A deacon at age ten, a school principal in his teens, Harold B. Lee seemed destined at an early age for great things. He became a stake president and a Salt Lake City commissioner in his early thirties, managing director of the Church Welfare Department in his mid-thirties, a member of the Twelve in his early forties-and ultimately the president of the Church.
In Harold B. Lee: Man of Vision, Prophet of God, author Francis M. Gibbons not only chronicles the rise of President Lee to positions of eminence but also paints a compelling portrait of a man who loved his family, tirelessly served the Lord, and revelled in his association with the youth of the Church. Many lives were powerfully changed as President Lee taught seminary, instructed the missionaries in the temple, performed marriages, and gave inspiring talks. He would often say to the youth, “If you don't yet have a personal testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel, use mine for a while.”
Marion G. Romney, describing the first time he met Harold B. Lee, said, “He was dressed in striped overalls. His left hand was on his breast, and he reached out his right to shake my hand. Captivated by his magnetic presence, I felt I had found a friend.”
That same feeling prevails after reading Harold B. Lee: Man of Vision, Prophet of God. Here was a remarkable, dedicated man — a man dedicated to his family, to his friends, to the Church, and, most evident throughout his life, to the Lord.
