50. An UNEXPECTED EMISSARY

This episode should be a movie. Leaving Council Bluffs in 1846 William Staines was asked to migrate with the Ponca Indian Tribe through their winter hunting grounds. He suffered from loneliness, scurvy, boils and all manner of afflictions during those 6 months. The Poncas treated him with respect and dignity. He was instrumental in shaping many Indian tribe’s perspectives and attitudes toward the LDS people. During his solitary winter he witnessed a way of life that has long since been forgotten. As he neared death several times, he put his life in the hands of the Lord and accomplished much more than he could ever have dreamed. What an amazing life journey.