Don't ignore our heritage

I was concerned by the article in the Sunday, Sept.17, issue of the Deseret News titled, "LDS Choir likely to get call in '02." Apparently the Mormon Tabernacle Choir just might get the chance to perform in the opening ceremonies of the 2002 Olympics, though "the show is not going to turn into a historical pageant."

According to the article, the Salt Lake Organizing Committee has hired the "veteran ceremony producer" Don Mischer to produce the opening ceremony for Salt Lake. He was quoted as having said, "it's important to avoid turning the ceremonies [in Salt Lake] into a history lesson for billions of television viewers around the world," and "there likely won't be a segment on the LDS Church."

I was thrilled to watch the opening ceremony in Sydney, which artfully showed the Australians' tremendous pride in their lifestyle and history. If Salt Lake's opening ceremony does not project the same type of pride in our lifestyle and history, it will be a tragedy and a momentous opportunity missed.

If it were not for the Latter-day Saint pioneers and the ingenuity of Brigham Young, modern Salt Lake City would probably be nothing more than one more small, forgotten, Western town. They built a city in an area that all others considered uninhabitable. They brought water from the mountains through an ingenious canal system and turned the desert into fertile fields.

The story of the LDS Church's part in making Salt Lake City and Utah what they are today is one of dreams, perseverance and inspiration — a perfect complement to the Olympic Games.

Are we afraid of taking pride in this story and showing that pride to the world? The LDS Church infuses the history of Salt Lake City and the state of Utah. To ignore this fact in the 2002 Winter Games opening ceremony would not only be cowardly — it would be dishonest.

Derek White

Orem