The Church Helps New Utah Center Bring Healing from Child Abuse

A significant milestone has been reached in the effort to protect children in Utah’s Weber and Morgan counties. On May 22, 2025, in Ogden, state, community and faith leaders gathered to celebrate the opening of the new Weber-Morgan Children’s Justice Center (CJC).

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The center, located at 1845 Jackson Ave., is a welcoming and safe space that helps with the increased demand for services addressing crimes against children. It was made possible by donations from many groups, including significant contributions from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

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“It’s so important to stand against abuse and realize the importance of not just prevention but also reporting and then the healing that will take place,” said the Church’s Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman, who toured the new center Thursday morning. “That healing will begin in a place like this, where that story can be told. And it’s through the telling of that story that healing will come. I love what we learn from the Savior about meeting people where they are and letting the healing begin there and then grow out of that.”

The new CJC is a collaborative effort to provide comprehensive support to children navigating the trauma of abuse. It will serve as a place where forensic interviews can be conducted in a child-friendly environment, medical exams can be performed, and support services can be accessed.

The center’s design prioritizes the comfort and emotional well-being of children, helping them feel safe and secure during a difficult time.

“It’s center that basically feels like a home,” said Utah Attorney General Derek Brown, whose office administers CJCs. “It feels like a place that’s relaxing, where kids can go and be at ease, which is exactly what we want for those kinds of situations. My hopes are that the thousands of children that walk through those doors will feel at ease, and that this will be a place of healing — and that the healing will start here.”

Elder Kevin W. Pearson, the Church’s Utah Area President, said he was struck by the hopeful feeling he experienced as he walked through the center and as he heard remarks from two abuse survivors during the ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday morning.

“Abuse of any kind is abhorrent to our Heavenly Father and to the Savior,” Elder Pearson said. “We want to do everything we can to use our voice and amplify our voice to let people know this is not acceptable in any form or shape.”

The Church’s Ongoing Support for Children’s Justice Centers

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a longstanding commitment to protecting children and providing resources to help them heal. This includes ongoing support for CJCs in Utah.

In January 2021, the Church donated $300,000 to help the CJC purchase a second location in Utah County. In 2017, Church leaders toured the South Valley Children’s Justice Center in West Jordan, Utah, and presented a $120,000 donation for medical supplies for child abuse victims. In 2015, the Church gave $100,000 to the Children’s Justice Center for continued operation and special training.

“I’m just grateful that there are people who will dedicate their life and make it their life mission to try to heal and help other people that they don’t even know and have not yet met,” Elder Pearson said. “We’ve been a long-term collaborator with the Children’s Justice Centers and will continue to be.”

These donations have facilitated the expansion of services, improved facilities, and provided crucial resources for children and families affected by abuse. The Church’s contributions have directly enhanced the ability of CJCs to offer counseling, legal service information, law enforcement support, and medical exams.

The opening of the Weber-Morgan Children’s Justice Center marks a new chapter in the ongoing effort to protect children in the region. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is honored to have contributed to making this vital resource available to the community and remains committed to supporting initiatives that safeguard the well-being of children.

“The Church has been a huge support in helping us get into this building by donating to the cause,” said Scott Brenkman, executive director of the Weber-Morgan Children’s Justice Center. “We had a lot of city government and county government and private donors, but the Church was a huge donor to this and very supportive. They’re very invested in what we're doing and very interested, because we protect our most vulnerable in our society, the kids, the children, who a lot of times don't have a voice for themselves and can't protect themselves.”

Sister Amy A. Wright of the Primary General Presidency, the Church’s organization for children, also participated in Thursday’s events. She echoed Brenkman’s comment about protecting the vulnerable.

“The strength or integrity of any community is surely manifest in how we treat our weakest members, our most vulnerable members,” Sister Wright said. “Children are vulnerable, and we have a responsibility to be their advocates and their protectors. When necessary, we need to help them heal. Our Savior Jesus Christ has told us time and time again how He feels about these precious little ones. And when He admonishes those in the scriptures to behold their little ones, ‘behold’ means to look upon with great care and tenderness, and we need to do this.”