MIT and Beacon Street, 1964-65
While I was in France, in 1963, the old Atlantic District of the New England Mission had become the new Boston Stake. Wilbur W Cox, long-time District President, became the first Boston Stake President, bringing with him his old District Council as the founding Stake High Council. The marvelous old Cambridge Branch, of course, had become the Cambridge Ward, with Bert van Uitert as its first bishop. Bert had been a counselor in the old Branch Presidency, and we had worked together when I was an Assistant Ward Clerk.
The old Branch had a tradition called Project 48, which put a modicum of structure on the hospitality that local members were used to extending to newcomers, especially in the early fall when all the married students arrived, all at once, for the new school year. The “48” referred to 48 hours: a new family could look to local members for that much shelter while they arranged more permanent housing.

I’d lived in East Compost, of course, and had known of Project 48 only second-hand. But I did count the van Uiterts as old friends, and so I wrote to Bishop Bert to ask whether the old customs were still in force. He replied promptly and very sweetly: he and Luanne and the boys (Dennis and Kurt) were going to be away on vacation when we arrived. But if we’d stop at the Stake President’s house, we could say hello to Bill and Nora and pick up the keys to the van Uiterts’ house on Dean Street in Belmont. Where we were welcome to stay at least until they returned.
Lovely hospitality, of course. And of course we did as directed. It was a delight to see the Cox family again. I don’t recall that anybody brought up that I’d had something of a crush on their Martha, since then married to Joe Ballantyne. I certainly didn’t mention it, ’specially in my newly benedict status. Nor did anybody remark that Bill Cox, an old Sanpete County hand, was a distant relative. I may not even have known that, at the time.
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