President Ballard remembers Sen. Harry Reid as ‘man of faith – in word and in deed’

LAS VEGAS – President M. Russell Ballard of The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints remembered the late former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid as “a man of faith – in word and in deed” during a memorial Saturday in Las Vegas.

President Ballard joined a who’s who of the Democratic Party to praise Reid including President Joe Biden, former President Barrack Obama, Vice President Kamala Harris, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Sen. Reid was a Latter-day Saint. President Ballard said Reid and his wife, Landra, joined the Church just after they were married. They were 19 at the time.

President Ballard said, “They have been faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, with a firm belief that we are all brothers and sisters, children of a loving Father in Heaven.”

He also shared some personal memories he had with Sen. Reid. “In more recent years, we shared a similar plight. We each lost sight in one eye at about the same time — he in his right eye and me in my left. We used to remind each other that we could walk down the street, arm in arm. He could help me see things on the ‘left,’ and I could help him see things on the ‘right!’”

Sen. Reid spoke at Brigham Young University in 2007 and President Ballard recalled a quote about service from that speech. “Many have chosen to pursue an educational direction pointed toward a lucrative field. There is nothing wrong with seeking a career that will bring you financial success. But never forget the clarion call of (the Book of Mormon prophet) King Benjamin: ‘When you are in the service of your fellow beings you are only in the service of your God.’”

President Obama, who credits Reid for his rise to the White House, delivered the eulogy.

Harry Reid died at his home in Henderson, Nevada, on Dec. 28 after a four-year battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 82.