His most poignant moment with President Hinckley came when he accompanied him on a visit to an American cemetery in Manila. As they stood there he recalled that he had dedicated the land of the Philippines 40 years earlier when there was one member of the church there. Now there were a half-million.

"Just a few of us went out there," says Cardall. "He stood on that spot and recounted the experience. It was extremely emotional. He had tears in his eyes."

Cardall has particularly fond memories of President Kimball, a diminutive man with a history of illness that led many to believe his presidency would be short-lived. He served 12 years, all of it at a virtual sprint that took him to 40 nations.

"First of all there was his utter humility and willingness to reach out to people," says Cardall. "He embraced people and kissed them on the cheek and said, 'I love you.' I experienced it first-hand. . . . He was the prophet of the people. He traveled on buses instead of limousines. He interacted with people and people loved him."

There were light moments along the way. He was standing near President Benson at a high-brow reception in England to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the church in that nation. The president was in a receiving line greeting well-wishers when Osmond came along. "Young man, you need a haircut," he told him.

Looking back, Cardall wraps it up eloquently when he says, "For nearly three decades I had the privilege of having a front row seat as these church leaders traversed the world, guiding the remarkable growth of the LDS Church. Personally, it was a gratifying experience and, professionally, it was simply a great story."

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Doug Robinson's column runs on Tuesday. Please send e-mail to drob@desnews.com.