Lewis Albert Case

October 23, 1939 – October 15, 2025

Lewis passed away gently on October 15, 2025, doing what he loved most—working the land and serving others.

He is survived by his devoted wife, Shirley (Wright) Case, and their six children: Bryan (Janice) of Rexburg, Idaho; Brent (Jenni Lee) of Owasso, Oklahoma; Jolene Ross (Justin) of Carlsbad, New Mexico; Denise Harris (Preston) of Redlands, Colorado; Darrin (Darcy) of Redlands, Colorado; and Jenni Ferree (Rod) of Fruita, Colorado.

He has twenty-seven grandchildren and twenty-eight great-grandchildren. All brought delight to his heart. He is survived by two brothers, Garrett (Gail) of Hyrum, Utah, and Jerry (Teresa) of Herriman, Utah.

Lewis was born in Loyalton, California, on October 23, 1939, to Garrett and Hilda (Hodgkinson) Case. He had three brothers and one sister. His family later returned to the family homestead in Vernal, Utah, where he graduated from Uintah High School.

Using the money, he earned from raising and selling a few head of cattle, his dad had given him in his early teens, Lewis attended Brigham Young University. Realizing he was eligible for the draft, he chose to enlist in the U.S. Army, serving honorably in South Korea along the Demilitarized Zone.

After returning home, he continued his education at BYU. Friends set him up on a blind date with his future wife, Shirley Wright. They were married in the St. George Utah Temple on June 6, 1964, and moved to Salt Lake City, where they welcomed their first son the next year.

Lewis was hired by Hill Air Force Base as an electronics specialist, working on autopilot systems for the Armed Forces’ aircraft. He moved his family to Ogden, Utah, where they had three more children and purchased a ten-acre farm in the small farming community of Wilson. He went on to earn his bachelor’s degree from Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.

After being hired by the Department of Defense as a Quality Assurance Specialist, the family purchased a six-hundred-acre farm in Downey, Idaho, where their youngest child, a daughter, was born. Eventually, Lewis was transferred to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he worked at F.E. Warren Air Force Base repairing and upgrading missile systems.

When the upgrade missile project ended, Lewis accepted a short-term assignment in Boulder, Colorado, working on the Hubble Space Telescope, before transferring to Grand Junction, Colorado, to work for the government at Sunstrand.

Lewis retired from the D.O.D. in 1998. After retirement, he and Shirley were called to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as Employment Specialists for the Western Slope, opening an employment center and assisting the four stakes in the area. Soon after, they were called to serve as Country Directors for LDS Charities in Ethiopia, where they were involved in the Church’s measles vaccination program, the wheelchair program, freshwater projects for the villages, and community education efforts.

They worked closely with one of the world’s last remaining leprosy hospitals, the A.L.E.R.T. Hospital, and helped provide books and desks for local schools. Later, they had the privilege of serving another senior couple’s mission in Sydney, Australia.

Life for Lewis and his family has been rich and full. Above all, Lewis will be remembered as a disciple of Jesus Christ, a loving husband, and a wonderful father.

Celebration of Life

A Celebration of Life will be held on Friday, October 24th, from 7–8 p.m. at the Redlands Building, 2235 Kingston Rd, Grand Junction, Colorado. All who knew and loved him are welcome to come and honor his memory.

His family will be spending Saturday, October 25th, honoring his memory and celebrating his life and legacy. On Monday, October 27th, he will be laid to rest in the VA Cemetery at 1:00 p.m. with honors.