News Stories
Yigo Guam Temple Flooded by Typhoon Mawar
On Wednesday, May 24, Typhoon Mawar wrought havoc on the island of Guam with destructive winds of 140 mph that took out power and water to most of the residents. The one-year-old Yigo Guam Temple shone like a beacon in the storm with its generator-powered lighting, but the sacred structure had flooded, saturating the carpets and some of the furniture. No structural damage was sustained, but the temple will be closed for repairs through July 24. The typhoon also damaged the temple grounds, uprooting most of the trees. Volunteers have been cleaning up for more than a week.
Elder Bednar Dedicates the Yigo Guam Temple
The beautiful Yigo Guam Temple was dedicated today in three sessions by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The Saints of Guam and Micronesia who have made the long journey to the Manila Philippines Temple for years are so grateful for a temple to be in their midst. "I always thought it would come," said Sister Rosemarie Cruz of the temple. She and her husband, Jim, moved to Guam 50 years ago and joined the Church after seeing the example of Latter-day Saint friends and neighbors. She says: "A temple is a symbol of God’s love. God is love. Love is the answer to everything."
Open House Tours of the Yigo Guam Temple Begin
Media tours of the Yigo Guam Temple began yesterday. The general public will be received beginning tomorrow, May 4, and continuing through Saturday, May 14, with no tours held on Sunday, May 8. The temple will be dedicated on Sunday, May 22, in three sessions by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles with a youth devotional held the day prior. The 6,861-square-foot temple is located on the northeastern end of Guam, adjacent to Andersen Air Force Base. The grounds include more than 100 flowering trees and hundreds of decorative shrubs. The temple will serve 9,600 members in Guam and Micronesia.
Open House and Dedication Announced for the Yigo Guam Temple
A public open house has been announced for the Yigo Guam Temple, beginning Wednesday, May 4, and continuing through Saturday, May 14, 2022. (No tours will be offered on Sunday, May 8.) The temple will be dedicated on Sunday, May 22, in three sessions by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. A youth devotional will be held just prior to the dedicated on Saturday, May 21.
Sunset at the Beautiful Yigo Guam Temple
Scattered clouds catch the final rays of the setting sun at the grounds of the beautiful Yigo Guam Temple. This House of the Lord will bless numerous Saints in the Western Pacific where, for decades, the closest temple has been the Manila Philippines Temple. Construction of the temple has been completed, and members eagerly await an announcement of the open house and dedication once conditions permit.
Reflecting on the Yigo Guam Temple
The beautifully lit exterior of the Yigo Guam Temple reflects in a detention pond located at the southeast corner of the grounds. Just north of the pond is a recently installed flag pole in one of the garden spaces. President and Sister Lopez, the first president and matron of the temple, were welcomed to the island this month to begin their duties. Members are still eagerly awaiting an announcement of the open house and dedication dates.
Monument Sign Installed at the Yigo Guam Temple
The monument sign for the Yigo Guam Temple has been attached to the concrete base in the front lawn of the temple grounds, inscribed with the name of the Church and the name of the temple. The sign is surrounded by flowers and equipped with nighttime lighting. The temple is in the final stages of construction, but no open house and dedication dates have been announced yet.
Recently Installed Lighting Sets the Yigo Guam Temple Aglow
The Yigo Guam Temple is like a heavenly night light to motorists traveling Marine Corps Drive. The soft glow that illuminates the House of the Lord is reminder of the Savior's words: "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life" (John 8:12). On Monday evening, senior missionaries in the Micronesia Guam Mission worked hard to remove trash from around the temple grounds—not even stopping during the rainy spells.
Greening Up the Yigo Guam Temple Grounds
The grounds of the Yigo Guam Temple are going green with freshly laid sod and newly planted trees and shrubs. Post lights are being installed to light the garden areas and walkways, and trees are being planted along the street where rubble is being cleared ahead of curb and gutter improvements. The exterior of the new meetinghouse has been completed, which was painted in a different but complementary color to the temple.
Front Steps Poured for the Yigo Guam Temple
The beautiful lines of the Yigo Guam Temple are accentuated by new concrete staircases and planters at the entrance to the building. The front doors and transom window have been installed, but the ornamental grills have not yet been inserted over the glass. A few more windows remain to be installed in the body of the temple, and the cavity for the cornerstone will remain open until the cornerstone ceremony is held.
Ornamental Fence Installed at the Yigo Guam Temple Site
A black ornamental fence has replaced the majority of the construction barrier that was protecting the construction site of the Yigo Guam Temple. The property had previously been surrounded by an aluminum fence with concrete posts that were painted blue and cream to coordinate with the former meetinghouse. A replacement meetinghouse is being constructed behind the temple. The pitched trusses over the meetinghouse have recently been covered by a ribbed metal roof.
Landscaping the Yigo Guam Temple Grounds
A variety of trees and shrubs are finding a home on the grounds of the Yigo Guam Temple. Planting efforts have begun in the area behind the building, which will become a plaza connecting the temple to the meetinghouse. Black lamp posts are also being installed. Scaffolding has been removed from the steeple, and exterior moldings are being added around the windows.
Beautifying the Yigo Guam Temple Steeple
Finish work continues on the steeple that sits over the entrance to the Yigo Guam Temple. Windows have been installed in the openings found on each wall of the tower. Rib panel roofing has been attached to the surface of the cupola. And the pedestal of the steeple is being painted to match the exterior walls. Construction of the temple is expected to be completed in the first half of next year.
