"They were such great ambassadors," Jones said, sharing the contents of the letter, which read in part: "For a century and a half we have grieved over the loss of the fellowship of our dear Emma Hale Smith, her children and her descendants. We feel in our hearts an abiding longing to join once again these two families in a common celebration of their ancestors.

"The Prophet Joseph Smith, who stands at the head of this dispensation, is second in our affection to our Lord himself and we hold in the highest esteem our progenitor. If there are any misunderstandings that continue to exist," they seek to help heal them, the letter said.

Regarding Smith's "beloved wife, whom we revere as a truly great and saintly lady, we would commit ourselves to do whatever is needed to publish to the world our deep regard for her noble life. It would be our earnest desire to rebuild that bridge of friendship between our two families that existed not so long ago."

Jones said though Smith family descendants come from all walks of life and a wide variety of faith traditions, they know about the conflict Emma Smith had with Young and "there wasn't a dry eye in the room."

"This is a time of healing. The promises made by the Lord (regarding wayward children) will not fail," she said, adding she has now identified some 1,800 of Smith's descendants and has them mapped on a family history chart that runs 47 feet long.

Jones said God's mission for her life is to find as many of Smith's descendants as she can, tell them about their heritage and invite them to learn about him and the church "he restored to the Earth by the power of God."

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E-mail: carrie@desnews.com