Temples By Jennelle Thompson

3 of My Favorite Things My Parents Did that Helped Me Love the Temple: 1. Hang pictures of the temple in our home. We always had a picture of the Salt Lake Temple (in which my parents were married) and the Idaho Falls Temple (our closest temple) hanging in our home. 2. Take children to walk around the temple grounds. We went to Salt Lake a couple of times a year. Each time we did, we stopped at temple square and walked around the temple. 3. Babysit for free. My mother used to babysit for free so couples in our ward could attend the temple often without the cost of a babysitter being a burden. She taught me to also babysit without charging whenever couples attended the temple.

3 Additional Things I Want to Do to Foster a Love for the Temple in My Own Family: 1. Stop and walk around the temple when we pass a temple as we’re traveling. Also, plan to visit temples when we plan family trips. 2. Attend the temple often with my husband. Making this a priority will strengthen our marriage and help our children know that the temple is important. 3. Take my children to the temple to do baptisms for the dead when they are 12 and older.

My Favorite Temple: Salt Lake Salt LakeSalt Lake

Quick Facts About the Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake TempleSalt Lake Temple 4 th temple built in Utah 1 st temple built in the Salt Lake Valley Largest temple (253,000 square feet) Walls at the base of the temple are 9 feet thick Walls at the top are 6 feet thick 1 st temple to have a standing Angel Moroni statue 1 of 2 temples that still have live acting for the presentation of the endowment

History of the Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake TempleSalt Lake Temple Construction of the temple was announced on July 28, The site dedication and groundbreaking took place on February 14, 1853 by Heber C. Kimball and Brigham Young, respectively. Brigham Young said, “I want to see the [Salt Lake] temple built in a manner that it will endure through the Millennium…This temple will be known as the first temple built in the mountains by the Latter-day Saints.” Quartz monzonite was quarried from Little Cottonwood Canyon (20 miles away) for the exterior finish of the temple. Construction lasted 40 years, although the interior was finished in only a year. The temple was finished on April 5, 1893, a day before it was dedicated. Government officials were given a tour, which was the first time a temple had been open to the public before its dedication.

History of the Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake TempleSalt Lake Temple President Wilford Woodruff dedicated the temple on April 6-24, This was the only temple dedicated by Wilford Woodruff. The temple was closed in 1962 when the old annex was demolished and extensive renovation was completed. A temporary annex was dedicated in This later became the North Visitors’ Center. The new annex was completed in 1966 and dedicated in 1967.

Why the Salt Lake Temple is Special to Me: My mother was sealed to her parents and family in the Salt Lake Temple when she was six. My mother and father were married in the Salt Lake Temple. Growing up, my parents often took me to walk around the grounds of the Salt Lake Temple and talked about what a special building it was to them. They also took me to the visitors’ centers and museums in Salt Lake to learn about the history and construction of the temple. The Salt Lake Temple is special to my parents and grandparents and has become special to me as a symbol of our family being sealed together. I hope to take my children there often.

“When the Millennium is over, and all the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, down to the last of their posterity, who come within the reach of the clemency of the Gospel, have been redeemed in hundreds of temples through the administration of their children as proxies for them, I want [the Salt Lake] temple still to stand as a proud monument of the faith, perseverance and industry of the Saints of God in the mountains, in the nineteenth century” ~Brigham Young