LDS Church members share experiences, admire renovated Ogden Utah Temple

A. Reed Halversen and his wife Luana were called as the first temple president and matron of the Ogden Utah Temple.

Provided by the Halversen family

Luana Halversen still remembers how she felt when members of the First Presidency of the LDS Church called her and her late husband, A. Reed Halversen, to be the first matron and president of the Ogden Utah Temple in 1971.

President Harold B. Lee asked if I was worried. I said, Im scared to death, Halversen said in a recent interview with the Deseret News. But Ill go in that temple and do my best, give it all I got. His answer was to go in and be yourself. So we went in and we worked.

The Halversens served in that capacity until 1976. Looking back four decades later, it was a special assignment during a lifetime of service in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In late August, Halversen toured the recently renovated Ogden Utah Temple with members of her family.

It will be a beautiful symbol of the Lord for all who live in the Ogden area, Halversen said. Those who come to visit the temple and serve there will feel a tremendous spirit.

Halversen is one of many individuals who honor the memory of the Ogden Temple while admiring the beauty and splendor of the newly renovated temple set to be rededicated on Sept. 21.

The Ogden Temple has a rich heritage and set a new standard for accelerated temple work. Elder Kent F. Richards of the Seventy, and recently appointed executive director of the temple department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, feels a special connection to Ogden and the temple through one of his ancestors.

A couple from Brigham City remember the day that temple work was performed for several famous Mormon pioneers. For another couple, the Ogden Temple has been a central part of their lives for many years.

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LDS Church members share experiences, admire renovated Ogden Utah Temple