David O. McKay was larger than life. People would see a holy aura about him. One man saw him and started sobbing with emotion, even though he did not know who McKay was.

The Book of Mormon is false, no question, and the Church is not true, but how did a man like McKay become a Mormon leader? I think it is possible that McKay could have been close to God, even though the Church is not true. I'm not saying this is true, I'm saying it's possible.

Has anybody here personally experienced the charisma of McKay? Do you know other people who have told you about their experiences with McKay?

My Mom occasionally told me the story of how she met him on the BYU campus in the 50's...she remembered the great aura he had.

One of his great-grandsons is my BIL. He's a great guy. He's a TBM so far as I know, but not a Nazi-type TBM. He's quite reasonable and open minded.

He doesn't really have any stories to share though. David O. McKay died several years before my BIL was born.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/28/2014 10:37PM by Strength in the Loins.

Strength in the Loins Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> One of his great-grandsons is my BIL. He's a
> great guy. He's a TBM so far as I know, but not a
> Nazi-type TBM. He's quite reasonable and open
> minded.
>
> He doesn't really have any stories to share
> though. David O. McKay died several years before
> my BIL was born.


We are pseudo-related through marriage as my SIL is one of McKay's grand great-daughters.

wasn't he beloved because of how long he was profit?

the business people of Idaho Falls wanted to have Ricks in IF, before the build-up started (late 50's, early 60's)

FPR: they put pressure on DOM, who supposedly caved in while he was ill 'not 100%' at least.


when he regained function, the ppl of Rexburg caught on, did their own PR work, and reversed the 'decision'.

gave rise to that First-Last-Always (alleged) joke:

Why didn't they move Ricks to IF?

A. Because they couldn't get it under the Rigby (UPRR) overpass (Hiway goes under the UPRR).



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/28/2014 11:01PM by guynoirprivateeye.

I was a military brat living in japan when the temple was built. My fam was at the dedication (I had to do a lot of repenting to be allowed in that room). David O McKay entered and it seemed very exciting until suddely everybody started waving white hanky's and doing all of that chanting hosannah stuff. My little sister looked up at my mom and said "I didn't know we belonged to a cult". It got so wierd.

my bad. it was spencer w. kimball at that time. so no.

David O. McKay had long white hair and often wore a white suit. That was where the aura came from.

Much like Colonel Sanders.

momjeans Wrote:
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> Much like Colonel Sanders.


Can't ever remember DOM in anything but white come to think of it. Can you imagine any of his successors dressing that way?

He was my go to profit growing up and presided over my youthful exit process.

Good memories of a 'good' man.

Sort of.

I saw the aura at General Conference back in the 60s. That is one of my good memories of time in the church.

McKay carefully cultivated his image.


He wore white suits and had his barber cut his hair longer than
was the normal style at the time. His white mane was rather
striking.

baura Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> McKay carefully cultivated his image.
>
>
> He wore white suits and had his barber cut his
> hair longer than
> was the normal style at the time. His white mane
> was rather
> striking.


Heard he loved fast cars.

I woulda gladly been his chauffeur.

I've posted this before. In the early 1960s I worked part time at the old Genealogical Society in the old LDS high school buildings--where the COB is now. One afternoon. my friend and I were cutting through behind the old COB on our way to work. We rounded the back corner of the building and came face to face with DOM, who was walking along all by himself. We were startled. He said, "Hello girls." We made some sort of reply greeting and went on.

He did not have an aura. He was an old man out for a bit of fresh air by himself. We could have kidnapped him or mugged him, but we were just embarrassed. I suppose we could have talked to him, but we were only 19 years old and weren't really at ease with him. I repeat--he didn't have an aura--he was just a plain old human being. He would have been about 78 years old. Now that I think of it, he seemed older than that.

Your thoughts are why the church hired PMCs to protect profits...

And just another silly thing that comforted me somehow as a kid.....

his last name was my own preposterous first name......

..Kay.

His grandpa had in fact "signed" our calling to the Philippines Mission...this of course was after he had gone completely senile. The miracle of it was that he signed the callings anyway.

Kermit seemed like a nice enough young fellow...blonde hair like his grandpa. At one point he was assigned to be a Branch President.

Kermit grinned widely whenever we addressed him as, "President McKay."

He was my first profit.

My TBM great-niece is named after him; no kidding...


McKay, not David :)

My Grandmother respected him a lot and that says something, she was a good judge of people and didn't take BS from anybody. My grandfather was a bishop of a large ward for many years and he met him several times. He participated in service organizations and knew DOM through them. Our family has books that were given as gifts to my GF with DOM hand written signature in them, these are from the 1930s (also the content of many of these books are ignored nowadays by the Church. one is a picture history of Church historical sites made in about the 1890s). I saw him when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I just remember people were very excited to talk to him and he seemed like a kind old man. I've met Thomas Monson too, and I don't get the sense of real adoration DOM had.

I wish someone else could remember this better but as someone else noted, he loved fast cars. My brother lived near McKay's
retired chauffeur in Layton. According to him when it came time to get a new Cadillac, McKay wanted the biggest motor available. And when he drove himself from his home in/near Huntsville he would try to see how fast he could get to SLC.

I have talked to people who remember McKay admitting in general conference that he drove too fast and had been criticized by his associates so he apologized.

I've always heard great things about him, like we read about Pope Francis today. Here's a dialog article about him that has an article about him speeding to Huntsville and getting a ticket:

http://www.dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V31N03_25.pdf

when she was growing up there.

Her parents were the most prosperous Mormons in the islands and they often entertained missionaries who worked there and prominent Mormons who traveled through.

My friend played the organ and piano for David O. M. whenever he visited, dined, and stayed there on his way to other destinations and when checking on church doings there.

as we were walking downtown and he was being driven out of a church offices parking area (under Hotel Utah?). It was "very exciting". I only saw him wear white suits like a Kentucky Colonel.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/01/2014 11:18AM by mav.

I had a very brief encounter with him when I was about 10 years old, circa 1960. We shared the same ophthalmologist. One Saturday I was waiting for my appointment at the doctor's office on E St. and South Temple in SLC--waiting even longer than usual--and finally DOM came out through the waiting area, personally escorted to the door by the doctor. DOM would have been in his later 80's by then. He and the doctor were chatting pleasantly, but as I recall, DOM didn't make any special acknowledgement of any of us in the waiting room. I suppose at that point he couldn't see very well--pupils may have dilated and his peripheral vision would have been limited after his cataract surgery, considering the type of spectacles he had to wear back in the days before lens implants.

Anyway, as a devout Mormon boy, I stared up at him in awe and he was close enough to touch, but if he even met my gaze it was no more than a glance. I remember being vaguely disappointed that there was nothing really special about our encounter and that I couldn't claim a personal acknowledgement. He was a pleasant, frail old man with white hair, but I saw no aura.

David

My grandfather, who was probably born in the 1870's, wanted to court/marry David O. McKay's sister. He asked DOM's permission to do that. DOM told him he would give his permission after my grandfather served a mission. My grandfather refused and wooed my grandmother instead.

So, thanks, DOM, or else "I" wouldn't have been born!

A member on my mission told us about how she met GBH in the church office building, and that when in his presence, there was a definite strong spirit. After that my grandma told me about her experience as a teen. DOM was at their stake conference. She went out into the hall to get a drink, and as she came out the one door, DOM came out another. They were the only two people out in the foyer. He said hello and made a comment. I asked her if she felt the spirit strongly, (I was tbm) she said no but she never forgot his hair.