While we are past the worst, it appears that the reopening will be more of a "swoosh" rather than a "V" shape. Here is what has been happening in our Temple Square Mission.
Temple Square Flowers
Here's a few last shots of the spring flowers. Most of the flower beds have recently been changed to the summer flowers.
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| Sister Burkinshaw used this picture for a mother's day card for her mother and sent it via e-mail to the Care Center in Wyoming along with a Time Line she had put together for her (Kathleen Croft Stevens). |
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| Grandma Steven's timeline, commemorating important dates in her life for Mother's Day |
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| This last flower was the most delicious from Mrs Backer's Pastry Shop at 434 E South Temple which we walk by every day. During the first transfer meeting, each of the Sister Missionaries returning from outbound receive one of these special flowers from Sister Fisher! Delicious!! |
The Great Salt Lake
We have seen the Great Salt Lake every time we drive up north on I-15 but we decided to take a closer look on a P-Day Saturday. So we drove out the the Great Salt Lake State Park in Magna which is located on the north side of the Kennecott's Garfield Smelter.
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| Kennecott Copper's Garfield Smelter stack, built in 1974, is 1215 feet high, the tallest man-made structure in Utah - about 3 times the height of the Church Office Building. |
The Great Salt Lake is the largest remnant of Lake Bonneville which at one time covered the northwest third of the state of Utah. It is the largest lake west of the Mississippi and the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. It is fed by the Jordan, Weber and Bear Rivers but without an outlet, the inlet is balanced by evaporation concentrating to about 25% salt (compared to 33% salt for the Dead Sea and about 3% for the ocean). It is relatively shallow at about 13 feet and the size of the lake varies greatly depending on rainfall. it has been as large as 3300 square miles and as small as 950 square miles but averages about 1700 square miles.
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| Sister Burkinshaw with the Great Salt Lake and Stansbury Island in the background |
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| Antelope Island, the largest island in the Great Salt Lake, was named for the herds of antelope seen there by the John C Fremont and Kit Carson expedition in 1845. |
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| The south shore of the Great Salt Lake looking west at the Cedar Mountains. |
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| The south shore of the Great Salt Lake looking east at the Saltair Resort which is now a concert venue. In the 1890's the original Saltair Resort drew many people who enjoyed floating in the salt water. |
Today, millions of migratory birds stop at the Great Salt Lake to gorge themselves with brine shrimp, the only creature that can live in the salty water, on their way north or south. Sailing is extremely popular and the Great Salt Lake State Park has a huge marina with many loading ramps. Despite the COVID-19 situation, we saw many people camping in their RV's at the park.
The Mother of all Transfers
About 35,000 missionaries serving in foreign lands returned to their home countries to quarantine for 14 days and were given the opportunity to choose (by April 30) whether to continue their missions with their original release date and be reassigned to a new field of labor in their home country or to be released for 12-18 months, assuming that's how long it would take for the pandemic to pass and then return to their original mission. Although we have not seen any official report, we have heard that the vast majority elected to continue their missions and be reassigned.
Thus with relatively short notice, we received 35 of our "Outbound" Temple Square Sister missionaries. Outbound means they serve 2 transfers or about 3 months in another US or Canada mission as a part of their 18 months. With the pandemic, Sisters who were to have returned April 1 had to remain in their outbound mission, so we had a backlog. In addition, 30 Sister Missionaries were reassigned to Temple Square and 4 new Sister Missionaries who participated in on-line MTC training also arrived all on May 13. And to make things interesting, another 5 missionaries that were not expected from Outbound arrived. In addition, 19 Sisters had completed their missions and were returning home that same day.
Thus with nearly 100 Sisters coming and going from the Salt Lake Airport, all on different flights from 4:40am to after 9:00pm, we had a challenge! Our solution is presented graphically.
