Irene Lybbert Merrell

                                                                              

Irene Lybbert Merrell came into the world on April 23, 1898 to Mary Sophia Elizabeth Lybbert and William Porter Merrell in Naples, Utah, out in the wild lands near Vernal. She had the distinction of being the oldest child in a family of twelve children, which means she learned how to work and love others. They lived close to her Lybbert grandparents and enjoyed playing with cousins on their farm. She tells about the fond memories of “The great big haystacks, grain stacks, one corral for horses and one for cows, big stables for all the special animals, the two large cellars where the food was kept, the large barrels of meat being cured in brine, big bins of vegetables, milk cellar where shelves were full of pans of milk, a churn for butter and cheese, I can vision it all. It was great.” 1

As a young child, Irene learned to get the horses for her father, churn butter, tend children, and do a myriad of tasks no longer required for anyone to do. She was a bright child, but not too healthy. She loved reading and hearing her mother read stories from good books and the scriptures. Her father baptized her in the Green River when she was eight. At the age of ten, the family moved from Jensen to what would later be named Bluebell, Utah. They were among the first people to move there and her father later became the first bishop. She never saw a car, a train or electric lights until she was about seventeen. A handsome young man came to visit his relatives in Bluebell and he asked Irene to walk with him to a special meeting. She says she has been walking with him ever since. She married Luther Gale in the Salt Lake Temple on April 2, 1915.

This woman magnified every calling she had. She baked six loaves of bread for her growing family everyday as though it were on a list like “brush your teeth”. She was an excellent seamstress, making clothing for her children from underwear and socks to suits and formals. She made curtains and drapes, covers for furniture, and anything you could want or need for comfort and beauty in your home.2

She gave birth to twelve children. DeMar, Donald, Elden, Mildred, Bruce Kent, Arvene, Vena, Lynne LaDell, Evaune, Sterling, Eveart, and Sheron. Mildred and LaDell died at age six and Bruce died as a young father.1

Irene and Luther worked hard raising their children and lived in places like mining camps in Utah, Lehi, Orem, and Kanab Utah, Moses Lake and Richland, Washington. They served a mission to the East Central states for six months. 1

She was a cheerful soul who delighted in righteousness and good works. Her children and grandchildren love her and honor her for her devotion to the gospel of Jesus Christ and her service to her family. She died at the ripe old age of 90 on July 10, 1988 in Orem, Utah.

1 From “William P. and Mary S. MERRELL Family Book” Volume 1, pp157-164.

2 From “Father Knows” Life stories of Evaune Winsor

Written by Sherilyn Gale Smith April 9, 2015