (I’m now about 15 months into my calling).
As I listened to Jacob Kalil’s story, I had impressions that I should challenge the ward council and the elders quorum as a whole to set goals this year to be a mentor to someone in the ward, and to go outside the “ordinary” to bless someone’s life.  I snuck in at the end of elder’s quorum and that idea fit perfectly with the lesson from the presidency (that doesn’t come as a surprise to me anymore but it still feels like a blessing when we see the Spirit is working in parallel ways within the ward).
I also have used Tommy Haws’ five principles several times over the past few weeks… What a powerful meeting!
I feel like you are my mentor as I continue to try to learn the ins and outs of being a bishop, and I owe you a huge thank you for your insights and your efforts. You are a real blessing to me and to the members of [my ward]!
God bless you and your family.
Kevin

I’ve recently been called to the Bishopric and your website has been a great help to me as I feel my way through this journey. I really appreciate the work that you are doing.
Anonymous

If you ever plan to come to Samoa please let me know. We would love to host you.
Sam

I just wanted to drop a line and say thank you for all things Leading Saints. I’m a new member of the bishopric of the Bayside Ward, Virginia Beach Stake and have found tremendous help in your podcasts and website.
Garrett

I wanted to reach out to simply say, thank you for creating this podcast and producing this content. I travel weekly and over the past several weeks my time on airplanes has been enlightening as I have consumed nearly every episode.

For the past several years I’ve worked in the management consulting/leadership development arena. In doing so I’ve worked with leaders at all organizational levels and across industries, helping to identify, teach, and sustain effective leadership principles and practices. I have long felt that we needed to be having similar conversations and examination of leadership in the church–thus I have so enjoyed your podcasts.

Cameron

I am continually wowed by insights in Leading Saints podcasts on leadership, teaching, and compassion for our brothers and sisters with a variety of struggles and experiences in life, just to make a few. Keep it up, Kurt!
Laura

A good friend of mine who was released as a bishop about a year ago turned me onto you site. I really appreciate what you are doing here. I listen to your podcasts regularly and I always get one or two (or sometimes more) great ideas from you or the people that you interview. Each little thing has helped me in my ministry with my little ward here in Louisiana. Thank you and keep up the fantastic work!
Chris

I wanted to thank you for the work you’ve done on Leading Saints, it’s meant the world to me as a new Bishop. I only wish I had started listening sooner. 🙂 Almost weekly, I reference or use something that I first learned about from your podcast. For example, we use Asana in our Ward, and it’s a lifesaver, between that and Google Drive, we’ve got everything we need at our fingertip. I found the Andy Chatham PDF, “Bishop’s Guidebook” through you, and your recent podcast on “Stages of Faith” was an awesome intro in Fowler’s work, as a few recent instances… Thank you!
Kirt

I just had to say thank you, again. Your blog and podcast are such a great resource to me. I was just suggesting a couple of posts to my husband. We keep looking at the ward list and seeing more and more people being added that we don’t know and we need to find them. I shared with them how you engage your ward members in finding those unknown people in your ward and then suggested he take a look at Batchgeo. In less than 24 hours he uploaded the ward list and had a map. We discovered that some of the addresses we have on record aren’t even valid addresses! At least we know which doors not to knock on. And we know which households aren’t on our records and we could reach out to as neighbors.
We’re considering using this map to assign members who live on the same street to find those we don’t know. We also are going to use it to help with service projects at member’s houses. It’s an easy way to identify who the neighbors are and invite them to come help, regardless of membership or activity.
Thanks again!
Heather

My sister just thanked me for introducing her to your podcast. She said to tell you it has helped her in so many ways and to keep up the good work!
Maria

Thank you so much for such a great resource. I have felt alone quite a bit in my calling this past year and the reading/studying I have done from the website has been very comforting. I have shared a lot of what I have learned with various leaders and members of my ward.
Megan

I was recently called as a new bishop, just before Christmas. I have already performed a wedding, helped individuals with finances, blessing, visits and now have an opportunity to work with someone that is dependent on drugs. I was searching for helpful information when I came across your podcast. I listened to the podcast with Brad & Jay about the ARP and Wow! What a huge blessing to me to hear before I meet with this individual. I had no idea on what to say to this person or even how to understand what they are dealing with. I’m thank for all the resource that the church has and thank you for having such great content. Bless you for all you are doing.
Brad

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