Monson's early career was as a manager at the Deseret News, a Utah newspaper owned by the LDS Church.

[4] Monson was chairman of the Boards of Trustees/Education of the Church Educational System, and Ronald Reagan appointed him to the U.S. President's Task Force for Private Sector Initiatives.

[10] Monson often spent weekends with relatives on their farms in Granger (now part of West Valley City), and as a teenager, he worked at a printing business his father managed.

Around this time he met his future wife, Frances, whose family came from a higher social class on the east side of the city.

[9] In 1945, Monson joined the United States Naval Reserve and anticipated participating in World War II in the Pacific theater.

Shortly after receiving his commission acceptance letter, his local bishop asked him to serve as a counselor in the bishopric.

After discussion with church apostle Harold B. Lee (his former stake president), Monson declined the commission and applied for a discharge.

[24] On June 16, 1955,[25] at age 27, Monson became a counselor to Percy K. Fetzer in the presidency of the Salt Lake Temple View Stake.

[28] In April 1959,[25] at age 31, Monson became president of the church's Canadian Mission (consisting of Ontario and Quebec), and served until January 1962.

[29] As there were no local stakes in Ontario or Quebec at the time, Monson was responsible for both the missionaries and all LDS Church operations in the area.

[33] He directed increased missionary work to immigrants from the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Italy, Soviet Union and Hungary.

[35] To help encourage members to stay in Canada, increase the perception of permanence, and better reach potential converts, he started a major construction program for new meetinghouses.

[37] Immediately after returning from Canada, Monson was called to the high council of the Valley View Stake in Holladay.

[44] With his business background, he helped oversee many church operations, including KSL Newsradio and Bonneville International.

While an apostle, he continued his education and received a master of business administration degree from Brigham Young University in 1974.

In 1981, Ronald Reagan appointed him to the President's Task Force on Private Sector Initiatives,[49] serving until its completion in December 1982.

[50] Monson resigned most of his positions in 1996 when church leadership determined all the general authorities should leave all business boards of directors, except for Deseret Management Corporation.

[55] Monson became the 16th president of the LDS Church on February 3, 2008, succeeding Hinckley, who had died seven days earlier.

At the time he became the church's president, there were over 13 million members worldwide, with the majority living outside the United States and Canada.

[59] Monson did not attend a meeting other church leaders, including Eyring and Uchtdorf, had with Obama during his visit to Utah in April 2015.

[60] As 2015 progressed, Monson gave the closing talk at the funerals of L. Tom Perry, Boyd K. Packer, and Richard G.

He was the first church president to miss an entire general conference weekend since Ezra Taft Benson in 1992.

[66] The same reason was given when Monson did not attend the funeral of Robert D. Hales, who died on the Sunday of the church's October general conference.

[70] His death, along with the passing of Hales a couple of months prior, created two vacancies in the Quorum of the Twelve, which were filled at the next general conference.

[72] After Monson's death, the obituary posted by The New York Times, which noted several controversies during his presidency, drew negative attention.

[73] The Times was criticized for bias against Monson, with one writer citing the obituaries of Fidel Castro and Hugh Hefner in contrast.

[18] Monson attended the dedication of many other LDS Church temples as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve and the First Presidency.

[50] In June 2008, Monson and his counselors in the First Presidency sent a letter to local congregations in California, urging them to support Proposition 8 by donating their time and resources, stating that, "Our best efforts are required to preserve the sacred institution of marriage.

In October 1993, during the Priesthood Session of the church's general conference, Monson also received the Bronze Wolf, the highest honor and only award of the World Organization of the Scout Movement,[94] and was recognized for his contributions when a leadership complex at the Summit Bechtel Reserve was named for him.

[95] The citation for this award says:[50] In his assignments throughout the world as a leader of [the LDS Church], President Monson worked tirelessly to bring about the advancement of Scouting in many countries.