The Church in the News June 27, 2001 Stories from the news media that include reference to the Church. 27 June 2001 Marks 157 Years Since Prophet's Martyrdom — New York Times / Additional story Today marks the 157-year anniversary of the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum in Carthage, Illinois. The 27 June 1844 tragedy is noted today in many "On This Day" listings in newspapers, including in the referenced New York Times article. When the 150-year anniversary was commemorated in 1994, the content of the June edition of the Ensign focused on the Prophet Joseph Smith. A link to a very thorough article on the martyrdom from that Ensign is included here as the "Additional story." Gold Medalist Rulon Gardner a Product of Family Farm — The Cincinnati Enquirer "I guess you look at me and see an American story," said Rulon Gardner, gold medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling in the 2000 Olympic games. Gardner says his role models are "his family and the Lord." He attributes his work ethic to his upbringing on his family's dairy farm. His father, Reed, is 70 years old and still works 500 acres of barley and milks 50 to 60 cows twice a day. Rulon and all seven of his siblings went to college. His father says his proudest moment was not seeing Rulon win the gold medal but seeing him get his college degree. BYU Team Places Third in Global Engineering Competition — BYU News Release A team of BYU electrical and computer engineering students received third place in the finals of an international engineering design competition held 24-25 June 2001, in Arlington, Virginia. The BYU team's project, called the Poket Doktor, is a prototype of a wireless smartcard. The microchip-embedded credit card could be used to relay medical information at the scene of an accident. The BYU team was chosen from among 250 other teams to compete in the final competition. Church Member on Local California School Board Leaving for Mission — Los Angeles Times School board member Jeanne Broberg will not complete her elected term in the La Canada Flintridge Unified School District. She and her husband, Charles, will be leaving at the end of July for a Church mission to Kiev, Ukraine. Broberg served on the board for nearly eight years and was caring, calming, and hard-working, said fellow board member Meredith Reynolds. "She always did her homework, always had time to listen to people, she made it a priority in her life," Reynolds said. BYU Cross Country Success Attributed to the Gospel — BYU NewsNet The BYU women's cross country team works hard at what they do, and team members depend greatly on each other. The team stays motivated by helping members succeed individually. The girls are successful due to their way of life at BYU. "We have the gospel of Jesus Christ at BYU," Coach Patrick Shane said. "Our athletes, because of their lifestyles, are absolutely a cut above the others." This unity and lifestyle led the team to a national championship in 1999. Steve Young Opens Haven for Sick Children — Deseret News Steve Young, former quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, recently opened the "Forever Young Zone" at Primary Children's Medical Center. The 3,000-square-foot, brightly colored room is a place where children can go to relax and take a break from their treatments. Games, movies, and music are part of the activities, as well as Internet connectivity for older children to email their friends and family. "Kids who spend a lot of time in hospitals grow up very fast," Young stated. "It's important that they enjoy the pleasures of childhood as well."