Finial Added to Cupola of Yigo Guam Temple
The cupola of the Yigo Guam Temple has been topped by a lantern and finial, giving the exterior of the building a more completed look. Scaffolding remains around the base of the steeple where windows and ornamental grills are being installed. The dark gray areas around the windows will be clad in a white stone, coordinating with the white molding around the upper walls. The exterior walls are up for the meetinghouse located behind the temple.
Yigo Guam Temple Window Installation
Glass is being installed in the once-boarded window openings of the Yigo Guam Temple. Plans call for coordinating decorative grills to cover the windows in both the tower and the body of the temple. Behind the temple, the concrete walls for the meetinghouse are rising. Missionaries show their appreciation to the construction crew on a regular basis.
A Thank You to the Yigo Guam Temple Crew
On Friday, October 16, missionaries of the Micronesia Guam Mission shared their appreciation to the workers at the Yigo Guam Temple in the form of chilled sports drinks, handing them bottles as they left the construction site. Scaffolding remains on the front side of the temple while work is well underway on building the exterior walls for the meetinghouse behind the temple.
Progress on the Yigo Guam Temple Exterior
Light-colored earth tones are taking over the bright yellow sealer on the exterior walls of the Yigo Guam Temple. The front side of the building has yet to be completed, including the installation of moldings and the application of paint. Stone trim will be attached along the base of the temple and around the windows openings and doorways.
Moldings Attached to the Yigo Guam Temple Exterior
On the sunny Pacific island of Guam, the Yigo Guam Temple continues to take shape with the addition of handsome moldings being affixed along the top of the exterior walls and around the tower. Painting of the exterior has also begun, especially visible through the scaffolding surrounding the tower. Work is advancing on the interior.
Cupola Installed on Yigo Guam Temple Tower
The stately tower that rises over the entrance to the Yigo Guam Temple has recently been topped by a beautiful ribbed cupola. The exterior walls of the temple have been sealed, and the window openings have been boarded to enclose the structure. It is the first temple to be constructed in the vast region of Micronesia, comprising thousands of islands in the western Pacific Ocean.
Refreshment for the Yigo Guam Temple Construction Crew
Missionaries in the Micronesia Guam Mission make regular visits to the Yigo Guam Temple site to offer refreshment to the hard-working construction crews including cold water and chilled bottles of Gatorade. Scaffolding has been removed from around the sealed and waterproofed exterior walls of the temple. Walls for the tower have been erected over the east end of the building. They will eventually be topped with a dome-like cupola.
Yigo Guam Temple Taking Shape
The rear side of the Yigo Guam Temple is visible from Milalak Drive through the main construction entrance to the project. The concrete exterior walls of the building have been poured, which are surrounded by wooden scaffolding. On top of the roof level, a tower will rise and parapet walls that will provide architectural beauty while shielding rooftop equipment.
Feeding the Construction Workers in Yigo, Guam
Last week, missionaries in the Micronesia Guam Mission brought lunch to grateful subcontractors at the Yigo Guam Temple site. The sacred structure was designed within a compact footprint that debuts some innovative features like multipurpose spaces. The sealing room, for example, can be used for presentation of the endowment.
Yigo Guam Temple Exterior Walls
The exterior walls have been poured for the Yigo Guam Temple, which are visible above the solid construction barrier that surrounds the site. Rebar and concrete forms had been set in place by early November last year when the construction project made the news, due to the death of a construction worker on site from an apparent heart attack. It was estimated that construction would continue for another year.
Airplane View of the Yigo Guam Temple
A photograph taken this week from the vantage point of an airplane shows the building site for the Yigo Guam Temple, which is surrounded by a wooden barrier. Although construction equipment has yet to arrive, the cleared land for the temple is visible where the former meetinghouse once stood. Behind the temple site, trees have been cleared for the construction of a new meetinghouse, and across the street, land is being cleared for a housing development.
Ground Broken for the Yigo Guam Temple
Elder Yoon Hwan Choi, president of the Asia North Area, presided over the groundbreaking ceremony for the Yigo Guam Temple on Saturday, May 4, 2019. In his remarks, he quoted Elder Robert D. Hales who said: "Temples are the greatest university of learning known to man." Construction of the temple and a new meetinghouse is anticipated to take two years.
Preparing the Yigo Guam Temple Site
Demolition of the Yigo meetinghouse on the island of Guam has been completed, and the site is being cleared in preparation for Saturday's groundbreaking ceremony for the Yigo Guam Temple. The temple is not only the first to be constructed in Guam but also the first to be constructed in all the islands of Micronesia.
Demolition of the Yigo Chapel Underway
With two weeks remaining before ground is formally broken for the Yigo Guam Temple, demolition crews have arrived on site to carry out removal of the existing building. The temple will be constructed where the meetinghouse currently stands, and a new meetinghouse will be constructed on the field behind the temple.
Yigo Chapel Closed for Demolition
February was the final month of church services at the Yigo chapel on the island of Guam. The building will be demolished in preparation for construction of the Yigo Guam Temple and a replacement meetinghouse. Members of the Yigo Ward and Dededo Ward will begin attending worship services in March at the stake center in Barrigada. Church was canceled on Sunday due to weather conditions created by Super Typhoon Wutip.
Groundbreaking Announced for the Yigo Guam Temple
Elder Yoon Hwan Choi, president of the Asia North Area, will preside over the groundbreaking ceremony for the Yigo Guam Temple on Saturday, May 4, 2019. The temple and an adjoining meetinghouse will be constructed on the site of an existing meetinghouse located at the corner of Marine Corp Drive and Milalak Drive in the village of Yigo. Attendance at the site will be by invitation only, but the ceremony is expected to be broadcast to chapels within the proposed temple district. Construction of the temple is anticipated to take two years.