Good week for Mitt Romney (3 GOP dropouts + $10.8 M in cash)

Mitt Romney had a fantastic week as First Mike Huckabee, then Donald Trump and finally Mitch Daniels all dropped out (or decided not to enter the race) then Mitt raised $10.25 Million in a Las Vegas all day fundraiser and another $600,000 in Houston before stopping in South Carolina. Too bad this all starts SOOOO early.
http://mittromneycentral.com/
http://www.mittromney.com/
www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2012/president/us/republican

Church announces 8 Utah Young Single Adults (YSA) stakes

I assume modeled after the University student wards, the church has created 8 YSA stakes comprised completely of Young Single Adults in the Salt Lake City area.  Specifically, they are located in Bountiful, Utah; Layton, Utah; Murray, Utah; Salt Lake - Bonneville; Salt Lake - Holladay; Sandy, Utah; Taylorsville, Utah and West Jordan, Utah.  Interesting.
www.ldschurchnews.com/New-stake-presidents_YSA

Madagascar, Mexico & Utah - Three new stakes have been created.

A new stake has been created in Antananarivo Madagascar Ivandry. This is Madagascar's 2nd stake, the first was created in 2000.  Elder Daniel Ortiz from Mission Viejo Stake is just concluding his mission there.

A new stake has also been created in Teziutlan Mexico, called the Martinez de la Torre Mexico Stake. This is Mexico's 222nd stake, but it's first created in 2011.  There are now 1,431 stakes outside of the United States and 2,911 total worldwide. Martinez de la Torre is 200 Miles East of Mexico City almost to the Eastern Coast in the Veracruz temple district.

A third new stake has been created in West Point Utah called the Clinton Utah West Stake.  This is Utah's 550th Stake and the 2nd created in 2011.  Utah is home to 37% of the 1,480 stakes in the US.  West Point / Clinton is West of Hill Air Force Base between Bountiful and Ogden.

http://www.ldschurchnews.com/New-stake-presidents

2010 LDS Church Statistical Report

For me, almost like waiting for Christmas morning, the Annual Church Statistical Report is announced as part of the Saturday Afternoon General Conference Session  Total membership — 14,131,467 as of Dec 31, 2010 (without under 8 unbaptized children)
ldschurchnews.com/2011-April-General-Conference-2010-statistical-report

Year	Membership	Children Baptized	Converts	% Converts	Baptisms	Growth	Growth %
2006	12,868,606	94,006	272,845	74.4%	366,851	307,737	2.45%
2007	13,193,999	93,698	279,218	74.9%	372,916	325,393	2.53%
2008	13,508,509	123,502	265,593	68.3%	389,095	314,510	2.38%
2009	13,824,854	119,722	280,106	70.1%	399,828	316,345	2.34%
2010	14,131,467	120,528	272,814	69.4%	393,342	306,613	2.22%

also announced:
Wards and Branches — 28,660
Full-time Missionaries — 52,225
Church-service Missionaries— 20,813  (this is a new item being announced)

* In 1989, President Ezra Taft Benson asked members to flood the Earth with Books of Mormon. 

181st Annual General Conference - 3 new Temples Announced, ID, CO, Canada

Prophet and President of the LDS Church - Thomas S. Monson announced three (3) new Temples - Meridian, ID, Fort Collins, CO and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada newsroom.lds.org/church-announces-new-temples-in-canada-colorado-and-idaho
This makes for 134 operating temples and 160 total under construction or announced. The next temple to be dedicated is in August, 2011 in San Salvador, El Salvador. Now 77 temples are in the US and 83 are foreign.

Fort Collins, Colorado

Fort Collins, located in northern Colorado, USA, will be the site of the second LDS temple in Colorado. (The first, in Denver, was completed in 1986.) The first congregation of the Church in Colorado was organized nearly 90 years earlier, in January 1897. As of October 2010, some 140,000 members of the Church lived in the state.

Colorado has 31 stakes, poor Wyoming still no Temple, with 16 stakes

Meridian, Idaho

Meridian is the third-largest city in Idaho and is located about 11 miles west of Boise. The Church has been present in Idaho since 1855; today, there are some 410,000 members in the state. The temple in Meridian will be the fifth in Idaho. There are also temples in Boise, Idaho Falls, Rexburg, and Twin Falls.

I served my full-time Mission in Idaho and Meridian was my first area.  At that time the Idaho Falls Temple was the only temple in Idaho.  Back then in 1983, Idaho had 70 stakes. Idaho now has 121 stakes.  Quite a bit, but not all, of that growth was due to my missionary service.  (1983-1984)

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Winnipeg is the capital and largest city in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is located in southeast Manitoba. The temple will serve members in the Winnipeg area who currently travel nearly 400 miles (600 kilometers) to the nearest temple in Regina, Saskatchewan.

This will be the ninth temple in Canada. In addition to the Regina temple, there are temples in Cardston, Calgary, and Edmonton, Alberta; Toronto, Ontario; Halifax, Nova Scotia; and Montreal, Quebec. In May 2010, Church officials dedicated the Vancouver British Columbia Temple and broke ground for the Calgary Temple.

Manitoba, Canada only has 1 stake. It is in Winnipeg, created in 1978, and also has a mission headquartered in Winnipeg.  I predict a second stake, now that the temple is announced. (7 Wards + 6 Branches currently)

Three (3) New Stakes announced in US - AZ, CO, GA

Three new stakes have been created.  That is the most created / announced in one week since early January 2011.

A new stake has been created in Conyers Georgia. Conyers is south-east of Atlanta. This is Georgia's 16th stake, tying it with Wyoming in 12th place in the US. 

A new stake has been created in Parker Colorado - the Parker Colorado South Stake. Parker is south-east of Denver. This is Colorado's 31st Stake, but first one since 2004. Colorado has 5 more stakes then Florida, but 4 less than Nevada, putting it 9th on the US list. 

A new stake has been created in Prescott Valley Arizona. Prescott Valley is half-way between Phoenix and the Grand Canyon and is south-west of Sedona. This is Arizona's 91st stake, 45 ahead of Washington, but 30 behind Idaho, firmly in 4th place in the US.

www.ldschurchnews.com/New-stake-presidents

New Stake in North Pasco, WA

A new stake has been created from the Pasco Washington Stake, called the Pasco Washington North Stake, located not far from the Columbia River Washington Temple, this is the 56th stake in WA, - that passes TX with 55, and puts WA back in 5th place in the US. There are now 1,474 stakes in the US (50.8%) and 2,903 globally. 
www.ldschurchnews.com/New-stake-presidents.html