Benefits of the sesquicentennial celebration of the Mormon Trail in southern Iowa have extended far beyond the actual commemoration itself, according to Pres. E. Louis Butler of the Papillion Nebraska Stake.

The Grand Encampment celebration here ended July 13. It included a re-enactment of the mustering of the Mormon Battalion and the dedication of the reconstructed Kanesville Tabernacle by President Gordon B. Hinckley, who also delivered a major address about the pioneers on the campus of the Iowa School for the Deaf, where the celebration was held. (See July 20 Church News for articles and pictures of the celebration.)Pres. Butler, whose stake straddles Nebraska and Iowa, talked about the benefits that have come because of the commemoration. The stake includes the city of Council Bluffs, where the major celebration was held, as well as three smaller communities in southwest Iowa. The stake also includes four wards and a branch in Nebraska.

Speaking of the benefits that have come to the Church in the area, Pres. Butler, retired general director of security and hazardous materials management for Union Pacific Railroad, specifically mentioned four:

1. An increased awareness of genealogy and family history.

Two missionary couples serving in the Nebraska Omaha Mission were assigned to set up family history computers wherever two commemorative wagon trains stopped for the night in Iowa within the mission boundaries, which extend 90 miles into the state.

With the first wagon train, JL2 Inc., which ended its Iowa trek on July 4, the missionaries, Elder Keith and Sister Lila Caldwell and Elder Richard and Sister Erma Cunningham, set up the portable family history facility at three stops in the communities of Massena, Dodge Park and Lewis. With the second wagon train, sponsored by the Iowa Mormon Trails Association which ended its trek on July 12, the missionaries set up the family history computers at four stops along the trail in Orient, Massena, Lewis and Macedonia, and at the Grand Encampment site in Council Bluffs.

Under a tent flap and using generator power, interested persons, using two portable computers, had access to the Church's Ancestral File, International Genealogical Index and other family history records.

"We were busy from the time we opened about 4 p.m. until we closed about 9 p.m.," said Elder Cunningham. He and his wife, who are from Afton, Wyo., are serving in Shenandoah, Iowa.

He told of one man who came to the family history tent at the camp in Lewis. He looked through the Ancestral File and found nothing. "I suggested we go to the IGI and we found about four of his people," Elder Cunningham related. "With those names, we went back to Ancestral File and came up with three or four generations of names. He was really surprised to find that some of his people were members of the Church. He said he was going to go to the Atlantic [Iowa] Branch family history center when it opens after a new meetinghouse is completed in August.

"He was really interested and said he would pursue his family origins."

Sister Caldwell explained, "We would get about 44 people a night on both computers." She and her husband, who are from Vernal, Utah, are serving in Atlantic. "We would have had more people on the computers, but some didn't want to give them up once they were on them." She said there were long lines most of the time at both computers.

Continuing, she reported that 40 people left their names seeking to know when the Atlantic Branch facility would be opened because they wanted to go use the new family history center.

"This has really been exciting," said Sister Caldwell. "We had people who wanted to pay us. They couldn't believe we would offer this service for nothing, and that usually started them asking questions about the Church.

She said one man came with his son and sought information about the boy's grandparents on his mother's side. "We couldn't find anything," explained Sister Caldwell. "I said a little prayer and then felt impressed to look in the Social Security death index." There she found a listing for the boy's grandfather. With that name, additional information can be requested from Social Security records. "The man asked a lot of questions about the Church and then requested a copy of the Book of Mormon," related Sister Caldwell.

The family history facility temporarily placed in camps along the Mormon Trail has had a domino effect. The missionary couples have now been requested to set up the facility at various local fairs in Iowa. One was in Red Oak, held July 17-19, where they received requests from seven people to go to their homes and explain the Church and the family history program to them.

"We were at the fair because of the interest that had been generated with the wagon trains," said Elder Cunningham.

"We are thrilled about the response. Sometimes we think there's not much interest, and then everything opens up. We've had all kinds of people finding out about their ancestors that they didn't think was possible to find."

Pres. Butler reported that people who visited the family history facility at the camps "had a marvelous time."

In addition, he said, there has been a considerable interest in the stake family history center from both members and non-members since the talk of the celebration began. "Starting in February," he related, "we have seen an increase month over month from last year.

One of the "big pluses" of the sesquicentennial commemoration "is that we are searching our ancestors, especially those who tie in with the Iowa period," said Pres. Butler.

2. An increased awareness of Church history, particularly the Mormon migration across the Iowa, and the importance of personal histories.

"From a historical standpoint, this has been a great learning experience," said Pres. Butler. "This is a marvelous place to live from a Church history standpoint, even setting aside the events of the celebration. There is a spirit in this area that is just marvelous."

