Six Called to Quorums of Seventy; New Presiding Bishop Sustained

In addition to the calling of Bishop Robert D. Hales to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, nine other brethren were called to positions of Church leadership and sustained by members during the Saturday afternoon session of the 164th Annual General Conference.

Elder Cree-L Kofford, who has served in the Second Quorum of the Seventy since April 1991, was sustained as a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy, bringing the number in the First Quorum to forty-five.

Newly called to serve for five years as members of the Second Quorum of the Seventy were Elders Claudio Roberto Mendes Costa of São Paulo, Brazil; W. Don Ladd of Potomac, Maryland; James O. Mason of Farmington, Utah; Dieter F. Uchtdorf of Mannheim, Germany; and Lance B. Wickman of Poway, California (see pp. 107–9). The addition of these five brethren brings the number in the Second Quorum of the Seventy to forty-two.

Elder Merrill J. Bateman of the Second Quorum of the Seventy, who has been serving as president of the Asia North Area, with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, was sustained as the new Presiding Bishop. Sustained as his counselors were the two counselors who had been serving as counselors to Bishop Hales: Bishop H. David Burton, first counselor, and Bishop Richard C. Edgley, second counselor.

Elder Kofford, 60, currently serves as president of the North America Northeast Area. A native of Santaquin, Utah, he earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah and received his Juris Doctor in 1961 from the University of Southern California Law School. He had a private law practice in southern California until his call to full-time Church service. He and his wife, Ila, are the parents of five children.

Elder Cree-L Kofford

Bishop Bateman, 57, was called to serve in the Second Quorum of the Seventy in June 1992. Prior to his call as a General Authority, Bishop Bateman headed his own consulting and capital management companies. He also served as dean of the College of Business and the School of Management at Brigham Young University. A native of Lehi, Utah, he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at the University of Utah and received a doctorate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has served as a bishop, stake president, and regional representative. He and his wife, Marilyn, have seven children.

Bishop Merrill J. Bateman

Bishop Burton, 55, has served in the Presiding Bishopric since October 1992. Prior to his call, he served as secretary to the Presiding Bishop. A graduate of the University of Utah, he earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Michigan. He has served as a stake president, high councilor, and bishop. He and his wife, Barbara, have five children.

Bishop H. David Burton

Bishop Edgley, 58, was also called to serve in the Presiding Bishopric in October 1992. Prior to that assignment, he had worked as managing director of the Church’s Finance and Records Department. He is a native of Preston, Idaho, and a graduate of Brigham Young University. He earned a master’s degree in business administration from Indiana University. He has served as a bishop and stake president. Bishop Edgley and his wife, Pauline, have six children.

Bishop Richard C. Edgley