Our history reveals a long line of strong, righteous, faithful, dedicated women. This legacy began with Eve, and the stories of these sisters belong to each of us and give us vision for our future. If we are going to continue this legacy of righteous, dedicated women, it will be because we build upon what they have done. Through our study of history we learn that there is strength and great capacity in the women of the Church, which come from their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His restored gospel. This faith has given women the ability to make correct choices and overcome challenges and difficulties. It has enabled them to call upon the fire of their faith and the power of their covenants to be exemplary in their mortal experiences. In every country, there is found a legacy of faith among the women who have helped to establish the Church and strengthen the homes of the Latter-day Saints.
Silvia H. Allred, first counselor in the Relief Society general presidency, has told of her mother, Hilda Alvarenga, who was called to serve as Relief Society president in a branch in El Salvador when she was a convert in her 30s. She told the branch president that she was inexperienced, unprepared, and inadequate. But the branch president called her anyway. While serving, she learned leadership skills and developed new gifts, such as teaching, public speaking, and organizing meetings, activities, and service projects. She helped others in the branch become builders of the kingdom.2 Today, as in our past, Heavenly Father expects His daughters to have a leadership role in every ward or branch. Sisters such as Hilda Alvarenga are becoming pioneers and role models for future generations.