Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, then of the Seventy (one of the governing bodies of the Church), visited St. Vincent in January 1980 along with President Richard L. Millett of the Puerto Rico San Juan Mission. Steven B. Wooley and Terry Williams were sent to be missionaries in the country in March 1980. Among those attending the meetings was Ebenezer Joshua, the first chief minister of the country who helped St. Vincent obtain independence from England. Joshua was one of the earliest converts and served in the branch (a small congregation) presidency.
Missionaries cleared the land for a chapel and a site dedication was held in June 1985; a building was subsequently constructed. When Joshua died in 1991, a crowd of 30,000 – 40,000 people, including top government officials, viewed or attended his televised funeral in the Kingstown chapel.
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