RIVERDALE, Utah — Quiet miracles in the lives of homeowners and relief volunteers are being forged out of the tons of mud and muck that resulted from a canal break here July 11.

"We are different people," said Pres. Carl B. Cook of the Riverdale Utah Stake. "You can't suffer or sacrifice as these people have without changing. For the past six days, it's been an ant hill of activity. Thousands of volunteers, at least 2,000 every day, have worked. We're approaching 100,000 hours of service.

"There is a quiet reverence, a deepened sense of brotherly love," he remarked.

Among the many examples of service and sacrifice during the week are the efforts by the Ogden Utah Weber Heights Stake and local companies that are working against time to restore the yard of Hank Cragun for a backyard reception for his daughter on Aug. 7. The sprinkling system has been repaired and sod will soon be laid, Pres. Cook said.

Another stake, the Roy Utah North Stake, has now replaced the sheet rock in a garage where a small foreign car floated as flood waters rushed through.

Members of the Jefferson 1st Ward and friends spent the evening of July 19 planting petunias donated by a local greenhouse.

Representatives from both federal and state disaster management teams have told Riverdale Mayor Ben Jones, who is a member of the Riverdale 3rd Ward, that relief efforts are at least three weeks ahead of what should be expected.

"On Saturday, July 17, when many stakes had activities planned as part of the governor's 'Take Pride in Utah,' " explained Pres. Cook, "these stakes postponed their plans and helped us. There must have been 3,000 people — maybe 4,000."

It was a stark contrast the next day on Sunday, when Church leaders asked that volunteers spend the Sabbath with their families. "It was a ghost town around here," Pres. Cook said.

"Sacrament meeting in the Riverdale 4th Ward was one of the neatest experiences I've had," he went on. "The chapel and overflow area were filled to capacity. There were more people there than I've ever seen. It turned into a testimony meeting where people poured out their feelings of gratitude for their safety, for the volunteers, and for the sustaining feelings of support they felt during tense times.

"I shared the expressions of love offered by Elder M. Russell Ballard and Elder Alexander B. Morrison who pulled on some boots to see the disaster during their visit this week. I also quoted Elder J. Reuben Clark's statement in the welfare manual. In 1936, he said that the purpose of the welfare program was to build character, and to build character, there must be those who give and those who receive."

Adding a modern perspective to one of the Savior's teachings, Pres. Cook summarized his feelings by saying: " 'For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; my basement was flooded, and ye bailed me out.' (See Matt. 25:35.)

The disaster occurred the afternoon of July 11 when a canal that routes water from the Weber River to 30,000 acres of farm land across Weber and Davis counties broke, sending tons of water and mud cascading down a 120-foot hill. For nearly six hours, an earthen tidal wave of water and soil slammed against homes, stuffing basements with mud, ruining garages and annihilating yards. (See July 17 Church News.)

Presidents from 45 stakes in the greater Ogden, Utah, area met the night of the canal break to mobilize volunteers and resources. Each stake accepted the invitation to assist one or two property owners in restoring their homes.

Fence posts, that only a week ago barely poked through 6-feet of mud, now line yards that have been cleared of mud and are being readied for sod.

"I would never want such a disaster, but I don't regret the experience," he said, considering the spiritual growth he has seen in his members.