The Gila Valley Arizona Temple is a

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

(LDS Church) in the town of Central between the communities of

Pima Pima or PIMA may refer to: People * Pima people, the Akimel O'odham, Indigenous peoples in Arizona (U.S.) and Sonora (Mexico) Places * Pima, Arizona, a town in Graham County * Pima County, Arizona * Pima Canyon, in the Santa Catalina Mountains ...

and Thatcher in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. The temple was dedicated on May 23, 2010, following an open house lasting from April 23 to May 15.

History

The announcement of the temple on April 26, 2008 came concurrently with that of the Gilbert Arizona Temple, and together they were the first new temples announced since

Thomas S. Monson Thomas Spencer Monson (August 21, 1927 – January 2, 2018) was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). As president, he was considered by adherents of the re ...

assumed responsibilities as the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the LDS Church. Local church leadership announced on September 21, 2008, that the temple would be built on church owned property adjacent to U.S. Route 70 in the unincorporated community of Central. A petition to grant an exception to building height restrictions to accommodate a steeple for the temple was given a favorable recommendation by the Graham County Planning and Zoning Commission and was subsequently approved by the county board of supervisors on October 20. A groundbreaking and site dedication ceremony took place on February 14, 2009, officially beginning the construction process. The structure was completed on September 22 with the placement of the Angel Moroni statue on the temple's steeple. Additional site improvements, including landscaping and interior work, were completed in early 2010. The new temple serves the significant Latter-day Saint population in the eastern part of Arizona's

Gila River Valley The Gila River Valley is a multi-sectioned valley of the Gila River, located primarily in Arizona. The Gila River forms in western New Mexico and flows west across southeastern, south-central, and southwestern Arizona; it changes directions as i ...

, who previously had to travel to the

Mesa Arizona Temple The Mesa Arizona Temple (formerly the Arizona Temple; nicknamed the ''Lamanite Temple'') is the seventh operating temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Located in the city of Mesa, Arizona, it is the first of s ...

, 150 miles to the west. The area has a historical significance to the LDS Church; Thatcher, which was founded by

Mormon pioneer The Mormon pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Latter Day Saints, who migrated beginning in the mid-1840s until the late-1860s across the United States from the Midwest to the S ...

s in 1881, was home to former LDS Church president Spencer W. Kimball during his youth in the early part of the 1900s. Speculation that the area would be home to a temple was made as early as 1882, when

Jesse N. Smith Jesse Nathaniel Smith (December 2, 1834 – June 5, 1906) was a Mormon pioneer, church leader, colonizer, politician and frontiersman. He was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was a first cousin to Josep ...

predicted that a

would be built in Thatcher. During remarks prior to the dedicatory prayer, Monson noted that an anonymous benefactor, a woman from the area, had given $500,000 to allow the temple to be adorned with much original artwork. In 2020, the Gila Valley Arizona Temple was closed in response to the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identifie ...

.Stack, Peggy Fletcher
"All Latter-day Saint temples to close due to coronavirus"
'' The Salt Lake Tribune'', 26 March 2020. Retrieved on 28 March 2020.

References

External links

*
Gila Valley Arizona Temple Official siteGila Valley Arizona Temple
at ChurchofJesusChristTemples.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Gila Valley Arizona Temple 21st-century Latter Day Saint temples Buildings and structures in Graham County, Arizona Religious buildings and structures completed in 2010 Temples (LDS Church) in Arizona Tourist attractions in Graham County, Arizona 2010 establishments in Arizona

History

See also

References

External links