Days of 47 Parade (LDS Church News) (July 25, 2014)
It's been 167 years since the first of the Latter-day Saints entered the Salt Lake valley behind the leadership of President Brigham Young. Every year, in commemoration of that event, people from all over the valley participate in a parade — and many more line the streets — to honor and recognize the efforts of the early Mormon pioneers.

Pioneer Day Remembers the Mormons Landing in Salt Lake City, Utah (World Religion News) (July 25, 2014)
Many people have never heard of Pioneer Day, but it is a very special occasion for those that follow the Mormon faith or live in Utah. Celebrated every year on the 24th of July, Pioneer Day, also known as the Days of ’47, commemorates the great sacrifices that were made by the Mormons of the past, specifically the pilgrimage to Salt Lake City in 1847, so that future generations could have their own religious freedom.

Bountiful’s Handcart Parade sets tone for Pioneer Day celebrations (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 25, 2014)
It’s not the Days of ’47 Parade, but it’s close — in size, in theme, in location. It’s Handcart Days’ Grand Parade, and it took to the streets of Bountiful on Wednesday evening.

Communities celebrate pioneer heritage (The Spectrum - Utah) (July 25, 2014)
Southern Utah communities celebrated tradition Thursday with parades and outdoor events, all in observance of Pioneer Day. Commemorating the arrival and settling of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pioneers from Nauvoo, Illinois, many communities in Utah now celebrate the day with a parade featuring floats built by various LDS church wards and livestock, followed by games, food and fun activities at a community gathering spot.

Pioneer Day 5K takes participants ‘Temple to Temple’ (Fox 13 - Utah) (July 25, 2014)
Thousands of people weren’t content to sit on the sidelines during Pioneer Day festivities Thursday, so they took part in a 5K run that is in its second year. The Second Annual Temple to Temple 5K Run takes participants from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Provo Temple to the LDS Church’s newer Temple at Provo City Center.

A Look Back: This Is The Place Monument through the years (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 25, 2014)
Each week, The Salt Lake Tribune presents historic images in a special series called A Look Back. This week’s installment features historic images of This Is The Place Monument.

Pioneer Day of Mormons, Retooled for Saloon (New York Times) (July 25, 2014)
The Thursday special at the Shooting Star Saloon this week was a generous slice of apple pie and a pint of ice-cold beer. To some, the pairing may sound wince-inducing, but for many here, the combination is a July 24 tradition and a tongue-in-cheek twist on Pioneer Day, the state holiday that commemorates the arrival of Mormon settlers back in 1847. Pioneer Day is the biggest holiday in Utah, a day when most businesses and government offices close to honor the moment that Brigham Young reportedly looked down on the Salt Lake Valley from the Wasatch Range and uttered the famous words, “This is the right place.”

LDS girls send messages of hope around the world (Crestview News Bulletin - Florida) (July 25, 2014)
Crestview area girls are sending messages of hope to women around the world experiencing various hardships. Creating Brave Girl Cards was just part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' week-long Girls Camp, themed "Girl on Fire."

Manti Tabernacle restoration project underway (KSL - Utah) (July 25, 2014)
As Utah pauses to celebrate the arrival of the pioneers, we get a rare look at some pioneer craftsmanship in one of the oldest LDS chapels still in use. "You know you can't drive on Main Street and see this beautiful building without thinking of the pioneers," said Scott Hintze, an LDS stake president in Manti.

Group Conducts Mass Resignation From Mormon Church To Protest Excommunication Of Kate Kelly (Huffington Post) (July 25, 2014)
Nearly 500 Mormons joined a Facebook event marking their mass resignation from the LDS Church on Thursday to protest the recent excommunication of Kate Kelly and disciplining of John Dehlin, two prominent activists in the Mormon community.

Kate Kelly appeals excommunication from Mormon church (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 25, 2014)
Kate Kelly, who has led the effort to obtain Mormon priesthood for women, has appealed her excommunication from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The appeal includes a letter of support from Kelly’s husband, Neil Ransom. He contends the way leaders have excommunicated his wife but not disciplined him is proof of sexism in the church.

On Vacation the Week of July 28th (July 25, 2014)
Normal updates will resume on August 4th.

FamilySearch Volunteers Break International Indexing Record (LDS Newsroom Blog) (July 23, 2014)
FamilySearch indexing volunteers broke a record this week during the first Worldwide Indexing Event.

Mormon Youth in Utah Host Special Needs Pioneer Trek (LDS Newsroom) (July 23, 2014)
Every summer, Mormon youth groups reenact the trek pioneers made with their hand-carts across the Great Plains of the United States to Utah to escape persecution. The Mormon pioneers endured many hardships along the trail.

