From Jonathan Driggs: In the latter half of 1982, there were three branches of the Church in Jamaica: Mandeville, May Pen and Kingston, for a total membership of about 200-225 people. In addition to missionaries being stationed in all three locations, Elders were stationed in Montego Bay for a brief period of time.

By the end of 1982, the Church was again experiencing difficulties getting new missionaries onto the island. By November 1982, numbers had dwindled to five missionaries: three Elders stationed in Kingston (Elders Astle, Robinson and Driggs)--maintaining Kingston and May Pen areas, and two sisters in Mandeville (Sisters Brewer and Whitelock). It was a stressful period of time in which missionary work was largely in "maintenance mode" because of the reduced numbers of missionaries. All missionary work in Montego Bay was suspended indefinitely at this time.

Getting new Elders onto the island was becoming increasingly critical because two of the three Elders were set to go home in December 1982. If new missionaries (transferred from the Florida, Ft. Lauderdale Mission) were not allowed onto the island by that time, the remaining Elder would be required to return to Florida, leaving no full-time missionary Elders on the island.

On December 3, 1982, (Mission) President Zabriskie, asked all of the missionaries in the Florida Ft. Lauderdale mission to fast so that new missionaries would be allowed to enter Jamaica immediately. Br. Joseph Hamilton, a Jamaican member of the Church in Kingston--and soon to be President of the Kingston Branch--reported to the Elders that the following night he had had a dream in which the Elders came to his home and introduced him to the new missionaries. As Br. Hamilton described his dream to the Elders, the Spirit bore witness that missionary work would be allowed to continue in Jamaica. In the middle of December, despite all the difficulties with the Jamaican government, the dream became reality as new missionaries slowly but steadily were allowed on to the island.

By the first half of 1983 there were 10 proselyting missionaries: Elder & Sister Simmons (a retired BYU biology professor), Sisters Brewer & Whitelock, Elders Knowles, Holdaway, Tibbits, Ray, Rowley and Driggs. Two genealogical missionaries, Vaughn and Mary Soffe of Murray, Utah, were also allowed on to the island, and they began the arduous task of microfilming the entire Jamaican genealogical archives. With the strength of increased numbers, and the hope that new missionaries would continue to be allowed on to the island, missionary work was performed with renewed vigor in Kingston, May Pen and Mandeville.