Junius F. Wells Award

Salt Lake City, Utah

(2005)

Kim R. Wilson, Chair of MHSF, presents President Gordon B. Hinckley with the Junius F. Wells Award

On May 11, 2005 the Mormon Historic Sites Foundation presented President Gordon B. Hinckley with the first annual Junius F. Wells Award.

The event was held at the Wells Fargo Building in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah and was attended by the entire First Presidency, members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, members of the First Quorum of the Seventy, members of the Presiding Bishopric, and members of the General Relief Society Presidency. In addition, many civic and community leaders were in attendance.

The evening included musical performances by Marshall McDonald, Peter Breinholt, Shawna Gottfredson, and Karen Hughes and a video presentation entitled "Remembering Sacred Places" highlighting some of President Hinckley's efforts in preserving church history.

The award, a bust of Junius F. Wells, was crafted by well-known LDS sculptor Dee Jay Bawden. The bust rests on a stand made of wood from a sugar maple tree near the birthplace of the Prophet Joseph in Sharon, Vermont. The award also includes a granite base hewn from the same quarry in Barre, Vermont, from which the 38½ Joseph Smith, Jr. Monument was hewn and erected by Junius F. Wells in 1905.

The Mormon Historic Sites Foundation is honored to pay tribute to the great work that President Hinckley has done for the preservation of the rich heritage of the Church.