Historic day on Dec. 11, 2016 with the creation of the new Pioneer Branch (Spanish) in our stake

Dear Mount Hood Stake Members,

Today, Dec. 11, was historic in our stake.

The new Pioneer Branch (Spanish) for Spanish-speaking members in our stake was officially created with the following called into the Pioneer Branch Presidency:

Carlos H. Ibarra, of the Sandy River Ward, as President; with

Miguel (Mike) A. De Leon, of the Walters Hill Ward, as First Counselor; and 

Cody M. Garrison, of the Evergreen Ward (Gresham Stake), as Second Counselor.

Also sustained were:

Brian L. Allen, of the Damascus Ward, as Branch Clerk;

Craig N. Dobson, of the Sandy River Ward, as Branch Elders Quorum President; with

Margarito (Morgan) Ortiz, of the Walters Hill Ward, as First Counselor.

The Pioneer Branch will continue to meet with the Sandy River Ward through the rest of December. On January 1, 2017, the branch will move to the stake center in Boring where they will overlap with the Damascus Ward, beginning their block meetings at 2:20 pm for second and third hour classes followed by sacrament meeting at 4:10 pm.

We cannot express enough our gratitude to the many in our stake who made this possible:

• The many members and leaders of the Sandy River Ward, who have nurtured this fledgling group of Spanish-speaking members for the past two years;

• The bishoprics, who have encouraged their ward members to accept branch leadership opportunities; and

• The families, who have accepted a “mission call” to attend the branch leaving long-time friendships in their home ward to support the new branch.

We trust the Lord will honor the sacrifice of all who have made today’s proceedings possible. 

We now invite everyone to join with us in praying for the branch’s success in reaching and blessing even more of Heavenly Father’s children in the coming years.

With love and heartfelt appreciation,

The Stake Presidency