Payson Temple a symbol of faithfulness and service to God
The sun sets on the Payson LDS Temple on Thursday, March 19, 2015. SAMMY JO HESTER, Daily Herald
Elder Dallin H. Oaks, second from right, leads the groundbreaking ceremony for the new LDS temple in Payson on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011. SPENSER HEAPS/Daily Herald
Spectators watch as construction crews place a statue of Angel Moroni atop the Payson LDS Temple on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2013. A large crowd gathered Thursday morning to watch the milestone in the temple's construction process. JAMES ROH/Daily Herald
The Payson LDS temple under construction on Wednesday, March 13, 2013. SPENSER HEAPS/Daily Herald
Renee Delangis, of Holdman Studios at Thanksgiving Point, assembles a stained glass window for the Payson LDS temple Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013. MARK JOHNSTON/Daily Herald
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' Payson LDS Temple on Tuesday, March 31, 2015. SPENSER HEAPS, Daily Herald
The Payson LDS Temple on Wednesday, March 4, 2015. SPENSER HEAPS, Daily Herald
Once a pastoral land of mountains to the east and Utah Lake to the west, Payson and the surrounding towns have historically been the home to Ute Indians. Since the days of Brigham Young, Scottish, Scandinavian and Greek settlers have added their diversity to the area.
Founded in 1850 by 17 Mormon pioneers, Payson’s population today is nearly 20,000. There are seven LDS stakes and more than 50 wards and branches in the area.
Amongst the old alfalfa fields and fruit orchards is land that was set aside and dedicated as the home of the Payson Utah Temple. It is the 15th temple in Utah for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Known to members of the LDS Church as “The House of the Lord,” the Payson Utah Temple was announced by President Thomas S. Monson on Jan. 25, 2010. A special groundbreaking ceremony conducted by Elder Dallin H. Oaks, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, took place at the temple site on Oct. 8, 2011. It is located at 930 W. 1550 South, just a mile from Interstate 15.
Dubbed the “Golden Swath,” the new temple district area covers approximately 27 stakes from Nephi — in Juab County to the south — to Spanish Fork and Mapleton to the north, and Delta, Eureka, Genola and Goshen to the west. The Payson Utah Temple will serve approximately 78,000 members of the Church. Until now those temple goers traveled to the Provo Temple or Manti Temple in Sanpete County.
What this temple means to the Saints is as varied as the people you talk to, but most everyone says it is a magnificent addition to the area and a boon to those who will enter its doors.
“The inside will take your breath away,” said Brother Larry Duffin, coordinator of the Payson Temple Open House, celebration and dedication. “The temple was announced in January of 2010, over five years ago. It takes a while to design. This is the culmination of all this anticipation.”
From the art glass windows to the color pallet of cream, light green and light burgundy, the temple will reflect, in quiet tones, the land and its people. However, the beauty of the temple and its locally unique features are not what the temple is about. It is about the saving ordinances provided inside the temple.
“Temples are patterned after Solomon’s temple and honor the Lord and express our gratitude,” said Elder Kent R. Richards, Executive Director of the LDS Church’s Temple Department.
“Consider the temple in the context of a chapel. A chapel is every day and open on Sunday. Living baptisms are done there. Temples are reserved for higher ordinances and represent the Lord’s house.”
All the excitement for the temple, the detailed preparations, and the celebrations before its June 7 dedication should not overshadow the purpose for which it has been built.
“Our greatest hopes are that individuals will feel closer to their God, which leads them to living better lives,” Duffin said. “We’ve heard quite a bit from stake presidents, since the temple was announced that people have felt the need to change their lives. Thousands have been motivated by the presence of the temple.
“Having the temple here seems to be a direct reflection of the faithfulness of the Saints in this area.”
Volunteers have spent countless hours working on the inside amenities of the temple. Some sisters have quilted lap covers that will be used in the temple. Others are preparing family names for temple work.
“In the Santaquin Stake members have been asked to get a minimum of two family names ready to take to the temple,” Duffin said. “In another stake all young women gathered to hear about temples and the history of temples.”
One Boy Scout made coat racks as an Eagle Project for people to put their coats on for the open house, according to Lana Hiskey, public affairs liaison. A group of mentally challenged young men volunteered to help, too. The temple is unifying the Payson Utah Temple District Saints as they wait to serve.
“Everybody wants to be involved,” Hiskey said. “There are four volunteer choirs for each dedication session and for the cornerstone ceremony.”
Curtis and Liz Rowley and their two oldest children, Claire and James, are among thousands of families preparing for the June 8 opening of the new temple. Once it’s operational, many of them will have the chance to try the Church’s new Family Temple Time program. The new program allows families to make a baptistry appointment ahead of time — during the designated block of time determined by each temple individually.
“We are encouraging families to call the temples to make an appointment so they will be able to go right in to the baptistry. They will have an opportunity to go at their scheduled time without a long wait,” Richards said.
The Open House
The open house and cultural celebration have brought activity and volunteerism to a new height. When Duffin was called by the Church’s First Presidency to oversee the events, he was left to formulate a committee. From that assignment he gathered 16 members on the main committee, nearly 300 volunteers on sub-committees, and approximately 20,000 volunteers to help with ushering, parking, translating and more.
