A return to roots to dedicate building
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President Thomas S. Monson dedicated a new building for a stake in which his personal history has deep roots.
Standing at the pulpit of the newly constructed Salt Lake Pioneer Stake center Sunday evening, Jan. 14, President Monson, first counselor in the First Presidency, looked over the vast congregation and recognized some familiar faces. President Monson's address contained anecdotes, many of them historic, about people he has known from the days of his youth.
"My roots go back to the original Pioneer Stake," he said.
The family of his mother, Gladys Condie Monson, came from Scotland and settled in an area that was incorporated within the Pioneer Stake. Some of the family of his father, George Spencer Monson, were early residents of wards that became part of the stake. President Monson grew up in the area. On their second date, he brought Frances Johnson, whom he later married, to a dance in that stake.
"I'm glad to be home in the Pioneer stake. They say you can't go home again. You can. I'm a witness of that," President Monson said.
He noted that when he lived in the Pioneer Stake, many of its members were from Ger-many, Scotland and England. Today, its membership includes people who come from, or whose ancestries stem not only those countries but also from many other parts of the world.
He reflected on associations he had with leaders such as Harold B. Lee, Mark E. Petersen, and Paul C. Child, and others who greatly influenced him. He spoke of the young men with whom he played basketball and the young people with whom he participated in roadshows and three-act plays. He told of thinning beets with others on the stake welfare farm.
"'God gave us memories that we might have June roses in the December of our lives.' So said James Barrie, a Scottish poet. I have memories of the old Pioneer Stake.
"Louis McDonald, a member of our ward, was afflicted with palsy. As deacons, we had the privilege of placing to Louis's lips the bread and likewise the tiny sacrament cup of water. We young men learned from the experience."
President Monson spoke of the lessons of compassion that he learned from his parents and grandparents, as well as from others who lived in the vicinity included in the stake.
"When I come to the Pioneer stake, I think of the definition of the word 'pioneer,"' he said. "You hear about crossing the plains; that's a tremendous part of our history. Some of my relatives were in those covered wagons. I am fond of one of Webster's definitions of a pioneer, namely one who goes before, showing others the way to follow. That's how the Pioneer Stake has always been. I am confident all of us are grateful for this beautiful stake center which accommodates, in addition to stake activities, the Edison, Poplar Grove and Thirty-Second Ward.
"We have this lovely building. It is not built just to look at and admire, but it's a building in which we can have classrooms where the gospel is taught by teachers who are inspired and well prepared. It's a building where you can have basketball games and dances, a building that has a stage where you can have a one-act play, a three-act play or a roadshow."
He commented on the pipe organ that was taken from the original stake center and refurbished for the new building. He referred to the arrangement of "Now Let Us Rejoice" that Clay Christiansen, a Tabernacle organist, played earlier on the program that demonstrated the organ's range and capability. President Monson encouraged young people to learn how to play the organ and put it to good use.
Before offering the prayer to dedicate the new stake center, President Monson spoke of the instruction the Lord provided for building the Kirtland Temple, as recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 88:119 and known as the Olive Leaf: "Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God."
President Monson said, "This concise blueprint, this divine direction, could apply to this building we will dedicate tonight. It is also a God-given pattern for you and me whereby we might fashion our personal lives.
"We remember the words of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthian Saints: 'Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?"' (1 Corinthians 3:16.)
President Monson then offered the prayer of dedication, in part, petitioning, "Grant that every person who comes within these walls with a heavy heart may leave here having worshiped Thee and having felt Thy love. Let every person who leaves this building be better prepared to meet Thee."
Salt Lake Pioneer Stake President Tracy L. Branch conducted the meeting and offered remarks. Bishop Ensign Wolfgramm of the Edison Ward represented bishops of the stake in delivering a brief address. Jeff Scott, project manager during construction, spoke of some of the highlights in building the new stake center.
A stake choir, directed by Mickey Watts and accompanied by Joann Deakin on the organ, provided music. Prayers were offered by Jerry C. Randall and Todd G. Maybe, counselors in the stake presidency.
