Episode 3: Dallin Slater

At first, Ammon, Idaho native, Dallin Slater, didn't picture himself serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He would see his friends come home from their missions and how difficult it was for them to transition back into everyday life that he didn't want that struggle, and he didn't want to go to college.

Instead, he decided to serve his country in the National Guard. However, while Slater was in basic training, he changed course one more time.

"Definitely a lot of mixed emotions," Slater said. "I submitted my papers while I was in training, and so that was a lot of weird feelings going on there. Right? Because I'm like, focusing on my training and stuff like that."

When he thought of himself on a mission, he saw himself serving in New Mexico. The Lord had dramatically different plans. Slater was called to the Dominican Republic.

Slater didn't know much about the island or its culture, but he figured it out quickly.

"I was like, 'Okay, where is the Dominican Republic?'" Slater said. "I remember I studied a little bit of the geographics in Spanish class, but I had no idea it was in the Caribbean. Like, okay, Spanish speaking. I thought I'd be playing soccer, but no, it was baseball. It took me a while to actually get comfortable with that was my mission call. Like, this is where I am going. Like, that is for me."

As an Elder called to speak Spanish, Slater learned at the Mexico MTC, a place that Slater calls "a paradise on earth."

"I love that place," he said. "I am so jealous of anyone who gets called there and gets to do their MTC there, because it literally is a heaven on earth because it's just this campus in the middle of the city and there's parrots and birds flying around, and you just feel like it's literally set apart from society."

There, Slater had to objectives: learn how to be a missionary, and learn passable Spanish. When he left the MTC, Slater thought he knew all he needed to know about Spanish, but when he arrived in the Dominican Republic, he learned that that couldn't have been farther from the truth.

"I thought I could understand Spanish going in, but really, I went to the Dominican Republic to learn Dominican Spanish," he said. "All the members, I'd be like, 'Yeah, I'm going to go back [and] study Spanish.' Like, 'Oh, yeah, you're gonna need to study Spanish because you speak Dominican."

Whether he spoke clearly or not, Slater says he accomplished one of the most important things he could have ever done while he was there.

"I got called to the Dominican Republic so I could better get to know my Savior," he said. "I feel like God needed me to get to know his Son better."

That he did. Though, perhaps, not in the way he expected or wanted. Midway through his service, Slater began to feel sick, and he couldn't shake it. It got to the point that the mission nurse told him and his companion to go get tested for parasites. When the results came in, it showed something surprising — Slater's companion had parasites, but Slater did not.

Despite what the tests said, Slater got worse. He got retested, and this time it showed that he not only had one parasite, he had three. 

In an effort to get him the best help possible, Slater was moved to the city. After some time and antibiotics, Slater began to feel better. That didn't last, though.

Ultimately, the difficult decision was made that he needed to come home. When the decision was made, Slater was torn. He knew that going home would allow him to receive the help he needed, but he had worked so hard to go out in the first place, and he was just two transfers away from finishing.

"It hurt so bad," he recalled. "I'm not going to lie. I came home. I was very angry. I was very mad. I'd always ask why. I tried my best. I did a lot of preparation before the mission so I could stick it out, you know?"

Despite his uncertainty and disappointment, Slater did recognize tender mercies. When he left the Dominican Republic, he wasn't alone. He traveled with his mission president and the area presidency.

Returning home may have answered one question, but it also produced more question marks. What would he do now? When would he get to feeling better? Would he be able to go back out.

As Slater recovered, some of the fog surrounding Slater's situation dissipated as well. For one thing, with just two transfers remaining on his mission, Slater soon learned that he would not go back out. Instead, he had to options: finish and be honorably released, or finish the last two transfers via a service mission.

Even though Slater was welcomed home with open arms, he still felt that he didn't finish. His perspective changed when his dad's friend visited.

"I was just talking to him and I was like, 'Man, I wish I could like, finished out strong, you know?' Slater remembers. "I was still contemplating how was I was going to go about doing the service mission. Like, 'Dude, you did it. Like, 'That was what God required of you. Don't look back and be like, 'Oh, I didn't finish.' Like, you went and served a mission. You served a worthy mission.'"

Slater opted for a service mission. Over that time, Slater worked in baptistry and in different areas of the temple, continuing to learn and grow as he served.

Now, Slater can confidently say that he indeed "did it." He "served a worthy mission."

When asked what people could do to support those who come home early from their mission for any reason, he recommended making sure they feel loved.

"You just love them," he said. "Honestly, that was one thing. There is such a stigma about it, and it's so frustrating. People need to understand and accept that. [...] Just because it's different doesn't mean it's wrong."

***

You can listen to the full episode with Ashley Drowns on the media player above. To listen to past and future episodes, search for “Called and Qualified: A Missionary Story Podcast” on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.