From the highway, it doesn't look like much - that old block building left high and dry near the side of the road.
But - as with the religion itself - there's much more to the Honey-ville Buddhist community than meets the eye; it's a devotion and a spirit that hold believers together.The Honeyville Buddhist community has been rock solid and faithful for more than 60 years now. And though Honeyville may be the last place you'd look for a Buddhist church, it's the first place Box Elder County's Asian community looks for their direction and sense of community.
"The building is actually an old sugar factory building," says Ila Okeda of Bothwell. "We used to have a few weddings there, but the congregation is getting older. Most of us just try to keep rolling along now."
And they keep rolling well.
Says the Rev. Sinji Okada, the Buddhist minister who oversees congregations from Salt Lake City to Honeyville, "In our Buddhist way, Honeyville has a very active little community of believers. Many of the children have grown and moved out of state now, but those who still live in Box Elder County are still very interested in our teaching and practice, in our ultimate goal of enlightenment."
In the 1870s the transcontinental railroad brought hundreds of Asian immigrants to northern Utah. Corinne was a bustling hub of activity back then, so many people from Japan, China and other Oriental countries jumped the track near Bear River City and took up farming, businesses and looking for a new life that would include many of the old ways.
One of those "old ways" was Buddhism.
In 1926, the first Honeyville Buddhist church (a branch of the Corinne church) was established. In 1931 an official congregation was set in motion there.
Today, some 50 to 60 souls show up at the church once a month for a service. Special celebrations are held about half the time (the Buddha's birthday was recently celebrated). In the fall, all of Utah's Buddhist congregations hold bazaars. The Honeyville group plans a bazaar Nov. 7.
Over the years Buddhist ministers have come and gone in Honeyville. And - needless to say - since 1931 there have been a few crises and moments of despair; times when faith and fellow-believers pulled the local followers through.
And as with many religious congregations, the people have grown closer - and grown spiritually - with the years.
"It is a very cordial group," says Misami Hayashi, who travels about the state lecturing on Buddhism. "The people have really learned to work together up there. I was in Honeyville for the Buddha's birthday this year and was very happy to be there."
To paraphrase Edgar Guest, it takes a heap of believin' to make a sugar factory a church.
The Buddhists of Box Elder County know they've done just that.