MOSES LAKE — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will build a new temple in Moses Lake, its fourth in the state.
Having a temple an hour away from Wenatchee will be a great opportunity for the valley’s roughly 4,000 church members, said Stake President Hal Hunsaker.
Hunsaker oversees 13 congregations in the area, ranging from Wenatchee to Chelan to Leavenworth, he said.
“It’s exciting. We’re very excited to have a temple closer to home,” he said. “It’s going to cut our commute in half.”
Currently church members have to travel to the Tri-Cities to visit a temple, Hunsaker said.
He and his wife make the trip about once a month but there are some members who volunteer there and drive weekly, he said.
“It’s a pretty big sacrifice to drive down there once a week,” he said.
The church’s choice to build in central Washington reflects the church’s popularity in the area, Hunsaker said.
“A lot of it’s based upon the attendance and number of people who attend the temples in the state,” he said.
Washington now has temples in Richland, Bellevue and Spokane.
The Moses Lake temple’s location and construction timeline haven’t been released. It was announced this week by church President Russell M. Nelson along with seven other locations worldwide.
The church has 162 operating temples worldwide and 47 that have been announced or are under construction. The eight announced this week also include Pago Pago, American Samoa; Okinawa City, Japan; Neiafu, Tonga; Tooele Valley, Utah; San Pedro Sula, Honduras; Antofagasta, Chile; and Budapest, Hungary.
