A newly-called mission president and his wife study the Polish language at the Missionary Training Center in Provo. (Mormon Newsroom)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' First Presidency has called eight new mission presidents, along with their wives, to start their service in July 2015. They will preside over their called missions and approximately 600 missionaries for the next three years.
The new mission presidents were called to the New York New York South Mission, the Peru Piura Mission, the Russia Rostov-na-Donu Mission, the Utah Ogden Mission, the England London South MIssion, the Australia Perth Mission, the Canada Winnipeg Mission and the Philippines Laoag Mission.
Mission presidents in the LDS church are usually between the ages of 40 and 65, retired, and they must be married. They are assigned to certain areas to train and watch over the missionary work in that specific area of the world.
For some mission presidents that are called, their assignment may require learning a language and acquainting themselves with an entirely new culture. However, mission presidents are trained at the Provo MTC before their service and attend an intensive four-day seminar in late June, which completes their training.