Undeterred by overcast skies and showers, 23,378 Latter-day Saints trekked to this city's new temple for dedicatory sessions June 1-5.

"We're ecstatic," exclaimed Pres. H. Kent Munson of the St. Louis Missouri North Stake, expressing the consensus among local Church members regarding having a new temple close by. Reflecting the excitement, two marriages of people in his stake were among the first ordinances to be performed in the newly dedicated temple on June 6, the day after the last dedicatory session."People are awed by the beauty of the temple and elated by its accessibility," temple Pres. Menlo F. Smith said. Previously, people in the new temple's district were obliged to travel to Denver or Chicago for temple ordinances.

As for the community at large, "many feel possessive about it and refer to it as `our temple,' " regardless of their own religious affiliation, Pres. Smith added.

Typical of the community goodwill manifest is a billboard sign along North Forty Drive, where the temple is located, reading "Crossroads Alliance welcomes the Mormon Temple." The alliance is a community improvement organization consisting of St. Luke's Hospital, Maryville University and the Maryville Center, all located in the neighborhood of the temple in the St. Louis suburb of Town and Country.

"The image of the Church has been greatly enhanced by the erection of the temple," Pres. Munson remarked, "and the spirituality of the members has increased greatly."

That, he said, is evidenced by the number of first-time temple recommends that have been issued, as well as temple recommend renewals for people who have not held a current recommend for a number of years.

"In other words, the stake president has been very busy, and that's the very pleasing part of it," he said.

Included in the temple district are more than 93,000 Church members in Missouri and parts of Nebraska, Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee.

For Todd Smith, financial clerk in the Hopkinsville Ward, Hopkinsville Kentucky Stake, attending the dedication was an unprecedented opportunity.

"I've only been a member for about 2 1/2 years, and I had no idea what to expect," he reflected in reverent tones. "It was just amazing. We went through[the previous weekend] to the open house, and at that time, it was just a building. And then when we went in June 1 for a dedication session] there was just a wonderful spirit there, and there was just a different feeling. You could tell why the temple is there and what it is for."

Each of the three members of the First Presidency presided over dedicatory sessions at separate times: President Gordon B. Hinckley on June 1-2, President James E. Faust, second counselor, on June 3-4, and President Thomas S. Monson, first counselor, on June 4-5. (Please see coverage in June 7 Church News.)