Calbert Edward Bingham

1918 - 2009

Calbert Edward Bingham, 90, of Caldwell, died at a local care facility Friday, April 24, 2009. Born April 28, 1918, in Tucson, Ariz., to Jacob Moroni and Frances Harris Bingham, Cal was blessed by being raised by two loving families. After his mother died in the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu pandemic, the 11-month-old Cal was raised by his father and by foster-parents, Joseph and Ocena Farr. He moved with the Farr family to Ogden, Utah, when he was 9 but returned to spend many summers with his father and siblings in Binghampton, Ariz., near Tucson.
He married Betty Hill Aug. 7, 1942, in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. They lived in Ogden for another 18 years and then moved to Caldwell, Idaho, in 1960. Betty passed away in 2007. They had been married 65 years.
Cal was a lifelong member of the LDS Church, serving a mission in Canada and serving in many other Church positions. He and Betty served a mission in the Boise LDS Temple beginning in 1984, the year it opened.
He served in the U.S. Army's 749th Railroad Battalion as a technical sergeant in the Philippines during World War II.
He worked for the Union Pacific Railroad in Ogden and Nampa and was also skilled at masonry and woodworking. He was a volunteer fireman in Ogden.
Life with Cal was fun, exciting and never dull. He was a great storyteller and liked to tell his grandchildren about their pioneer heritage. An athlete himself (football, basketball, boxing), Cal enjoyed watching his young family members participate in sports. He enjoyed the outdoors and spent many wonderful days camping, hunting and fishing with his friends and family. His advice and legacy to his family was, "Do things with your kids."
Cal was the last survivor of his family of four sisters, three brothers, and four foster sisters.
He is survived by his four children-Steve Bingham, Boise; Janice Johansen (Mark), Nampa; Frances Christensen (Wayne), Boise; and Harold Bingham (Laurie), Homedale. He's also survived by 21 grandchildren, 59 great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild.
Visitation will be from 9:30-11 a.m. Friday, May 1, at the church. Funeral service will be at 11 a.m. Friday, May 1, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Caldwell 8th Ward, 11838 Linden Road, Caldwell (the former Cal Bingham home site). Interment will follow at Canyon Hill Cemetery, Caldwell. Arrangements are with Flahiff Funeral Chapel, Caldwell.