My sister-in-law shared this unfortunate story with me.
A family in her ward had a son (let's call him Elder J) on a mission, and in addition to his family's monthly contributions, the ward was receiving financial donations in Elder J's behalf. Only the donor had not specified on the Tithing and Donation slip that the money was for Elder J; they had just entered their donation on the line titled "Ward Missionary." Consequently, the ward had approximately $4800 extra in their ward missionary fund, because the money had not been forwarded to church headquarters, and then on to Elder J's mission. As per procedure at the end of the year, the extra $4800 was sent to church headquarters to the general missionary fund, and Elder J and his family discovered too late that they were still responsible for the coming year's worth of financial contributions.
While I am sure that the Church made good use of the donation, it was probably an unwelcomed surprise to Elder J's family. They were probably counting on that money to cover the balance of Elder J's missionary service.
Please, please, please check periodically with your ward's financial clerk to make sure all your missionary's funds and contributions are in order. No one needs a $4800 surprise.
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