John Thomas Fyans (May 17, 1918 – May 18, 2008) was a general authority of

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 Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church) from 1974 until his death.

Early life

Born in Moreland, Idaho, Fyans was the son of Joseph Fyans and Mae Farnsworth. From 1940 to 1943, Fyans served as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who 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.Thoma ...

in the Spanish American

Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

of the LDS Church, which had jurisdiction over missionary work among the Spanish-speaking population of the southwestern

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. After his returned from his mission he married Helen Cook, and they eventually became the parents of five children.“Elder J. Thomas Fyans, Assistant to the Council of the Twelve,”
''

Ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

'', May 1974, p. 122.

Employment

Prior to becoming a mission president Fyans worked at

ZCMI Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution (ZCMI) was an American department store chain. It was founded in Salt Lake City, Utah, on October 9, 1868, by Brigham Young. For many years it used the slogan, "America's First Department Store." Histor ...

for 20 years eventually becoming the head of their school supply department. After returning from serving as a mission president he returned to

but later accepted full-time employment with the church. Fyans was a director and eventually president of the Memorial Estates Security Corporation (MESC) in the 1960s. Along with Bruce R. McConkie and several others, the company was formed to construct memorial parks for deceased "loved ones". The company went bankrupt, and was sued by investors for failing to register with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment company, misrepresenting LDS Church endorsement, and failing to inform investors of insolvency. On April 25, 1969 MESC settled with investors three days prior to the beginning of a jury trial.Shupe, A. D. (1991). "The darker side of virtue: Corruption, scandal, and the Mormon empire." Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books. pp. 57-61 Prior to his call as a general authority, Fyans worked as director of distribution and translation for the LDS Church. This is the position he held in 1967. He then served as an administrator with the office of the church's presiding bishop and in March 1972 became the managing director of the church's internal communications department.“Policies, Procedures, People,”
''

'', March 1972, p. 77.

Church service

Fyans served as the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the Butler Ward in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

. He then served for nine years as a counselor in the presidency of the East Jordan

Stake A stake is a large wooden or metal implement designed to be driven into the ground and may refer to: Tools * Archer's stake, a defensive stake carried by medieval longbowmen * Survey stakes, markers used by surveyors * Sudis (stake) (Latin for ...

, which was headquartered in

Midvale, Utah Midvale City is located in the heart of Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. Midvale's population was 36,028 according to the 2020 United States Census. Midvale is home to the Shops at Fort U ...

."LDS Church leader Elder J. Thomas Fyans dies at 90"
''

Deseret Morning News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LD ...

'', 2008-05-20. During the time he was a full-time church employee, Fyans was also a regional representative for the

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles A quorum is the minimum number of members of a group necessary to constitute the group at a meeting. In a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature), a quorum is necessary to conduct the business of ...

. While serving as director of internal communications, Fyans was involved with the initial steps of developing the LDS Church's edition of the

King James Bible The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by ...

. Fyans served as

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

an Mission of the church from 1960 to 1964. As the president of this mission, Fyans also oversaw missionary work in

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

. While mission president Fyans oversaw a shift from most branches in Uruguay and Paraguay being led by full-time

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who 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 Miss ...

to having local men lead them. Fyans also served as the coordinator for the area conferences in

Manchester, England Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

;

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

;

Munich, Germany Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

; and

Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

General authority

In 1974, Fyans became an Assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He held this position until 1976, when the position of Assistant to the Twelve was discontinued. At this time, Fyans remained a general authority and was transferred to the

First Quorum of the Seventy Seventy is a Priesthood (LDS Church), priesthood office in the Melchizedek priesthood (Latter Day Saints), Melchizedek priesthood of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Traditionally, a church member holding this priesth ...

. He served in the latter position until 1989, when he was given general authority

emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

status. From 1976 to 1985, he was a member of the Presidency of the Seventy; from 1983 to 1985, he was the senior member of the presidency. For part of 1978, Fyans worked as the Executive Director of the Genealogy Department of the church. Fyans served for a time as president of the

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

South

Area Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-di ...

of the church. He was released as one of the presidents of the seventy to take on this assignment. He also served as president of the Utah North and Utah Central Areas of the church. Fyans became the

of the St. George Utah Temple in 1992. He died at his home in Salt Lake City."J. Thomas Fyans"
''

'', 2008-05-20.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fyans, J. Thomas 1918 births 2008 deaths 20th-century Mormon missionaries American Mormon missionaries in Paraguay American Mormon missionaries in Uruguay American Mormon missionaries in the United States American general authorities (LDS Church) Assistants to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Latter Day Saints from Idaho Latter Day Saints from Utah Members of the First Quorum of the Seventy (LDS Church) Mission presidents (LDS Church) People from Bingham County, Idaho People from Midvale, Utah Presidents of the Seventy (LDS Church) Regional representatives of the Twelve Religious leaders from Idaho Temple presidents and matrons (LDS Church)