SALT LAKE CITY – The pews at the Cathedral of the Madeleine in Salt Lake City may have been a little more packed Sunday morning, as people came to hear Bishop John Wester gave his final mass in Utah.
After eight years in Utah, Bishop Wester has been called to serve as Archbishop in Santa Fe, New Mexico
Wester spoke about his time in the Beehive State.
“There’s a real genuine hospitality here in Utah," Wester said. “People care about one another, they go out of their way for one another, and I think that really leads to faith."
Shirley Marris worked with Wester, and she said she was impressed by his desire to help those in his community.
“When he came to Utah he couldn't speak Spanish, but he saw the need to help the Hispanic people, to be able to communicate with them--so he learned Spanish,” Marris said.
Roxanne Close, a future principal at Kearns-Saint Ann School, said she will be sad to see Wester depart.
“Bishop Wester has been part of the education system, so it has been especially emotional for me,” she said.
Wester said he is glad for his time in Salt Lake City.
“I think the people of Utah really reflect that hospitality of God, and I've certainly been the recipient of that, and I’ll be forever grateful for it,” he said.
