Church Launches Protection Training for Leaders of Children and Youth (Church Newsroom) (August 19, 2019)
The scriptures contain many examples of the Savior’s love for His children. His Church does not tolerate abuse of any kind. As part of an ongoing effort to protect children and youth, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has launched an online training course for all adults who interact with children and youth in their Church assignments.

Groundbreaking for the Belém Brazil Temple (Church Newsroom) (August 19, 2019)
Ground was broken for the Belém Brazil Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Elder Marcos A. Aidukaitis of the Brazil Area presided at the traditional ceremony on Saturday, August 17, 2019. Also participating were community leaders.

President Ballard and Elder Gong Share Why Using the Full Name of the Church Matters (Church News) (August 19, 2019)
As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continue to use the proper and inspired name of the Church, the world will use it also, said President M. Russell Ballard, Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

Statement on the Word of Wisdom (Church Newsroom) (August 16, 2019)
The Word of Wisdom is a law of health for the physical and spiritual benefit of God's children. It includes instruction about what foods are good for us and those substances to avoid.

A look at the impact of President Nelson’s charge 1 year ago to call The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by its full name (Church News) (August 16, 2019)
One year ago this week — just months after being sustained as the 17th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — President Russell M. Nelson issued a clarion call to Church members worldwide.

Here’s how the first-ever pioneer trek in Spain helped Latter-day Saints connect to their ancestors (Church News) (August 16, 2019)
What would a Latter-day Saint pioneer trek be without a few drops of rain? Several dozen youth and adults from eastern Spain’s Vilafranca region recently took part in what is believed to be the country’s first Church-sponsored pioneer trek.

Ed Smart, father of Elizabeth Smart, announces he is gay (KSL - Utah) (August 16, 2019)
Ed Smart, the father of kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart, shared in a Facebook message with family and friends Thursday that he is gay, divorcing his wife and doesn’t see a place for himself in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In “one of the hardest letters I have ever written,” Smart wrote that “I have recently acknowledged to myself and my family that I am gay.”

More than 1 million Venezuelan refugees have fled to Colombia. Here’s how Latter-day Saints are helping many of them (Church News) (August 15, 2019)
Over the past four years, more than 4 million refugees and migrants have fled Venezuela to escape civil unrest and severe shortages of food and medicine.

Gymnast MyKayla Skinner shares how she balances competing on U.S. National Team while living the gospel (Church News) (August 15, 2019)
Sports fans go nuts listing and comparing and debating those seemingly unbreakable streaks: The New York Yankees’ Joe DiMaggio got a hit in 56 consecutive games — a Major League Baseball record that stands almost eight decades later.

‘God is my strength’: Why professional soccer player Paulo Gallardo is leaving his career to serve a mission (Church News) (August 15, 2019)
A famous European soccer manager is attributed with saying, “Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. … I can assure you it is much, much more important than that.”

Republicans fear Trump will lose Arizona (Washington Examiner) (August 15, 2019)
Nathan Sproul, managing director of Lincoln Strategy Group and former executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, fears several reasons Arizona voters, including the usually reliable conservative voting bloc from members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, may not come around to Trump in 2020. “Throughout eastern Arizona, most Latter-day Saints are Democrats.

LDS Church clarifies vaping, lattes and recreational use of marijuana as against its Word of Wisdom (Daily Herald - Utah) (August 14, 2019)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has clarified some modern questions revolving around the church’s Word of Wisdom doctrine.

How this Latter-day Saint couple has created decades of harmony on (and off) the LA Philharmonic stage (Church News) (August 14, 2019)
Mick Wetzel appreciates the many perks that come with being part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He performs alongside elite musicians. He travels the world. He showcases his talent on the viola each year in front of thousands of music lovers.

Pioneer benefactor’s ties to slavery raise questions for BYU, where a building bears his name (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (August 14, 2019)
Abraham O. Smoot was hailed in a 2015 Brigham Young University magazine article as being “undaunted, powerful, and immovable … [having] a dignity to his presence, a rugged grandeur.”

First Temple in Portugal Opens to the Public (Church Newsroom) (August 13, 2019)
The Lisbon Portugal Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been completed and is now open for public tours and information.

Elder Craig C. Christensen shares 8 principles that helped Joseph Smith through trials. Here’s why they can help millennials (Church News) (August 13, 2019)
Standing on a stage with a giant sign behind him with the word “FairMormon” written in large letters, Elder Craig C. Christensen, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Utah Area, said he worried what some might think if they saw him standing under the words “Fair Mormon.”

He was born in Mexico and served in Vietnam. Now, he’s the first person of color to serve as Mormon History Association president (Church News) (August 13, 2019)
Ignacio Garcia is the new president of the Mormon History Association. As the first person of color to serve in the position, he brings an international background to a new focus on viewing Latter-day Saint history through a global perspective.

Latter-day Saint missionaries extinguish small church fire (KSL - Utah) (August 13, 2019)
Missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints discovered and extinguished a fire Monday afternoon in a church, according to authorities. The group of missionaries was playing football at about 3 p.m. across the street from the Latter-day Saint church building, 1715 W. 1600 North, when a few of them had to use the restroom, according to Layton Fire Battalion Chief Jason Cook.

'Extreme Makeover' show building home in Utah for refugee family that fled Congo (KSL - Utah) (August 13, 2019)
A Congolese family that fled for their lives and were resettled in Utah will soon land in a custom-built home in Ogden, thanks to "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," Ogden general contractor Wadman Corporation and an army of volunteers. The Barobi family's is one of two homes the HGTV show, along with community partners, is designing and building in Weber County this week.

BYU-Pathway Worldwide Partners with Welfare and Self-Reliance (Church News) (August 12, 2019)
Zvjezdana Zivko Fernandes always knew she wanted to go to college, but even into adulthood, she felt like she couldn’t go.

Salt Lake City's 'tornado baby' celebrates her 20th birthday (Deseret News - Utah) (August 12, 2019)
Megan Marshall, known in local news reports as the "tornado baby," was born at 12:55 p.m. on Aug. 11, 1999, just as the twister hit Salt Lake City. The tornado touched down about two blocks southwest of the Delta Center — now the Vivint Smart Home Arena — about 12:45 p.m. and proceeded to tear its way northeast through the Avenues, the neighborhood where the hospital is located.

Utah dancer is shocked that he’s joining his sister in the finals of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (August 12, 2019)
When Ezra Sosa auditioned for “So You Think You Can Dance,” he had one goal in mind — get his sister, Stephanie, back on the show and launch her toward a top 10 finish. Or better.

An emerging Republican champion for voter access (OZY) (August 12, 2019)
When Wayne Williams moved to Front Royal, Virginia, it was still run by Southern Democrats who, two decades before, had closed schools rather than desegregate. Feeling like race relations hadn’t improved enough under their leadership, the high school class president organized 70 of his classmates to stand outside precincts, passing out literature for Republicans in the 1979 election. “We made a difference when most of us weren’t old enough to vote,” says Williams, whose yearbook shows him touting a Reagan-Bush “The Time Is Now” pin.

Feel Their Faith in 15 Seconds: Meet The Christians Conquering TikTok (Daily Beast) (August 12, 2019)
Chani Davis, who is 30 and lives in Utah, has a following of over 280,000. Though she mostly posts lifestyle content about beauty tips or her upcoming wedding, the practicing Mormon does post about her faith.