August in Denver

During the week of August 12-15, we spent far more time in the car than we normally would ... driving first to Southern California for our final farewell to my mother, then immediately upon our return to St. George heading to Denver.  Jan'L was with her family in Tennessee (for Nascar), David needed to work and the boys were in school ... all on different schedules.  While in Denver, we were able to attend the open house for the Ft. Collins Temple which is to be dedicated in early October.  It was a fun 5-6 days.  Enjoyed spending time with our oldest son on his birthday, catching up with the boys and having a day or two to be with Jan'L.

The 40,000 square foot Fort Collins Temple, the 2nd in Colorado, will be dedicated on October 16, 2016.  The Denver Temple - the Church's 40th operating temple - was dedicated in 1986.  

Construction of the Fort Collins Temple was not without its problems.  On Sunday, August 23, 2015, significant vandalism was carried out at the construction site. Suspects damaged parts of the building, exterior structures, and construction machinery by driving one piece of equipment into a structure and spray painting others pieces of equipment. The financial loss from the damage is not yet known. Evidence suggests the destruction may be connected to previous burglary and vandalism at three other Fort Collins churches in late July and early August.

California Fire Prevents Dedication of Mother's Grave

My mother Doris Henion passed away peacefully in the afternoon of Tuesday, August 9, 2016 at the age of 92 years and 11 months with her beloved 16-year-old cat Penny by her side.  I was there and watched as she breathed, and breathed, and breathed … then did not breath again. 

I notified my kids by text of her passing and in the afternoon, Stacy rang our doorbell.  She stayed until late in the evening offering solace and figuratively holding my hand, then returned on Wednesday with soup and rolls for dinner.  These little gestures were so appreciated and, reminded me, once again, how sweet it is that I am always able to count on my children’s support when I am in need.  

Larry was able to catch a flight into Las Vegas where we picked him up on Wednesday afternoon.  Kris arrived on Thursday evening driving 12-hours from her home in Sonoma, CA and stayed the weekend at our house.  Kelly and Gary arrived on Friday afternoon, driving from their home in northern Utah and stayed in Stacy and Rick’s air-conditioned camper.    

Larry and I had talked numerous times about how to celebrate our mother’s life since she didn’t know anyone in St. George and most of her friends in California are her age – or older – and can no longer travel.  We finally settled on a family gathering on Saturday evening at Spilsbury Mortuary where we viewed our mother for the last time.  She looked beautiful – with her hair styled and make-up on - after more than five years in bed.  She was dressed all in white except her fingernails which Stacy painted pink to match her final resting place named “Plush Pink.”

At the mortuary, we pulled chairs into a circle and spent an hour or more simply remembering our mother and grandmother.  We laughed, shed a few tears and celebrated her life together.  After Ed gave a family prayer, we met up again at Stacy and Rick’s where we enjoyed hamburgers and a Dutch oven dinner, then played Phase Ten until we all went our different directions for a good night’s rest.

I decided not to put Mother’s obituary in the newspaper since she didn’t know anyone in St. George but mailed copies to about a dozen of her friends … and members of Dad’s family in Washington.

On Tuesday, August 16 we traveled with Larry to say our final goodbye at the National Cemetery in Riverside, CA where she will rest next to our father, getting within 40 miles of the cemetery but not actually arriving there. 

Traffic on the I-15 freeway began to slow a little south of Barstow where we saw a fire on the horizon.  The Blue Cut Fire spread very quickly (ultimately to more than 40,000 acres with dozens of homes and businesses incinerated and more than 82,000 evacuated).  By the time we reached the Ranchero Road off ramp, traffic was at a standstill.  After nearly 2 hours sitting in the middle of hundreds of cars and semi-trucks, we were re-routed off the freeway south of Victorville.  It only took us a minute to decide we would just turn around and head back toward Las Vegas where we were scheduled to drop Larry at McCarren Airport on Wednesday for his flight home to Seattle. 

It was a busy week with many details to address, but we have been anticipating this day for several years.  Nevertheless, losing a parent is a difficult experience no matter how old the surviving “child” is.

