‘We were bonding. We weren’t faking’ — Thousands of young LDS singles gather for speed dating, music and messages

The girl in a red T-shirt and wide-legged overalls sat down on the end of the long table across from an unfamiliar boy in a baseball cap and blue hoodie.

Her smile was gentle but genuine. His grin revealed dimples and braces. They both laughed easily.

Their three-minute chatter was animated as he gestured with his hands and she leaned forward to whisper something.

Then it was over. Twenty-year-old Andrew Womack of Idaho stood up and exchanged numbers with 18-year-old Brinley Meadows of St. George. They high-fived after which he moved up and around from the table’s last to first seat and she greeted another would-be date across the table.

With a signal of musical notes, they were off again.

This was speed dating, Latter-day-Saint-style, a big attraction at a young single adult gathering this past weekend in downtown Salt Lake City’s Salt Palace Convention Center.

Sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the three-day event reportedly drew more than 30,000 singles between ages 18 and 35. Under the theme “Together in Christ,” it featured breakout sessions with popular speakers; fun competitions like tricycle racing; karaoke; Latin, country and pop dancing; singers Ben Rector, Rachel Platten and Emma Nissen; and a chance to sign a 100th birthday card for church President Russell M. Nelson, who was born Sept. 9, 1924.

But the male-female setup proved especially popular — so much so that it shattered a Guinness World Record for “largest speed-dating event” with 2,060 participants. The previous record: 964.

At last year’s YSA conference, participants rated speed dating as in their “top three activities,” said Carly Clark, one of last year’s organizers and a paid producer this year.

Did it work for her?

No, the 22-year-old chuckled, “but I’m only 22.”

‘Inspiring and relevant’

Grace McConkie came from Delaware, where she is an adjunct communications professor at Goldey-Beacom College, to soak up the atmosphere and connect with other Latter-day Saint singles.

She was moved by President Emily Belle Freeman’s keynote speech Friday morning in which the church’s Young Women leader told the story of a remarkable pioneer woman, who married a widower with eight children. The new couple went on to have 10 more children together — making a total of 18 kids.

Freeman then described how the mother felt “guided by the [Holy Spirit] to be a midwife,” McConkie said. “That really hit home with me. That she could be both, not one or the other.”

McConkie found Freeman’s message to be “inspiring and relevant.”

“That’s the woman I want to be,” McConkie said. “Not 18 children, but both a mother and a career woman.”

McConkie came to the YSA event, she said, “for spiritual uplift and to meet new friends.”

She found both.

A record-breaking card

Organizers set a goal to break the record for the “most contributions on a greeting card,” and they crafted an ingenious plan to do it.

Anyone could sign the card and leave a message online for Nelson as he nears the century mark. Those who attended the YSA conference in person were given a list of five other people and messages besides themselves for them to copy onto the giant card in one of the large Salt Palace halls.

As young singles lined up to pen their messages, a zealous gray-haired volunteer in a green T-shirt with the words, “Ask me anything,” stood by, cheering the proxy signers on, calling out, “You’re helping those who could not be here. You’re part of history!”

As they undertook their assignments, many also took selfies near a giant photo of a smiling Nelson.

The record of 20,482 was broken on Aug. 3, with 31,384 messages, the church reported. But messages continue to pour in from around the world and that number as of Tuesday was nearly 100,000.

The card can be viewed in the lobby of the church’s nearby Conference Center.

Around the corner and up an escalator from the Nelson card was a sign with room numbers and arrows pointing either to “Temporal Well-Being” or “Spiritual Well-Being.” There also was a room for attendees to ask questions of Latter-day Saint historians about the faith’s past.

Scholars like Matt Rasmussen of the church’s history department got questions about race, polygamy, LGBTQ members, and the relationship between church and state during eight packed sessions.

Some just wanted answers, Rasmussen said, about how to “interpret facts.”

‘Fly with the eagles’

In a Saturday keynote address, Sharon Eubank, who oversees the church’s humanitarian efforts and a former counselor in the worldwide women’s Relief Society, according to the Church News, “encouraged young single adults to serve in their communities and deepen their covenant relationship with God.”

She urged them to “find a new way to serve and take somebody else with you.”

That was followed Sunday evening, when about 13,000 Latter-day Saint singles assembled in the Conference Center to hear from apostle Dieter F. Uchtdorf and his wife, Harriet.

“You were created to fly with the eagles and to reach celestial heights,” the charismatic German leader assured them. “You are a beloved child of Almighty God. You were made to soar.”

Uchtdorf carries a pocket-size copy of “For the Strength of Youth” with him wherever he goes, a news release said. It helps him convey the church’s values to ambassadors and senators, civic and religious leaders, and everyday mothers and fathers.

Harriet Uchtdorf repeated the message that the young members were born for this day.

“You have the potential to be angels of glory to those right next to you,” she said. “You represent the church of Jesus Christ, and you are powerful leaders in proclaiming the gospel message through your good life and courageous testimony.”

Emphasis on connecting

The theme of the YSA gathering was “Together in Christ,” building connections with God, the church and one another.

In the swag bag given to every attendee, there was a pen, a water bottle, a T-shirt, a baseball cap, and even a necklace blazoned with those words.

There was a “connection bingo” card, with boxes people could get others to sign if they had been to Africa, played in an orchestra or band, or loved action movies.

During the speed dating, if couples had trouble connecting, a big screen offered these conversation starters:

• If you could live in a movie, what would it be?

• What’s been the best part of summer so far?

• What is the largest animal you think you could fight and win?

• What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?

Each exchange lasted 3 minutes, followed by 30 seconds to exchange contact information if desired.

Greg Lombardi, 24-year-old from Draper, said that was not long enough.

“People should have longer to decide whether they want to give out their number or not,” he said. “That’s more like real dating.”

For Brinley and Womack, though, there was no question.

“We were bonding. We weren’t faking,” Brinley said later. “That was a real conversation.”

Brinley’s friend Nicole Graf, also 18, gave her number to three guys. How many would she be willing to date?

“Zero,” she confessed.

For Layton resident Jared Theurer, it was simply a joy to be there.

He attended last year as well and discovered the gathering was “10,000 strangers who are just friends you haven’t met.”

On the whole, the 25-year-old said, it showed everyone that “the gospel can be fun and holy at the same time.”