Val Mortenson

On Thursday, November 8th, Val Jean Mortenson returned home to his loving Heavenly Father and to a sweet reunion with his wife Myrna.

Val was born in Ephraim, Utah on April 28, 1938. He was the second of four children born to Valton Ervan and Mary Olpin Mortenson.

During his youth he loved working on the family farm, taking care of animals and being in the mountains. This childhood love continued into adulthood. Val would spend his springtime shearing sheep with the Barkers and Hoopes and working with Paul McCoy on his cattle ranch during his free time. Val's love of farming, ranching and the outdoors was instilled in his children.

Val was in the last graduating class at Snow High School in Ephraim. He then attended Snow College until serving an LDS mission in Central America which covered El Salvador, Nicaragua Guatemala, Costa Rica, Honduras and Panama. After his mission, he attended Utah State University where he met and fell in love with Myrna Hammer, whom he married on September 18, 1964 in the Salt Lake Temple. They graduated school together and moved to Vernal, which became their home for the remainder of their lives.

Val and Myrna loved and adored their five sons Valton, Colt, Duston, Juston and Marty. Val was their protector and example. He taught them how to work hard, study and play sports. One of his greatest joys was attending his children and grandchildren's sporting events, school programs and various activities.

After the loss of his dear wife, Val was fortunate to meet a wonderful woman, Coreyne Steele, whom he married on September 21, 1996 in the Provo Temple. Together they finished raising the five boys and watched each of them marry and start families of their own. Val dearly loved his 14 grandsons and three granddaughters.

Val was an educator in Vernal for 32 years. He loved the teachers and administrators that he worked with and his many young students. He taught 4th and 5th grades at Ashley Elementary and later moved to Discovery Elementary. Val especially loved teaching hands-on science lessons, often encouraging his students to get their hands dirty and participate in the world around them. Many students regarded Mr. Mortenson as their favorite teacher due to the things they learned participating in these science experiments.

For 28 summers, Val worked for the Bureau of Land Management as a wildland firefighter. He loved the rush of getting called on a fire. He passed this love on to his sons, as each of them followed in his footsteps and became firefighters, working their way through college. Colt still carries Val's passion and chose firefighting as his career.

For the last ten years, Val accompanied his wife as a temple worker in the Vernal Temple.

Val is survived by his wife, Coreyne, and his sons Valton (Lynaun), Colt (Kristin), Duston (Brenda), Juston (Colette) and Marty (Whitney). He is also survived by his brother Peter (Karma), and sisters Meriam (Al Kienke) and Mary Bell (the late Nyle Norris).

Val will be greatly missed by not only his family and friends, but also by the community in which he was an integral part. Val never met a stranger and was always there to help a friend in need.

Funeral Services were held Monday, November 12, 2012 at 11:00 A.M. at the Glines 5th Ward Chapel (1270 West 1500 South). A Viewing was held Sunday evening 6-8pm at the Ashley Valley Funeral Home and one hour prior to services at the chapel. Burial was in the Maeser Fairview Cemetery.

Online condolences may be shared at www.AshleyValleyFuneralHome.com