Ezra Taft Benson

By Kellene Ricks Adams

1. Sarah and George Benson were excited when they learned that Sarah was to have a baby. This would be their first child.

2. When Sarah’s labor started on 4 August 1899, both her mother and George’s mother were there with the doctor to help. Sarah was grateful for their support.

3. It wasn’t an easy delivery. The baby boy weighed more than eleven pounds! He wasn’t breathing when he was born, and the doctor didn’t think that the infant would live.

   

4. But the grandmothers refused to give up. They each offered a silent prayer. Over and over, they dipped the baby in cold water, then in warm water.

5. Imagine how excited they were when the baby gulped his first breath of air and let out a cry! Their prayers had been answered.

6. The infant was named Ezra Taft Benson, and he grew up to be a great man. When he was eighty-six years old, he became the thirteenth President of the Church.

Illustrated by Paul Mann