[April 1997]:

At the priesthood session of General Conference, President Thomas S. Monson related a story involving former Catania Mission President Leopoldo Larcher:

A visible and tender act of fellowshiping was witnessed in the ancient city of Rome. Some years ago, Sister Monson and I met with over 500 members there in a district conference. The presiding officer at that time was Leopoldo Larcher, a wonderful Italian. His brother had been working as a guest employee in the auto plants in Germany when two missionaries taught him the gospel. He went back to Italy and taught the gospel to his brother. Leopoldo accepted and sometime later became the president of the Italy Rome Mission and then the Italy Catania Mission.

During that meeting, I noticed that in the throng were many who were wearing a white carnation. I said to Leopoldo, "What is the significance of the white carnation?"

He said, "Those are new members. We provide a white carnation to every member who has been baptized since our last district conference. Then all the members and the missionaries know that these people are especially to be fellowshiped."

I watched those new members being embraced, being greeted, being spoken to. They were no more strangers nor foreigners; they were "fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God."