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Adding the archive to your home screen

You can save the letter archive as an app on your phone or computer. It looks and opens just like the apps you already have — no App Store, no download, nothing to update. And once it's on your home screen, the archive can send you a notification the moment a new letter arrives, so you don't have to wait for email or remember to check.

Two steps, in this order

You need to save the archive to your home screen first. Only then can you turn on notifications, because the notification switch lives on the saved app itself.

iPhone and iPad owners: this only works in Safari

Safari is the only browser allowed to install web apps on iPhone and iPad. If you usually browse in Chrome, Firefox, or Edge, open this page in Safari first. You'll only have to do it there once. After that, tapping the home-screen icon opens the app straight up, and the browser you use day-to-day doesn't matter.

One save per missionary

If you follow more than one missionary, save each archive separately — one icon per missionary. They stay signed in independently and you'll get notifications from each.

On an iPhone or iPad (Safari only)

  1. Open the missionary's archive in Safari. If you got there from a letter email, the address should look like missionbroadcast.com/m/elder-pehrson/archive or the missionary's own domain (like elderpehrson.com/archive).
  2. Tap the share button at the bottom of the screen (the square with an arrow pointing up).
  3. Scroll down in the share menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  4. Give it any name you like — the default is fine — and tap Add in the top right.

You should now have an icon on your home screen with the missionary's name (for example, "Elder Smith"). Tap it — you'll see the archive open in its own window with no browser bar around it. If you follow more than one missionary, install each of them from their own archive — each is a separate app.

Safari only on iPhone

Chrome and Firefox on iPhone can't do this — Apple only allows Safari to install a home-screen app. If you use another browser day-to-day that's fine; just switch to Safari once to save the app, and use it from the home screen afterwards.

On an Android phone

  1. Open the missionary's archive in Chrome (or your usual browser — most Android browsers work).
  2. Tap the three-dot menu in the top right.
  3. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  4. Confirm the name and tap Add.

The icon lands on your home screen. Tap it and the archive opens in its own window.

On a computer

Chrome, Edge, and most other desktop browsers can install the archive too — helpful if you want a shortcut in your dock or taskbar.

  1. Open the missionary's archive.
  2. Look for an install icon in the address bar (usually a little monitor or plus sign to the right of the URL).
  3. Click it and confirm Install.

Turning on notifications

Once the archive is on your home screen, open it from that icon (not from your browser). You'll see a Notifications control in the header — tap it, and your phone will ask if you want to allow notifications. Say yes, and you're done.

When a new letter arrives you'll get a small notification that says who it's from and invites you to tap to read. Tapping it opens the letter in the app. You can turn notifications off any time from the same control.

What we notify you about

We only ever notify you when a new letter arrives. We don't send reminders, promotions, or anything else. The notification tells you the missionary's name — never the letter's subject — so nothing private ends up on your lock screen.

If it doesn't work

  • You don't see "Add to Home Screen" — make sure you're in Safari on iPhone, or that you've selected a real browser tab (not a private-browsing tab) on Android.
  • Notifications control isn't there — make sure you opened the archive from the home-screen icon, not from a browser tab. Home-screen and browser are two different views.
  • You said no to notifications and now want to say yes — you'll need to change the setting in your phone's Settings app under Mission Broadcast → Notifications. Browsers keep the "no" once you've given it, so we can't ask again.
  • More detail on notification fixes — see Fixing notifications for per-platform reset steps and the reasons the Notifications button might be missing.
  • Still stuck? Send a note to support@missionbroadcast.com and we'll help.