Joseph Franklin Corey

Joseph Franklin Corey, returned peacefully to his Heavenly Father on the morning of March 18, 2026, after a life of love, faith, service, and quick wit.

Frank was born July 6, 1942, in Idaho Falls, to Joseph Firth Corey and Marjorie Olive Newman Corey. As a baby, he survived scarlet fever and became the first baby west of the Mississippi to receive experimental penicillin—an honor that left him highly allergic for the rest of his life, but also gave him a great origin story.

He grew up surrounded by sisters—Sharon, Pat, Bev, Julie—and eventually a little brother Dave. He spent his childhood launching water balloons, breaking his glasses, and generally terrorizing the neighborhood with the kind of freedom only the 1950s could provide.

Frank loved science and math, and he conducted many “experiments” at home—some of which produced smells and fires he tried (not always successfully) to clean up before his parents got home. He played cornet in the band and basketball in junior high. He graduated from Idaho Falls High School in 1960.

Frank served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Central States beginning in 1961, an experience that helped him overcome shyness and deepened his love for his Savior.

He graduated from BYU in Electrical Engineering in 1968 and then began the MBA program, graduating in 1970. But the most important thing he did during those years was meet his sweetheart, LaRae, at the Fun Farm in St. Anthony in 1967. She had found a puppy and he held it while she danced, knowing full well she would come back for the puppy. He held her hand for the first time while they stood in line to see the “Dirty Dozen.” They continued dating while at BYU and were sealed June 27, 1969, in the Idaho Falls Temple. He called her “Flower” for the rest of his life, and he never once let anyone sit between them.

During his college years, Frank did welding during the summers at Hallways to pay for tuition. Then, after graduation, he worked for General Electric, moving his growing family from Phoenix, AZ to Ontario, and Apple Valley, CA to Mattoon and Sterling, IL and to Bowling Green, KY. He then moved his family to Crestwood, KY, working for other employers including teaching in industrial settings and the Kentucky prison systems. After retirement, he and LaRae moved to Ammon, ID, where he worked as a cashier at Target and was regularly recognized by Target patrons around town.

He served faithfully in many church callings, including serving in several bishoprics, branch presidencies, high councils and as a ward mission leader. In the mid 1980’s, he served as the bishop of the Bowling Green Ward in Kentucky. One of his favorite callings was as a Young Men’s basketball coach. He loved the young men and enjoyed coaching and playing church ball. He was always a faithful hometeacher. He had a gift for finding “the one”—the lonely, the overlooked, the struggling—and making sure they felt the Savior’s love.

Frank and LaRae raised six children across multiple states and multiple jobs. Along the way, he bought his beloved 1971 Oldsmobile 442—a muscle car in which most of his children learned to drive, gently, because brake pads are expensive—and one large, yellow Ford Econoline van that absolutely should not have been driven by teenagers, but was.

Frank believed in hard work and early morning “Song and Prayer”, no matter how early seminary started or how late teenagers stayed up. He taught his kids to haul fire wood and fix cars, appliances, and anything else that broke. He saved usable parts from repairs, carefully labeled in drawers. Later in life, his children realized he treated people the same way: he never threw anyone away. He saw the good parts, even when life had bent or broken them, and he helped them feel worth saving. He always valued people more than things.

Frank loved the hymns—especially sacrament hymns—and often cried while singing them. He loved listening to his children practice the piano, even if they weren’t very good. He loved his family, Sunday dinners with extra guests, home teaching families, ham radios (KE7JHQ), telling bad dad jokes, chocolate chip cookies, and 49-cent ice cream cones after cutting wood for the winter. But above all, he loved LaRae. Even as his health declined, he just wanted to be wherever she was.

Frank is survived by his devoted wife, LaRae, his 6 children: Jennica Crandall (Steve) of St. George, UT, Jill Dayton (Kevin) of Spokane, WA, Ryan Corey of Mesa, AZ, Erica Miskin (Corbet) of Rigby ID, Emily Roundy (Kade) of San Antonio, TX, and Marybeth Sanders (Mike) of Pleasant Grove, UT; his brother, David Corey and his sister, Julia Stoddard; his 29 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Joseph Firth Corey and Marjorie Newman Corey; and siblings, Sharon, Mary Pat, and Beverly.

He leaves behind a legacy of service, faith, gentle humor, and the belief that people—like old appliances—are worth fixing, worth keeping, and worth loving. And while we will miss him deeply, we take comfort knowing he is busy on the other side, doing exactly what he did here: helping people feel the Savior’s love, one soul at a time.

Funeral services will be held at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, March 28, 2026, at the Cottages Ward Building, 2200 Stafford Drive. The family will visit with friends from 10-11:15 a.m. prior to services. Burial will be in Fielding Memorial Park.