A public funeral for Mormon leader L. Tom Perry, 92, who died from cancer on Saturday, is expected to be attended by thousands. The funeral is set to begin 11am MDT in Salt Lake City at the Tabernacle in Temple Square.

Perry was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' highest governing body, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. In fact, he was the oldest one among the church’s top 15 leaders.

Perry died just 40 days after being diagnosed with rare anaplastic thyroid cancer. He was quite an active person and was regular to speak at church conferences. He was one of the four leaders to meet President Barack Obama in his recent Utah trip.

He has even written a book titled ‘Living with Enthusiasm’ in mid-1990s. He had passion to stay fit and was known for exercising and staying in shape through his life. He was tall and athletic man who was a sportsperson as a youngster.

Before being named to the quorum in 1974, he worked as a retail executive. Now, church president Thomas S. Monson will choose a replacement. As per members, such decisions are helped by inspiration from God. It may take time, ranging from weeks to months, to come up with a name of a new member of the quorum.