What life was like for the Mormon pioneers after entering the Salt Lake Valley (Deseret News - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
On June 28, 1847, Brigham Young met with Jim Bridger, famed frontiersman and owner of Fort Bridger. The two men discussed the merits of settling the Salt Lake Valley. Bridger expressed his opinion that growing grain would be difficult in the area, making it unsuitable to sustain a large population.

In Our Lovely Deseret: Who were the first 3 women to enter the Salt Lake Valley? (Deseret News - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
It was the great unknown, this vast wilderness the Saints needed to pass through in order to reach their new home. And what then? What would they find? And what could they make of this place the Lord would give them?

Researching Family History: It's a day of a flood of family history records, documents (Deseret News - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
Since I was small and young, my family has been heavily involved in genealogy. My father used to take me and some of my sisters and brothers to family meetings held in the extended Bangerter family once a month.

This is the place for facts you might not know about Mormon pioneers (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
You may be yawning at the thought of yet another Pioneer Day parade celebrating the heroic arrival of beleaguered Mormons into the Salt Lake Valley. You’ve heard of the LDS prophet declaring on July 24 that "this is the right place." The tragic Willie and Martin handcart companies, trapped in snowy Wyoming. The crickets and sea gulls.

Video: Anatomy of a Days of ‘47 Parade float (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
Late last year, the LDS Church assigned the Salt Lake Bonneville Stake, among dozens of others, to design and construct a float for the 2014 Days of ’47 Parade with the theme, "Pioneers Pushing Towards the Future."

New Mormon mental health group to take less-churchy approach (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
Next week, a group of newly organized mental health providers, clinicians, educators and advocates — interested in or working with the LDS population — will meet in Utah. Organizers created the Mormon Mental Health Association in June to provide "training, research, strategy, collaboration and education in the mental health treatment of Mormons, helping ensure that this population’s needs are being met by trained professionals who adhere to their professions’ code of ethics."

7 surprises in the Mormon pioneer diet (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 23, 2014)
As Pioneer Day approaches, Utah tends to remember only those Mormon settlers who survived on boiled mush, sour weeds or — in some cases — nothing at all as they crossed the Western plains. Of course, the stories about starvation are the exception, said Utah author and food historian Brock Cheney.

Odgen LDS Temple tour reservations fill up quickly Read more: The Davis Clipper - Odgen LDS Temple tour reservations fill up quickly (Davis Clipper - Utah) (July 22, 2014)
Open house and rededication dates for the newly renovated Ogden Utah Temple have been set, and people who want to tour the building began scheduling visits on Monday.

Youngstown Ohio Stake Pioneer Trek Inspires Gratitude, Faith (Church News) (July 22, 2014)
Youth from the Youngstown Ohio Stake participated in a difficult, yet rewarding, 20-mile trek July 10–12 that gave them obstacles they will never forget and a greater appreciation for their pioneer ancestors.

Brigham Young’s Short-Lived, Experimental Mormon Alphabet (Slate) (July 22, 2014)
Catherine Falzone, cataloger at the New-York Historical Society, recently blogged about three books printed in the Deseret Alphabet, a 19th-century experiment sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The idea for the alphabet came from George D. Watt, one of the first Latter-Day Saints to be baptized in Britain in 1837. Watt, who was schooled in Sir Isaac Pitman’s phonetic shorthand, had also become a proponent of spelling reforms (a cause that Pitman and Watt had in common with Samuel Johnson, Benjamin Franklin, and contemporary Noah Webster).

Float party gives thousands a sneak peek of Thursday's big parade (Deseret News - Utah) (July 22, 2014)
For the past 75 years, the Days of '47 Parade has been a tradition for lifelong Utah resident Ruth Mahoney. "I think it just takes thousands and thousands of hours of work and clever people and people that are willing to give their all. … It’s one of the nicest parades in the country. We wouldn’t miss it for anything," she said.

Judge sets hearing in clash over Tribune-Deseret News deal (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (July 22, 2014)
A federal judge will hear arguments in September on whether supporters of The Salt Lake Tribune have a legal basis for suing to halt a revised business arrangement between Utah’s two largest newspapers. On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups set a Sept. 8 hearing in the high-profile case to address, in part, whether a group of former Tribune employees has standing to challenge the amended operating agreement between The Tribune and its rival, the LDS Church-owned Deseret News.

LDS World: Days for Girls is changing girls' lives around the world (Deseret News - Utah) (July 22, 2014)
Celeste Mergens has discovered that a $10 contribution, or contributing a few hours time, can infinitely transform a woman’s life and provide her lifelong opportunity and dignity.

Man arrested after altercation at St. George Temple (Spectrum - Utah) (July 22, 2014)
A Salt Lake City man apparently suffering from a mental illness was arrested Saturday after a confrontation with police at the St. George LDS Temple. Witnesses said Tavita Hamilton, 19, entered the building at about 7 p.m., speaking loudly and incoherently, and was asked to leave.