Shirley Stayner

Shirley Carol Levorsen Stayner, beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and sister, returned home to her Heavenly Father Sunday, April 14, 2019, from complications of pneumonia. She was just 1 month shy of her 96th birthday and had lived a long and fulfilling life. She will be sorely missed!
She was born at home on Mother’s Day, May 13, 1923, in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Flint Gershom Handy Levorsen and Emma Elizabeth Williams, the oldest of 7 children, 5 of whom lived to adulthood. She spent much of her childhood living in the “Marmalade District” of Salt Lake. She attended Washington Grade School, Horace Mann Junior High and graduated from West High School. Even though Shirley’s formal education ended there, from her childhood she had a love of learning and of reading and enjoyed religious, fiction and non-fiction books. From these books she broadened her world and her gospel knowledge and was very interesting to talk to because of what she had learned on her own.
At the end of 1942 she met a young man who really caught her eye. They began dating and on November 20, 1943, she married her eternal companion, Robert Stewart Stayner, in Salt Lake City, Utah. This marriage was solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple on January 18, 1956. Together they raised their family of 3 boys and 3 girls in two different homes in Sugarhouse.
Shirley understood the value of hard work and began working at various jobs from the time she was 18 years old. As she raised her own family, she helped make ends meet by sewing clothing for her family (including “crazy shirts”), selling Avon and ended up being the manager of Glade’s Hallmark store in Sugarhouse for many years. She was also a great quilter and crocheter. She was still actively crocheting items of her own design a week before her passing. In addition to these interests she loved music and shared that love with her children. She had a gift for painting and, with very little training, created beautiful artwork. She had a fun side and loved puzzles, games and quizzes, one of which is included at the end of this obituary at her request. Even as she was preparing to exit this life she whispered she needed a pen and paper and wrote this puzzle down for the nurse who was caring for her!
Shirley lived a life devoted to her Heavenly Father and her Savior, Jesus Christ. She held multiple callings in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints including Relief Society President, Primary President, many teaching positions and until recently was leading the singing in her little ward at Chateau Brickyard. She also served for a time as a temple worker in the Salt Lake Temple. She was always happy to share her testimony with anyone who would listen and was a great example of service and Christ-like love. She learned some computer skills in her later years and was doing family history indexing until the time of her death. It is appropriate that her mortal remains be laid to rest the day before Easter, when we celebrate the gift of resurrection being bestowed upon us all.
She accepted the trials that came to her with a strength and determination that saw her through many difficult times. When she was suddenly widowed in 1983 she remade her future into one
different than she had anticipated. In October, 1989, she accepted a call to serve in the Kentucky, Louisville Mission. She spent her entire mission in Robinson, Illinois and loved that experience. When she returned home she began working again to support herself and worked until 1995 when she finally retired at the age of 73.
Shirley’s love for her family was well-known beginning with her children then extending through the years to her grandchildren and her great-grandchildren. She loved nothing better than to spend time with all of them and over the years wrote them many little cards, gave them crocheted items and told them fun stories. They all loved her in return. It was not a complete family gathering unless “Grandma Shirley” was there! One of the favorite family events in the early years was “Conference Sunday” dinner held each Sunday after General Conference in the spring and fall. These gatherings were renowned for all the delicious food and remembered by the grandkids for the fun time they had sitting on the stairs and eating and messing around together or playing in the backyard if the weather was pleasant.
She is survived by her 6 children, Claudia (Tom) Sorensen, Rob (Naida) Stayner, Connie (Steve) Davis, Jeanette (Warren) Hatch, Dave (Eileen) Stayner, Rick (Ronda) Stayner, and sisters, Joy Meiners and Cindy Christensen, 20 grandchildren and 49 great-grandchildren. Preceded in death by her husband, siblings, Cleo Levorsen, Glen Flint Levorsen, Gerald Levorsen, and Wanda Livingston; granddaughter, Beth Knighton, and gr-grandson, Jayson Richard Carlson.
Funeral services will be Saturday, April 20, 2019 at 11:00 AM with a viewing at 9:30 AM at Memorial Mountain View Mortuary (3115 East 7800 South, Cottonwood Heights, UT).
Her final puzzle: YYUR YY2B ICUR YY 4 ME.
Service Information
Viewing April 20, 2019 at 9:30 AM
Memorial Mountain View Mortuary (3115 East 7800 South, Cottonwood Heights, UT)





Funeral Service
April 20, 2019 at 11:00 AM
Memorial Mountain View Mortuary (3115 East 7800 South, Cottonwood Heights, UT 84121)