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Show The Magna Times. Thursday. March !2 1992 '' A Special Birthday Present The First Women's Relief Society organized in the Hunter Magna Area -- CHARLOTTE BROOK HIRST by W. Kent Goble Magna Times Editor CHOSEN PROLOGUE Throughout Coonville and Pleasant Green, its sister village situated a mile to the north on the west slope of the Oquirrhs, winters final denouement was now little more than a foregone conclusion. The drab, brown carpet of fallen leaves and lifeless groundcover that had been thickly matted down by a blanket of snow, recently melted away, was being pushed aside by fresh green shoots of grass, eager for the sun. On the trees, with barren branches PRESIDENT Following his remarks, Sister Charlotte Hirst of Coonville was chosen president and unanimously sustained. Ann Cutcliffe Bertoch of Hunter was sustained as first counselor and Frances Ann Coon Hardman of Coonville was sustained as second counselor. Fanny Hirst Jenkins, who lived on the canal north of Coonville, was called as secretary. Alice Cockerill of Pleasant Green was sustained as an assistant secretary and Sarah Hirst Coon of Coonville was called to serve as treasurer. long dormant, buds were beginning to swell. Already the drooping limbs of the weeping willow trees were turning gold, the first portent that natures annual rites of renewal had begun. And the yellow rose bushes, thickly clistered about the pioneer homes of the two villages, were greening up as well, their sjiny branches, once barren, now budding forth with new life. It was March 9, 1879 and a time of Thanksgiving and spiritual renewal. The chill of winter was past and the hillsides, once blanketed with snow, were about to break forth mth color. The wild flowers of spring would soon bloom in radiant profusion. Bishop Schoenfeldt of the Brighton Ward to which the Pleasant Green branch was assigned ecclesiastically, had just arrived from Salt Lake City in company with Eliza R. Snow and M. Isabella Horne. They had come for the express purpose of organizing, if possible, a womens Relief Society to be administered locally under the jurisdiction of President Hardman. The sisters of Hunter, Coonville, and Pleasant Green would no longer be expected to travel the dozen miles to Brighton Ward where Relief Society meetings were heretofore being held. This was indeed a memorable moment. THE FIRST MEETING Minutes of the meeting preserved in the LDS Churchs historical records state that on March 9, 1879, a meeting was held in the schoolhouse at Pleasant Green for the purpose of organizing a Relief Society. Bishop Schoenfeldt who had succeeded Andrew Wood Cooley, of Abraham Coon, as bishop of Brighton Ward, was the first to speak after an opening song and prayer. He stated that Eliza R. Snow and Sister Horne had come to organize a Relief Society (and) hoped they could be successful. son-in-la- w A HUMBLE TESTIMONY Following the remarks of Presidents Snow and Horne, Sister Charlotte B. Hirst was called to the stand and bore her testimony and gave the meeting into the hands of the sisters from Brighton (ward). ty presidency, Sister Jones, said for the sisters to pray for their president (Charlotte Hirst) to be strengthened. Sister Hanson also spoke a short time. The sisters of the newly organized Relief Society of the Pleasant Green branch then sang and were dismissed by prayer. THE FIRST WOMENS RELIEF SOCIETY IN HUNTER-MAGN- A Thus the first Relief Society to be established on the west side of the Salt Lake Valley was organized. From this organization and its first officers all Relief Societies in Hunter and Magna have since evolved. For almost a decade the Relief Society of the Pleasant Green branch It was under such circumstances SPECIAL VISITORS h STRENGTHEN YOUR PRESIDENT A member of the ward Relief Socie- THE FIRST RELIEF SOCIETY that the women of the Pleasant Green branch of the Brighton Ward of the ' Chiirch of Jesus Christ of Latter-da- y Saints, sisters from Coonville, Pleasant Green, and Hunter (the Hunter and Pleasant Green Precincts) were invited by their branch president and presiding elder, Lehi Nephi Hardman, to meet. assist in doing good ... Sister Isabella Horne spoke and instructed the sisters in their various duties as mothers bringing up their children and advised them to lay up grain and assist in building the (Salt Lake) temple. (She) said this (was) the twenty-sixtRelief Society in the (Salt Lake) stake. Sarah Hirst Coon of Coonville, daughter of Charlotte Hirst, was the first Relief Society treasurer. She was the wife of Jacob Coon. Picture courtesy of Heritage of the Abraham Coon Family. Originally provided by Marian T. Jacobsen, granddaughter of Sarah H. Coon. (ward after October 1, 1882) ministered to the needs of all of the sisters in the pioneer settlements of Pleasant Green, Coonville, and Hunter. Not until the Hunter Ward was organized in 1888 from the Pleasant Green Ward was there a separation of some of the sisters from their original organization. POSTSCRIPT A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY PRESENT Charlotte Brook Hirst, who, coin- cidentally, was born March 9, in Stainland, Yorkshire, England to William Brook and Hannah 1818 Bot-tomle- y, was then set apart as presiFrederick dent by Bishop Schoenfeldt. Elder Lehi Nephi Hardman assisted. Ann Cutcliffe Bertoch was then set apart by Bishop Schoenfeldt as first counselor and Frances Ann Coon Hardman was set apart by her husband, Elder Lehi Nephi Hardman. Fanny Hirst Jenkins, daughter of Charlotte Hirst, was next set apart by Bishop