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| The schedule we organized to transport our Sister Missionaries to and from the Salt Lake Airport for our May 13 transfer. Note the scriptural names assigned to each van in the schedule as explained below. |
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| The mission van key fobs in the lock box of the garage where the vans are parked. Elder Burkinshaw prepared labels for each to simplify identification of the vans for the Sisters. |
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| Sister Burkinshaw prepared a folder for each new reassigned Sister Missionary (green or blue) and each new Sister arriving from the MTC (yellow). |
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| The folders for each of the new incoming Sister Missionaries include scripture marking crayons, a Historical Guide to Temple Square, a health guide and other information to help orient them to the Temple Square Mission. |
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| It took a couple days to prepare the materials and compile these 34 folders for the incoming missionaries. |
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| These are the packets for the departing Sister Missionaries which contain their flight information, a flash drive with group photos from all the Zone Meetings and Conferences during their mission, their release letter, a letter of recommendation, contact information for all those they served with as well as a copy of President Nelsons recent biography by Sherri Dew. |
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| These are the file folders for the 34 arriving sisters, sisters new to the mission. We had four sisters from their home MTC's and 30 sisters who were re-assigned from foreign missions. That does not count the 40 sisters returning from outbound assignments who already had folders from their previous service in the mission. |
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| President and Sister Fisher visited with each of the newly arriving Sisters in waves to introduce them to the mission and use the packets Sister Burkinshaw prepared for them. |
The day of the transfer was quite long and extended into the next days as some of our departing Sisters to areas such as New Zealand, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia could not get flights on the transfer day so they had to wait an extra day or two or three. After the transfer our numbers of missionaries increased from 120 to 175 which includes the Mission President, two senior couples and two part-time senior missionaries.
The Angel Moroni
While plans were to remove the Angel Moroni statue from the Temple as well as the finials later in the work on the Salt Lake Temple, the March 18th earthquake expedited that work. By the way, finials are the 12 mini-steeples (one on each corner for three levels) on each of the 6 major steeples for a total of 72 finials. While the engineers probably tried to estimate what needed to be done to strengthen the stone work of the temple to withstand the equivalent of a 5.2 earthquake (since the design criterion was that the new base isolation system would buffer a 7.2 earthquake so that the temple only felt a 5.2 earthquake) it was just an engineering guess. And so we can imagine that the Lord, in his mercy, sent a 5.7 earthquake after the Salt Lake Temple had closed so there was no injuries but to provide real data needed to identify and address weaknesses. While many felt it was adding insult to injury to have the earthquake during the COVID-19 pandemic, it appears to be more of a tender mercy.
In any event, over the course of several weeks, an impressive scaffold was built around the Angel Moroni statue. Then on May 18, 2020 at about 9:37am, Moroni was lifted off the Salt Lake Temple for the first time since he was placed there in 1892 - about 128 years!
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| Here is the beginning of the scaffolding around the main tower and the Angel Moroni on May 7, 2020. |
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| By May 8, the scaffolding was several levels higher. Note that this was not just thrown together but is an impressive-looking piece of work, complete with ladders between levels. |
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| By May 10, the scaffolding was completed which allowed access to all parts of the sculpture and the capstone. Since it has been in place for over 112 years, it probably took more than a squirt of WD-40 to release bolts holding Moroni in place! |
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| On the morning of Monday, May 18, the gardeners had removed all the Spring flowers and were planting the summer flowers while many people gathered to watch Moroni lifted from the top of the Salt Lake Temple. You can also see a variety of construction workers in the bright vests who were providing feedback to the crane operator. Winds were 10-15 mph. |
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| Moroni and the round capstone is lifted up of the tower and through the scaffolding. The statue stands 12.5 meters high, was molded in hammered copper from the plaster original, was covered with 22-karat gold leaf and weighs two and a half tons (5,000 lbs) with the capstone. |
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| The Angel Moroni statue and the capstone being lowered to the southeast corner of the Salt Lake Temple. The capstone is a sphere of granite about 3 feet in diameter. |
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| The statue of the Angel Moroni nearing the end of his journey from the top of the Salt Lake Temple. On April 6, 1892 when the Statue was originally installed, Church leaders placed a box with multiple items in the hollow capstone, where they remain. The items included a photo of the temple; a Bible, a Book of Mormon and other books; and images of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, George Q. Cannon and Joseph F. Smith. Also placed in the box was a polished brass plate inscribed with the phrase “Holiness to the Lord,” key dates in the temple’s construction and the names of the temple’s architects and the church’s general authorities both at the time of the 1853 groundbreaking and the 1892 capstone ceremony. |
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| The Angel Moroni comes to rest on the ground southeast of the tower where he stood for over 128 years. He will be repaired and refurbished. We assume that at some time in the near future, the time capsule in the capstone will be opened and the contents displayed. |
Utah State Capitol
On our P-Day, Saturday, May 16, we decided to take our morning walk to the Utah State Capitol instead of up South Temple to the University of Utah. Here's what we saw.
