Evidence of the issue circulating through the LDS communities in Idaho can only be found anecdotally, but suicide and self-harm isn’t the only risk.

LGBTQ youth are going to extremes to find companionship, Smart said, using potentially dangerous websites like Craigslist to connect with strangers.

“Because they don’t feel safe having these normal, teenage romances, they’re going to extremes and putting themselves at huge risk,” she said, “then driving themselves deeper into shame because of that behavior. That is happening in my neighborhood. Right here next to Rocky Mountain.”

Although he wasn’t a teen, there is one such recent example of that situation happening in Canyon County.

In 2017, Steve Nelson, 40, a gay Nampa man, was beaten and died of his injuries, after responding to a sexual ad online.

‘20 years behind the rest of the world’

The positions and lessons of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can change. Stances on polygamy and civil rights have evolved over time, but some members aren’t sure the church will budge on LGBTQ rights.