Primary General President Susan H. Porter was born on July 31, 1955, in Ponca City, Oklahoma, and grew up in western New York. She was sustained as the Primary general president in April 2022 general conference and began her service on Aug. 1, 2022. A new Primary general presidency will begin serving on Aug. 1, 2026.
President Porter married Bruce D. Porter on Feb. 2, 1977, in the Washington D.C. Temple. They have four children. Elder Porter was a General Authority Seventy when he died in 2016.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Brigham Young University and worked as a lab assistant at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a part-time math teacher, a piano teacher and a volunteer with various community organizations.
In honor of President Porter’s birthday today, here are nine of her quotes from the past year.
1. God lives
“I leave with my testimony and witness that God, our Heavenly Father, lives. And as evidence of that love, He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to show us the way home, to teach us what we need to do and then to open the door, to rent the veil in half so that we can walk through, through covenants and living His gospel, back to His presence.”
— Church News podcast, July 28, 2026
2. Never alone
“I was not alone then, and I had never been alone. I think as we go through our lives, we can remember that a loving Heavenly Father sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who experienced all that we experience. And He will never leave us alone.”
— Church video, “Never Alone through Jesus Christ,” June 2026
3. His pure love
“On our last day, seeing the Christ the Redeemer statue with His outstretched arms over the city of Rio de Janeiro reminded me so powerfully that Jesus Christ is the ‘God of the whole earth’ (3 Nephi 11:14) whose ‘arm of mercy is extended towards’ all of God’s children (Jacob 6:5). We felt His pure love in Brazil.”
— Ministry in Brazil, June 2026
4. Children’s faith and strength
“I’m humbled by children’s faith and strength in adversity. The inherent dignity they feel when they know they are children of God gives them power and purpose.”
— Keynote address at BYU’s 36th annual International Society Conference, April 6, 2026
5. ‘Here am I, send me’
“I invite you to pray to Heavenly Father and say, like Jesus did, ‘Here am I, send me.’ And then move forward, walking with Him to bring yourselves and others to Christ.”
— "Here Am I, Send Me," April 2026 general conference
6. Listen to the Prophet
“We don’t need to worry about finding our way as we listen to President Dallin H. Oaks, who will help us draw closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ, and our Heavenly Father.”
— Friend to Friend, May 2026
7. His life-giving light
“Because Jesus Christ came to earth and rose on the third day, triumphant over sin and death, there will be no permanent darkness at the going down of the sun. We can seek and find His life-giving light.”
— First Presidency’s Christmas Devotional, Dec. 7, 2025
8. Healing sorrow and pain
“As human beings, we experience joy, and we experience sorrow. That was a time to experience both of those — sorrow at the loss of beloved daughters, and joy as we saw people turn to one another to lift and share the love of Christ with their family members and friends. Jesus Christ is the only one who can heal all sorrow and all pain.”
— Ministry to crash survivors in Maseru, Lesotho, September 2025
9. Service, light and joy
“Just like we talked about service — it can take a few minutes, it can take longer. We can have lots of people or a few people, but it always shines Heavenly Father’s light,” she said. “When we are in the service of our Heavenly Father, it brings joy.”
— Friend to Friend, Sept. 6, 2025
