I've seen this talked about in prior posts. Never thought I'd see it in my family. Couple years ago one of my LDS cousins' hubby was finishing his dental degree. They were excited to move to Texas. They felt that the size of the population in Texas would allow them to set up a good strong practice. This was 30 months ago.

I got a note from my sister telling me they high tailed it out of Texas and found a practice in Idaho to settle at. Are Mormon doctors discouraged from working on non whites, non members?

As a recent convert to being a Texan, I can tell you the economy is incredible and there are tons of mormons(ugh). I do not know why he would leave Texas for Idaho unless the heat just made them miserable.

You would have to ask your cousin, but I imagine that it might be a very difficult adjustment for some Mormons to live in the "mission field" for a number of reasons.

Some people just don't like Texas. I don't like Texas. But so many Mormons just can't live "on the outside." As far as economy and growth, Texas is tops, so it's unlikely they lacked success potential. Gotta be cultural or something. Mormons think that lots of people in Texas are converting because the wards are so big, but it's likely only because so many move to Texas.

I grew up in a yuppie Dallas suburb. While we had plenty of Mormons at church, we were less than 1% of the population. You definitely grow up with a sense of how different Mormons are than in the Jello Belt.

There are more people in Texas, but there's also more competition. Some people just can't take leaving the small pond for the big lake.