A Tour of Welfare Square and The Humanitarian Center

Our classroom last week for studying Preach My Gospel

We grabbed a sack breakfast at 6:30 and boarded the bus for Salt Lake and Welfare Square. While Christians have always been taught to care for the poor and needy and our church always has done that, the program became organized with physical facilities in 1936 during the Great Depression. The three main tenets of the Welfare program are to foster self-reliance which then allows an individual to care for the poor and needy and to serve others. Today we saw multiple operations: a storehouse, from which the Bishops allow members in need to "shop"(no money is exchanged) for two weeks of food for their family, a dairy, bakery, cheese-making operation, a cannery for fruits and vegetables, jams and sauces. The church has farms which allow the church to produce 60% of the goods in the system. It also has "for profit" cattle ranches, from which 10% of the profits go to support this Welfare System. The rest of the money comes from donations from members of the church, and many many hours of volunteers. The Humanitarian Aid Services primarily serves those who are NOT of our faith and is also funded by donations of members. In 2011 the church saved 1.5 million children in developing nations by providing neo-natal resuscitation training to doctors and nurses. Last year 8 million pounds of clothing were shipped to those in need throughout the world. In addition the church has undertaken campaigns to eradicate polio and measles in developing countries through immunizations, and has donated tens of thousands of personal hygiene kits, newborn kits, school kits, and quilts. Also...projects to bring clean water to villages, using villagers to dig the trenches, etc. In addition, long after the cameras have quit rolling, the church remains in Indonesia (tsunami), Haiti and Japan, etc. It was very gratifying to see the magnitude of the church's efforts to care for our brothers and sisters who are in need throughout the world. We had lunch at the former Hotel Utah with 92 year old Elder Rudd, the former director of Welfare Square for 25 years. He was sharp as a tack, has retired three times, and is still actively involved in caring for the poor and needy. Sister Peterson and I agree....we would love to be able to do it all!