With new website updates needed for historic sites, Church headquarters included Liberty Jail in their plans. They contacted then-Liberty Missouri Stake President Michael Beach to suggest a family to serve as models for tour photos. Requirements? Do they have a flexible schedule and would be able to meet during a weekday? Is there a family with an age spread of members, and even multigenerational? How quickly could they be marshaled into helping? No surprise that President Beach thought of one of his bishops, Andrew Malan of the Shoal Creek Valley Ward, who with his wife Leisel has a home-schooled family of five children and whose retired in-laws (Mark & Shelli Nye) live just down the street. Four Church staff members swooped into town and met the Malans and Nyes at the jail on April 15 at 10 am to document a typical tour (with the addition of a “natural-looking” photo session). No pressure! It took a little over an hour, but proved to be pleasant and interesting for the models!  Photos were taken as the family approached and entered the building, took a guided tour from the senior missionaries in charge, and then looked at exhibits afterward. The photographer (Leslie Nilsson) was an amusing fellow and interesting to chat with, as he has worked with so many Church leaders on many projects as well as on official portraits of the Brethren.  He noticed Ben Malan had the same watch as President Nelson – that was a fun connection.  Grandma Shelli reports the children (Louisa, Ben, Clark, Gordon, and Greta) were not nervous at all, used to lots of photo-taking in the family! And who knew it would be an ironic foreshadowing of Brother Malan accepting a job at the Kansas State Prison just a few months later?

> See the photos on the ChurchOfJesusChrist.org