Mormon stake in Mesa, Ariz., begins rebuild after arson

MESA, Ariz. — About 1,500 members in nine Mesa wards of The Church of Jesus

Christ of Latter-day Saints, will wait another year before they can

return to church work and worship on their campus at 1430 N. Grand,

just across the north fence of Mesa Cemetery and east of Country Club

Drive.For now, they remain scattered around the city and sharing space with wards at three other church sites.Ten months after an arson fire destroyed the Mesa Arizona Lehi Stake

building, one of the faith's largest stake centers in the city, ground

has been broken for a 24,500-square-foot traditional meeting house.About 300 turned out Sept. 27 for ceremonies that included Mesa

Mayor Scott Smith, who is also a Mormon. Construction will begin in a

few days, and Stake President Craig Ahlstrom says he expects members

can move in about Nov. 1.A stake center erected in 1980 went up in flames in the middle of

the night Nov. 19. Weeks later the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,

Firearms and Explosives ruled it arson, but no arrests have been made,

and fire officials have declined to label it a hate crime.It had been home for nine congregations, or wards, Lehi 1st, Lehi

2nd, Lehi 4th, Summit, Ridge, Hillside, Mesa Vista, Monument and

Harris. Those families of each were reassigned to the nearest stake

centers where schedules were adjusted to accommodate them.

"They are doing great," said Craig Ahlstrom, stake president. "They

have settled in." Members have adjusted and "all understand that this

is something that is out of their control. They didn't have other

options, so they said this is the best situation that we have," he said.

The fire had deep meaning for an African-American congregation in

Houston, Texas, which was not only engaged in interfaith projects with

Mormons there, but suffered its own church burning down on Christmas

morning 2005.

Maddi Merrill of the Lehi Stake had lived in Houston until four

years ago and had come to know the work of Pastor Edward Lockett of the

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. She calls the odyssey of events

"a tale of two churches."Read the full story at EastValleyTribune.com