Elder Ballard asks Latinos to help youths fulfill destiny

Elder M. Russell Ballard, of the LDS Church's Quorum of the Twelve, was in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday to witness President Barack Obama's inauguration.

During the Utah Latino Leaders Summit in downtown Salt Lake City on Friday, Elder Ballard pointed to the historic event as a "great example" for the state's Hispanic community.

"What are you going to do to get the Hispanic youth to fulfill their destiny, their potential," said Elder Ballard, the keynote speaker at the summit. "You are gathered here as thinkers. So think until it hurts."

About 150 Latino leaders gathered at the Zions Bank Building for the daylong conference aimed at improving leadership skills and philanthropy in the community.

Many Hispanics in the United States "feel isolated," said Joe Reyna, a regional president at Zions. "They feel like they don't exist. We're here to say we are here, we do exist and we do have rights."

Some in attendance expressed concern about Hispanic representation around the state, particularly in the Legislature, where only four of the state's 104 legislators are Hispanic.

"We're all in this together," Reyna said. "We must look after our families and our own people. We're going to come back next year and see if we've moved the needle, or if we're in the same place."

Terry Hurst, who owns Mestizo Coffeehouse, said responsibility for problems in the Hispanic community don't necessarily lie with Latinos. Schools and legislators must become "more culturally competent," he said.

"They need to invest in a community they failed to invest in in the past," Hurst said. "Fifty years of disinvestment on the west side, what did they think would happen?"

E-mail: afalk@desnews.com