Edna Harker Thomas (April 11, 1881 – April 29, 1942) was a leader in

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ...

(LDS Church). She was the first wife of Elbert D. Thomas, a

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and p ...

from

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

. She was also the first woman in the LDS Church to travel around the world.

Early life and education

Edna Harker was born in Taylorsville, Utah Territory to Benjamin E. Harker and Harriet Bennion. Harker studied at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

and at the American University. She attended the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...

, where she taught physical education after graduating. She was also involved in the university's theater club and performed at the Salt Lake Theater. The ''Truth'' called her "the University Bernhart."

Career

She was a teacher in the public schools of

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

. In 1904, she became a member of the general board of the Primary Association of the LDS Church. Shortly after their marriage, Elbert and Edna Thomas were sent by the LDS Church to Japan as full-time

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

. They were missionaries in Japan until 1912; during part of this time, Elbert Thomas was the president of the Japanese Mission. Edna learned traditional Japanese stories while on the mission, which she would tell later in the United States in "Japanese costume." She would also later give lectures about Japan. After completing the Japanese mission, she and her husband traveled through

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republi ...

, China, southern Asia, northern Africa and into Europe before returning to Salt Lake City in 1913. The couple lived in California between 1922 and 1924 before again returning to Utah. Edna Thomas continued as a member of the Primary Association's general board and in 1929 she succeeded Isabelle S. Ross as the second counselor to May Anderson in the Primary's general presidency. She served in this capacity until 1933, when she was released as a counselor and as a member of the Primary Association's general board to allow her to move to Washington, D.C., with her husband, who had defeated

Reed Smoot Reed Smoot (January 10, 1862February 9, 1941) was an American politician, businessman, and apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). First elected by the Utah State Legislature to the U.S. Senate in 1902, he served ...

in the 1932 election to be the United States Senator for Utah. In 1934, the Senator and Mrs. Thomas traveled in Nazi Germany for ten weeks on a fact-finding mission sponsored by an Oberlander fellowship given to the Senator by the

. Thomas kept a diary of their trip in which she wrote, "We are doing just what President Roosevelt asked us to do, meet and talk with the educated people."

Personal life

In 1907, she married Elbert D. Thomas in the

Salt Lake Temple The Salt Lake Temple is a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. At , it is the largest Latter-day Saint temple by floor area. Dedicated in 1893, it is the sixth templ ...

. Edna Thomas died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

on April 29, 1942, in Washington, D.C. and She was the mother of three daughters, the eldest of whom was born in Japan. She was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Edna Harker 1881 births 1942 deaths 20th-century Mormon missionaries American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints American Mormon missionaries in Japan American University alumni Brigham Young University alumni Burials at Salt Lake City Cemetery Counselors in the General Presidency of the Primary (LDS Church) Female Mormon missionaries Mission presidents (LDS Church) People from Salt Lake City University of California, Berkeley alumni Latter Day Saints from California Latter Day Saints from Utah Latter Day Saints from Washington, D.C. 20th-century American educators