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| OLD CITY HALL - NOW KNOWN AS COUNCIL HALL Constructed in 1864-65 at 120 East 1st South, this red sandstone building served for nearly 30 years 1866-1894, as the seat of city government. Here the territorial legislature met and passed laws establishing free public schools, made appropriations for the first University of Utah building, and granted woman suffrage. From it’s cupola, a 1700 lb bell sounded fire alarms and curfews while its clock chimed the time of day. In 1961 the structure was removed stone by stone and restored to its original likeness through the efforts of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the State of Utah, the Salt Lake City Corporation and the N. G. Morgan foundation. Now a Utah State Visitors Center and Historic Shrine. |
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| The White Memorial Chapel was first built in 1883, and it was originally located on A Street and 2nd Avenue. It was home to the 18th ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). In 1973, the chapel was carefully disassembled to ensure elements could be reused. In 1976, the chapel was rebuilt on land donated by the Utah State Legislature in celebration of the nation’s 200th birthday, using the chapel’s original steeple, Gothic windows, doors, and benches. The LDS Sunday School program was launched at this location, and it served as the founding location for the first Boy Scout troop in Utah. The building is now a non-denominational chapel used for civic purposes. |
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| The Utah State Capitol Building which overlooks the Salt Lake Valley from end of State Street. Modeled after the National Capitol Building in Washington D.C., the Corinthian style building was built between 1912 and 1916. In 2008 the capitol building underwent the addition of a base isolation system similar to what is happening now at the Salt Lake Temple. It was designed to allow the building to survive as much as a 7.3 magnitude earthquake. |
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| This sculpture, by renowned Utah artist Cyrus E. Dallin, is a tribute to the Wampanogas chief who greeted the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts. The statue was first erected at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1921. The original plaster figure was given to Utah by Dallin the next year and displayed in the Capitol rotunda. In 1927, the plaster was duplicated in bronze and now stands in front of the east doors of the Capitol. Dallin was also the sculpture of the Angel Moroni atop the Salt Lake Temple. |
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| This is a view of the capitol building looking southwest where you can see the Church Office Building to the left. |
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| Here is Elder Burkinshaw in his walking attire on the west side of the Capitol Building. |
James E Talmage Home
We recently discovered that we regularly walk by the home (304 E 1st Avenue - SE corner of C Street and 1st Avenue) of James E Talmage while he served from 1889-1892 as President of Latter-day Saints University (eventually becoming LDS Business College) and from 1893-1897 as President of the University of Deseret (which ultimately became the University of Utah). The home has been well maintained and is still there today.
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| The home of James E Talmage, chemistry and geography professor, President of LDS Business College and the University of Utah and Apostle from 1911-1933 during which time he wrote Jesus the Christ, The Articles of Faith, The House of the Lord among other notable books. |
An experience illustrative of the times, calling for personal
effort and risk as well as prayer from the very bottom of the heart, came to
James E. Talmage in the spring of 1892 when the ravages of diphtheria were at
their terrible height in the territory. It involved a family of strangers, not
members of the Church, who lived near the Talmage home.
Returning home
from calling on a sick person on Memorial Day, a legal holiday free from
regular duties, James learned of the terrible suffering and destitution of the
family, Martin by name, which was stricken by diphtheria and without help. Ward
Relief Society officers had been unable to find anyone willing to go to the
pest-stricken house. Fear of the dreadful disease had reached panic
proportions, and people-especially those with children-would not knowingly
expose themselves to the germs.
When he heard
of the Martins' plight, James immediately changed clothes and proceeded to
their home, where he "found to exist a pitiful state of affairs."
One child, two
and a half years old, lay dead on a bed, having been dead about four hours and
still unwashed. Two other children, one a boy of ten and the other a girl of
five, lay writhing in the agonies of the disease. A girl of 13 years is still
feeble from a recent attack of diphtheria.... The father, Mr. Abe Martin, and
the mother, Marshia Martin, are dazed with grief and fatigue; and the only
other occupant of the house, a man named Kelly who is a boarder in the family,
is so ill and weak as hardly to be able to move about.
