Archivos del Historiador: Rodolfo A. Acevedo, A Brief Biography

By Gary V. Davis,

for the Chilean Mission Reunion Committee 1956 to 1974

February 17, 2012

With sadness we report to you that one of our alumni, Rodolfo Antonio Acevedo Acevedo, passed away this morning in Puente Alto, Santiago, Chile, at the age of 60 years. Rodolfo was born in San Antonio, Chile to Rodolfo and Margarita Acevedo on June 13, 1951. He was preceded in death by his father, his sister Melba and his grandparents. He is survived by his mother, Margarita de Acevedo, his wife, Soledad Villanueva, his children Brenda (Clint), Rodolfo, Jr. (Johana), Charles and Cristobal, and five granddaughters, Janaina, Juliana, Sofia, Victoria and Fernanda, two sisters, Marisol and Julia, and two brothers, Ricardo and Humberto, many nephews and nieces, aunts and uncles, many in-laws as well as many friends throughout Chile and the entire world.

At the time of his passing he was serving as the Chile Area Church Historian. He is a Patriarch; he served as bishop of the Sótero del Río Ward, Puente Alto Stake and as a counselor in the Puente Alto Stake Presidency. He also served in the Church’s Public Affairs Office in Santiago. He worked for many years for the Corporation of the Presiding Bishopric in the Santiago Area Office. He was a teacher for the Church School system in Chile at the Colegio Deseret at the current location of the Church Offices at the corner of Pocuro and Pedro de Valdivia in Providencia. For many years he was the Travel Manager for the Church in Chile. In this position he handled the arrivals of missionaries and Church employees assigned to Chile, their Chilean visas, etc. He also handled the visas for Chileans who were called to serve in all the countries of the world. For many missionaries, he was the first person that they met upon arriving at the airport in Santiago and the last person they saw as they left on their missions. His last position was as an analyst in the Membership and Statistics Dept. He had a great love for the history of Chile, the Church in Chile, the United States, especially as it related to the Church and the old west.

Rodolfo and some of his students from Deseret School.

As the church travel manager in Chile he helped young

chilean missionaries called to serve abroad.

In August of 1968, at the age of 17, Rodolfo, his mother and older sister, Melba, were baptized by Elder Robert Schallock and Elder Steven Cherry at Rocas de Santo Domingo, Chile. By late 1970 his entire family had joined the Church. He enjoyed visiting the beach at Rocas de Santo Domingo where he was baptized with his family and friends. In October of 2006, 38 years after his baptism, Rodolfo and Soledad were reunited in San Diego, CA with Elders Schallock and Cherry and their wives. Ironically, all three of them were serving as bishops at the time.

Acevedo family in 1968 minutes after the baptism of Rodolfo

at Rocas de Santo Domingo Beach.

Rodolfo and the missionaries who baptized him in 1968,

Robert Schallock and Steve Cherry with their wives.

At the age of 23 Rodolfo was called to the Andes-Peru Mission but was unable to obtain a visa. As a result, he served in the Santiago North Mission from May, 1974 to May, 1976. He had a profound love for his mission and all of his companions. He also had a tremendous love for the early missionaries who arrived at his family’s home in San Antonio in 1968. He served in República, Vallenar, Ñuñoa, Independencia and Buin. He and his companion Stanley Zenk opened the branch of Buin, just south of Santiago.

Elder Acevedo and Elder Zenk at Buin Square.

After his mission he met and married Soledad Villanueva. They were sealed in the Sao Paolo, Brazil Temple. Soledad served a mission in southern Chile. The Villanueva family are pioneers of the Church from Chuquicamata. The young family settled in Santiago and later in Puente Alto. Their three sons, Rodolfo, Charles and Cristobal all served honorable missions in Uruguay, Colombia and Argentina.

Soledad and Rodolfo at the Sao Paulo, Brazil Temple.

Rodolfo received a degree in Social Sciences from the Universidad Católica de Chile, Talca and is Licenciado in History from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago. His thesis was Los Mormones En Chile. This is a scholarly treatment of the establishment of the Church in Chile. He was a member of the Sociedad Chilena de Historia y Geografía. He was a contributor to the Ensign Magazine, the Liahona Magazine, the LDS Church News, the Church’s official website for Chile and other publications. He also translated into Spanish and published the Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt and the Key to Science of Theology by Parley P. Pratt. A significant achievement for Rodolfo was the translation into Spanish of the book As I Recall, written by Leonard Hartley, who was president of the Chile Santiago South Mission from 1980 to 1983. Rodolfo and Pres. and Sister Hartley were close friends. In 2005 he wrote and published Alturas Sagradas, Templo de Santiago Chile, which is the story of pioneer temples in the last dispensation, the announcement of the Santiago temple by Spencer W. Kimball on April 2, 1980, through the dedication of the temple in September of 1983. He also had fully documented his own mission in writing. He was the consummate historian.

1989 Universidad Católica Commencement day ; Rodolfo received

his Academic Degree in History from Ricardo Couyoumdjian Bergamali.

Among the many highlights of Rodolfo’s life were several trips to Utah, Nevada and California. He spent countless hours in historical libraries in Utah and in Chile and he collected books. He and his wife were invited to and attended the Te Deum service at the Cathedral at Plaza de Armas in Santiago on Sept. 18, 2010, commemorating the bicentennial of Chile. This event was presided over by the President of Chile. He served in the temple frequently. He found great pleasure in finding pieces of the Church’s history in Chile. He always had his voice recorder and his camera with him to interview, record and memorialize the stories of fellow saints in Chile.

Doing historical research in Logan, Utah in 1986 and at the LDS Historical Department Library in 2011.

Once it was his honor to go to the airport in Santiago to receive President Gordon B. Hinckley. As President Hinckley was leaving Chile later, he spotted Rodolfo. President Hinckley rolled down the window of the car, waved and shouted out to his new friend, “Acevedo!” In June 2004 he visited the monument at the Oakland Temple which commemorates the ship Brooklyn’s arrival in San Francisco. He and Soledad also visited San Francisco where they dined at the oldest restaurant in the city, visited the Golden Gate Bridge and were treated to a visit to the Haight-Ashbury district, something he had wanted to do since he and his brother Ricardo were teenagers. During this trip to the west, they also encountered Arnold Schwarzenegger and his family at an ice cream shop in old Sacramento. Rodolfo was a wonderful singer and loved the cuecas, the ballads and music of Chile. He played the guitar and the harmonica and loved to offer his harmonica rendition of “Come, Come Ye Saints” and “Oh Shenandoah.”

Rodolfo welcomed President Gordon B. Hinckley

at the airport when he arrived in Chile in 1999.

While much can be said of the short life of this great saint, this Chileno de Corazón, the roles which he played better than anyone else were those of husband, father, grandfather, patriarch, priesthood holder and friend. Those that know him and his family are acquainted with his ability to love, to teach, to inspire and to do many good works. His life was a great example to all. Without a doubt, there is “laid up for (him) a crown of righteousness,” and Rodolfo can say with full confidence, “I have kept the faith.”