Phil Hanks was born during the Great Depression, six months after his father died of pneumonia. He grew up on a farm in a family of nine children, where an older brother stepped into leadership and helped keep the land and family together. After a mission in Samoa that lasted nearly three years, he married his waiting sweetheart, returned to Samoa to teach at a Church school, and then received — via delayed telegram — a call from the First Presidency to preside over the Samoa Mission at age 28. He and his wife Donna presided for four years, organized the first stake in Samoa, and raised four children in the mission home. His career in the Church Educational System included seminary teaching, a master's and doctorate from BYU, institute work, a stake presidency in Parowan for ten years, budget management at the Church Office Building, overseeing the national asbestos retrofit of CES facilities, and returning to Samoa as director of church schools. After formal retirement he and Donna served in Ukraine (twice), at the Freiburg Germany Temple, and as temple president and matron in Samoa. He settled in Lehi in 2011 and served as a temple sealer until his wife had a stroke. He is the author of 'I’m Ready Now,' a history of Ephraim Hanks.
Life Lessons
- • I’m ready now — preparation allows us to answer calls immediately.
- • The ability to love people is the foundation of all service.
- • Just love the people. Don’t be afraid to give correction in the right way.
- • Stay faithful and serve to the best of your abilities wherever you live.
- • Communication is a great thing — disagree in a nice manner.
- • We managed through the Depression to keep our land and our family together.
- • They were changed — sacred experience transforms people.
Timeline
Born during the Great Depression; father died six months before his birth
Served a mission in Samoa — nearly three years
Returned to Samoa with wife; called as mission president at age 28
Returned to US; began teaching seminary in Pleasant Grove
Cedar City Institute; Parowan stake president for 10 years; earned doctorate
Diagnosed with stomach cancer; healed through priesthood blessing
Called to Church Office Building budgeting; early computer work
Asbestos retrofit of CES buildings; returned to Samoa as director
Senior missionaries to Ukraine for church education (twice)
Served at Freiburg Germany Temple; called as Samoa Temple President
Settled in Lehi, Utah near son Alan and daughter Lisa
Joined Roots & Branches of Lehi podcast at age 92
Memorable Quotes
"They were changed."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"Stay faithful and serve to the best of your abilities wherever you live."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"The ability to love people."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"We should have been afraid, but I wasn’t."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"Just love the people. Don’t be afraid to give correction in the right way."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"Communication is a great thing — disagree in a nice manner."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"We managed through the Depression to keep our land and our family together."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
"I took the bull by the horns."
Phil Hanks
I’m Ready Now — Phil Hanks on Pioneer Legacy, a Life of Service, and What 92 Years of Faith Looks Like
Stories
Phil Hanks
'I’m Ready Now': Ephraim Hanks and the Handcart Rescue
On October 6, 1856, Brigham Young issued a call for rescuers for the stranded Martin Handcart Company. Ephraim Hanks was not present. Three weeks later, fishing at Utah Lake and attending a conference in American Fork, he received a prompting that the handcart people needed help. He arrived in Salt Lake City by October 26. When Brigham Young called others to join the rescue and they said they could be ready in a few days, Ephraim said simply: 'I’m ready now.' He prayed one night for food and a buffalo appeared. He shot it with one shot, loaded it on his pack horse, and arrived at the Martin Handcart Company on November 11. He healed the sick, brought a man back to life, and healed a boy whose feet had gangrened so severely that amputation seemed certain. After the blessing, the boy lived a full life.
Phil Hanks
The Ukrainian Saints Who Arrived Afraid and Left Transformed
While serving at the Freiburg Germany Temple, Phil and Donna witnessed Ukrainian Saints arriving by the busload. Most were new members of the Church in Ukraine — a community that had only recently emerged from the Soviet era. They had no idea what to expect in the temple. They came afraid. Over four or five days — moving through baptisms for their ancestors, endowments, and sealings — Phil watched something change in them. 'By the time they left, there were tears and hugs.' He says it quietly but repeatedly: 'They were changed.' A community now scattered by war, this story preserves their early devotional life.
Phil Hanks
Called as Mission President at 28 — Before He Even Knew
Phil and Donna were in Samoa teaching at a Church school when congratulatory telegrams began arriving. First his mother, then a cousin: 'Congratulations, President.' He had no idea what they meant. After six weeks of delayed mail due to a Pan-American Airlines strike, letters finally arrived including a call from the First Presidency to preside over the Samoa Mission. Phil was 28. Donna was 27. They came home for ten weeks, attended the mission presidents' seminar with all 61 mission presidents in the world at the time, were set apart, and returned July 1 to lead the mission. Phil said simply: 'We should have been afraid, but I wasn’t.'
Phil Hanks
Svetlana Still Teaching in Ukraine
After two missions to Ukraine — first in Kyiv, then returning to the same city, same apartment, same assignment — Phil and Donna built deep friendships. Years later, Russia’s invasion scattered the Ukrainian Saints: friends in Germany, Hungary, Portugal, the United States. One friend stands out: Svetlana, a schoolteacher who became a dear friend when Phil and Donna taught English at a local elementary school. The schools have been destroyed. Svetlana is still there — still in Ukraine — teaching her students online.
Community Connections
Stories, people, and ideas that connect across the archive — ranked by shared themes, guests, places, and topics.
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From Paintbrushes to Pioneer Parades: Keith & Suzanne Pulham
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Related People
(4)Andy Hadfield
Head Football Coach, Lehi High School · Business Owner · Lifelong Lehi Resident
Doug Webb
Former Principal, Lehi High School · Agriculture & Science Teacher · Lifelong Lehi Resident
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Related Stories
(4)The Ukrainian Saints Who Arrived Afraid and Left Transformed
Phil Hanks
'I’m Ready Now': Ephraim Hanks and the Handcart Rescue
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Called as Mission President at 28 — Before He Even Knew
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Related Quotes
(4)"The ability to love people."
— Phil Hanks
"Stay faithful and serve to the best of your abilities wherever you live."
— Phil Hanks
"The hardest part of leadership is slowing down enough to take care of people."
— Doug Webb
"I’m ready now."
— Ephraim Hanks (quoted by Phil Hanks)
Related Themes
(2)Volunteerism
Lehi's century-long tradition of residents building their own city through service — from book brigades and sponsored park trees to committee work and parade committees.
Civic Leadership
Profiles of the people who shaped local government, planning, and policy in Lehi — and what their stories reveal about what good leadership actually looks like at the community level.