The siege of
illness had gone on so long that the entire house was in a state of utter
filth. After administering to the children at the request of the parents, James
attacked the physical tasks, washing and laying out the little corpse, bathing
the living children and clothing them in clean things sent in by the Relief
Society. Food had also been sent in. Carpets were torn up, rooms swept, soiled
clothing carried out, and the accumulation of filthy rags burned.
While James
was at work, a woman came to the door, a stranger, offering to help for a
consideration of $5 a day, a very high wage for those days. Told of the
family's utter destitution, the woman lowered her price to $4.50. James' soul
was revolted and he "told her to go, not to stay in the house of poverty,
suffering, and death and act the vulture." He assured the Martin family
that they would not be without help, that he would stay with them if other
assistance could not be found.
He worked
through the day, and someone was found to come in and sit as a night watch.
Before leaving for the night, James and Bishop Hardy, who came by especially,
again administered to the sick.
Returning next
morning, James learned that the ten-year-old boy had died during the night, and
found the little girl of five apparently in her last agonies. He took her in
his arms and did his best to comfort her.
"She
clung to my neck," he related, "ofttimes coughing bloody mucus on my
face and clothing, and her throat had about it the stench of putrefaction, yet
I could not put her from me. During the half hour immediately preceding her
death, I walked the floor with the little creature in my arms. She died in
agony at 10 A.M."
Under the
harsh regulations of the plague-stricken time, an undertaker was called
immediately, the three little corpses were placed in wooden coffins and taken
to the cemetery without delay. They were buried in a single grave and "the
grief of the parents and the surviving sister were pitiable to behold."
James delivered a brief graveside talk and Bishop Hardy pronounced a dedicatory
prayer.
After making
arrangements for food and clean clothing to be taken to the Martins'-survivors
had experienced the dread diphtheria and so were immune to further attack-James
went home. He changed clothes and bathed "in a strong zinc solution, in
the coal house" and kept away from the rest of the family for a
considerable period.
The emotional
and physical strain of such an experience may be imagined. Fear that the dread
disease might have taken deep root in his own person, or that he might serve as
carrier to transmit the deadly germs to his own loved ones, must have been all
but overpowering; yet it is referred to only obliquely. The day following his
return home, James' journal entry consisted of a terse comment:
"Confined
to the house the entire day through illness-fever, lassitude, and pains in the
head. All temporary, I hope -simply the effect of over-exertion and nervous
strain, I think."
By the grace
of the Almighty, such proved to be the case. Each succeeding day brought
improvement until within a week he was physically fully restored. The emotional
impact, the heart-rending suffering and grief which he had witnessed, remained
deeply etched in his mind, never to be effaced.
The apostle who wrote Jesus the Christ obviously knew the Savior and was a true disciple of His teachings. We will share more stories from James E Talmage's life in future blogs.
Memorial Day
Being here in Utah on Memorial Day weekend for the first time in more than 40 years gave us an opportunity to visit the graves of many of Elder Burkinshaw's ancestors who are buried in the Salt Lake City area on Saturday, May 23, 2020. Here is a fan chart that illustrates the familial line.
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| Fan chart for Elder Burkinshaw. Highlighted in yellow are the family lines we visited, primarily the blue Burkinshaw line and the red Bateman line graves. We are planning trips in the future to Utah and Sanpete Counties to visit the green Beck line and the Southeastern Idaho (Bern, Ovid and Montpelier) to visit the yellow Kunz line. We have visited the homeland of the Kunz line in Switzerland (see our London Temple blog). |
Aunt Robyn picked up potted mums for each of the graves that we visited so we started about 11:00am on a cool Saturday, May 23. Here's pictures of each of the graves we visited. We also include links to the FindAGrave write-up for each and since we added GPS Coordinates for all of them today, it should be must easier to find these markers.
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| Potted mums on Robyn's front porch ready to be loaded in the car and taken to decorate the graves in the Salt Lake area, they were beautiful together as well as separate. |
Murray Cemetery
Murray Cemetery is the resting place of Elder Burkinshaw's older brother, Kim.