Rest in peace, Mother.

PS:  The following morning after arriving home from CA, we left for Denver to be with David on his birthday, to attend the open house for the Ft. Collins Temple and to transport the kids to and from school and other activities while Jan'L was in Tennessee with her mom, dad and sisters. 

Til We Meet Again, Doris Henion

Doris Mae Bradford Henion passed away quietly at the Brookdale Southgate Assisted Living Facility in St. George, Utah on Tuesday, August 9, 2016 with Penny, her beloved 16-year-old orange tabby cat by her side. Our mother was 92 years and 11 months old at the time of her passing.

Born prematurely on September 20, 1923 in San Pedro, California, the second of three children of Elgie James and Verda Carol Godwin Bradford started life weighing only 1.5 lbs. with little hope she would survive. But, with the tender care of her mother who used a shoebox and a warm kitchen oven as an incubator, Doris grew to be a strong, healthy child.

She attended school in San Pedro, California and later in Portland, Oregon where, after graduation from high school she took a job at the Swan Island shipyards during World War II. She had a beautiful singing voice and at age 18 she competed for - and won - the title of “Sweetheart of Swan Island.” Although her father nixed the idea of his daughter pursuing a career in show business, she continued throughout her lifetime to sing whenever the opportunity presented itself. 

At age19, she met a handsome soldier on a bus ride home from work and three months later on June 26, 1943, she married U. S. Army Sergeant Dexter LeRoy Henion from Randle, Washington.  He passed away on June 17, 2008 just 10 days shy of what would have been of their 65th wedding anniversary.  

Doris was employed for much of her life. A year after the war ended and Dex came home from the Pacific theater to his 18-month old daughter Linda Carol, his young bride gave birth to a son, Laurence David Henion. When Larry started school, our Mother took a job as a bank teller, where for many years she maintained an almost legendary, perfect daily record for balancing her cash drawer - then she became interested in the new industry of home party sales. For nearly a decade, she was a top salesperson for Coppercraft and later for Beeline Clothing where she won nearly every award both companies gave to their top sales people.  She also earned an impressive income for a woman in the decade of the late-1950's and early-1960's.

Doris was also an amazing seamstress and tailor, beginning at a very young age to make her own clothes, and later sewing for her husband and children. During more than 20 years when she and Dex square danced several times a week and on numerous cruises with their square dance friends she designed beautiful matching outfits for herself and her dance partner.  She also created square dance outfits for many other dancers, earning high praise for her workmanship as well as filling her legendary "shoebox under the bed" with cash. In addition to sewing and square dancing, she excelled for a number of years in ceramics, creating beautiful works of art for her own home and for friends and family members.

Doris is survived by her daughter Linda Henion (Ed) Sappington of St. George, Utah; her son Laurence Henion of Seattle, Washington; six grandchildren - Kelly Sappington Yocum (Gary) of Clinton, Utah; Stacy Sappington Welch (Rick) of St. George, Utah; David Sappington (Jan’L) of Henderson, Colorado; Kris Sappington of Sonoma, California; Michael Sappington of Pleasant Grove, Utah; Kaytee Sappington Postma (Josh) of Anaconda, MT; 15 great-grandchildren and three great-great grandsons; four nieces - Judy Rickards (Bob) McAlpine of Dallas, Oregon; Janee Rickards (Gordon) Ryan of Powell Butte, Oregon; Jamie Bradford Grimmett and Julie Bradford, both of Kelso, Washington. She is preceded in death by her husband Dexter Henion; parents EJ and Verda Bradford; her only sister Mildred Jean (Mickie) Parker and her only brother William Keith Bradford.

The family wishes to express gratitude to those who watched over her for the last year and a half of her life at Brookdale Southgate Assisted Living Center in St. George, UT; her square dance friends who she considered her best friends ever; and to Dave and Janene Bills, her bishop and visiting teacher, from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Corona, CA who regularly reached out to help her after Dad passed in 2008.

