A journey that began more than 175 years ago on the wagon trails of the West had a moment of glory in the U.S. Senate on Thursday.
The Senate will consider a resolution commemorating the 179th anniversary of Pioneer Day in honor of the first members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who settled in Utah.
Sen. John Curtis led the resolution as he honored the pioneers for exhibiting a spirit that he says still shapes the country today. Curtis introduced the resolution on Thursday alongside Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Mike Crapo, R-Idaho.
“For many outside of Utah, Pioneer Day may seem like a uniquely local observance. But the values it commemorates are profoundly American and can resonate with all of us,” Curtis said in a speech on the floor. “We recognize not only a historic journey, but the enduring pioneer spirit that helped shape the American West — and continues to shape our country today.”
Curtis reflected on the 1,300-mile journey from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Salt Lake City that he said exemplified the bravery and sacrifice that has been at the heart of Utah for decades.
“Parents buried children. Children buried parents. Spouses buried their soulmates,” he said. “When they finally reached that place, the Salt Lake Valley, they didn’t dwell on what they had lost. They focused on what they could build.”
The speech comes after Curtis himself just finished a 250-mile walk across the state of the Utah in celebration of the Fourth of July — a journey the Utah senator said pales in comparison to the trek of the pioneers, who he noted “did not have the luxury of spare shoes and an RV to sleep in at night.”
The resolution not only honors the pioneers for their contributions to Utah but it also encourages the rest of the country to carry the “same spirit of resilience” of the Latter-day Saint pioneers.
“May we all, this Pioneer Day, recommit ourselves to remembering that heritage, and channeling that spirit in our own hearts,” Curtis said. “Because the American story has never belonged to just one generation. It is written by each generation willing to work, sacrifice, and build for the next.”