Carol Briggs

Our dear mom, grandma, great-grandma, and friend Carol Hurst Briggs, went home to celebrate her 75th wedding anniversary with her sweetheart Rulon. She passed away Monday March 2nd at her home in West Valley City.

Mom was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on November 10, 1932 to Samuel Harris Hurst and Ida Matilda Nielsen. She lived in a home which her father built. This home had three bedrooms, for which her father was greatly chided! But her dad said that with one son and three daughters they needed an extra bedroom, which was unheard of at that time. Mom graduated from Granite High School in 1950.

Mom met dad while she was working at Uncle Joe’s grocery store. She was a cashier and he worked in the butcher department. One day dad came through her line with some groceries. The story goes that he turned to the person who was bagging the groceries and asked, “Don’t you think this beautiful girl should go out on a date with me?” She did, and they fell in love. At that time, she was too young to get married, and dad had an LDS mission to fulfill. She waited for him and they were married in the Salt Lake Temple on March 19, 1951, three months after he returned home. Mom was 18 at the time.

She had her first child, Guy, the following year. Michelle followed 21 months later. Mom’s parents were called on a mission shortly thereafter, so mom and dad moved into her childhood home while her parents were away serving the Lord. In the next few years mom and dad had two more girls, KaeLynn and Crystene. In 1959 they moved to Idaho for dad’s work where their final girl, Allyson, was born. Dad decided at that time to quit trying for another boy!

They moved back to Salt Lake City in 1964 where they settled and made their home on Chris Lane in the Cottonwood Heights area. Mom’s first job as a married woman was in the cafeteria at the new elementary school, Ridgecrest, next to the house. Next, she worked as the manager of the cafeteria in the newly opened Brighton High School for the next two years. Her cooking adventures also took her to a sorority on the U of U campus where she cooked for the ladies. She was famous in the family for her delicious meals, and especially her yummy bread and rolls. Mom worked at various other places around the valley including doing type-setting and delivering ads for a local newspaper.

Mom and dad decided later in their life to buy a computer school where they would teach computer programming, computer construction, and other computer skills. At this time computers were new and this seemed like a great adventure. While dad ran the school end of things, mom was the secretary, keeping track of schedules, tuition, books, and everything else related to the business. Unfortunately, the business wasn’t as successful as they thought it would be and they had to leave it. That is when they moved to West Valley City.

Mom’s final job was working for Mormon Handicraft, which she loved! She was such a talented person with her hands. She could sew, knit, crochet, cross-stitch, oil paint, toll paint, decorate cakes, arrange flowers, quilt, do ceramics, hang wall-paper, and pretty much anything else she put her mind to. That’s why Mormon Handicraft was such a good fit for her! She worked there for 17 years until she retired from working.

One of her best talents was hand dipping chocolates! Every Christmas she would start early making centers and buying a 20 lb. block of chocolate. She would convert one of the bedrooms in our home into her factory, where she would open the windows and close the door to get the room nice and cold. We all helped in the process, which mostly included helping ourselves to broken pieces of chocolate or sneaking a mint or caramel when we could get away with it! She would box up the chocolates and pass them out as Christmas gifts to family, neighbors and friends. She would send a box of chocolates to Guy’s family in California every year. Guy’s children were surprised when they heard that chocolates had been sent to them each year. It seems they never quite made it past the parents and to the children.

Mom and dad took in a lot of “stray” children over the years, and mom became a mother to each one of them. From high school and college friends, Native Americans on the “Indian Placement Program”, missionary companions and converts, and people just searching for a stable place to land for a season, mom accepted them all and gave them a place to sleep and good food to eat. Mom even cross-stitched a wall hanging that hung in our kitchen for years. It said, “Briggs Boarding House”. Each of these people became dear to us, and many of them called our mom their mom as well. Mom always had room in her big heart for one more.

Mom loved Jesus Christ and his gospel, and was a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She supported each of her children in everything they did in that church from being an umpire for softball to serving missions. She even supported several of her ‘adopted’ children on their missions. She and dad served a mission in the Cambodian Branch in West Valley. She loved these good people, and she loved teaching them the gospel. Although she served in many callings in the church, she was the most wonderful at giving love and service to others. Many friends have commented about how her beautiful smile and kind ways always made them feel so loved and accepted.

Mom served in the Jordan River L.D.S. temple. She was originally assigned to work for two years, but loved it so much she stayed for 13. She faithfully worked two days a week until she was released because of health issues. Even after many years away from the temple she would wake up and ask if she had to get ready for the temple. She missed her friends and service there.

Mom is survived by her five children; Guy (Pam) Briggs, Michelle (Ray) Adams, KaeLynn (Russ) Strong, Crys Briggs, and Allyson (Brett) Vietti, 14 grandchildren, and 33 great-grandchildren.

A funeral will celebrate her wonderful life on Friday March 13, 2026 at the Memorial Ward chapel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 4251 South 4800 West, West Valley City, Utah. The funeral service will begin at 11:00 a.m. with a viewing before, starting at 10:00 a.m. An evening viewing will be held in the same location on Thursday March 12, 2026 from 6:00-8:00 p.m.

In lieu of green plants, please plant a tree or other plant in her honor, or send chocolates; nuts and chews!