The following is excerpted from the Church News. To read the full article, CLICK HERE.
Calling Deseret Industries “a place of second chances,” Bishop L. Todd Budge, second counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, dedicated on Wednesday, Feb. 9, a new Welfare and Self-Reliance Services facility in Marana, Arizona, a suburb just north of Tucson.
“As far as merchandise is concerned, Deseret Industries is unquestionably a place of second chances,” he said prior to the dedicatory prayer, ”but if that is as far as we take the DI story, then we’re certainly only scratching the surface, because it is not simply articles that come here to find a new lease on life; far more importantly, it is the people.”
Deseret Industries is a nonprofit enterprise owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It serves as a thrift store and donation center. Available resources help Church leaders assist individuals with barriers to self-reliance by providing work training opportunities and job placement services. Clothing and household items are often provided at no charge to help leaders care for the poor and needy in a community.
The renovated building at 3850 W. Orange Grove Road also houses the Church’s Family Services, Development Counseling Services and Employment Services. The 24,000-square-foot facility replaces one that was located near downtown Tucson for 25 years and nearly quadruples the size. It is about 15 minutes west of the Tucson Arizona Temple, which opened in 2017.
A refuge and place of renewal
In his dedicatory prayer, Bishop Budge said: “In this beautiful and vibrant city, which is blessed year-round with sun and warmth, may this new facility and the work that will take place herein add a welcomed and cherished source of light and peace to the community.”
To read the full article, CLICK HERE.
