Esther Chidester experienced a homecoming of sorts during a celebration honoring the 100th anniversary of Utah’s first Spanish-speaking Latter-day Saint branch.
Chidester, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, grew up in the Spanish-speaking Lucero Ward, now part of the Salt Lake Central Stake.
She fondly recalled the “privilege” of living near the Salt Lake Temple and attending Church meetings and activities.
She especially loved bearing her testimony in Spanish, which she called a “passionate” language.
“So to me, it was pretty special,” Chidester said. The ward “was just a family. I consider them as family.”
Chidester was among hundreds of community members who came to the University of Utah Institute of Religion on Aug. 18 to enjoy Latin American food, music and dancing.
The event, “Celebración de 100 Años,” featured nearly two dozen presentations from wards around the Salt Lake Valley. Countries from Central and South America were represented through dance and song in each presentation.
Chidester said she’s loved watching the local Hispanic community become more diverse over the years. In her adolescence, most of the Spanish-speaking members she knew were from Mexico; but now, local Hispanic members represent countries from all over Latin America.
“[We] have all these different countries that come together and can be united in the gospel of Jesus Christ,” Chidester said.
Lorena Valiente, daughter of Bishop Oscar O. Valiente — the Lucero Ward’s current bishop — echoed Chidester’s sentiment.
“Because [they’re] coming from different countries ... we want them to feel like this is also a place for them to be safe and ... to feel the Spirit,” she said. “It strengthens their faith in Jesus Christ and in the Church.”
During the event, food trucks served everything from empanadas to churros, while performers in colorful costumes brightened the crowd. Inside, several booths distributed information on topics like Latin American family history.
On the Institute’s second floor, a timeline and photos detailed how Spanish-speaking members who came to Utah in 1920 eventually helped establish the first Spanish-speaking branch in 1923. Later in the evening, performers entertained a large audience with traditional music and dancing from their home countries.
Prior to the performances, Elder Hugo E. Martinez, a General Authority Seventy and first counselor in the Utah Area Presidency, spoke about honoring both earthly and spiritual heritage.
“I’ve loved studying the history of this ward as it grew from a small group,” he said. “The Lord wants everybody to receive the gospel in their own language.”
He shared stories from the Spanish-speaking congregations’ early days, including origins of the Salt Lake Mexican Branch.
“We delight in listening to the music of all the countries that are being represented by song and dance here.”
A pioneering history
The Church News previously reported that Juan Ramon Martinez joined the Church in New Mexico but felt he was needed in Utah to do missionary work among the Mexican and other Spanish-speaking people. So in the summer of 1920, he put $600 in his pocket and traveled to Salt Lake City.
He met José Zamora, another Latino Church member, in an area barbershop and was introduced to a handful of other Spanish-speaking Latter-day Saints living in Salt Lake City. The new friends shared a common language, ancestry and earnest desire to preach the gospel among their own people and in their own tongue.
Juan Ramon Martinez and two other members, Margarito Bautista and Francisco Solano, eventually met with President Anthony W. Ivins, a Spanish-speaking Apostle who was serving as President Heber J. Grant’s second counselor in the First Presidency. President Ivins, who had lived in Mexico for many years, granted the men permission to proselyte and hold meetings in Spanish.
In November of 1920, a handful of Mexican families observed Sunday services in Spanish in Juan Ramon Martinez’s downtown restaurant.
From those humble beginnings, the first Mexican branch was established in Utah on May 15, 1923, according to information provided at the 100 year commemoration event. Solano was called as the first branch president. In 1925, the branch began meeting in the old “Barrio Seis” (6th Ward) at 448 S. 300 East in Salt Lake City.
In October 1942, the branch moved to the Pioneer Stake Hall at 126 W. 500 South, also in Salt Lake City. On Thanksgiving Day 1948, ground was broken for the Mexican Branch’s new chapel. Then-Elders Harold B. Lee and Spencer W. Kimball were in attendance.
President J. Reuben Clark dedicated the chapel in June 1951. On July 17, 1960, under the direction of President Joseph Fielding Smith, the Mexican Branch officially became the Lucero Ward, with Robert Burton as bishop.
Lucero was the middle name of President Rey L. Pratt, who helped establish the original branch years earlier, the Church News reported.
