In April 1921, nearly one-hundred and fifty Deaf church members from Salt Lake and Davis Counties met together in the old Bureau of Information on Temple Square. They were addressed by then-apostle Melvin J. Ballard who foretold of their responsibilities as Latter-day Saints to “[lead] the way for many hundreds of brethren and sisters and the Lord [will] us[e] you as a means to help work out new things in the enlightenment and understanding of those who are in your condition and methods." General conference meetings with Latter-day Saint apostles continued for twenty-seven years until 1948.
Thus began a longstanding tradition of conferences and inservice among Deaf members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Since its establishment in 1986, the LDS Deaf Symposium has met in various locations across the Wasatch Front, organized by local Deaf and sign language wards and branches who host Deaf members and leaders from the United States and around the world.
YSA who are deaf or hard of hearing invited to the Church’s first ASL YSA conference
Conferences for Young Single Adults in North America and 1 for Single Adults
(Brigham Young University discontinued their involvement and support in 2001.)