Latter-day Saints from seven stakes in Cochabamba, Bolivia, celebrated the 60th anniversary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the South American country on Saturday, Sept. 28.
The commemoration included a cultural celebration with Bolivian folk music and dances in traditional clothing.
The seven Cochabamba stakes that put on the event — Universidad, Sarco, Sacaba, Alalay, Aeropuerto, Blanco Galindo and Quillacollo — set up tents to answer questions about the Church, its history and programs the Church offers, like those for self-reliance.
One purpose of the event was to strengthen ties and friendships with people who are not members of the Church, according to a news release on the Church’s Bolivian Newsroom site.
“For me, it is wonderful how the Church has grown in these 60 years,” said Elder Carlos Velasco, an Area Seventy. “It has been a source of countless blessings for families and brothers and sisters, and it will continue to be so. I thank God very much for keeping Bolivia in mind and because the work with great men, leaders and families continues.”
History of the Church in Bolivia
The first missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints began preaching in the Andes Mission in November 1964. They baptized the first convert that December.
Today, the Church has 225,140 members in 273 congregations in Bolivia.
There is one operating temple in this South American nation, with one under construction in Santa Cruz and another announced for La Paz.
The first temple in Bolivia was the Cochabamba Bolivia Temple, dedicated in 2000. Construction work is underway for the Santa Cruz Bolivia Temple after a groundbreaking ceremony was held June 8, 2024. A house of the Lord in La Paz was announced during the October 2021 general conference by Church President Russell M. Nelson.
