I do not know who thought that Burley, Idaho, might actually get a temple. But when it was announced on 4 April 2021 by President Russell M. Nelson, we have been watching closely since! I was fortunate enough to be invited to attend the groundbreaking as a representative for the City of Heyburn. It was a brisk, cool, windy day, but our excitement was evident. Burley native Brent H. Nielson attended and was presided at the groundbreaking.

After the groundbreaking was formally over, I ran home and grabbed my family to bring them back over to do their own shovel turning.

I really wanted this to be something they were a part of from the beginning.

They even had it available so you could take a little bag of the soil home!

It was a memorable occasion. We also participated by writing our names on rocks to be placed in the foundation of the temple. Over 7,000 rocks were placed in the foundation pours of the temple. Workers made sure to turn each of the rocks so the names faced upward. Our names are literally part of the temple!