OGDEN, Utah — Elder Kevin W. Pearson believes that some of the most powerful interactions in the scriptures occur between Jesus Christ and children.
For instance, during Christ’s mortal ministry, He invited children to come unto Him, as recorded in the New Testament (see Luke 18:16); and in the Book of Mormon, the resurrected Savior blessed the Nephite children (see 3 Nephi 17:2-24).
These interactions “give us insight into who the Savior is and what the gospel of Jesus Christ is all about,” said Elder Pearson, a General Authority Seventy and Utah Area president.
That’s why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so highly prioritizes the well-being of children, Elder Pearson said, and why the Church made significant contributions to the new Weber-Morgan Children’s Justice Center in Ogden, Utah.
Elder Pearson was among a number of community members who attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new children’s justice center on Thursday, May 22. Also in attendance were Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman and Sister Amy A. Wright, first counselor in the Primary general presidency.
Weber-Morgan Children’s Justice Center officials broke ground for the facility in February 2024 after four years of advocacy, fundraising and planning, the Ogden Standard-Examiner reported. And earlier this year, the Church donated $300,000 to the center, the Ogden Standard-Examiner also reported.
“To The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which has collaborated with us since 2015, thank you for supporting our work and investing in Utah’s children,” said justice center program director Tracey Tabet during Thursday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
This isn’t the first time the Church has provided funds to help vulnerable children. In 2021, the Church gave $300,000 to the Children’s Justice Center of Utah County, which allowed a second, temporary location in that area to receive a permanent space, Church News reported.
Additionally, the Church donated $50,000 to the Utah Children’s Justice Center program in 2018, $120,000 in 2017, $25,000 in 2016 and $100,000 in 2015.
The Utah Children’s Justice Center program has 26 locations across the state, according to the organization’s website. Each center is designed to provide a “comfortable, neutral, child-friendly atmosphere for children to receive coordinated services during the child-abuse investigation process.”
Services include on-site medical examinations, psychological support and forensics interviews with specially trained professionals that reduce the number of times a child must speak about their trauma.
In an interview after Thursday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony, Elder Pearson said he hopes the new facilities will help abuse victims remember they are children of God.
And as the people around those children help them see that they are loved and valued, “that’s a place to start,” Elder Pearson said. “That’s a ray of hope, and that at least gives them a foundation [to know] that, as awful as it is, there’s a way forward.”
‘Behold your little ones’
Rod Layton, outgoing director of the Weber-Morgan center, said during the ribbon-cutting ceremony that the center’s old location was too dark, noisy and small to adequately serve local needs. In contrast, the new facility lets in lots of light and has better privacy.
Reed Richards, founder of the Utah Children’s Justice Center project, added that the new facility was designed to look more like a house than an office building, and everything down to the art on the walls was chosen with children’s comfort in mind.
“The most important person to take care of is the victim,” Richards said. “It’s important to punish the violator but more important, I think, to help that victim recover.”
In an interview after the event, Sister Wright said the Church condemns abuse in any form, particularly toward children. The Church has a long-standing relationship with the Utah Children’s Justice program, she said, and hopes to continue that relationship.
“We want to be part of the solution and to help build strong communities,” Sister Wright said.
As she walked through the new facility, the thought that impressed itself on her was, “Beginnings matter,” she said.
“How we begin and where we begin to heal matters, especially to these children,” Sister Wright said. “They’re coming from a place of darkness, of trauma, of secrecy, and they walk into a place of light, of safety, of love, where they can share their story in a safe place, which is incredibly unburdening.”
Sister Wright also spoke of the way that the Savior interacted with children in the scriptures, specifically when He told the Nephites, “Behold your little ones” (3 Nephi 17:23).
To “behold” means to look at something with care and tenderness, Sister Wright said. So when adults are taught they must become like little children in order to return to the Savior’s presence, “I think that speaks volumes of how precious they are in His sight and how precious they need to be in our sight.”
