Ivan Ashby Hall

Ivan Ashby Hall, loving husband, dad and grandpa, returned to his Heavenly Father on October 31, 2021.

Ivan was born in his grandparent's home in Maeser, Utah on May 23, 1938 to Philip and Thora Hall. His father was a sheep herder, so money was scarce. During WWII he and his siblings rode from Maeser Utah to Vernal aboard a horse drawn hay wagon. He didn't have indoor plumbing until he married his late eternal sweetheart, Elaine Richens Hall on August 25, 1958 in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. They rented a small cottage with indoor plumbing just west of Condon's Pond at the mouth of Dry Fork Canyon.

Ivan worked in the propane and paleontology industries for most of his life. We remember him night after night coming home from fixing a widow's furnace at 20° below at 2:00am, then arising again early to go back to work. He helped build the original "Dinosaur Gardens" Museum in Vernal Utah, recruiting the Utah National Guard to move life size fiberglass dinosaurs from Orderville Utah to Vernal in 1978.

He served three missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The first with his wife Elaine, as a Stake Missionary for Ashley Stake. They served on the Ute Tribal Reservation after Ivan was ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood Office of Seventy by Sterling W. Sill, an assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, on June 7, 1964. He then served two missions with his second wife Virginia, who he married on September 8, 2007. They served at the LDS Girls Camp Timberlane Mission in Indian Canyon Utah and also in the Nauvoo Illinois Historical Sites Mission.

He loved to cook for the masses at girls and ward campouts, family reunions, and the Boy Scout Breakfast. He was a master with ribeye steaks grilled over smoldering cloves of garlic using applewood, tag alder, aspen, pinion, and Taylor Mountain tastywood. You could cut his steaks with a fork, but fried jalapeño potatoes was his favorite food.

He knew many of the original settlers of Brown's Park and the Dinosaur National Monument area. We enjoyed hearing the stories of outlaws told by these old timers and digging dinosaur bones as children with our dad on behalf of The Utah Field House of Natural History.

We as his children/grandchildren/great grandchildren, can honestly say that we have never met anyone who did not thoroughly love and adore both of our parents, Ivan and Elaine. We thank you all for the love and outpouring of support with the passing of our beloved Dad and Grandpa.

Ivan is preceded in death by his beloved wife, Elaine R. Hall; parents: Philip and Thora Hall; his siblings: Dee Hall and Donna Richens. He is survived by his wife, Virgina Hall, and his children: Cheryl (Joe) Merkley, Keith (Trudi) Hall, Janet (Arnold) Simmons, Sylvon Hall, Kayla (Rob) Chamberlain, Annel (Kelton) Andersen; 29 grandchildren and 25 great grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, November 6, 2021 at 11:00am at the Rockpoint LDS Chapel (2575 North 1500 West Vernal Utah). Visitation for family and friends will be held Friday, November 5, 2021 from 6:00pm - 8:00pm at the Phillips Ashley Valley Funeral Home (410 North 800 West), and Saturday from 9:45am - 10:45am at the Rockpoint LDS Chapel. Interment in the Maeser Fairview Cemetery next to his late wife Elaine Richens Hall.

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