The following obituaries appeared in the July 25, 2018 edition of the Star Valley Independent.
For more local obituaries please visit Schwab Mortuary.
Alex Verley was 21 years old when he was called home to our Heavenly Father after a tragic car accident in Grover, on July 19, 2018. Alex was born June 5, 1997 in Afton to Kori Helm and Jeff Verley. Alex lived in many places including Parachute and Rifle Colorado, Munster Texas and St. George Utah. In 2002 he was living in Hoback, Wyo. when his baby sister, Destiny Helm, was born. Kori, Destiny, and Alex settled down with their family Kris Gilbert (Dad), and his children Mason, Ashlyn, and Daxon Gilbert in Afton in 2005. Living in Afton, Alex had the opportunity to skateboard, ride bikes around the neighborhood, and dirt bike up Swift Creek. He loved being outside. His passion for hunting was born when Kris took him for his first antelope hunt. He was a few yards away but still took a box of shells to get him down. There was no stopping him from hunting after that. He loved being up in the woods by himself scouting for animals. Kori, knowing everyone in the valley, always made sure someone in a nearby house was keeping an eye on him. As Alex got older, he got what some would call…umm…mischievous. Ah, but Al just called it living life to the fullest, which he did so well. There has never been a prouder teenage minivan owner. To him, minivans could haul anything, just take out the seats and voilà! You’ve got room for your snow machine. If you forget to close the door before you back up, no problem! That’s what the windows are there for. Nothing could stop or even slow Alex down. He never let his problems get him down. Alex graduated from Star Valley High School in 2015. After spending a little time in Laramie, he decided Star Valley was where is heart was. He found his passion in the trade of carpentry. He loved everything about it. Carpentry allowed him to be outside and to play with tools, while still allowing him to be a little mischievous. Through all stages of life, Alex had so many friends. Not just the acquaintance type, but deep meaningful relationships with most people he met. Alex is leaving a large void in the earthly world but filling an even larger one in the spiritual word. Alex is loved by many and will be missed greatly.
Joseph Reuben Newman 86 of Mount Pleasant, Utah passed away July 18, 2018. He was born January 27, 1932 in Springville, Utah to Robert Howell and Irene Ester Clark Newman. He married Carma Stringham June 15, 1953 in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. They settled in Cache Valley, and while living there he was one of the first successful kidney transplant recipients. After that he was one of the most healthy men you could meet. They moved in 1971 to Star Valley, Wyo. and spent 30 of their married years owning Star Valley Jewelry. They moved to Mount Pleasant for the last 16 years where he and Carma retired. Joe loved the outdoors and especially fishing. He was an avid gardener, both for himself and his neighbors. Joe served in Scouting, Ward Mission Leader, High Priest Group Leader and Sunday School Presidency. He served with his wife in the Dallas Fort Worth Mission serving mainly in Oklahoma and New Mexico. Joe enjoyed the temple and in the last eight years he attended the Manti Temple weekly. Joe is survived by his children, JoAnne (Stan) Clapham, Bountiful, Utah; Mickel J (LaRisa) Newman, West Valley, Utah; Gloria (Carl) Hamilton, Ogden, Utah; Jared J (Rebecca) Newman, Pocatello, Idaho; Lorna (Tim) Jensen, Grover, Wyo.; Alma J (Gail) Newman, Layton, Utah; 30 grandchildren; 79 great grandchildren; siblings, Howell Pershing Newman, St. George, Utah; Ethel Gottfredson, Pocatello, Idaho.
He is preceded in death by his parents; wife, Carma Newman; daughter, Audrey Newman; siblings, Gerald Robert Newman, Elizabeth Clairene Rowland, Margaret Ann Woods, Hazel Irene Gordon, Thomas Jay Newman & William Albert Newman. Funeral services were held Monday July 23, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. in the Mount Pleasant N. Stake Center (300 W 500 N). Viewings were held Sunday from 6-8 p.m. at Rasmussen Mortuary (96 N 100 W Mount Pleasant ,UT) and Monday from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at the church prior to services. Interment on July 25, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. in the Grover Cemetery in Grover, Wyo. Online condolence can be offered at www.rasmussenmortuary.com.
Karen Howell passed away Wednesday July 18, 2018. She was born to Obed and Teresa Wogerman on April 23, 1952 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Obed was deployed overseas in Korea. He returned home when Karen was three months old. She lived a great deal of her life in Utah. While also living in Texas, Wyoming and Alaska. She had 2 daughters, Kelly and Jennifer. Karen loved horses and dogs. She had 2 brothers, Danny and Doug. Karen enjoyed participating in age appropriate shenanigans.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday July 25, in the Auburn LDS Chapel, with a viewing at 9:30 a.m.
Lloyd Braley Baker, the first of nine children born to Alonzo and Blanche Baker, was born on May 17, 1911 in Afton, Wyoming, and passed away on July 9, 2018 at his home in Etna, Wyoming, at the age of 107. Lloyd spent 75 years as a resident of Star Valley, Wyoming. He graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1940 with a degree in engineering. He had a varied career, but most of the time he worked for himself or others as an engineer, with a few stints of teaching physics, math, and engineering, as well as other jobs. For the last 35 years he has run his firm, Lloyd B. Baker and Associates, which is a land surveying company in Star Valley. Lloyd was given various accolades during his lifetime. When he was in his nineties, he was honored as the oldest working person in Wyoming, and given a trip to Washington, D. C., to meet President George W. Bush. A few years ago, he was given an award for being a Rotary Club member for 60 years. Earlier this year, he was honored by the Wyoming Engineering Society at the University of Wyoming. Lloyd was preceded in death by his brothers, Carl Baker, Dennis Baker, and Rex Baker; his sisters, Vella Baker and Margie Els; his first wife, Ednamary Gahafer; his daughter, Judith Baker Ulrich; his son, Lloyd William Baker; his granddaughter, Mindy Baker; and his great-granddaughter, Eliana Baker. He is survived by his brothers, Wayne Baker and Lester Baker; his sister, Elcie Walker; his daughters, Kathy Whitman, and Ruth Rogness; his son, Steve Baker; sixteen grandchildren, sixty-one great-grandchildren, and four great-great-grandchildren.
