On Sunday, Dec. 14, Emma Davis was sitting with her family in the front two rows of the Portland Maine Stake Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when the construction of the Maine Temple was unexpectedly announced at the Maine Stake’s stake Christmas fireside.
“I just started crying,” Davis, 24, said. “I looked at my grandparents and I couldn’t believe how happy they were. All my cousins were there too. It was a really special moment.”
At the end of the fireside, Elder Allen D. Haney, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Northeastern United States Area, read a statement from the First Presidency: “We are pleased to announce that we will build a temple in Portland, Maine. The exact location and timing of construction will be announced at a later date.”
“This is why we all rejoice and thank God for such an important blessing, which gives us more frequent access to the ordinances, covenants, and powers found only in the house of the Lord.”
The Portland Maine Temple was the first house of the Lord in this coastal New England state.
Davis said the announcement is especially meaningful to her family because her congregation, Windham Ward of the Portland Stake, began in the home of her grandparents, Jonathan and Linda Miele. “Thanks to everyone’s hard work and effort and the growth of the church in that area, we were finally able to afford to build a building. … So for our grandparents to have a temple built during their lifetime is really special and really emotional for our family.”
She added that the temple announcements were not accompanied by loud cheers or applause from the audience, but rather quiet gasps and sniffles. “It was a very reverent and sacred moment that we all shared.”
Excited to “get the job done”
From his position in the stands, Maine Portland Stake President Richard J. Taylor could see the excitement and emotion on people’s faces as Elder Haney read the announcement.
“As far as I could see, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. … We’re very excited, we’re very blessed, we’re honored to be able to make this announcement, and it’s the first time it’s been announced in this way. Frankly, we’re overwhelmed by this opportunity. This Christmas season is a blessing to us,” President Taylor said.
President Taylor said stake members currently travel between 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours and 45 minutes to attend the Boston Massachusetts Temple.
Beyond the distance and travel required to attend the Boston temple, President Taylor said members are ready to become “temple owners.”
“I think that’s the spirit that we have as members of the Church here. We’re ready to ‘own’ the temple, to operate it, to own everything that goes into it to bless people. We’re really excited to have the opportunity to move this effort forward,” President Taylor said.
President Taylor estimated more than 300 people attended Sunday night’s event. Attendance was low due to the snowstorm, but a Zoom link was provided for those who were unable to attend.
Wyndham Borough member Valerie Bradshaw said it was “really special” to have the temple fire announced next to the Christmas fireplace.
“My husband and I were talking about how great it would be to directly tell the people who were going to be affected by this event the most, and it quickly spread on social media. … So even though we were the only people in the room, it was so exciting that the whole world knew about it and was so excited for us,” Bradshaw said.
A celebration that spans generations
Like Davis, Will Guerrette also has Maine pioneer ancestry. He said his maternal great-grandparents were the first Latter-day Saints to live in Maine after the exodus west. They held sacrament meetings in their home in the early 1900s before they had enough members to establish a branch.
“Today I felt like I was part of a celebration of literally generations of gospel efforts in Maine,” Guerrette said.
Guerret, a former bishop of the Sacoward of the Portland Stake, commented on what it was like to sit next to his fellow Saints while Elder Haney read the temple announcement. “I felt like I was celebrating this with my best friends,” he said.
“As much as I had hoped and dreamed that this day would come, I don’t think I ever thought I would be able to participate in such an intimate way as we announced the construction of a temple in Maine. … It was an incredible experience, and I think the communal part of the experience is what took it to the next level of sublimity.”
His “real moment” came during the final song, he said. “Hundreds of Latter-day Saints sang “Joy to the World” with more enthusiasm than I have ever heard as a Latter-day Saint.
“After the closing prayer, it wasn’t irreverent, but the room exploded with chatter and hugs and cries and high-fives. It’s hard to describe the Spirit that was in that room because the Holy Ghost was clearly present. But it was also absolute pure joy. . . . I felt like I was floating above the pew.”
Mr Guerret said the fireplace made a “big impression” on his sons, who are 11 and 13.
“Sometimes we feel like we are far away from church headquarters, or like we are just a small part of the kingdom, and yet the Lord has blessed us with temples, which is truly incredible,” he said.
