When it came time for Gene Rudolph Gierisch to consider moving to his daughter's home in Vernal, Utah, there was one big plus among many. The eastern Utah town was home to a temple.

For the centenarian, that was the hook that settled it. "I told him, 'If you come to Vernal, you'll be able to come to the temple whenever you want,'?" said his daughter, Ellen Paxson, of the family decision to start caring for her aging father.

And go to the temple he does. Every day the temple is open, the 101-year-old is dropped off in the morning after 9 a.m.; he attends three sessions and goes home at about 4:30 p.m. On Mondays, he goes earlier in the morning so he can get in his three sessions before the temple closes early.

It's what keeps him alive, said Sister Paxson of the Maeser 7th Ward, Vernal Utah Maeser Stake.

For Brother Gierisch, it's simple. His love for temple services is "because of my love for the gospel."

Having lived in Burley, Idaho, since he was 11 years old, Brother Gierisch ran the family farm with his wife, Lena, and helped rear their five children. Sister Paxson recalled her father and mother traveling between Burley and Idaho Falls for temple service, always with the car trunk filled with produce for the temple cafeteria. But since her mother's death in 2006, her father's health has declined. So now he spends his days between daughters' homes in Vernal and Draper, Utah.

Of course, when in Draper, he attends the Jordan River Utah Temple whenever possible.

Temple service has been part of the Gierisch family since Brother Gierisch's father, William Gierisch, joined the Church as a youth in Utah. "His father did a lot of research, trying to get names from Germany, where our ancestors are from. He would go to the Idaho Falls temple," said Sister Paxson of Idaho's first temple, dedicated in 1945.

The elder Gierisch got the whole family involved, with grandchildren doing baptisms for the dead. Today, Gene Gierisch mainly does names offered him at the temple. Declining health inhibits his own research, though much was done by his wife, a genealogical librarian.

But the example lives on. "The grandchildren and great-grandchildren see him doing this. And the people in the temple are aware of what's he's doing," said Sister Paxson, who expressed her gratitude for help given her father throughout the day.

She added that when her father misses a day and she runs into a temple worker, she is always asked, "Where is he?"

For Brother Gierisch, it all goes back to his faith. He recently told his daughter that he had become quite weak during a session and received strength after praying for help.

"He has been sustained from the other side," his daughter added.