Meeting the Primary General President

By Anna Culp

Come with us this month for a look at an important place on Temple Square.

Emma K. came from Midvale, Utah, to visit Sister Cheryl C. Lant, Primary general president. Emma and Sister Lant talked about the purpose of Primary while they toured the Relief Society Building. The Relief Society Building is where the offices of the general presidencies of the Primary, Young Women, and Relief Society are. It has beautiful displays about the purpose and history of these organizations.

“What good things are the children of the Church doing?” Emma asked.

“One of the best things they are doing is learning from their scriptures,” Sister Lant said. “Every Sunday, we see children bring their scriptures to Primary. They open them, they read them, and they’re learning directly from the words of the Lord about what He wants them to do.”

“What do you hope they can learn to do more often?” Emma asked.

“We need to be more kind to our brothers and sisters, to our parents, to our friends, and to everybody around the world,” Sister Lant said.

Sister Lant showed Emma a painting of Jesus with children. “Can you think why that’s my favorite thing to look at every day when I come into my office?” she asked.

“Maybe because it shows the love Jesus has for children,” Emma said.

“That’s right,” Sister Lant said. “In Primary, the most important thing that we want to teach the children is that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love them. All the children in this picture come from different places, so they represent all the children around the world. Heavenly Father and Jesus love all of us, no matter where we live. We’re all His children.”

Sister Lant shows Emma four pictures depicting the time when the Savior blessed and prayed for the Nephite children after His Crucifixion. Angels came from heaven and surrounded the children. “When children learn about Jesus Christ, they will know what they need to do to be close to Him and have peace,” Sister Lant said.

Sister Lant told Emma that the first Primary in 1878 had more than 200 children. Today, there are more than one million Primary children all over the world!

When Sister Lant was a child in Primary, she wore a bandlo like the one displayed here. When she completed goals, she earned emblems for her bandlo. Today, Primary children participate in the Faith in God program.

The painting Christ with Children from around the World by Del Parson hangs in Sister Lant’s office. Sister Lant and her counselors, Sister Margaret S. Lifferth and Sister Vicki F. Matsumori, like to look at the painting.

Photographs by Welden C. Andersen, except as noted; photograph of exterior of Relief Society Building by John Luke; photograph of bandlo by Craig Dimond; illustrations of map and icons by Dilleen Marsh; The First Meeting of the Primary Association, by Lynn Fausett and Gordon Cope, © IRI