Dates
Biographical History
Santry Elmer (1955-2018) was a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Vietnam during the end of the Vietnam War.
Derrell Santry Elmer was born in Safford, Arizona on April 28, 1955 to Lawrence Derrell Elmer and Jacquelyn Jean Leonard. He graduated from Duncan High School in 1973. He served as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1974-1976. He was assigned to labor in Vietnam, which was part of the Hong Kong mission at the time. He served there with several other missionaries until April 1975 when they were evacuated due to the fall of South Vietnam to North Vietnam. He then served temporarily in Hong Kong until he was reassigned to the California Anaheim mission, where he worked with Vietnamese refugees who were living at a camp in the area, until he finished his missionary service in 1976. Elmer worked in business and management during his lifetime, including for Paragon Cable, Ballet Arizona, and International Foundation for Education and Self-Help (IFESH). Elmer died March 21, 2018.
Citation:
UPB files, Apr. 8, 2020 (Santry Elmer, D. Santry Elmer; Derrell Santry Elmer; b. Apr. 28, 1955 in Safford, Ariz.; parents: Lawrence Derrell Elmer and Jacquelyn Jean Leonard,; graduated Duncan High School, 1973; missionary of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1974-1976 in Vietnam, part of Hong Kong Mission; evacuated in Apr. 1975 during fall of South Vietnam; temporarily in Hong Kong, then reassigned to California Anaheim Mission where worked with Vietnamese refugees; completed missionary service, 1976; worked in business and management, including for Paragon Cable, Ballet Arizona, and International Foundation for Education and Self-Help (IFESH); d. Mar. 21, 2018)
Found in 1 Collection or Record:
Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 9214
Scope and Contents
Collection includes mission journals and other personal ephemera belonging to Santry Elmer; missionary teaching material; historical reports related to the fall of South Vietnam to northern Communism; and related Church and governmental publications. Subjects of materials relate to Elmer's experience serving as a missionary in Vietnam until missionaries were evacuated in April 1975, their subsequent waiting in Hong Kong, and being reassigned to serve in Vietnamese refugee camps in...
Dates:
approximately 1955-1980; Majority of material found within 1974-1976
