REXBURG, Idaho (KIFI)- Latter-day Saints gathered in Rexburg on Saturday to break ground for one of the newest Temples in the Gem State.
Members of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Upper Valley shared their excitement.
“It’s wonderful. I know the Rexburg temple is always busy, and, there’s a lot of people here who love the Savior, Jesus Christ. And they want to come closer to him and to have another house of the Lord in this area have more opportunities to do that would be a great blessing,” Kellen Giraud.
“I’m really excited about that, actually. Every time I try and make an appointment in the temple, it has to be like a week or two weeks out. with how busy it is here. So I think it’s just going to get busier and busier here as well. So it’s super cool,” Dean Huisken said.
“It’s just great program today, great spirit. We’re just really excited for our new temple,” Ron Kingler said.
Construction has already started in some ways, but it will really get going on Monday.
“Today they need to pull out all of these things. (Things from the groundbreaking). Tomorrow is Sunday, Monday it will start and it will last around three years,” Elder Ricardo P. Giménez a general authority seventy for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints said.
Saturday June 1st a ground breaking ceremony for the Teton River Temple was held. It’s Rexburg’s second Temple, the third in the valley and ninth overall in the Gem State. Two others the Montpelier Temple and the Burley Temple are also under construction.
County residents shared the ceremony was touching.
“It’s a beautiful day here in the spring. And, just a beautiful occasion to have people all out here, just enjoying this, wonderful occasion. An opportunity to celebrate having a temple. Another temple here in Rexburg,” Giraud said.
“I’ve actually never been to a groundbreaking before. I’ve always seen videos and pictures of it. It was actually really, really spiritual as well. And I thought, there’s no there’s no temple official here. But just throughout the entire thing, I felt like this place is already kind of sacred,” Huisken said.
“It’s always wonderful great spirit here. The speakers were amazing. they did such a good job. And the program was perfect. It was really good,’ Kingler said.
Elder Giménez shares how the new temple can serve as a boost for the surrounding area.
“The place will be beautiful. That will be the the building that the surroundings are going to be beautiful. But this will attract people who are trying to be disciples of Jesus Christ,” Elder Giménez said.
The Teton River Temple will sit between two forks of the Teton River. It will also be visible from US-20 heading north.
It is also the only one in the world that sits on the same street as another temple in the same city, as it is 3.4 miles away from the previous Rexburg Temple Built in 2008.
