Rapid City SD Stake News

Welcome to the Rapid City SD  Stake Newsletter! It's an exciting time to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as we anticipate and celebrate together a temple being built in Rapid City.  We can also look forward to additional milestones--the rededication of the Salt Lake City temple, the 200th anniversary of the establishment of the Church, and the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake. We hope you enjoy these stake news items and those that will follow, provided by the Rapid City SD Stake Communication Council. Contact:  Amy Policky, Director of Stake Communications: amykpolicky@gmail.com and 605-391-6743.

STAKE PRESIDENT NESBIT OFFERS COUNSEL ON PREPARING  AND  SACRIFICING FOR THE TEMPLE With the announcement of a temple to be built in Rapid City comes not only stake wide joy and gratitude but also the acknowledgement that we must each prepare for that great day when the temple is dedicated and opens. During his June Stake Conference talk, Stake President Troy Nesbit shared his insights and counsel on what we need to be doing now in preparation for the temple.  He began with the historical example of the Kirtland temple, “the first temple to be built since ancient times.”  Through revelation to Joseph Smith in December 1832 (D & C 88), the Lord commanded the building of “a house of God” and promised to “endow them with power from on high.”  However, at this time, the Saints were “poor, homeless, and struggling just to provide food for their families.”  In June 1833 (D & C 95), the Lord chastened the Saints because little had been done on building ...

Marc J. Robinson of the Rapid City Ward was sustained as a second stake patriarch during Stake Conference on June 1.  His wife, Christy C. Robinson, will serve as his scribe.   Brother Robinson has served in several callings in Rapid City, including as Bishop of the Canyon Lake Ward, Second Counselor in the Stake Presidency, Seminary teacher, and Primary teacher.  Sister Robinson currently serves as the YW President in the Rapid City Ward.  The Robinsons and their three children (Sage, Joseph, and Atticus) moved to Rapid City in 2009 when Brother Robinson accepted a teaching/research position at the SD School of Mines and Technology. Patriarch Terry Hinkson will continue to serve as a stake patriarch.

The Rapid City Area Interfaith Council continues to honor its mission of building bridges of understanding through service to the wider community. Representatives from a variety of different local faith groups serve on and work with the Council, including those from several Christian denominations as well as Jewish, Muslim, and Hindu communities. Current IFC  President Rich Bensinger , Pastor of the First United Methodist Church in Rapid City, emphasizes the importance of being “open to all faith traditions.”  Guest speakers from various faith communities have been educating the Council about their faith traditions.  Consequently, he says, “As we understand each other and look for the intersections in our shared values, we are able to work together despite the differences in our practices.”   President Bensinger shares three important goals of the IFC: To foster understanding and collaboration between different religious groups, promoting peace, respect, and shared ...

Over 60 youth ages 12–18 from faith communities across Rapid City gathered on Saturday, May 3, for the city’s first Interfaith Global Youth Service Day. Hosted at First United Methodist Church and organized by the Rapid City Interfaith Council, the event blended inspiration, hands-on projects, and cross-faith friendship in a day dedicated to meaningful community service. The event was part of Global Youth Service Day, a worldwide initiative by Youth Services America that celebrates the power of young people to improve their communities through service, leadership and civic action. Pastor Rich Bensinger  of First United Methodist Church and President of the Rapid City Interfaith Council welcomed the youth and opened the day’s program, which included a prayer and song led by  Bri Price , Director of Ministries. “I was truly inspired by the incredible number of youth and adults who came together from across our community. We are proud to create space for young people to lead with...

  Almost 130 Rapid City SD Stake youth ages 14-18 traveled to Ft. Collins on June 2 to participate in  For the Strength of Youth .  Five days of devotionals, classes, and other activities were designed to help them strengthen their faith in Jesus Christ, feel joy and belonging as they live the Gospel, and be empowered to continue having spiritual experiences at home.   Participant Handbook Each youth received a For the Strength of Youth participant handbook focused on the session theme, “Look Unto Christ” (D & C 6:36).  The handbook provided a variety of teaching and learning resources for the week, including daily agendas, spaces to record what youth learned at devotionals and during classes, lyrics to FSY music, journaling pages, and a copy of the youth pamphlet  For the Strength of Youth .  Youth were encouraged to use the handbook as a way to record and r emember their experiences, thoughts, impressions and, especially, what the Spirit taught t...

  Sister Nancy Hemming and Elder Richard Hemming,  our Stake Just Serve Specialists, report that the monthly average number of organizations served by stake member volunteers has increased each year since community service became a stake priority. More members are volunteering in the community and more organizations are receiving service.    The Hemmings are happy to share the impressive amount of service our stake members provide. They are grateful for everyone’s generosity, compassion, and willingness to serve on behalf of so many who need our help. (We are sorry if your service didn’t get recorded.)   Church units participated in 295 projects during 2024-25. The monthly average for projects that members participated in was 25. The monthly average of organizations impacted was 22. We served organizations 267 times. The use of Just Serve has also increased:   Total people using Just Serve has increased to 243, an increase of 77 in the last 12 months. Ninet...

  Look at all the ways our stake members serve their communities and each other! June 2025 Stake Primary Service Project to benefit Children’s Home Society   This June 21 activity was a bake and lemonade exchange.  Suggested “donations” were art supplies, activity books, games/toys, Legos, clothing, and batteries. Forty-one Primary children from throughout the stake participated as well as 4 Sister missionaries, 5 Elders, and 20 other adults.  The children decorated rocks with inspiring words and distributed baked goods and lemonade to those who brought donations.  Following “the covenant path” through the building added a spiritual element to the activity as the children learned about gospel principles and temple covenants.   Sister Lauralee Hatch, Stake Primary President, shared her experience of the event: “I was overwhelmed by all the support from the members of our Stake who came, made donations, and were willing to help with this activity.  ...