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Show PRESS UTAH ASSOCIATION 18 467 E. 3rd S. cPes Lake City in 84111 Salt ant becom season of the country's largest outdoor pageant 151,000 attend the 27th J There was not even a threat of rain on any of the eight nights, he pointed out These are Mr. Olsens toestiwas attendance tals for each performance: years mated at 151 ,000 by Don Olsen, July 7 (dress rehearsal) ...3,000 who does the official count for 10,000 July 8 the pageant committee. 24,000 July 9 Although this years July 10 20,000 151.000 did not set a record -t- July 13 15,000 he record of 166,000 was estab- July 14 14,000 lished in 1991 when rumors cir- July 15 12,000 culated that significant changes July 16 27,000 would be made in the pageant July 17 26,000 The second Friday perforscript it is nevertheless one of the highest figures in the 27 mance continued to have the year history of the pageant. largest attendance. But this Mr. Olsen attributed the years second Saturday, Mr. 35.000 increase over last year Olsen thinks, was the largest to the perfect pageant weather. Saturday on record. Attendance at the Mormon Miracle Pageant for 1993 regained momentum after a dropoff to 116,000 last year. This - the country driving truck for From where did the 151,000 come? Primarily from Utahs n Wasatch Front. But from Utah towns also. For instance, Veyo, somewhere in Washington County. The occasion - a youth conferfrom the First ence. Forty-fou- r Ward there, only two or three of whom had seen the pageant previously, attended. They came, attended the pageant and camped in the park. And what did they think of the pageant? It was wonderful, they agreed. little-know- -- Douglas and Verda Peterson, in their early 70s, attended the pageant for the first time. Hes been over much of Sanpete Valley Hospital now boasts resident surgeon Native Ephraimite will also have privileges at Gunnison Hospital automobile Sanpete County will boast its first general surgeon as a native son comes home to practice. The governing board of Sanpete Valley Hospital is pleased to announce the appointment of Thomas Randy Hansen, M.D. to the medical staff. Dr. Hansen, a general surgeon, will begin his practice here on July 19. A native of Ephraim, Dr. Hansen says he is dam glad to be home." He is the son of Thomas and Ruth Ann Hansen of Ephraim and is now living just around the comer from his childhood home. Dr. Hansen will see patients at the clinics in Gunnison, Ephraim and Mt. Pleasant. He holds surgical privileges at both Sanpete Valley Hospital and at Gunnison Hospital. Dr. Hansen said he will find a unique challenge in setting up a surgery program with the bare essentials. He was most recently the chief resident in general surgery at Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix, Ariz. Although supplies and equipment and specialized staff be as readily available, he will be involved in the plan- ning, upgrading and building of medical facilities in Sanpete County to better meet the local needs. He will also work closely with Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo. One thing Dr. Hansen wont miss is the trauma work that consumed so much of his time in Phoenix - treating victims of -- high-spee- T. Randy Hansen, MD better understanding of their Saints, heritage as Latter-da- y Bp. Johnson said. acci-wo- nt dents, shootings and stabbings. Dr. Hansen brings with him rt surgical proce- dures, including gall bladders, appendices and hernia repairs. A graduate of the University of Utah School of Medicine, Dr. Hansen completed both an internship and residency in Phoenix. Some of his research interests include clinical statistic and data management using state-of-the-a- computers and short-termemory physiology and m anatomy. Following graduation from Manti High School, Dr. Hansen served as a voluntary Emergency Medical Technician for Ambulance the Ephraim-Mant- i Association. He said he has always planned to return home to set up practice, despite a number of prestigious offers elsewhere. Dr. Hansen is a member of the U.S. Army Reserve and encamping joys and ballroom dancing. He and his wife Colette (Peterson), a Manti native, are the parents of three girls. s, The group hung a huge sign on a tree at the city park. It bore the legend Moroni Camp" and was decoratedwith a dozen symbols. We like to bring youth to the pageant so they can gain a Incidentally, the Johnsons met while students at SUSC d micro-computer- PIE. It was superb, spectacular, he said. Now that Fm retired, were going to put long miles on our mobile home. But well be back. And what of Slate Canyon, wherever that is? Ron J ohnson, the bishop, who is vice president of a Salt Lake computer company, andhis wifejudy, who is the Young Womens president, escorted a group of 18 young women on a three-da- y outing that included the pageant. The outing was in fulfillment of a promise they called the Moroni Promise: every young woman who had completed reading the Book of Mormon qualified for the outing. Pageant-goer-s and have attended the pageant 10 or 12 times. And, also inc- identally, one of Bishop. J ohn sons counsellorsis Damon Bolli, a son of Mr. and Mrs. Gerhard Bolli of Ephraim Damon is now teaching seminary atTimp View High School. The Moroni Promise outing included an evening at the pageant and an evening with the Bollis in Ephraim. Ifthe majority who attended the pageant were Utah residents, the pageant nevertheless continued to have nationwide and even world-wid- e ap- peal At least 14 states and several foreign countries were represented in this years audiences. In 1966, its first year, no report on attendance was made, but it was likely around 2,000, on a blustery night at the Sanpete County Fairgrounds. In 1967, 2,000 was the fig- ure. Attendance totals for all years, as reported in theManti Messenger were: 1966 (?) 2,000 was closed. Largestrecorded attendance. The cumulative total reached over 1 million in 1979, and over 2 million in 1987. not fed manna, but thousands were fed Feeding the multitude at the Mormon Miracle Pageant again took some doing. The count has it that 12,625 ate the barbecued turkey and roast beef dinners provided by the Manti Utah Stake, with help from surrounding stakes in the region. Friday and Saturday nights were the big affairs at both locations. And quite a few 2504 reported for the breakfasts that were provided by youth groups on the mornings following performances. Pageant-goer- s who patronized the stands operated by the Ephraim and Snow College Stakes in the Temple Hill area, also ate well. They sold around 8,000 hamburgers, 2,500 hot dogs and 2,000 sandwiches, according to Val Anderson, food services chairman. Other popular items were brownies and sweet rolls. And thousands of cans of pop and zillions of snow cones were also consumed. The profits, still to be tabu - - lated, from the dinners and booths finance the pageant. That has made possible the purchase oftwo buildings, costumes and stage settings and a myriad of other expenses. Any excess is contributed to the Churchs missionary fund. The profits from the break fasts support the youth programs. And a visitor, after having dinner at the Tabernacle, made a significant comment: One of the largest miracles of the pageant is the number of volunteers who pitch in to help achieve its success. Fairboard chairman leaving Sanpete County Fairboard chairman Gary Myrup has been selected by the Weber County commissioners to manage the Golden Spike Arena in Ogden. The appointment was announced last week. The com- missioners reportedly selected Myrup for the new position because of his abilities to book special events which are profitable and for his management skills. a Gunnison resident who has headed Valley (Continued on Page 2) Mr. Myrup is Gary Myrup |