Naomi Randall remembers well a particular church assignment she was given one day in 1957.
LDS Primary Board President LaVern Parmley asked her to write the words of a song to be introduced at an upcoming conference, which had the theme, "A Child's Plea."About 2 a.m. that same night, Randall awoke from a sound sleep and, after offering a prayer, the words flowed through her mind. She penned a few lines:
"I am a child of God.
And He has sent me here.
Has given me an earthly home
With parents kind and dear."
She thought that sounded pretty good. Later that evening, she wrote a couple of more verses and a chorus for what would become a timeless classic - one of the most popular and recognizable songs in the LDS Church. "I Am a Child of God," was born.
The following morning, the general board approved the song, and Mildred Pettit eventually wrote the tune and collaborated with Randall to revise the chorus. It was sung during the conference program in April 1957 and published churchwide two months later in the Children's Friend magazine.
Randall, who celebrated her 90th birthday earlier this month, doesn't take credit for her inspired and inspiring work. "I feel like I'm just an instrument," she said. "Everything I did was preceded by prayer."
Randall received the distinguished BYU Presidential Citation during a devotional Tuesday at the Marriott Center. Brigham Young University President Merrill J. Bateman hailed her as "one of the great women of the restored Church of Jesus Christ."
As if writing a hymn as revered as "I Am a Child of God" wasn't enough, Randall's contributions to the church don't end there. In addition to being a mother, she served 27 years on the Primary General Board and wrote more than 140 weekly Primary Mission lessons as well as dozens of articles, stories and a long-running comic strip in the Friend magazine. She was also on the committee that created the Choose The Right Program and the CTR ring.
Bateman requested that those in the assembled crowd at BYU who were wearing a CTR ring stand up. Almost the entire congregation rose to its feet. Later, the audience arose again, this time to give Randall a standing ovation - a testament of the kind of impact she's had on the lives of others, thanks in no small part to "I Am a Child of God."
"The song touches young people and old people alike," said Kenton Oakes, Randall's grandson. "I've heard it in many languages. We hear it all over. It's a wonderful thing to hear and be affiliated with. It leaves a great legacy, not only to our family but to the world."
"I Am a Child of God" is woven into the fabric of LDS culture and is sung at everything from General Conference to Primary meetings to Family Home Evenings. Oakes says he'll never forget sitting in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., several year ago at a youth conference. "Everyone, about 90,000 people, started singing the song, a capella," he explained, tears welling up in his eyes.
"It's one of my most memorable experiences."
"Whenever I go to an activity with a group of (church) members and we sing that song, it hits me hard," said great-grandson Danny Oakes, a potential BYU student. "Everyone knows that song. Everyone loves that song. It's dear to everyone's heart."
Yet the song does not belong exclusively to the LDS Church. A number of religions claim it as their own as well.
"It's used in other churches," Kenton Oakes said. "One lady told me, `We know that (song) from the Baptist Church.' "
The song's widespread appeal, Randall says, has to do with its simple yet powerful message.
That's why she didn't mind when a suggestion came to change one of the words of the song. A few years after it was written, then-Elder Spencer W. Kimball asked if she would consider changing a line in the chorus that says, "Teach me all that I must know" to "Teach me all that I must do."
Randall wholeheartedly agreed to make the change. She believes there was a great lesson for all members of the church because of that slight alteration.
"When President Kimball changed that one word, we had it emphasized in our thinking how important it is not just to know, but we must also do; it's the day-to-day doing the Lord's will, and keeping the commandments, that helps us reach our eternal goal `To live with Him someday.' "
In later years, President Kimball would say, "Naomi Randall wrote most of the words, but I wrote one!"
President Kimball's wife, Camilla, said of the song, "It is the whole gospel plan in a few simple words."
Randall, a native of North Ogden now resides in La Mesa, Calif., with her daughter and son-in-law, Phyllis and Thomas W. Oakes. Her husband, Earl A. Randall, died in 1978. She continues to write poetry and songs, and in January of this year, she wrote a musical number, titled "Return With Honor," which is currently being set to music by LDS composer Kenneth Cope.
Regardless of her past and future accomplishments, though, Randall will always be remembered as the author of "I Am a Child of God," which Bateman said is "a song that has itself inspired millions of children in dozens of languages across the earth and will surely continue to do so for generations."
Children aren't the only ones who benefit from its words and its tune, Randall likes to remind others. "It's for everybody," she said.
"I'm glad everybody could have it."