Glen Rulon Merrill

Glen was born on May 14, 1937 to Rulon and Frances Merrill in Salem, Utah. He was

the younger brother of one sister, Beth. When Glen was five years old his family moved

to California. As a child Glen enjoyed school and learning, playing with his electric

trains, exploring the outdoors near his home, and spending time with friends.

As a teenager Glen “liked nothing better than to play a good game of basketball or

football”. He loved attending parties and dances, visiting people and spending time with

family. As a hobby Glen was very proud of his stamp collection of approximately 1300

stamps from around the world. He participated in Boy Scouts, Explorer Scouts, and the

YMCA. Glen also spent one summer working at a gold mine in northern Alaska. Glen

was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and desired

to one day go on a foreign mission to teach people about Christ.

Glen met his beautiful bride, Clara Ann, at Colton highschool, where they dated their

entire senior year. They loved attending school dances together, going to the beach,

and Clara Ann also enjoyed watching Glen play basketball.

Glen’s father worked managing a crew as a mining engineer. Sadly, when Glen was

seven years old, his father passed away due to a mining accident.

Later, when Glen was fifteen years old, his family was in a serious car accident while

driving to his sister’s wedding. Four family members, including Glen, were hospitalized.

Glen’s mother was paralyzed and spent one year in the hospital and one year in a

rehab facility. Glen sold their home to pay for a 24 hour nurse to live in and care for his

mother. This experience altered the course of Glen’s life, as he decided to forgo a full

scholarship to BYU and a mission to stay close to home and care for his mother.

Glen married his highschool sweetheart, Clara Ann, at his mother’s home on November

23, 1955. The two were later sealed to one another and their two oldest children, Doug

and Cathy, for time and eternity in the Los Angeles Temple on July 24,1961.

Glen graduated from San Bernardino Valley College, and went on to take engineering

courses at UCLA, Cal State Los Angeles, and Cal State Fullerton. He worked many

jobs while attending college, including two years as the floor manager of a “moving

picture theater”. Glen and Clara Ann’s first calling together in the church was as dance

directors for the youth.

Glen and Clara Ann moved to Riverside when he was hired as an engineer for Rohr, an

aeroship plane company, where he worked for 36 years. Glen also later and

concurrently worked as a tax consultant for 25 years.

Glen and Clara Ann went on to have three additional children - Colleen, David and Bob.

Glen loved serving in many callings in the church throughout his life. These included

serving as a stake missionary, counselor to the stake mission president, MIA president,

bishop, member of the stake presidency, ordinance worker in both the Los Angeles and

Redlands temples, stake Patriarch and Sealer in the Redlands temple. Glen also had a

great love for and delighted in serving and counseling the youth and young adults of the

church.

Patriarch Merrill left this life surrounded by loved ones in his home on May 24, 2021.

He is preceded in death by his sister Beth, and his sons Glenn Douglas and David

Edward. He is survived by his wife, Clara Ann, his children Cathleen Tucker (David),

Colleen Keegan, Robert Merrill (Emily), additional daughters-in-law Amanda and Lisa,

19 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

The funeral service will be held on June 19, 2021 at 11:00am, at the Church of Jesus

Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 4375 Jackson St. Riverside, Ca. 92503.