Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gathered in Salt Lake City this weekend for the church’s semiannual General Conference, leaning on messages of faith, kindness and unity after a difficult week marked by the death of their longtime president and a deadly church shooting in Michigan.

President Russell M. Nelson, the 17th president and prophet of the church, died Sept. 28 at age 101. He had led the church since 2018.

“(He was) just an amazing man,” said Gary Long, a local church president in the Texas Hill Country. “He was so humble, and the other thing that was so amazing about Russell was his memory. He could meet you one time, and years later, he would still remember your name.”

Even at his age, Nelson’s death came as a shock to many. “He was skiing until he wa

See Full Page