Interment is alongside our father at the National Cemetery in Riverside, CA. 

Charlene, Bob and Tiffany ... David and Jan'L Visit

Charlene, Tiffany, Bob and 6 of their 8 kids (Ben is on a mission in Uruguay and Ayami - actually Todd's daughter - is with her dad in Japan for the summer) came to St. George for a day long visit on August 2.  They are staying in a timeshare in Las Vegas which also includes Bob's parents and some friends from Italy.  We enjoyed the chance to get reacquainted, to hear about the adoption process for the little boys and Abby, and break some bread together.  We spent time at the Town Square, playing in the water and riding the merry-go-round.

To our surprise, in the late afternoon David and Kaler dropped in.  It has been long enough since the cousins - David and Tiffany - have been together in the same room, David admitted he had never met Bob.

We didn't take many pictures (darn it) but we did manage to get a picture of our 3 sets of twins - all together in one room.  Selwin and Simeon Lovell, Josh and Phillip Nelson and the baby boys Ashton and Sawyer.

David, Jan'L and their boys were here for a few more days.  We enjoyed lots of good visiting and a fun evening playing a rousing game of Phase Ten with David, Kyle, Kole, Simeon and his girlfriend Stephanie (she's a killer Phase Ten player).  Ah, good times!

Montana Vacation

Eleven days on the highway between St. George and Kaytee and Josh’s home in Anaconda, MT – round trip 1470 miles – was jammed packed with friends, family and fun!  Our original plan was to spend our first vacation night in Logan with Stan and Diane Blackett, but our plans changed along the way.  As a result, we kept driving, ending up at the home of Lynn and Sharon McLing (one of Ed’s mission companions back in the day and now “snowbird” members of our Bloomington Ward) in Preston, ID.  We had planned to have lunch with them on Thursday anyway so it all worked out – although I think Sharon was a little surprised we showed up early.

The drive through Idaho and into Montana was long and uneventful but found us in Anaconda way ahead of schedule.  Kaytee and Josh had already had family visiting for about a week when we got there so we tried to stay out from under foot as they prepared for Adyn’s birthday party and baptism on Friday and a large Postma family reunion on Saturday.

On Sunday after church we loaded up the kids and headed for our campsite not far from Yellowstone National Park.  We spent two nights in the Chisholm Campground from which we visited the Museum of the Rockies (huge dinosaur displays, star shows, a wonderful farm house) and other wonders.

Everything for our trip had been completely planned before we left home, but with the possibility of rain in the forecast and since we were already so close, we decided to cross Missoula off our list and instead spend a couple of days in Yellowstone.  We had lovely campsites, saw lots of wildlife and roasted marshmallows over the campfire. 

On the ride home, Ed and Adyn hiked to Lewis and Clark Caverns (Skylar just couldn’t traverse the 300-foot incline to the cave entrance), making it after 7 p.m. when we got back to Anaconda. 

Happy memories of our time with the Postma family:

·      -  Adyn’s baptism and confirmation by her teary daddy Josh - a beautiful service with many friends and family members in attendance.

·      -  seeing the kids’ excitement when we first drove up in front of their house – and getting a big welcome hug from our daughter

·      -  being asked to speak about the Holy Ghost at Adyn’s baptism

·      -  Adyn’s excitement at seeing a Mermaid Barbie doll in her birthday gift bag

·      -  Ending Adyn’s birthday watching “Finding Dory” in 3D with Kaytee and the kids at Anaconda’s Washoe Theater

·     -   Seeing Thoryn’s happy smile, and reaching for her Grandma, when we arrived and her teary frustration when taken off my lap so we could leave for the night

·      -  Two beautiful little girls curling up in the top bunk of the camper at the end of a long and busy day … and sleeping until 8:30 – 9 a.m.

·      -  Calls and texts from Selwin and Simeon to query if we were having fun, wishing me a happy birthday, telling me I was missed and asking “do we have garlic, onions, vinegar …” 

The only unhappy memories were three days of rain and cold … Ed burning up his expensive new trifocal glasses … Skylar getting lost at Old Faithful Inn … and being completely unplugged for four days!!!