Pres. Butler said that many people who participated in the Grand Encampment celebration will write their own history. "This is something that is going to go into a lot of journals. It is going to be scripture to families, as people record their feelings and experiences they have."

3. Increased relationships with the community and with people who are not members of the Church.

Pres. Butler, by virtue of his calling as a stake president, served on the committee that organized events for the Grand Encampment. He attended meetings with other committee members, most of whom were not members of the Church. In fact, the co-chairman and co-chairwoman of the entire celebration are not members of the Church.

"I could name 12 people right now and maybe two times that number that I consider personal friends that have come about simply because of this working together to bring about this celebration," said Pres. Butler. "Civic leaders, the mayor, religious leaders from other cultures and just good people who wanted to be a part of it and participate have resulted in personal relationships with people who are not members of the Church. I enjoyed that as much as anything else as we were planning the events."

One of the events held last February in commemoration of the Mormons' departure from Nauvoo was a series of bonfires across Iowa, in which both members and non-members participated. "You can't be in 25-degree-below-zero weather and not develop an appreciation for one another," said Pres. Butler. "Some of the old stereotypes fall away and you find out that these are wonderful people. They might not understand or have the same view of things that we do, but that does not detract in any way from the genius and dedication to good causes and good people and good families.

"One of the very, very big pluses for me are the new friends. Personal friendships that we have developed simply because we are involved in a common cause. The opportunity we have to just be good neighbors and to get to know each other is a real blessing."

Pres. Butler said because of the celebration, "The acceptance of the Church by the community has been overwhelming. It is amazing the good feelings that exist in our communities because of this celebration. So far it has been very, very positive."

He explained the "coming together of the community has been far more than I ever imagined."

Pres. Butler said he has received many favorable comments, particularly from the Council Bluffs area. "Even the police department was very complimentary that the grounds [at the Iowa School for the Deaf] were left so clean and that there was no offensive conduct."

He said many property owners who own land on the Mormon Trail and are not members of the Church have gone out of their way to protect the trail. "They have spent a lot of their time and money and effort to preserve the trail and the ruts which the wagons left behind."

Mark Peterson, bishop of the Kanesville Ward in Council Bluffs, said that over the past several years, "We've sensed a much better image and profile of the Church in the community.

"But as a result of the Grand Encampment, people in the community have gone from a respect of our heritage to a better understanding of the depth to which we hold the gospel. And the celebration has brought thousands more people into that circle of understanding."

4. Increased opportunities for missionary work.

Both Pres. Butler and Pres. Jack Bangerter of the Nebraska Omaha Mission said as a result of the Church's participation in the Grand Encampment, the missionaries are receiving a number of referrals.

Pres. Bangerter said he sees two primary benefits stemming from the Grand Encampment celebration, as far as missionary work is concerned: The enthusiasm and zeal generated in the missionaries themselves as they participated, and the increased number of people who are interested in knowing more about the Church.

He noted that several missionaries wrote to him that participating in the Grand Encampment, especially being in the presence of the prophet, was one of the greatest experiences of their missions.

In addition, he explained, "A lot of non-members are really opening up to the message that the missionaries have. Some are people who wouldn't talk to us before are now welcoming us."

Pres. Bangerter said that one pair of elders, Elder Adam Lee from Honolulu, Hawaii, and Elder Phillip Noll from Seattle, Wash., now have six in their teaching pool that are a direct result of the Grand Encampment.

"I expect the work to really boom," continued the mission president. "There is so much excitement here because of the celebration. I feel we are going to have great success in Council Bluffs and in other parts of the mission."

Elder Jack Jensen from Murray, Utah, and Elder Kirk Strobel from Walnut, Calif., participated with the family history facility. "Many times," said Elder Jensen, "people didn't understand that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Mormons were the same church. They asked a lot of questions and gave us opportunities to teach, and we had a chance to clear up a lot of misunderstanding. About 10-15 people specifically asked for a copy of the Book of Mormon.

"One man," explained Elder Jensen, "started talking to us about the Church and invited us to come to his home to share our message. We'll soon be teaching them the first discussion."

"I don't think," commented Pres. Butler, "we have begun to appreciate what will happen here in the missionary work because of the Grand Encampment, even on our

NebraskaT side of the river. He said in the Ralston-Lavista Ward in eastern Nebraska, two non-member couples came to Church with the missionaries as a direct result of the encampment.

Pres. Bangerter said now that the celebration is over, "it is our opportunity to get out and follow up on it. We're really excited about doing this," he emphasized.

And many people are also excited about continuing the enthusiasm of the Mormon Trail celebration. Pres. Butler said that interest on the Nebraska side of the Missouri River is already being generated for next year's celebration of the Mormon's exodus through Nebraska. "People are anxious to continue the excitement of this year's commemoration."