Henderson acknowledges LDS community’s service in proclamation

Henderson acknowledged the contributions of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Henderson with a proclamation read by Councilwoman Carrie Cox in a church meeting Sunday night.

The proclamation declares March 2023 as Henderson Black Mountain Stake 50th Anniversary Month, honoring the legacy of Black Mountain Stake, one of the original LDS stakes in Henderson, and its service contributions to the entire Henderson community.

In the LDS church, a stake is an organized group of several congregations, called wards, and comprises thousands of church members. Both stakes and wards have geographic boundaries that determine what church building members attend. In Henderson, the Black Mountain Stake’s boundaries include the Water Street District and surrounding historic downtown Henderson neighborhoods.

The proclamation was announced the weekend of the stake’s 50th anniversary celebration that commemorated the growth of the LDS church in Henderson, and stake leadership’s community service efforts.

The declaration acknowledged the stake’s humanitarian aid efforts after the stake helped donate $14,000 this month to Friends of the Desert, a nonprofit which serves free hot meals to those in need, to buy a commercial stove for St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church where the nonprofit operates.

Black Mountain Stake President Doug Hedger said the stake also works annually with the city to organize a Community Day of Service every fall that organizes as many as 500 people from the church, other denominations and city leaders to do service projects. Some past projects have been to clean up the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve or the Union Pacific Railroad Trail.

Reaching out to people of all backgrounds in Henderson to collaborate in helping others is a major goal for the LDS church and its members who live and work in the community, Hedger said.

“We want to do good in the community,” he said. “It’s just nice to see the community come together, regardless of religion, or beliefs, and just have that common goal of serving others and helping each other.”

Cox, who is a member of the LDS church, said one of the reasons she loves living in and serving in the city government of Henderson is because of the strength of the city’s interfaith community and its ability to work together to serve others.

“Our interfaith community, where we are able to have that one commonality (of service), really brings people together, and we’re able to serve those that aren’t able to maybe help themselves, or need a little bit of help,” she said. “That’s what community is all about — taking care of each other.”

Cox said as the city continues to tackle community issues like homelessness and public safety, it’s important for city government to work with community members to improve residents’ lives, and acknowledge the community organizations that play a large part in helping others.

“I want to continue to work hard to solve some of those issues that are very important and facing us right now, but I can’t do it without the community support and involvement,” she said. “That’s what makes something like this (proclamation and celebration) so great — people coming together to celebrate that community involvement.”