Schoenfeldt. Alice Cockerill was then set apart as assistant the name is Sarah Hirst Finally, undecipherable. secretary but Coon, daughter of Charlotte Hirst wife of Jacob Coon, was set apart as treasurer by branch president Lehi Nephi Hardman. For President Hirst, recently widowed, this was no doubt a very special birthday present. MEET OFTEN AND DO GOOD Sister Eliza R. Snow then spoke of the duty devolving upon the sisters. She wished them to meet often and For those unfamiliar with the early history of the area, Magna was first known as Pleasant Green while Coonville was a pioneer village of approximately 20 homes located at the mouth of Coons Canyon, since called Bacchus. Hunter was known as Hunter Precinct while Coonville and Pleasant Green were located in the Pleasant Green Precinct. At the time that the first Relief Society was organized, the area was described as being located in the center of a fine farming district, about twelve miles southwest of Salt Lake City. Nearly all the inhabitants are Latter-daSaints who all live on their farms (and ranches) in a scattered y condition. special thanks to Evelyn S. Goble for researching the LDS Church historical records and providing the information for this article. Her grandfather was Pleasant Green branch president Lehi Nephi HardA man and her grandmother Frances Ann Coon Hardman, second counselor in the first Relief Society presidency area. organized in the Hunter-Magn- a 5y Daffodils will descend from the skies on March 16th Like the first showers of spring, thousands of fresh, golden daffodils will descend from the skies on March 16. The occasion is the eighth annual American Cancer Society Daffodil Days, and Delta Airlines will once again be delivering the blooms. chairman of the Salt Lake Unit American Cancer Society. In Salt Lake City, flowers will be available for the public to purchase at the Nordstroms in on March Crossroads Plaza and Fashion Place 19-2- Pre-orde- rs 483-156- 0. 393-885- 7; 373-588- 6. Sr. Citizens Center Menu Image March 12: Turkey and potato casserole, steamed spinach, rye roll, banana. March 13: Braised beef cubes, potatoes Romanoff, applesauce strawberry bread, whole wheat bread, apricots. March 16: Hot turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with gravy, vegetable soup (sites only), whipped potatoes, seasoned broccoli, pineap- Custom Mini-Blin- V ds 40 Colors One Week Delivery Challenger ple sections. March 17: St. Patricks Day Party. Corned beef and cabbage, boiled potatoes, pears in lime gelatin, potato roll, minted brownie. Bingo will also be available for those interested. March 18: Beef stroganoff, egg noodles, buttered peas, rye bread, mandarin oranges. VERTICALS Patterns lYr. 4 Warrantee Kennecott Continued from page 1 Mall; ZCMI in the ZCMI Center, Fashion Place Mall, and Cottonwood Mall; and in Trolley Square and of dafValley Fair Mall. fodils in Salt Lake City can be arranged by contacting the Great Salt Lake Unit of the American Cancer Society In Ogden, daffodils can at be ordered during this same time by contacting the local American Cancer and in Provo, dafSociety at fodils can be ordered by calling Daffodil Days is the brightest event held by the American Cancer Society throughout the country. According to Mark Eubank, KSL meteorologist and Daffodil Days honorary chairman for Utah, The daffodil is the American Cancer Societys symbol of hope hope that cancer will be cured in our lifetime. Sales of daffodils will help support the societys lifesaving programs and move us one step closer to a world free of cancer, commented Rob McFarland, Daffodil Days volunteer 1 was ever worth it, this was it, said Senator Garn speaking of the tax break Kennecott received in an effort to start up their operations after their closure in 1985. This makes everyone breathe a lot easier because they can count on (Kennecott) being here, Representative Dan Tuttle said. As the new facility is built, the existing one will be dismantled. It will be funded by Kennecott and its stockholders. PLEATED & SHADES $WJf? OFF. 3 Yr. Warrantee v: 3 Patterns -- Water Board j WOOD BUNDS Continued from page 1 records showing the condition he left the meters. Nuesmeyer said he will address Lonnie Johnson about an ordinance that would give the county authority to dictate whether the water company has to entirely resurface a road if it is cut into to reach water lines. The Magna Water Company also in- tends on uniting with surrounding water districts to oppose the idea. In the March 24 meeting, the Water District will discuss the status of the Schuler Gates Water Company, whose owners want the Magna Water Company to take it over, said Brent Huish to Deedee Lobato, a representative of Schuler Gates. Graduating Class from the rtelief Society f Blinds Nursing School (circa 1902) Copyright, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-daSaints. 199 1. $&up I Cleaned Many Relief Society groups sponsored women to receive basic medical training with the understanding they would then return to serve their communities. This group of nursing graduates surround their instructor, Dr. Margaret C. Roberts. Dr. Roberts was one of a group of dedicated women who were sent East for medical training. She graduated from the Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1882 and returned to teach and practice in Salt Lake City. Photo courtesy of the LDS Church Archives I - 7 y AND DKAPKHIFS SALT LAKE 487-566- 2 2432 So. State OKEM E. 246 1300 South ParVwau Center OPEN: MON.-FR- I. I 6 OGDEN 4305 So. Hantnon Blvd. Country Hllli Plm SAT. 11-- 3 |