New Mormon church coming to Ozark

OZARK – A new church being dedicated this Sunday in Ozark will serve two congregations totaling about 800 members.

The new 17,000-square-foot Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints facing Highway 65 on North 20th Street will give Mormons in the Ozark and Nixa wards their own church home.

The dedication this Sunday “is open to about anybody,” Ozark Bishop Robert Guison said, but people will have to come early to get a seat.

“I’m most impressed that everything in the building is ADA compliant. (At open house) a lot of visitors with disabilities commented on how nicely it was designed. They could go in and out with ease.”

The chapel, or sanctuary, holds about 250. The two units meet separately because together they would not fit in the building, said Guison.

He explained that church buildings are based upon need. Each of the two stakes, or churches, in Springfield comprises anywhere from six to 12 congregations so there are 5,000 to 6,000 per stake. Nixa and Ozark wards met in a Springfield church until they could justify building their own. Everything is paid with tithing through the church’s building program.

“When I grew up in Monett, we went to Neosho for our stake and then to Springfield. Now there are seven stakes in that area. That’s phenomenal growth in my 30-plus years of living here,” Guison said.

Church member Tim Seager of Rogersville said the building is designed for three units when needed.

“It’s nice to have a church building close, (enjoy the church’s) growth and meet together as a congregation,” said Seager. “Everything in the community has been positive.”

It’s one of the places in the country where a common area based on faith still exists, he said, and people are trying to bond instead of tearing each other apart.

“We do things a bit different than other churches. We don’t have just one big church. We like to have groups a little smaller so that the membership can help one another which makes it nice,” Seager said.

Jonathan Rimington, public affairs/media relations for Springfield area, said many people expect a large interior space like is found in many other Christian houses of worship.

“(LDS churches) include classrooms, offices and a kitchen adjacent to the multi-purpose cultural hall that doubles as an indoor basketball court. This area is also used as a dance floor or dining area and is where many social events are hosted,” Rimington said.

Guison added that the streamlined church had no stage or baptismal, because these are available less than 30 miles away.

“The cost savings of that alone is enough to build a chapel in South America or third world countries,” he said.

International missions are extremely important to the church. Missionaries are serving around the world along with thousands of young people who serve for two years after high school. Preparedness is also stressed so that in case of a disaster they can help each other and the community.

Guison said each ward is a geographical area. Ozark and Nixa wards divide at Cheyenne Street to the Greene County line. They then extend other directions for several miles.

LDS is the fastest growing church in the world. A building is completed somewhere in the world about every 15 or 20 minutes, he said.