It is anticipated that 400,000 visitors will come through the temple’s open house — numbering approximately 1,390 an hour during regular tour hours. Tours are silent and somewhat self-guided, lasting about 45 minutes.
“Those touring will be able to go at their own pace and stop and enjoy the many pictures of the Savior and his sacrifice for us,” Duffin said.
Orchestrating all the volunteers and the parking is an enormous undertaking.
“The shifts will be three to four hours with 134 shifts needing to be filled,” Duffin said. “Each stake is assigned five shifts.”
Tickets are required for the open house and were available at templeopenhouse.lds.org beginning April 13.
Youth Celebration
To celebrate the temple, more than 13, 700 youth will participate in the traditional cultural event at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo. The theme, “Fill the World With Love” reflects the message of Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the First Presidency, encouraging members to be filling the world with Christ’s love from his December 2014 First Presidency Message.
Youth will rehearse in April and May to prepare for the June 6 event.
The celebration will feature a grand Olympic-style opening with all 13, 700 performers entering the stadium with flags and banners representing each stake. A special video has been made that features footage of a flyover of all the temple district area.
Music and dance numbers will reflect the history of the area with a patriotic section, bagpipe band, rodeo, gardens and blossoming fruit trees, baseball and even dragons.
Elaine Hansen, Cultural Celebration coordinator for the Payson Temple, said she felt strongly that she would be involved in the celebration more than a year and a half ago.
“To that end, I wrote from beginning to end a first rendition of what could possibly be a cultural celebration,” Hansen said. “One of the dances was what I referred to as the Santaquin Orchard Dance as I have felt strongly that this marvelous area blesses all of us with apples, peaches and berries for our summer and yearlong enjoyment. In fact, the Big Red Barn is one of the best places for fresh apples on the earth, and especially in Utah.”
Hansen said she remembers having strong feelings there had to be an Apple Orchard Dance to celebrate the culture of Santaquin.
“The creative committee agreed and the planning began,” Hansen said. “Later, and much to my delight, I was to learn from one of the temple contractors that indeed they felt I was inspired to require a dance celebrating the apple orchards as this temple has special designation as the ‘Apple Temple’ with celebratory art inside the temple, in stained glass and other finishes that pictures apple blossoms.”
With that information, Hansen said the dance has taken on greater importance.
“We can’t wait to celebrate the Apple Temple,” Hansen said.
More than 1,000 young people from Goshen will honor the Jerusalem movie set with a dance reminiscent of the Children of Israel with tambourines and drums.
The grand finale will include all of the youth depicting their version of a rainbow to demonstrate their covenant with God to fill the world with love. The finale will include a tremendous balloon release.
Using the event as a missionary tool, youth throughout the temple district were encouraged to involve their friends interested in being a part of the celebration, not just watching. With the level of enthusiasm being generated, it will not be a surprise to Duffin and his committee to have youth participation levels beyond 100 percent.
Dates and Times
The open house will take place from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. April 24 through May 23.
The cultural celebration will take place at 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 6 at LaVell Edwards Stadium. Entry is by ticket only. Participants will be issued no more than four tickets each for the event.
The temple will be dedicated in three services at 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 7. The services will be broadcast within the temple district only.
The Payson Utah Temple will be open for patrons on June 8. Appointments for living ordinances may be made by calling (801) 754-4949. The office will be open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m.
Temple District
The Payson Utah Temple will serve 78,000 members from the following 27 stakes: Delta Utah Stake, Delta Utah West Stake, Elk Ridge Utah Stake, Goshen Utah Stake, Mapleton Utah Stake, Mapleton Utah North Stake, Nephi Utah Stake, Nephi Utah North Stake, Payson Utah Stake, Payson Utah Mount Nebo Stake, Payson Utah Mountain View Stake, Payson Utah South Stake, Payson Utah West Stake, Salem Utah Stake, Salem Utah West Stake, Santaquin Utah Stake, Santaquin Utah North Stake, Spanish Fork Utah Stake, Spanish Fork Utah Canyon Ridge Stake, Spanish Fork Utah Canyon View Stake, Spanish Fork Utah East Stake, Spanish Fork Utah Maple Mountain Stake, Spanish Fork Utah Palmyra Stake, Spanish Fork Utah River Stake, Spanish Fork Utah South Stake, Spanish Fork Utah West Stake, and Spanish Fork Utah YSA Stake.
- Temple President and Matron: William Blake Sonne and Elizabeth Kay Sonne
- 96,630 square feet
- 15 acres
- 146th working temple in the LDS Church
- 15th temple in Utah
- 3rd temple in Utah County
- 5 years passed from announcement to completion
- 788 parking stalls
- 3 ordinance rooms
- No cafeteria or laundry facilities
16-member committee
300-member sub-committees
20,000 volunteers for ushering, parking, translation, etc.
Translation for Spanish and American Sign Language
13,700 youth volunteers
4 volunteer choirs
134 volunteer shifts
400,000 anticipated to tour temple with 1,390 per hour
Tours will continue for 26 days and an additional 3 days for invited guest tours