(NewsNation) — M. Russell Ballard, one of the highest-ranking leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has died at 95, according to a news release.
After a recent brief hospitalization, the church wrote, Ballard returned home and “attended to his duties” before he died at around 11:15 p.m. Sunday, surrounded by loved ones.
Ballard had been second-in-line to become the church president, as he was the second-longest tenured member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, one of the church’s top governing bodies. According to the Associated Press, this leadership body sits below the first presidency, helps set church policy and oversees the faith’s business interests.
While Ballard was officially announced as acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in January 2018, he had been an Apostle since 1985. He leaves behind seven children, 43 grandchildren, 105 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. His wife, Barbara, 86, died Oct. 1, 2018.
“President Ballard was never indecisive,” Church President Russell M. Nelson said in a statement. “He knew exactly what the Lord taught and how it could be applied in one’s personal life and bring joy and happiness.”
President Dallin H. Oaks of the First Presidency said he always loved Ballard’s “warm manner.”
“He was a man to be trusted. And he was a man who trusted you,” Oaks said.
Born in Salt Lake City on Oct. 8, 1928, the church writes Ballard learned his work ethic early in life by learning the ropes at every department of his father’s auto dealership.
“I learned through my dad that when you start something, you finish it,” Ballard said. “Ultimately, it works out to your satisfaction that either you win, and it becomes profitable, or you learn that it’s not going to work, and you step away from it, but you never leave wondering if you’re willing to stay with it.”
Throughout his life, the church wrote, this “enduring attitude” came in handy for Ballard, whether at the University of Utah, his professional life working in the automotive, real estate and investment industries or his many responsibilities in the church.
Part of Ballard’s church service included time as a young missionary in England, a bishop, the president of the Canada Toronto Mission, a member of the Presidency of the Seventy and more than three decades as an Apostle.
This church service is something that ran in Ballard’s blood. His great-great-grandfather was Hyrum Smith, the brother of Church of Latter-day Saints founder Joseph Smith. Hyrum’s son, Joseph F. Smith, was the faith’s sixth president.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
A replacement will be chosen for Ballard at a yet-to-be-determined time in accordance with church traditions. Those announcements are often made at the faith’s twice-yearly conference, the next of which is scheduled for the first weekend of April.
Officials in Utah posted tributes to Ballard on social media, such as Utah Gov. Gary Herbert, who called Ballard an “inspiration” to his family and an example of “Christlike, selfless, service.”
Republican Sen. Mitt Romney said the Apostle offered him and his wife Ann “wise personal counsel on our life choices.”
“To him, we owe decades of our extraordinary journey through life,” Romney wrote. “United with his beloved wife Barbara, he is home again.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.