LaRean was born in Park City, Utah, on December 4, 1936 to Frank Frederick Meyer and Letta Murphy Meyer. She was the fourth of nine children. While Grandma Meyer was pregnant, Grandpa was badly hurt in a mining accident and was hospitalized for a time. LaRean was named after one of the nurses who cared for him because Grandma and Grandpa loved her so much. LaRean always loved her name, which in French means The Queen. And she truly was a queen! A queen of laughter, a queen of love, and a queen of righteousness.
She grew up in the Uinta Basin on a farm in Bridgeland, Utah, surrounded by aunts, uncles and cousins with whom she was very close. She even lived on the same lane as her Grandmother Fanny Jane Bisel Murphy. Living on the farm was hard work, but she loved working outside with her dad. From him she learned the value of working hard, and then, when the work was over, playing hard. Grandpa Meyer always made the work fun because he loved to sing. He shared that love of singing with LaRean.
LaRean was baptized in the nearby reservoir – in the Spring because it was iced over in the winter. She attended school in Myton and graduated from the newly built Union High School in Roosevelt, Utah. After graduation, she moved to Roosevelt and then on to Salt Lake City to live with her sister, Wilma, where she exceled at working for New York Life.
In Salt Lake, LaRean met the love of her life, Earl, on a blind date arranged by their mutual friend Frank Simmons. When Earl showed up, he was sporting a big, bushy beard. She wondered what kind of man Frank had set her up with! As it happens, Earl was clean shaven his entire life except for the short time when he met LaRean. The entire engineering department at the University of Utah grew beards as part of “Oyster Stew Week.” There was a certain snowball incident on the blind date. Frank teased her to death and LaRean scooped up a snowball and threw it at Frank. But he ducked, and it hit Earl instead. They were married on August 18, 1958, in the Salt Lake Temple. Earl’s work took them around the country from Salt Lake, American Fork, and Tremonton in Utah to Portland, Oregon and the tropical climes of Hawaii, before they settled in Lakewood, where they lived for 46 years, with an 18-month pre-retirement stint in Cuernavaca, Mexico. They were blessed with five daughters and one son.
LaRean was a homemaker. She got a little snippy if you called her a housewife because she was wise enough to know that making a home required more than caring for a house. When Earl proposed he had two conditions: 1) they would be married in the temple and 2) when they were blessed with children, LaRean would care for them full-time. She often said it was not a sacrifice because, in her words, “That’s exactly what I wanted too!” She had a long and distinguished career as a crossing guard, spanning 25 years, and was recognized by an official award from the Lakewood Police Department. She was also an Avon lady and an election official.
LaRean was a loving mother! She played, she read, she sang, she worked, and she nagged us as needed. She sewed; and she went to school concerts (even painful ones), plays, and sporting events. And she patiently shuttled us around, often accompanied by getting lost and unexpected donut stops. Bedtime lay-bys are a cherished memory. This care extended to her grandchildren; even in later years, her home was filled with babies and kids.
She served faithfully in the church her whole life. She had an angel’s way with children and youth. She served everywhere she was asked, including as a primary teacher, a Relief Society President, and a girl’s camp leader. LaRean and Earl served in the Denver Temple from 1994 to 2017. From 2007 to 2009, LaRean & Earl served a temple mission which started in the Mexico City Temple and ended in the Guayaquil, Ecuador Temple after the Mexico City Temple was closed for renovations.
Christ-like service adorned her life. LaRean spent countless hours serving her friends and family. She provided end-of-life care to Grandma Meyer, Wilma & Larry Kelley, and other members of the ward. She cheerfully did what needed to be done. She sewed! Prom dresses, church dresses, baptism dresses, clothes for school, jackets for kids and grandkids, presents for people she didn’t even know, and at least 13 wedding dresses. She cooked … a favorite specialty was cinnamon rolls with chocolate chips.
And she prayed. Through thick and thin. The prayers of a mother carry special weight in heaven. And she never failed to pray for us. She loved. Even when us kids were unloveable. Even when the choices we made hurt her. She loved us.
LaRean is survived by her six children: Rae Lynne & (John) Hicks; Judy & (Michael) Kile, Lynda & (Clark) Seele; Sheri & (Ronald) Despain, Leanna & (Jim) Felmlee; and Morgan Hess. She has 24 grandchildren and 35 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her loving husband of 63 years and 1 day, Morgan Earl Hess.
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