Spring Break

For a couple of days of spring break we went down to the Gila Valley (about 5 hours away). My grandparents grew up there, are buried there, and a temple was dedicated there last year so we really wanted to visit while we are still in Arizona. Plus, it was 85 degrees!

I read my Grandad Emert Merrill Kempton's life history before we went and was so amazed at his life. It was really neat to read about him growing up in a small country town without electricity and riding a horse to school. My grandparents left me a wonderful heritage of faith, hard work, and service. They moved many times after they were married and always had faith that they were following the Lord's will and that things would work out for them. They knew what it was like to have nothing and to lose people they loved, so they appreciated everything they had and truly treasured relationships.

Anyway, we weren't in Safford long and many many things have changed since my grandparents lived there, but it was neat just to be there. Their first little house is still there, which Spencer W. Kimball helped them to buy. He was a realtor and their good friend as well as their stake president. We were able to visit the cemetery where my grandparents, great grandparents, and great great grandparents are buried. I really felt a connection to them and am so grateful for my heritage. Probably the best part of the trip was being able to go to a session in the temple and think about my ancestors and the sacrifices they made. Going to the temple is always special, but it was a little extra special to go there and see the fruits of the seeds that were planted by early LDS settlers. There are some wonderful people in that valley. Thanks to our friends from Rexburg, the Hawkes, for watching our kids so we could go to the temple!








I forgot to mention also that my Andersen grandparents also lived in Safford for a time and my dad was actually born there. They actually moved there just a couple of years after my Kempton grandparents moved out of the valley. Small world!

We stayed the night in a little cabin at Roper Lake State Park and had a great time. The weather was beautiful and warm and the kids loved being outside and playing in the water. It was so nice just to be together and relax a bit and enjoy the nature. There were lots of ducks on the pond and even a crane. We saw quail and many marsh birds too. I am a true blue Idaho girl, but Arizona definitely has a special place in my heart because of my ancestors and my time here. (On a side note, the Kemptons lived in Bear Lake Idaho before settling in Arizona) We've traveled all over this state and I'm going to miss it a bit.