Ground Broken for Grand Junction Colorado Temple

Groundbreaking ceremonies have been held for the Grand Junction Colorado Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, signaling the beginning of construction of the sacred structure.

Elder Chi Hong (Sam) Wong of the Quorum of the Seventy presided at the event, held on Saturday, April 16, 2022. Elder Wong serves as first counselor in the North America Central Area Presidency.

“This is a day of dedication not only of this temple site, but for each of us in our individual lives,” said Elder Wong in the dedicatory prayer.

He continued, “Tomorrow is Easter Sunday. We are grateful for the Atonement of Thy Son Jesus Christ and the blessing of the promised Resurrection. As we dedicate this holy ground, we pray that we can maintain this positive spiritual momentum in our lives.

The temple in Colorado’s Western Slope region will be located on a 6.94-acre site at the intersection of Horizon Drive and North 12th Street. The single-story structure will be about 29,000 square feet in size.

With a population of about 65,000 people, Grand Junction is the largest city in far Western Colorado and is where the Gunnison and Colorado Rivers converge.

The Grand Junction Colorado Temple will be the third temple in the state, following the Denver and Fort Collins temples. Colorado is home to nearly 150,000 Latter-day Saints in approximately 315 congregations.

While attendance at the groundbreaking was limited, the event was livestreamed to Latter-day Saint meetinghouses in the temple district. Video of the broadcast will be added to this article as available.

Temples

President Russell M. Nelson has announced 100 new temples since he became leader of the Church in 2018, including the Grand Junction Colorado Temple announced in April 2021. Seventeen new temples were announced in the recent April general conference. The Church of Jesus Christ now has 282 total temples worldwide in operation, under construction or renovation, or announced.

Latter-day Saints consider temples to be the “house of the Lord” and the most sacred places of worship on earth. Temples differ from the Church’s meetinghouses (chapels). All are welcome to attend Sunday worship services and other weekday activities at local meetinghouses. The primary purpose of temples is for faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ to participate in sacred ceremonies, such as marriages, which unite families forever, and proxy baptisms on behalf of deceased ancestors who did not have the opportunity to be baptized while living.