History and helping families and others in Wyoming’s communities were part of the discussion when Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon and members of the state’s legislature recently visited Martin’s Cove with area Church leaders on Wednesday, Oct. 20.
“The state of Wyoming is very important to our faith because the pioneers on the trails of Wyoming were traveling … to join the Saints in Salt Lake [City],” said Elder S. Gifford Nielsen, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Church’s North America Central Area, in an article on Newsroom.
Elder Nielsen; Elder Michael D. Jones, an Area Seventy; Wyoming Mormon Trail Historic Sites President Kevin Hyde and Sister Janice Hyde; and other area leaders hosted Gordon, state Senate President Dan Dockstader, Sen. Drew Perkins, and state Rep. Lloyd Larsen and Rep. Evan Simpson during their visit.
Martin’s Cove, part of the Wyoming Mormon Trail Historic Sites, is where the Martin Handcart Company members headed to Salt Lake City camped to ride out a heavy blizzard on Nov. 4, 1856. They were able to continue on Nov. 9, 1856, with the help of a rescue party.
Gordon paid tribute to the pioneers and also recognized a similar fortitude and dedication in modern-day Latter-day Saints.
“To be at this sacred place in Wyoming is important to me,” he said. “The pioneers had a commitment to the future and a vision for making their lives better, and that remains unchanged in the Latter-day Saints in Wyoming today.”
Latter-day Saint Charities, the Church’s humanitarian arm, has donated more than 450,000 pounds of food to food banks and pantries across Wyoming. Also, Church members have been working on community projects with local interfaith councils, such as Gillette Assistance League.
Also, Elder Jones presented Gordon with family history information and documents and also shared stories about common ancestors and how the governor, Elder Nielsen and Elder Jones were not-so-distant cousins.
Elder Nielsen said that they “had a remarkable time together” during the visit.
“As we visited, we found that we have many common interests, one of which is taking care of those in desperate situations. With the humanitarian effort of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, along with the Church’s JustServe initiative, we look forward to exploring more opportunities to work together in the future,” he said.
There are nearly 70,000 members of the Church in Wyoming, with 17 stakes and 171 congregations. The Star Valley Wyoming Temple is in Afton, Wyoming, and one temple is under construction in Casper and announced in Cody.