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| Grave marker of Robert Kim Burkinshaw. |
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| Elder Burkinshaw and Aunt Robyn at Murray City Cemetery where their brother Kim is buried. |
Memorial Mountain View Cemetery
Aunt Robyn has purchased her plot in the Memorial Mountain View Cemetery in Cottonwood Heights so she can be near her "people", the puppies that are an important part of her life. Her plot is just across the road from the pet cemetery where Kia, Meika and Sky are buried and where Keima, Knox and Tucker will also rest.
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| Aunt Robyn with flowers for Kia, Meika and Sky. |
Midvale Cemetery
Elder Burkinshaw's parents and maternal grandparents are buried at Midvale Cemetery.
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| The grave marker for Robert Beck Burkinshaw and Joyce Bateman Burkinshaw. |
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| Aunt Robyn and Elder Burkinshaw at the grave of their parents in Midvale Cemetery. |
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| The grave marker for Alberto Wilbur Bateman and Sophie Olive Kunz (Grandpa and Grandma Bateman for Elder Burkinshaw) at the Midvale City Cemetery. |
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| Grave markers for Joyce Bateman Burkinshaw's twin sister Janyce Bateman Fox and her son Layne Arlen Fox who are also buried at Midvale Cemetery. |
Larkin Sunset Gardens Cemetery
Elder Burkinshaw's paternal grandfather, Horace Spencer Burkinshaw and his great grandparents Horace William Burkinshaw and Lottie Spencer Burkinshaw are buried at the Larkin Sunset Gardens Cemetery.
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| Grave marker for Horace Spencer Burkinshaw at Sunset Gardens Cemetery in Sandy. As an aside, Elder Burkinshaw's paternal Grandmother, Zola Beck Burkinshaw Gardner is buried in Colma, California (Bay Area) and the last time Elder Burkinshaw visited her grave was on 11 June 1977 with his father Robert Beck Burkinshaw after they attended Aunt Wilda Kay Burkinshaw's wedding to Uncle Harry Kit in Fremont, California. |
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| Elder Burkinshaw and Aunt Robyn at the grave marker for their great grandparents Horace Williams and Lottie Spencer Burkinshaw at Sunset Gardens Cemetery in Sandy. |
Sandy City Cemetery
Elder Burkinshaw's paternal great great grandparents Joseph Williams and Avarilda Williams Burkinshaw as well as Samuel and Elizabeth Williams Spencer are buried in the Sandy City Cemetery.
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| Grave marker for Joseph Williams Burkinshaw and Avarilda Williams Burkinshaw at the Sandy City Cemetery. As an aside, we visited the grave of Joseph Williams Burkinshaw's parents, Francis and Elizabeth Burkinshaw in England in 2018 (see our London Temple blog) |
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| Aunt Robyn and Elder Burkinshaw at the grave marker of Joseph Williams and Avarilda Williams Burkinshaw at Sandy City Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker for Samuel Spencer and Elizabeth Spencer at the Sandy City Cemetery. |
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| Aunt Robyn and Elder Burkinshaw at the grave marker of Samuel and Elizabeth Simpson Spencer at Sandy City Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker for Hannah Astill Simpson Shaw, wife of John Simpson (who died in Nottinghamshire, England) and mother of Elizabeth Simpson Spencer. She later married Joseph Shaw after she emigrated to Utah. |
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| Elder Burkinshaw with the grave marker of his 3rd great grandmother, Hannah Astill Simpson. |
St Peter's Churchyard, Tankersley, England
On September 7, 2018 while we were serving in the London Temple, we had an opportunity to visit St Peter's Churchyard in Tankersley, Borough of Barnsley, South Yorkshire England and we found the grave marker for Elder Burkinshaw's great-great-great grandparents Frances Burkinshaw and Elizabeth Williams. They were the parents of Joseph W. and Avarilda Williams Burkinshaw above.
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| Grave marker of Frances Burkinshaw and Elizabeth Williams Burkinshaw. The monument reads: IN LOVING MEMORY ELIZABETH THE BELOVED WIFE OF FRANCES BURKINSHAW OF WHARNCLIFFE SILKSTONE WHO FELL ASLEEP MARCH 20TH 1900 AGED 66 YEARS ALSO THE ABOVE NAMED FRANCIS BURKINSHAW WHO FELL ASLEEP AUGUST 27TH 1911 AGED 80 |
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| Elder Burkinshaw with the grave marker of his great great great grandparents Frances and Elizabeth Williams Burkinshaw in Tankersley, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England |
West Jordan Cemetery
The rest of the Bateman's and the Goff's are buried in the West Jordan Cemetery.
