In honor of President Russell M. Nelson’s 100th birthday on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, Utah Gov. Spencer J. Cox declared the day as “President Russell M. Nelson Day” in the state.
President Nelson was joined by Gov. Cox and his wife, Abby, at the Church Administration Building on Thursday, Sept. 5, where Gov. Cox informed President Nelson of the recognition.
The governor’s proclamation summarizes some of President Nelson’s lifetime accomplishments, including his education, military service, career in medicine and Church leadership. It also mentions President Nelson’s love of his family.
Gov. Cox wrote in the proclamation that “we honor his life’s dedication to kindness, love and welcoming spirit.”
The proclamation also praised President Nelson for his encouragement that individuals become peacemakers — especially to those who may believe differently than they do. In it, Gov. Cox said President Nelson’s “efforts to build bridges of understanding and preserve freedoms” have been “tireless.”
Also in attendance were Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; Elder Matthew S. Holland, a General Authority Seventy; and Sheri Dew, executive vice president of Deseret Management Corporation and former member of the Relief Society general presidency.
Declaration’s full text
Whereas, President Russell Marion Nelson was born September 9, 1924, to Marion C. and Edna Anderson Nelson in Salt Lake City, Utah;
Whereas, President Nelson is the 17th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sustained and set apart on January 14, 2018, and is the oldest president in the history of the Church;
Whereas, President Nelson graduated from East High School in Salt Lake City as a valedictorian, received his B.A. and M.D. degrees from the University of Utah, then served his residency in surgery at University of Minnesota Hospitals and Massachusetts General Hospital, and was awarded a Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota;
Whereas, President Nelson served honorably in the United States military, first in the United States Naval Reserve and later in the United States Army Medical Corps during the Korean War;
Whereas, President Nelson is an internationally renowned surgeon and medical researcher, having performed the first open-heart surgery in Utah at age 32, served as president of the Society for Vascular Surgery, a director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, chairman of the Council on Cardiovascular Surgery for the American Heart Association and president of the Utah State Medical Association;
Whereas, President Nelson has served in the Church in various capacities and callings throughout his lifetime, and was sustained and set apart as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on April 7, 1984;
Whereas, President Nelson is the father of 10 children, 57 grandchildren, 167 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild, and following the passing of his first wife, Dantzel White, in February 2005, married Wendy L. Watson in April 2006.
Whereas, President Nelson has called upon all of us to be peacemakers, emphasizing the importance of opening “our hearts to those whose lives are different than our own … for we are all children of a loving God;”
Whereas, President Nelson has made tireless efforts to build bridges of understanding and preserve freedoms, and was named the inaugural laureate of the Gandhi-King-Mandela Peace Prize from Morehouse College in 2023;
Whereas, in commemoration of his 100th birthday, we honor his life’s dedication to kindness, love and welcoming spirit;
Now, therefore, I, Spencer J. Cox, governor of the state of Utah, do hereby declare September 9, 2024, as President Russell M. Nelson Day in Utah.
Spencer J. Cox, Governor
