In the News

Hinckleys Help Create Endowed Scholarship at LDS Business College

President Gordon B. Hinckley visited the campus of LDS Business College in March to participate in a ceremony honoring his parents, Bryant S. and Ada Bitner Hinckley, who made significant contributions to the school. President Hinckley’s parents were both employed by the school from 1899 to 1910. His father became principal in 1900, and his mother was a teacher.

The highlight of the ceremony was the announcement of the Bryant S. and Ada Bitner Hinckley Faculty Scholarship. The scholarship, which was originally created in 2000 by faculty members, became an endowed scholarship last year, meaning that all scholarship money awarded is taken from the interest accrued in the fund.

In the past, the fund provided about four partial or full scholarships annually. Upon learning of the fund last year, President Hinckley requested that it become an endowed fund and made the first contribution. The scholarship has now grown to U.S. $260,000 and will provide about eight full scholarships or 16 partial scholarships annually.

More than 100 descendants of Bryant S. and Ada Bitner Hinckley attended the ceremony.

Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibit Travels Across Europe

Brigham Young University’s Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) sponsored a traveling exhibit on the findings and importance of the Dead Sea Scrolls, which exhibit has proven to be an effective missionary tool in Europe.

The exhibit helped strengthen relations with leaders and dignitaries in European countries and allowed Church members to share their beliefs with those of other faiths. More than half of those who visited the exhibit were not members of the Church.

The Dead Sea Scrolls, which is a collection of biblical and nonbiblical writings found in caves along the Dead Sea in 1947, contain writings dating as far back as 300 B.C. In the early 1990s, the Dead Sea Scrolls Foundation approached BYU to discuss the possibility of supplying an electronic version of the writings. The initial database was finished in 1999.

The exhibit’s tour, which ended in May, included Austria, Belgium, the British Isles, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland.