Carol Smith Berndt

Carol Smith Berndt, age 88 of Salt Lake City, Utah, passed away peacefully the afternoon of Tuesday, February 25, 2025. She was born Easter Morning April 6, 1936, in Salt Lake City, Utah to Alfred and Rae Smith.

Carol started playing the piano and organ at an early age and considered music as a career. However, that changed when she met Otto Berndt on a blind date at the University of Utah tennis courts. Two years later, she began her life’s greatest adventure of being married to a German. Otto was serving in the U.S. Army and they were stationed in Alaska, Oklahoma and Germany. They developed great friendships everywhere they lived.

After serving in the military, Otto and Carol settled in Salt Lake City where they raised their family. They spent many happy years together boating and being together with family and friends at their property at Bear Lake.

Carol loved being creative. She learned to sew an apron in Primary and then sewed her own clothes for school. She enjoyed sewing for family and friends. Carol knew she could live anywhere in the world as long as she had her sewing machine.

Carol was an amazing cook which became her passion, following in the footsteps of her mother and Danish grandmother. Her love of cooking and eating great food was with her all her life. She felt cooking was her legacy to her family, “They all love to cook, even my two sons!”

At the urgings of her sister, Carol began to paint which she loved and shared with family and friends. Nearly every family member proudly displays her artwork in their homes.

Carol enjoyed all kinds of handiwork, but especially hand quilting. She volunteered quilting for the IHC Hospital and the Murray Senior Center.

She was a stalwart member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She would say that she loved it with all her heart and expressed a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and His Gospel. Carol cherished being a part of the sisterhood in the Littlewood Cottonwood 16th Ward Relief Society.

‍Carol and Otto served an LDS mission to Leipzig Germany from 1997 to 1999. While there, they made many new friends and introduced people to the LDS church.

Carol was preceded in death by her husband Otto A. Berndt, her parents, Alfred B. and Rae Smith; Brothers, Alan and Gene Smith and Sister, Joyce Halander.

‍She is survived by her children, Brian (Merla), Kirsten Ronna (Stan), Mark (Kellie), Allison Gibson (Bill), Andrea; 16 grandchildren, and 11 great grandchildren.

‍A celebration of Carol’s life will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, March 8, 2025 at the Chevy Chase LDS Chapel at 5235 South Wesley Road (1107 East). Visitation from 10:00-10:45 a.m.

‍The family would like to give a special thank you to Quality Home Health, Hospice and Palliative Care for the kindness and loving care given to Carol by Tamara Warr and Sonnie Holmberg.

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