Grandpa and Grandma are worn out, but the kids are already talking about “next summer.”  Adyn is excited about the idea of doing something fun again suggesting, “but, Grandma, let’s make it longer!”  Yep, gotta love these little ones!

Selwin Gets Shorn

Today Brianna Teddie Bair declared to the world on Facebook she is in a relationship with Selwin.  They make a darling couple and we are happy for both of them.  She texted him from work wanting to get together tonight for 4th of July festivities.  He told her he and Simeon were going to give each other haircuts ... to which she responded, "I want to learn how to cut your hair." Soon after she showed up and with trembling hands took the razor to his head.  It all turned out OK, but I think both of them were a bit nervous about the outcome.

Simeon Graduates

Simeon graduated last night from Southwest High School here in St. George.  He signed up to get a GED a couple of weeks after returning from his mission.  He hadn’t finished high school in Guyana – dropped out so he could find a job to help his family – but felt strongly he needed to cross that finish line in his life.  A few days into his studies at SWHS, he decided he wanted to get a diploma instead! 

In an effort to complete the required 22 packets, his studies frequently kept him up until midnight or later after a full work day in the hot sun … but, not only did he complete 13 credits, he did so in record time, finishing faster than any student had EVER done at SWHS - and with 20 A’s and 2 B’s.  Then to cap off his successes, he was asked to be the commencement speaker!!!

We are so proud of this great young man who is hardworking, determined and anxious to succeed in school and in life!

My Mysterious Malady

A few months ago I changed the brand of caffeine free Diet Coke I have been drinking for "forever" and almost immediately noticed it tasted bitter.  Then it occurred to me MOST of what I was eating or drinking tasted bitter.  My quick internet search about this malady revealed this is not really all that uncommon, and I have since found several people who either have this problem or know someone who does. I made an appointment with a local ENT specialist who did every test known to human kind.  His conclusion, "can't find anything.  You're just going to have to live with it!"

Not a lot of fun because most food - especially anything sweet - tastes terrible and because food is one of life's great delights!  The good news, however, is I have lost 15 pounds!!!

Summer with Taisley

Taisley will be spending each Monday and Tuesday at our house throughout the summer, so she doesn't have to be home alone while everyone in the Welch home is off at work.  Our first week together was Memorial Day so, after Grandpa got home from the golf course, we loaded everyone in the car and headed for Pine Valley for a picnic and to play in the water.  On Tuesday, I had several things on my "to-do" list, but we managed to fit in baptisms for two women in my family and two of the women in Selwin and Simeon's family with Taisley as proxy.  We also took in a nearly free movie - "Miracles from Heaven" - then talked about death and prayers in the parking lot before kissing Taisley goodbye for the week ... well, actually two weeks because she has Girls Camp next week.  I have lots of fun things to share with her while we are together making memories.

We hope our summer will also include visits from Charlene, Bob and Tiffany, David and his boys; EJ, Larry and a WIM couple or two.  There is likely to be gardening and canning, a trip to Montana to visit Kaytee and to celebrate Adyn's 8th birthday and her baptism, a visit with Michael and Kelly on on our way to and from Montana; and a trip to Denver to visit David and Jan'L for the occasion of David's birthday and to tour the new Ft. Collins Temple before it is dedicated.  In short, its going to be a busy couple of months.

ROTY 2015-16

I don’t want to come across as self-aggrandizing, vain, conceited or totally void of humility, but on Friday, May 6, 2016, at the recent statewide conference of Rotary District 5420 (50 clubs throughout Utah) in Cedar City, my name was announced by our District Governor Glade Hamilton as the 2015-16 Rotarian of the Year.  It was a pretty big deal and I was so surprised, I nearly fell off my chair.  Not sure what I did to deserve this honor, but I am humbled because there are more than 1800 Rotarians in the state … many who have done amazing, remarkable things and deserve this recognition far more than I.