By Carolyn Lund
SALT LAKE CITY ? More than 21,000 people packed the Conference Center Friday night to give a one-of-a-kind musical birthday bash to President Gordon B. Hinckley, who recently turned 95 years old.
Donny Osmond and Gladys Knight, accompanied by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, were among the performers who paid tribute to the prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who was adorned with a lei sent to him from the king of Tonga.
?What a night! What a show,? President Hinckley said. ?They don?t do this well even on Broadway.?
CBS anchor Mike Wallace gave high praise to President Hinckley, saying, ?Tonight, we celebrate the life of a genuinely remarkable man. ? A man who, by any measure, takes his place among the world?s great contributors.?
Wallace noted the many advances the LDS Church has made in the past decade with President Hinckley at the head. Since President Hinckley became president in 1995, the church has grown by 3 million members, more members now live outside of the United States than inside, and the number of temples has increased from 37 to 120.
?His candor and uncommon wit and wisdom have enabled him to even build bridges with high-profile and sometimes cranky journalists,? Wallace said, referring to a time when he interviewed the prophet for 60 Minutes. ?I asked the questions that were on the minds of the skeptics, and he answered every one.?
The musical performers also expressed their admiration for the prophet. Osmond dedicated a song he wrote called ?One Dream? to President Hinckley. Knight sang a medley arranged especially for the occasion, which included the songs ?I Believe,? ?I Believe in You and Me,? ?Greatest Love of All? and ?I Believe in Christ.?
?I believe in dreams, I believe in children, I believe in eternity, and I believe in you,? Knight said, motioning to President Hinckley on the front row.
Metropolitan Opera singer Stanford Olsen sang ?Danny Boy,? one of the prophet?s favorite songs. The 5 Browns, sibling pianists all trained at Julliard, played ?Scenes from West Side Story? and ?Flight of the Bumblebee.? Brazilian singer Liriel Domiciano, winner of her country?s version of ?American Idol,? sang two operatic pieces.
?On behalf of the youth of the church, I offer our sincere congratulations,? Domiciano said.
Violinists Igor and Vesna Gruppman performed ?Concerto for Two Violins? by Vivaldi. Organist John Longhurst was accompanied by The 5 Browns and the orchestra for a stirring rendition of ?Symphony No. 3 in C Minor? by Camille Saint-Sa?ns.
Local missionaries and an international children?s choir flooded the aisles of the Conference Center while singing ?As Zion?s Youth in Latter-days? and ?We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet.? Each child was dressed in costumes representing different countries.
After singing ?The Spirit of God,? in which the combined choirs received a standing ovation, President Hinckley?s counselors, President Thomas S. Monson and President James E. Faust, said a few words.
?The world needs less critics and more models to follow,? President Monson said. ?Such a model God has provided for our time and our day.?
President Faust made a reference to President Hinckley?s late wife, Marjorie Pay Hinckley, who passed away in April 2004.
?We honor you and we honor Marj,? he said. ?Happy birthday and many more.?
President Hinckley then humbly expressed his gratitude for those who participated in the celebration.
?Thank you for your great kindness to me, your good wishes and your prayers,? he said. ?Let?s have another party five years from now!?