Henry and Henry (4.12.25)

On April 12, 2025, Jonny brought his son, Henry, to the unveiling of the statue of another Henry.  The bronze likeness of my Uncle Henry Eyring now adorns the lobby of the University of Utah Chemistry Building.  Uncle Henry formulated the rate theory of chemistry, which allows scientists to predict the rate at which chemical reactions will occur.  It is a fundamental law of chemistry, used daily all over the world.  After teaching at Princeton University for many years, Uncle Henry returned to the University of Utah as first dean of the "U"'s graduate school.  "See what Henrys can become," I counseled my young grandson.  "Maybe people will make a statue of you someday." 

The excitement was heightened by the complete veiling of the new statue!

I knew the program would be good when I saw that my cousin, President Henry Eyring of the First Presidency of the LDS Church, was the featured speaker.  Dave and I enjoyed talking with his son, also known as Henry Eyring, as we walked into the Chemistry Building.  They sit next to each other in this photo.

As President Eyring turned our direction and began to speak, I recognized those dark, intense eyes.  My mother had eyes just like them.  Mother looked strikingly like her brother, Henry Eyring.  I've been told there is an "Eyring look" and it certainly includes those eyes!

President Eyring talked for half an hour or more, telling wonderful stories about his father.  I particularly enjoyed hearing about how Uncle Henry saw no boundaries between his religion and his scientific research.  After Uncle Henry gave one address to a prestigious scientific gathering, President Eyring told his father, "Dad, you just bore your testimony."  President Eyring also told about hoping that his parents would be with him, in spirit, when he was ordained as an apostle of the LDS Church.  The response he received, through the Spirit, was, "They're busy."  I am related to President Eyring through both his father (my mother's brother) and his mother (my father's cousin).  President Eyring's parents introduced my parents to each other.  I love hearing President Eyring tell stories about his family and ancestors in his LDS Conference talks because those stories are almost always about my family, too!  President Eyring is a very inspiring man, as was his father before him.

Other speakers included Taylor Randall,  President of the University, and the donor of the statue.  The donor met Uncle Henry when, as a young immigrant, he worked in Uncle Henry's chemistry lab.  Uncle Henry took an interest in him and influenced his life.

Finally, the unveiling.  With the artist sitting in the front row and everyone complimenting him, Jonny and I didn't confirm to each other, until the program was long over, that we didn't think the statue actually resembled Uncle Henry!