Mormons Adam Forsyth, Seth Meyers and Mark Hill are on their mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-days Saints, having left their hometowns in the western U.S. to live temporarily in St. Paul and serve the Hmong community. All three young men financed their mission and have learned to speak Hmong and now share their faith with Twin Cities Hmong daily. "It's a very humbling experience to have the opportunity to serve a community that's gone through so much," said Hill, 24, who enlisted in the Marines at age 17 and did two tours in Iraq, saving up his combat pay to fund his mission in Minnesota. "When I began my mission I didn't even know who Hmong people were let along speak their language. It's a very humbling experience to have the opportunity to serve a community that's gone through so much." Hill, who is from Idaho, said learning Hmong and broadening his world will make him a more well-rounded individual and will help him transition to college and later in life but that learning is not the point of a mission. "The idea is for us to serve God's children," he said. "We serve them anyway we can." In this photo: ] Here, Forsyth, 19. left to right, Meyers, 20, and Hill, began a visit to the Ly family with prayer. Kao Ly, third from left, said the Mormons briefly struggled in their quest to learn Hmong, but through hard work and regular contact witht Hmong people, after one year, they are "exactly like us." Ly and his wife Kia, who are church members, shared a Gospel message with the men at their home and the Ly's grandson Ben Ly, 2 1/2, right, listened in as well.

David Joles, Star Tribune