3,500 Utah youth 'Arise' as one in Ogden spectacular
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Arise, shine forth, be a standard to all nations. Arise, shine forth, be a light unto the world. Arise, shine forth, for the time has come for all to stand as one. With God we are united. Our strength will be unfurled. — Heartbound, "Arise"
OGDEN, UTAH
Each summer throughout the Church, youth gather to participate in dance festivals with peers from their stake or region. Some of these festivals are small, some are big.
Some are really big.
Such was the case July 17 at Stewart Stadium on the campus of Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, when some 3,500 youth from 30 stakes in the greater Ogden area participated in "Arise: Youth Spectacular 2010" before a capacity crowd of more than 18,000. When the youth entered the stadium, those in attendance learned that, with the youth and audience combined, a new stadium attendance record had been set.
In attendance were Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch and Lt. Gov. Greg Bell. Those representing the Church included Elder Bruce C. Hafen, Elder Marlin K. Jensen and Elder Kent F. Richards of the Seventy; David L. Beck, Young Men general president and his first counselor, Larry Gibson; and Sister Ann Dibb, second counselor in the Young Women general presidency
The stakes were divided into three councils: North, West and South. Each council chose a theme and prepared a 20-minute routine. Each stake also prepared for a grand finale which included missionaries from the Utah Ogden Mission and students from the Ogden Institute Chorale and Folk Dancers.
Youth from the north council took the field first with the theme "Remember and Return." They dressed in flowing white robes to represent their premortal existence. Soon, some youth unfolded a tarp at one end of the field painted to look like Earth. As the youth walked toward "Earth," they shed their robes to reveal bright T-shirts, white capris or shorts and smiling faces before singing and dancing of the joy that comes from knowing that they are children of God.
When Calvin and Sandy Heiner of the Ben Lomond 9th Ward, North Ogden Utah Ben Lomond Stake, learned about the festival, they thought of the seven youth from a small branch in Waterford, Ireland, where the Heiners had served a mission. Sister Heiner said she felt impressed to invite the Irish youth to come to Utah and participate in the festival.
"I wanted it to really boost their testimonies to see that there are a lot more faithful youth in the Church," she said. "They were thrilled to be a part of it."
Next came the west council with the theme "This Is Our Time," who began a journey through history in pioneer garb to honor the westward migration. The time travel continued to the roaring '20s and the Charleston with accompanying song lyrics to promote the Word of Wisdom.
The youth then donned outfits from the 1950s and 1960s, holding giant cardboard records. As their segment came to an end, the youth flipped the records over to remind the crowd, "You can't stop the beat of the gospel."
Ben Lilley, 17, of the Farr West 8th Ward, Farr West Utah Poplar Stake, made a significant sacrifice to participate in the festival. He had signed up for a lifeguarding course with the American Red Cross, and had paid at least $150, non-refundable, toward the course when he discovered it conflicted directly with the festival schedule.
After some pondering, Ben chose to forgo the course and put all his attention on festival preparation, a decision he is glad he made.
"I would have not have had as much fun [as a lifeguard]," he said. "The youth and the leaders were so uplifting. I had the time of my life."
The South council's program, "A Standard to the Nations," had an international feel. Six youth dramatized conversion stories of young people throughout the world. Each continent was represented by a conversion story followed by a dance native to the homeland of the young convert. Countries represented in the program included Chile, India, Zimbabwe, Papua New Guinea, Scotland and the United States.
The family of one young woman from the south council, Kelsey Caton, showed tremendous dedication to the festival. At the end of May, with rehearsals in full swing, the Catons moved over an hour south to Draper. Kelsey's mother, Angie Caton, said the only problems Kelsey voiced about the move were missing her friends and missing the spectacular.
"I didn't mind driving her," said Sister Caton, now a member of the South Mountain 7th Ward, Draper Utah South Mountain Stake. "We told her, 'It's your decision. If you think it's too hard or if you don't think you can keep up, just let us know.' After she went to one practice [after the move] she said, 'I felt that I needed to do this.' "
As the stadium lights dimmed for the finale, youth poured onto the field from all directions, including the stadium aisles. Each held a small battery-operated candle, representing the light they would carry forth from the festival. The missionaries then joined the youth on the field, singing "Called to Serve" and holding copies of The Book of Mormon high above their heads.
Finally, the youth and missionaries slowly approached a large banner of the Savior at one end of the field, holding up their light as they pledged to keep His commandments. Just 12 minutes before that number began, however, technical workers told festival director Jerry Nelson it was too windy to use the banner. Brother Nelson said he felt confident the banner could still be used.
"When the time came, there was not an ounce of wind," he said. "We witnessed all kinds of miracles and tender mercies throughout the production."
Brother Nelson also related a story of a stake president who invited a family who are not members of the Church to the show. After seeing the devotion of the youth and feeling the spirit of the show, the stake president asked the family if they would be willing to meet with missionaries, something he had done several times before. The family accepted.
A song by the group Heartbound titled "Arise" inspired the spectacular's theme. The group, made up of Ogden residents Me'Chel Musgrave, Debbie Bastian and Lori Hales, sang the song at midfield to open and close the show.
Sister Musgrave and her husband, Daniel, were called as stake directors for the festival. When the Musgraves attended their first planning meeting in January 2009, they were asked to pray for inspiration to find a festival theme.
"I thought it should probably be a song, because I've seen how music can unite a group of youth," said Sister Musgrave, a member of the West Weber 1st Ward, Ogden Utah Weber North Stake.
Soon after she prayed, Sister Musgrave found herself singing "Arise," which the group had written three years before. As she sang, she felt prompted to present this song as the festival's theme. Not only was the song accepted, but Heartbound was asked to perform at the show.
"We do not take credit for this song," Sister Musgrave said. "It is the Lord's song and it was written for these amazing youth who are striving with all their hearts to do what is right in a mixed-up world."
As the show closed, the audience was asked to join in singing "Arise." Sister Musgrave said she didn't expect many to know the song, but was pleasantly surprised by what she heard.
"I don't know if it was just because the song was ricocheting off the mountains," she said, "but it felt like a whole army of people singing."
