David O. McKay Biography Quotes 11 Report mistakes

Early Life and Family
David Oman McKay was born on September 8, 1873, in Huntsville, Utah Territory, to David McKay and Jennette Eveline Evans McKay, Scottish-descended Latter-day Saint pioneers who farmed and raised their family in a tight-knit community. From his youth he became accustomed to responsibility; when his father accepted a mission call, the young David assumed added work on the farm, an experience he later credited with shaping his sense of duty, steadiness, and faith. The home in Huntsville, with its emphasis on education, industry, and devotion, formed the foundation of a life that would blend spiritual leadership with a teacher's heart.

Education and Early Career
McKay attended the University of Utah, training as an educator at a time when the region's schools were still developing. He returned to northern Utah to teach and soon became principal of the Weber Stake Academy in Ogden, helping to strengthen curriculum and teacher preparation; the school would evolve into what is now Weber State University. On January 2, 1901, he married Emma Ray Riggs in the Salt Lake Temple. Known to family and friends as Ray, she was a gifted musician and a poised, compassionate partner whose hospitality and counsel would be felt in every phase of his ministry. Their marriage, rooted in mutual respect and shared devotion, became a model often cited by those who worked closely with them.

Missionary Service and Formative Experiences
As a young man McKay served as a missionary in the British Isles, spending significant time in Scotland, the land of his forebears. There he encountered a stone inscription that read, "What e'er thou art, act well thy part", a phrase that became a personal motto. The disciplined study, daily tracting, and public preaching of his mission sharpened his teaching voice and deepened his conviction that ordinary believers could uplift entire communities when properly taught and encouraged.

Call to the Apostleship
In 1906 Joseph F. Smith called David O. McKay to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Still a young educator, he brought to the apostleship a keen interest in pedagogy and communication. He devoted extensive energy to the Church's Sunday School system, advocating teacher training, age-appropriate curricula, and a warmer, more engaging classroom experience. In 1920, 1921 he undertook a worldwide tour with Hugh J. Cannon to visit missions and congregations across the Pacific, Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The journey confirmed his belief that the Church could become truly global if it invested in leadership training, education, and consistent organization. The phrase "Every member a missionary" came to symbolize his conviction that growth would come as everyday members shared their faith.

Service in the First Presidency
During the later years of Heber J. Grant's presidency, McKay was called as a counselor, working alongside senior statesman J. Reuben Clark to help guide the Church through economic and wartime challenges. After President Grant's death, he also served in the First Presidency under George Albert Smith. These years refined the administrative skills that would mark his own tenure: clear lines of responsibility, careful attention to welfare and education, and a pastoral style that reached from headquarters to the smallest branch. He collaborated with gifted colleagues such as Stephen L Richards and fellow apostles including James E. Talmage and John A. Widtsoe, leaders who, like McKay, prized scholarship and practical spirituality.

Ninth President of the Church
Sustained as the ninth President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1951, McKay presided over a period of remarkable international expansion. He was supported by counselors of exceptional capacity, among them Stephen L Richards, J. Reuben Clark, Henry D. Moyle, Hugh B. Brown, and N. Eldon Tanner. With their assistance, he encouraged standardized ward and stake organization, strengthened the Missionary Department, and oversaw a broad chapel-building effort that gave growing congregations permanent homes. He traveled widely, visiting members on multiple continents, and promoted the organization of stakes in nations far from the Intermountain West, signaling a decisive shift toward a worldwide Church.

Temples, Education, and Global Vision
Temple building became a hallmark of his presidency. David O. McKay dedicated temples in Bern, Switzerland (1955), Los Angeles, California (1956), London, England (1958), Hamilton, New Zealand (1958), and Oakland, California (1964), making sacred ordinances more accessible to members around the globe. He championed Church-sponsored education, most visibly in the Pacific. He announced and dedicated the Church College of Hawaii (now Brigham Young University, Hawaii) in Laie, and later supported the creation of the Polynesian Cultural Center as a living laboratory where students could work, preserve culture, and fund their schooling. He advocated the expansion of seminaries and institutes of religion to support Latter-day Saint youth wherever they lived.

Teachings, Programs, and Leadership Style
McKay's preaching combined simplicity with memorable imagery. A consummate teacher, he spoke often of personal integrity, kindness, and the power of the home. During the 1960s he placed renewed emphasis on family-centered practice, promoting Family Home Evening as a weekly time for instruction and affection within the household. He also encouraged the home teaching program as a means for priesthood holders to minister personally to families. Under his direction the Church began to coordinate its many auxiliary organizations and publications more closely; he enlisted capable leaders, including Harold B. Lee, to lead the developing correlation effort, and he sustained energetic younger apostles such as Spencer W. Kimball who would carry missionary work and administration forward in subsequent decades.

Working Relationships and Personal Influence
Those who labored with McKay frequently commented on his gracious manner and unwavering courtesy. Ray McKay's musical talent and quiet strength complemented his public gifts; together they offered a pattern of partnership that resonated with members worldwide. In councils he listened carefully, inviting frank counsel from senior colleagues like J. Reuben Clark and later from Henry D. Moyle, Hugh B. Brown, and N. Eldon Tanner, whose administrative acumen and business experience proved invaluable as the Church's finances and membership grew. His ability to inspire through story and metaphor made him a sought-after speaker in civic and interfaith settings, where he represented the Church with polish and goodwill.

Later Years and Passing
In his later years McKay continued to travel and speak, though the demands of age and intermittent illness gradually limited his schedule. His counselors increasingly took on day-to-day administrative responsibilities while he remained an active, interested presiding figure, addressing conferences and guiding major decisions. David O. McKay died in Salt Lake City on January 18, 1970, at age 96. He was succeeded in the presidency by Joseph Fielding Smith. Tributes from across the world noted both his longevity and the breadth of change he had shepherded: the Church he left was more international, better educated, and structurally prepared for further growth.

Legacy
David O. McKay's legacy rests on the fusion of educator and prophet: a leader who believed that faith flourishes when people are taught clearly, organized wisely, and invited to serve. He nurtured a culture of missionary-minded members, expanded the Church's temple footprint, and invested in schools and training programs that strengthened rising generations. His close partnerships with colleagues and with Ray McKay enhanced his influence, anchoring a long administration in collegial trust and domestic grace. By the time of his passing, the Church had moved decisively from a regional body to a worldwide fellowship, a transformation he envisioned early and pursued patiently, always with a teacher's confidence that individual hearts, well taught, would carry the work forward.

Our collection contains 11 quotes who is written by David, under the main topics: Wisdom - Freedom - Work Ethic - Faith - Peace.