First Stake in Sweden—691st in Church

The first stake was organized in Sweden on April 20 with Elder Thomas S. Monson of the Council of the Twelve presiding. Known as the Stockholm Sweden Stake, it includes four wards and four branches, with 2,247 members.

Evert W. Perciwall, a native of Stockholm, was sustained as stake president, with Holger Hardsten and Fredrick Karlsson as counselors.

Included in the stake are the Stockholm First, Second, and Third wards, the Norrköping Ward, and the Södertälje, Uppsala, Västeras, and Örebro branches.

The Stockholm Sweden Stake is the 691st in the Church. Others organized recently include the Brigham Young University 11th Stake, with Gregory E. Austin as president, the Brigham Young University 12th Stake, with Charles Verl Clark as president, and the Rexburg Idaho College Third Stake, with Ray Wendell Rigby as president.

So far this year 16 stakes have been organized in the Church. Others organized were the Birmingham Alabama, Merthyr Tydfil Wales, Newcastle-Under-Lyme England, Victoria British Columbia, Puebla LaPaz Mexico, Fairfield California, Puebla Valsequillo Mexico, Guadalajara Mexico, Roosevelt Utah West, Grand Rapids Michigan, Spanish Fork Utah Salem, and Gallup New Mexico stakes.