Charles Spain

Charles Eugene Spain, 93, of Kearns, Utah, peacefully passed away on Tuesday, May 13th. A beloved husband, father, grandfather, and neighbor, Charles will always be remembered for his deep devotion to his family and church, along with his sense of humor and love of desserts, especially vanilla ice cream, anything with nuts, and coconut cream pie.

Charles, aka Baby Gene, began life in Monett, Missouri as the youngest of the five children of Delmar Ernest and Ofena Arilla. The family lived in Missouri until 1938 when, after his father consulted a fortune teller who advised him to move to Idaho or Oregon, he packed up his family and moved west, settling in Kimberly, Idaho.

In high school, Charles was on the Husky newspaper team and member of the H Club, lettering in baseball. He was the team's star pitcher and was celebrated in the local newspaper. He dreamed of playing professionally, but his shoulder gave out, ending that dream. At graduation, he was named Salutatorian of his class.

One spring day when Charles and a friend were playing catch in a park, "this pretty, petite girl walks up, boldly introduces herself and asks if I wanted to go on a date with her... to a Holy Roller tent revival meeting," he recalled in his memoir. Although instantly smitten by Barbara Dutt, their courtship lasted nearly two years. During that time, Charles worked six days a week on a farm in Wendell, about thirty miles away. His ride picked him up on Sunday afternoon after church in Hansen, and drove him to the farm to work until the following Saturday. During those months working on the farm - May through September - Charles and Barbara wrote to each other every day and signed their letters with Xs and Os. Finally, on September 16, 1950, the young lovers married.

By the mid-1960s, Charles was the proud father of three beautiful children and had converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His chosen career in the dry-cleaning industry led him to a job in Utah. He moved his family to Kearns, where he devoted his life to raising his family and serving in various positions in the Church, including Bishop. He worked six-days a week in the dry-cleaning business for 47 years. After retiring, he worked part-time at a grocery store for another 14 years.

Charles was preceded in death by his beloved wife as well as his four siblings. He is survived by his three children Vicki Forrest (Tommy), Curtis (Shirley), and Les (Julie) and many grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great-great grandchildren.

Services will be held at the LDS Kearns Stake Center, 4260 West 5215 South, on Monday, May 19, at 1 pm. Viewing at noon. Interment at Memorial Redwood Cemetery.

Although Charles is no longer with us, his legacy of laughter, love for his family, and passion for service will live on.