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| Grave marker for Alberto Delos Bateman at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker for Rebecca Goff Bateman at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Sister and Elder Burkinshaw at the graves of Elder Burkinshaw's great grandparents Alberto Delos Bateman and Elizabeth Goff Bateman. |
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| Sister and Elder Burkinshaw at the memorial for Elder Burkinshaw's great great grandparents Samuel Bateman and Marinda Allen Bateman. |
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| Grave marker for Samuel Bateman at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker for Marinda Allen Bateman at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Monument to Thomas Bateman who actually died and was buried in the Atlantic Ocean. This monument was placed next to his wife's (Mary Street Bateman) grave in the West Jordan Cemetery. The monument reads: FATHER Our father has gone to a mansion of rest. From a region of sorrow and pain. To the glorious land by Deity blest. Where he never can suffer again. |
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| Grave Marker for Mary Street Bateman in the West Jordan Cemetery |
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| Grave marker for Isaac Goff Jr. at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker for Ann Sisam Goff at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Elder Burkinshaw at the grave marker of his great great great grandparents Isaac Goff (Sr) and Mary Naylor Goff at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker of Isaac Goff Sr. and Mary Naylor Goff at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Close-up of the grave marker of Isaac Goff Sr. and Mary Naylor Goff at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker of Joseph Sisam at the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Grave marker for Catherine Payne Sisam in the West Jordan Cemetery. |
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| Elder Burkinshaw at the grave markers of his great great great grandparents Joseph Sisam and Catherine Payne Sisam in the West Jordan Cemetery |
Wights Fort Cemetery (West Jordan, UT)
At 90th South and about 3500 West in West Jordan is an old pioneer cemetery near the Mountain View golf course where Elder Burkinshaw played golf during high school. The cemetery was founded in 1853 and is where two of Elder Burkinshaw's great great great grandparents, who came to Utah in the 1850's, are buried.
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| The gate to Wight's Fort Cemetery in West Jordan where two of Elder Burkinshaw's great great great grandparents are buried. |
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| Grave marker for Daniel Rapalyea Allen, Sr in the Wights Fort Cemetery, West Jordan, UT. |
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| Grave marker for Eliza Martin Allen in the Wight's Fort Cemetery, West Jordan, UT. |
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| Near the grave markers for Daniel Rapalyea Allen, Sr and Eliza Martin Allen is a wooden tombstone for Daniel R Allen as well. It is not easy to read and a tree has grown up adjacent to the tombstone so it is not easy to read but this was likely the original grave marker. |
Lunch at Archibald's Restaurant at Gardner Village
Archibald Gardner was a Scottish immigrant who was one of the original pioneer settlers in Utah back in 1847. In the 1850’s, Gardner and his family began establishing the roots of an industrious hub on the west side of the Jordan River. Logs were hauled by horse teams from the Bingham Canyon to build the first West Jordan flour mill in 1853. Over 20 years later, the original mill was moved and a larger mill was erected in its stead. The original miller at Archibald Gardner's mill was Elder Burkinshaw's great great great grandfather Daniel Rapalyea Allen Sr.
Since we finished out visits to the cemeteries in West Jordan, we stopped by what is now Archibald's Restaurant at Gardner Village (a recreated pioneer village) for our first sit-down restaurant meal since early March. The restaurant displays some photos of Elder Burkinshaw's Great Great Grandparents, Samuel and Marinda Allen Bateman (daughter of Daniel Rapalyea Allen Sr.).
Funeral for Uncle Duane Alberto Bateman
Grandma Joyce Bateman Burkinshaw's only brother, Duane Alberto Bateman passed away at 96 years-old on May 13, 2020. Elder and Sister Burkinshaw attended the graveside service of Elder Burkinshaw's Uncle Duane on Tuesday, May 19, 2020. Elder Burkinshaw offered the family prayer before the casket was closed. Connie Bateman, Uncle Duane's second daughter had cared for Uncle Duane since his wife passed away in 2012 and she and her husband Richard Martinez did a wonderful job organizing the service which included a 21 gun salute as Uncle Duane served in the Marine Corps during World War II and was wounded in action and lived most of his life with only one lung. Unfortunately, Uncle Duane's other two daughters Kay (Bentonville, AR) and Karin (Boston, MA) were unable to attend because of health and transportation issues with the challenges of COVID-19.
