BOUNTIFUL — Nobody complained as they neared North Canyon Park along Bountiful’s east bench. Even though they’d started their days at 4:30 a.m. and were only halfway to their destination 22 miles away, nobody seemed to mind. The blue T-shirts and light backpacks worn by the girls set them apart from others walking Bountiful Boulevard on a Saturday morning. Their shirts were decorated with the words: Stars 22, which represented “Stepping Together as Righteous Sisters,” the “22” representing the miles they would walk. The length of the trek was chosen to honor an early Mormon pioneer, John Rowe Moyle, who carved some of the stonework on the Salt Lake Temple being built by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Because he lived in Alpine, the English immigrant walked 22 miles to the temple site each Monday, then returned on Friday to work on his farm. Even when part of his leg had to be amputated due to a farming accident, he didn’t stop walking and serving, but carved a wooden replacement leg and kept up the 22-mile weekly roundtrip. He is credited with carving the phrase, “Holiness to the Lord” that can be seen on the east side of the temple. “It’s been good,” said Aubri Seubross at a break for lunch in North Canyon Park. “It’s hard but it’s so much fun. “We can do hard things and if you persevere, you can do anything you set your mind to,” she said. “This is a physical journey of going to the temple,” said Shayla Potter, who sat nearby. “But we’re taking a spiritual aspect to it. It also represents the spiritual journey to the temple,” which takes as much preparation, she said. The girls began training for their hike in April. In the months since, several had been injured while playing sports, but participated to the extent they could, manning waysides and cheering the walkers. The 27 girls and 21 leaders are from the Young Women’s organization of the Fiddlers Creek Ward of the Holmes Creek Stake in Layton. After meeting at their chapel, they were driven to a spot near Lagoon in Farmington, where they started the walk.
For more information check out the Sept.27 edition of Davis Clipper.
lshaw@davisclipper.com
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