I’m a father of two boys and an assistant registrar at a public university. My parents converted to Mormonism when I was four years old, and I was raised as an active Mormon thereafter. I was baptized, attended early-morning seminary, served a mission in New Zealand, and graduated from BYU. Having grown up in a volatile family (my parents divorced when I was a teenager), I saw the church as a safe haven, and I looked up to the men who honorably exercised their priesthood responsibilities. When I received the priesthood myself, I felt like I was part of a holy and noble order, and that identity helped me to rise above my dysfunctional home life and contributed immeasurably to who I am today.
I strongly believe that women should be ordained to the priesthood for exactly that reason. They deserve to have the same access to that identity as I did. They deserve to feel special and important and chosen by God to lead the church. They are as capable of exercising the priesthood responsibilities that are required for church leadership as men are, and they should be able to assume those responsibilities if they want to.