We conclude this post with a poem, written for the Centennial of the pioneers arrival in the Salt Lake valley, which speaks of the blessings that come to us from the sacrifice of our pioneer forebears.
The Hungry Fires of Courage
by Vilate Raile
They cut desire into short lengths
And fed it to the hungry fires of courage.
Long after—when the flames had died—
Molten Gold gleamed in the ashes.
They gathered it into bruised palms
And handed it to their children
And their children's children. Forever
Drawing from the words of Rudyard Kipling,
"Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget, lest we forget."
May we always remember the sacrifices made with love by our forefathers and foremothers!
Elder and Sister Burkinshaw
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| Sister and Elder Burkinshaw in Archibald's Restaurant at Gardner's Landing in front of the display of an old ox yoke and photos of Marinda Allen Bateman and her family. The plaque explains why the Marinda Allen Bateman photos are displayed in the restaurant. Marinda Allen Bateman 1835-1919
In the Spring of 1855, because heavy rains, the bridges across the Jordan River were washed out, young men were commissioned to remain on the banks of the river with rafts to ferry all comers across.
Samuel Bateman ferried a family with six children across the river. He then directed them to a log cabin beside this flour mill (the restaurant is located at the site of a pioneer-era flour mill) where they were to live. When the family was beyond hearing, Samuel said to his companion, “I just ferried my future father-in-law across.”
Marinda, one of the daughters, caught Samuel’s eye. She was just five feet tall with beautiful brown hair. As Samuel looked into her blue eyes, he knew that she was a woman who could face the rugged life of this foreboding pioneer country. Marinda’s father was miller at this mill for Archibald Gardner.
Marinda and Samuel were the parents of thirteen children. In addition to being a devoted and righteous mother, she was a midwife. At a beckon call, she would leave day or night. Then she would ride by horse or in a carriage to assist in a birth. She was midwife to over 600 births – truly an incredible woman!
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Funeral for Uncle Duane Alberto Bateman
Grandma Joyce Bateman Burkinshaw's only brother, Duane Alberto Bateman passed away at 96 years-old on May 13, 2020. Elder and Sister Burkinshaw attended the graveside service of Elder Burkinshaw's Uncle Duane on Tuesday, May 19, 2020. Elder Burkinshaw offered the family prayer before the casket was closed. Connie Bateman, Uncle Duane's second daughter had cared for Uncle Duane since his wife passed away in 2012 and she and her husband Richard Martinez did a wonderful job organizing the service which included a 21 gun salute as Uncle Duane served in the Marine Corps during World War II and was wounded in action and lived most of his life with only one lung. Unfortunately, Uncle Duane's other two daughters Kay (Bentonville, AR) and Karin (Boston, MA) were unable to attend because of health and transportation issues with the challenges of COVID-19.
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| Uncle Duane Alberto Bateman's graveside service had around 50 people in attendance including many of Elder Burkinshaw's cousins on the Bateman side. You can see the flag-covered casket with the 21-gun-salute in the background. |
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| The last photo of Uncle Duane Alberto Bateman with Aunt Dawn Bateman Brown and Grandma Joyce Bateman Burkinshaw on February 7, 2015 at Uncle Duane's home. |
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| On Saturday, May 23 we visited Uncle Duane's grave and left some white mums as well as the red and white bouquet in the bottom left which remained from Tuesday's funeral. |
We conclude this post with a poem, written for the Centennial of the pioneers arrival in the Salt Lake valley, which speaks of the blessings that come to us from the sacrifice of our pioneer forebears.
The Hungry Fires of Courage
by Vilate Raile
They cut desire into short lengths
And fed it to the hungry fires of courage.
Long after—when the flames had died—
Molten Gold gleamed in the ashes.
They gathered it into bruised palms
And handed it to their children
And their children's children. Forever
Drawing from the words of Rudyard Kipling,
"Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget, lest we forget."
May we always remember the sacrifices made with love by our forefathers and foremothers!
Elder and Sister Burkinshaw
