r Ed and I took advantage of the opportunity to attend the Joseph Knight and Polly Peck Reunion. Janice Rae McGee (the author) is a descendant of Joseph and Polly through her grandmother, Pearl Vilate Stolworthy. I had no idea how important the Knight family was to the Prophet, Joseph Smith. In the Doctrine and Covenants, Joseph Knight is commanded to stand by the Prophet. The Knight family is often described as the second family of the Restoration of the Gospel.
The reunion was kicked off in the North Chapel of an LDS Stake House in Spanish Fork with the welcome and family report “Who We Are” by Edi Ulloa the Reunion Chair. There was an update on the Knight Farmhouse Restoration in New York. From 10:30 a.m. until noon we broke into smaller families determined by which child we come through. We met with the Newel/Lydia Goldthwaite group in the North Chapel.
At 1:00 p.m. there was a meeting of the large group in the north chapel where Darrell Knight gave a presentation on the Colesville Branch and the Knights in the Restoration.
From 2:00 through 2:50 p.m. there were five classes offered: “Views and Stories of Romsey England, Ancestral Home of the Knights”; “Stories and Histories of Selected Knight Ancestors”; “The First Sister Missionaries were Knight Women: Their experiences presented by Jennie K. Brown”; Service Activity – Tying Fleece Blankets in the Cultural Hall; Youth “Why my Ancestors are Da Bomb!” Ed and I attended “Views and Stories of Romsey England.” These same classes were offered from 3:00 through 3:50 p.m. and we attended “Stories and histories of Selected Knight Ancestors” presented by Phil H. Ditmer. From 4:00 through 5:00 p.m. there was a large group session presented by Edi Ulloa entitled “How Are We Related.” Dinner hour was 5:00 through 6:30 p.m., followed by a fireside “Memories of Bill Hartley” and Presentation by Darrell Knight. There was dancing from 8:30 through 9:30 p.m.
Saturday activities began at 9 a.m. and went as follows:
Opening Session in the North Chapel, “Youth Can Leave a Legacy Too” by Gabriela Ulloa, and “Leaving a Legacy” by Tanner Mangum, BYU Quarterback and Knight descendant. At 10 a.m. we attended “Burial Records: How to Make the Most of Your Visit to the Cemetery.” Other workshops were: “Fun Family History Apps with Games for Children of All Ages” presented by John K Mangum, and “Tips for Using FamilySearch – Part 1″ by Dilworth Lyman. At 10:40 a.m. we attended “Knights in the Doctrine and Covenants –Stories Behind the Verses” presented by Diane Mangum. Other workshops at this time were “Burial Records and Tips for Using FamilySearch Part 2.” Workshops at 11:20 a.m. were the same as listed above and we sat in the lobby.
From 1:00 through 1:50 p.m. we attended the presentation by Eureka Mayor Nick Castleton ”Knightsville and Uncle Jesse’s Mines in Eureka.”
Workshops from 2:00 through 2:50 p.m. were “Don’t Let Your Family History Die with You by Liz Shellum and “The Knights were Refugees and We Have Refugees Today” by Rebecca Stay, former LDS Humanitarian Aid Missionary. We did not attend any workshops from 2:00 through 2:50 p.m., but we did attend the Closing Meeting and Youth Presentation at which time we were introduced to Rob Anderson who is the Chair for the next reunion in 2020.
We felt that we had learned a lot, and really enjoyed this reunion. The number of attendees was impressive with about 380 family members present. We were pretty impressed.
