By Jacob Conde
Dieter F. Uchtdorf and David A. Bednar were called and sustained Saturday to the Quorum of the Twelve after the deaths Neal A. Maxwell and David B. Haight.
The two new apostles embraced one another and then joined their fellow quorum members on the stand. Both will address the congregation sometime during the remainder of the general conference.
Elder Uchtdorf, 63, a native of Germany, has served as a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy since his call on April 7, 1996. He is married to Harriet Reich and has two children and five grandchildren. He is the 11th apostle born outside the United States since the church was organized on April 6, 1830.
Elder Bednar, 52, from San Leandro, Calif., has served as President of BYU-Idaho since 1997. He has served in various church callings. He and his wife Susan have three sons and currently reside in Rexburg.
Both men have diverse backgrounds, serving in various positions in the church and various work and social organizations. Elder Uchtdorf has been a commerical airline pilot and member of the German Air Force. Before being called to be a full-time church leader, he was a senor vice-president of Lufthansa German Airlines. He also was serving as a Stake President at the time of his call.
Elder Bednar has served as an educator in many capacities. He as been an assistant professor, professor and associate dean at the University Arkansas in Fayetteville and Texas Tech University. He has also served as a Bishop, Stake President, Regional Representative, Area Authority, and Area Authority Seventy in the church.
