Robert L. Backman

Robert LeGrand Backman (born March 22, 1922) was a Utah lawyer and politician and has been a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) since 1978.

Robert L. Backman
Emeritus General Authority
October 3, 1992 (1992-10-03)
Presidency of the Seventy
October 6, 1985 (1985-10-06) – August 15, 1992 (1992-08-15)
End reasonHonorably released
General President of the Young Men
1979 – October 6, 1985 (1985-10-06)
First Quorum of the Seventy
April 1, 1978 (1978-04-01) – October 3, 1992 (1992-10-03)
End reasonGranted general authority emeritus status
General President of the
Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Women
November 1972 – 1974
Personal details
BornRobert LeGrand Backman
(1922-03-22) March 22, 1922
Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Early life

Backman was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, but spent much his youth in South Africa, where his father, LeGrand Backman, was president of the LDS Church's South African Mission. After returning to Utah for his last year of high school, Backman later served as a missionary in the church's Northern States Mission, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Backman served in the U.S. Army in the Philippines during the Second World War. Following the war, he enrolled at the law school at the University of Utah. He was a member of the Utah House of Representatives for two terms.

LDS Church service

Before his call as a general authority, Backman served as the president of the church's Northwestern States Mission, based in Portland, Oregon, as a temple sealer, and as a regional representative. In 1972, he was briefly the second assistant to W. Jay Eldredge, the general superintendent of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association (YMMIA). When the YMMIA was renamed the Aaronic Priesthood–MIA in 1972, Backman was called as its general president. He served in this calling until 1974, when the Aaronic Priesthood–MIA was placed under the direct supervision of the church's presiding bishopric. In 1978, Backman became a member of the church's First Quorum of the Seventy. In 1979, he succeeded Neil D. Schaerrer as the general president of the Young Men organization. Backman is the only man to serve two non-consecutive terms as the general president of the Young Men.

In 1985, Backman was released from the Young Men and became a member of the seven-man Presidency of the Seventy, with Vaughn J. Featherstone succeeding him as president of the Young Men. Backman served in the Presidency of the Seventy until August 1992; in October of that year, he was designated an emeritus general authority.[1][2]

In 1986, Backman was awarded the Silver Buffalo Award from the Boy Scouts of America for his efforts in incorporating Scouting into the LDS Church's Young Men organization. From 2005 to 2008, Backman was president of the church's Jordan River Utah Temple.[3]

Personal life

Backman married Virginia Pickett on July 5, 1941 in the Salt Lake City Utah Temple and she died in 1999.[4]

See also

References
  1. "EMERITUS STATUS, RELEASES GIVEN TO LEADERS", Deseret News, 10 October 1992. Retrieved on 24 March 2020.
  2. Stack, Peggy Fletcher. "At 104, Mormon patriarch still living a blessed life", The Salt Lake Tribune, 8 August 2011. Retrieved on 24 March 2020.
  3. "New temple presidents", Deseret News, 20 August 2005. Retrieved on 24 March 2020.
  4. "Funeral is held for Virginia P. Backman, 75", Deseret News, 8 June 1999. Retrieved on 24 March 2020.


The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints titles
Preceded by
Neil D. Schaerrer		 General President of the Young Men
1979–October 6, 1985		 Succeeded by
Vaughn J Featherstone
Preceded by
W. Jay Eldredge
as Superintendent of the
Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Association		 General President of the
Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Women
November 1972–1974		 Vacant
Organization under jurisdiction of
the Presiding Bishopric
Title next held by
Neil D. Schaerrer
as General President of the Young Men
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