ST. GEORGE — The newly renovated St. George Temple may not be quite ready to re-open, but the St. George Temple Visitors’ Center IS open every day to all visitors and, as of January 11 this year, has new directors – Richard and Sally Meyer.
The Meyer’s are serving a two-year assignment for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after previously serving as a counselor and assistant to the matron in the Columbia River Washington Temple. “Elder” and “Sister” Meyer hail from Kennewick, Washington where they have resided for 42 years. Both were raised in military families and lived on various military bases around the world. Elder Meyer was in the US Navy for 6 years as a supply officer, then he worked for the Dept. of Energy Hanford Nuclear Reservation in the logistics and supply department. Sister Meyer served in the local hospice agency as a nursing assistant prior to which she had a small business of her own.
They have both found this area to be a very friendly and pleasant place (apart from the sometimes-crazy traffic) and the surrounding hills and mountains to be incredibly beautiful and inspiring.
The Meyer’s duties as directors include scheduling the work shifts for the young sister missionaries and senior couple missionaries, organizing and providing training for all those who serve at the Center, and taking care of administrative matters such as ordering supplies, coordinating facilities matters and keeping the Center operational.
They also coordinate with the Mission President to provide outreach opportunities to assist the work of the mission. And they visit and speak in the many congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the area to promote the work of the Visitors’ Center.
The Temple Visitors’ Center is open every day of the year from 10:00 am till 9:00 pm. It remains open on Sundays and all holidays. The striking St. George Temple draws in many from the community as well as thousands of guests traveling through the Washington County area.
Visitors include those coming to the area for sports tournaments, spring breaks, outdoor events and, in the summer, tour buses full of international guests primarily from several European countries.
The basic purpose of the Temple Visitors’ Center is to provide Christ-centered experiences for all who enter it. The Meyers’ desire is that all who enter the Center feel welcome. They want each visitor to feel the sacred nature of being on dedicated grounds in the shadow of a temple – that the Center is an extension of the temple.
They want each person who visits the Center and the temple grounds to know and to feel that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ-centered. They see miracles every day they serve in the visitors’ center, as they take the opportunity to share the restored gospel with others not of their faith. They also witness miracles in the connections of guests coming into the center who may not have seen each other for many years, and in the peace that comes to the troubled by just being in the presence of the temple. They feel it a privilege and joy to serve for two years in this capacity in the St. George community.