Neil Van Ausdal

Neil was born in Santaquin, Utah on September 28, 1927, the third of six children born to LaVonna ”Vonnie” and Cornelius John “Nick” Van Ausdal. He is survived by his wife, Jeannine Van Ausdal, and his two daughters, Karyl Swift of Las Vegas, Nevada and Sheila Breen (Guy Walker) of Phoenix, Arizona and his brother, Bud Van Ausdal of Santaquin. He had five grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers Duane, JR and Ted Van Ausdal and his sister, Gayle (Snyder) Carter.

Neil loved growing up in Santaquin. At one time, his parents owned a lumber mill at Tinney’s Flat in Santaquin Canyon. They also built a cabin in the narrows above Tinney’s Flat and the family spent most of their time in the Canyon. He loved camping, fishing and hunting with his brothers and some of his best memories were made at the annual Van Ausdal reunion at Boulder Mountain, which was held for 40 years. Everyone in the family enjoyed these reunions as well, especially sitting around the campfire and listening to Neil and his siblings share stories about growing up together.

When Geneva Steel was built in Provo during WWII to support the war effort, Neil worked on its construction. He then signed up for military service at 17 and happened to join the Navy on VJ Day. He spent the next year traveling to Japan and China retrieving LSTs for the Navy. He received an Honorable Discharge and always valued his experience in the Navy. When he returned to Utah, he went back to work at Geneva Steel. Most of his experience during 40+ years at the plant was as a crane operator and then as a scoop operator during the last several years before retirement.

Neil met the love of his life when he was 15 years old and she was 13. They got married when he was 20 and she was 18. They were together 82 years and married 77 years. They had four children, Karyl Jeanneil, Dennis Kirk (who died in infancy), Roger Neil (who passed away in 1980) and Sheila Rae. They worked hard to make a good life for their family and showed their children how to live well and be good people.

After retirement, Neil and Jeannine started carving together. Neil would carve totem poles, ducks made from wooden golf clubs and other projects as well. Jeannine would help with the carving details and paint them. Together, they became master carvers. Neil and Jeannine spent a lot of their retirement at their cabin in the Uinta Mountains and spent several winters in the Lake Chapala area of Mexico. They attended the ‘49ers Encampment with friends from Santaquin for several years and enjoyed the camaraderie and beauty of Death Valley National Park.

Everyone who knew Neil appreciated his sense of humor. His quips and stories made people laugh and they still repeat things he said. He will be dearly missed.