The first Latter-day Saints to live in Kazakhstan were Russell and Margaret Backus, Americans working in Almaty, who began having worship meetings in their apartment in late 1997. In 1998, other families moved to Almaty and provided the nucleus around which the Church began to grow.
The first baptism in Kazakhstan was in November 1999, a woman named Jazigul Tugelbaeva who learned of the Church from American members living in Almaty. The Church received official recognition in December 2000. Seven months after the government recognition, the first branch of the Church in the country was created in Almaty on July 29, 2001.
Barry A. and Tamara H. Baker were the first missionaries called to Kazakhstan. Representing Latter-day Saint Charities, the Bakers undertook projects in hospitals and orphanages, provided aid to victims of the May 2003 earthquake, and also worked with other humanitarian organizations.
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Boris Leostrin
