I received a phone call from Hospice on Wednesday, September 16, that dad had a urinary tract infection. This wasn't unusual, but mom said he was a little incoherent and had fallen again and had to have the paramedics come and lift him back into bed. Theron and I drove up that day and I went straight to Morgan. Incoherent was an understatement; dad was totally out of it and not responding to anything. I stayed the night with mom and Hospice delivered a hospital bed; we cleaned the back bedroom and moved him in. He was coughing and gurgling all night. Unfortunately, both mom and I didn't think of the morphine to keep him relaxed. The next day, Hospice came in and and washed him and changed all the urine bags, etc. He was comfortable and mom said she would be okay; so Adrian, Theron and I left for South Jordan. We arrived at Adrian's and finally sat down to dinner. Just as we were finishing, I get a call from mom that dad has gone uncontrollable, trying to get up and thrashing around. She was frantic and so Adrian and I quickly threw stuff in the car and backed out of the driveway - just then the phone rang and it was mom- she said, don't hurry, dad just passed on. We left and arrived an hour later in Morgan and started immediately to make funeral plans. Walker Mortuary came and took his body; Dawain, Denzil, Susan, Rodney, Mom and I finished taking care of last minute details and then they left. Adrian and I brought air mattresses and slept on the floor that night. The next day, we made final arrangements at the mortuary, looked through the bank security box for any documents we may have missed earlier and got mom settled.
We had come north without many clothes, so we had to come home and prepare to return north in a couple of days. The funeral was set for September 23, 2020, and a viewing on September 22, the night before. Mom really wanted the viewing and I'm glad we did it. She had so many friends come and let her talk and give her hugs, even in this time of the Covid-19 pandemic.
She has since given away many of dad's possessions and "new" things that were never used. I found out one thing I didn't at once realize about my dad, he was a hoarder. He held on tight to his possessions and bought things sometimes, just to buy them.
Mom is staying in the apartment and she will be okay. She has a loving network of friends -- Judy Baugh, Ella, Mrs. Kelly (next door neighbor) and many, many friends that are too numerous to mention. I can see that she is much more joyful and relaxed. Taking care of him all these years and these past few months had really been a burden on her that none of us realized. So glad she can now have some time to herself after 70 years. Love you mom.
Obituary
Melvin Wayne Spendlove, age 89, passed away at his home in
Morgan, Utah, Thursday evening, September 17, 2020. He leaves behind his wife of 70 years, Deyon
Eakins Spendlove and seven of their eight children: Shanna (Theron) Schaefermeyer, St. George,
Utah; Denzil (Susan) Spendlove, Henefer, Utah; Dawain (Jana) Spendlove,
Clinton, Utah; Linda (David,
deceased) Butcher, Clinton, Utah; Rodney
Spendlove, Morgan, Utah; Diana (Lavy,
deceased) Berman, Redmond, Oregon;
and Lisa (Christian) Griffith, Silverdale, Washington. Janeil Tebbs, their daughter, passed away in
March of 2020. Wayne and Deyon have 19
grandchildren and 34 great-grandchildren.
One granddaughter and one great-granddaughter preceded him in death.
Wayne is the son of Melvin and Della Mae (Oram) Spendlove
and lived in Milton, Utah on the family farm.
He was born November 17, 1930 in Ogden, Weber, Utah. He attended the Morgan schools and graduated
from Morgan High School. He married
Deyon Eakins, August 7, 1950, in Henefer, Summit, Utah. He worked for several years at Cream O’Weber
Dairy in Ogden, Utah and then purchased his own semi-truck and hauled livestock
throughout Utah, Nevada and Idaho. After
giving up trucking; he worked for and retired from Hill Air Force Base in Clearfield,
Utah, where he was an airplane mechanic.
He and Deyon traveled much with a Good Sam’s Group and made
many friends along the way. They also
enjoyed spending time camping at the Manor Lands near Mirror Lake. They lived their entire married life in
Morgan, Utah. Wayne was an avid supporter
of the Morgan High School football team and seldom missed a game both at home
and away.
He is the last of his family to return home. His brothers and sisters are: Dean Oram Spendlove, Della Kay Spendlove
Evans and Dale Spendlove.
The family expresses their appreciation to the Encompass
Hospice team for their love and care during these past few months.
There will be a viewing on Tuesday, September 22, 2020, from
6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at Walker Mortuary, 45 West 200 North, Morgan, Utah. A graveside memorial service will be held at
the Henefer Cemetery, Henefer, Utah, starting at noon, September 23, 2020.
(Obituary published by Walker Mortuary, Morgan, Utah, at https://www.walker-mortuary.com)
Please wear a face
mask to the viewing.
We've had some great adventures and this year in Kanab was no different. Thanks to the group for singing Happy Birthday and enjoying the day with me. By the way, our solar system on the trailer worked marvelously - we didn't use the generator once and we watched all the TV we wanted and kept warm with our electric blanket. Dry camping was great with this system.
Sometimes when you want to get out, you have to invite yourself and just tag along. That's what we did with our Marysvale trip. Marc and two of his neighbors and friends' families were going camping at Marysvale; we tagged along. We stayed at the Hoovers Campground, which we love, rode the rzr, hiked a little, and did a whitewater river raft trip. One of the friend's wife was a Hatch triplet that I helped Meridee (her mother) take care of, change diapers and feed. What a small world. She has grown into a beautiful young lady and mother.
