Marlene Lawson

On August 16, 2013, Marlene Peterson Lawson died in Provo, Utah, from heart failure & related complications. She is the beloved wife of Neal H. Lawson, Sr. (deceased) and cherished mother of Paula Wise Greene (Calvin) of Pleasant Grove, Utah; Debbie L. Lawson (Todd) of Brumley, Missouri; Neal H. Lawson Jr. (Myrna) of Albuquerque, New Mexico; Eric D. Lawson (Karen) of Bakersfield, California; and Bart C. Wise (Dana) of Orem, Utah. She is the dear sister of Nadine Miller and Joycelyn Hedman, both of San Diego, California. As a grandmother of 21 and great-grandmother of 17, she has been an inspiration to many. Marlene was born in Driggs, Idaho, the third child of L. Elmer Peterson and Gladys Kilpack. The family moved to Ogden, Utah, before Marlene's first birthday. She grew to adulthood in Ogden. After graduating from Ogden High School, she attended BYU for two years. She married Harold "Gene" Wise in 1953. They had two children, Paula and Bart. Gene was killed in a tragic airplane accident in 1960. The following year, Marlene moved to California to be near her sisters and to build a new life for herself and her children. She met and later married Neal Howard Lawson, a divorced man, who had custody of his three children, Debbie, Neal, and Eric. The union formed a blended family with 5 children. In 1977 she went back to school to become a registered nurse. diligently facing the challenges of being an older student. After graduation, in 1980, she worked for 18 years as a nurse, spending the majority of this time working with tiny infants in the neonatal intensive care unit. She faced the greatest challenge of her life in January of 1992, when once again she became a widow, following the death of her beloved companion of twenty-nine years. Neal died from cardiac arrest while recovering from open-heart surgery. She once again found strength, fortitude, courage, and faith to pick up the pieces of her life and move forward in a positive direction. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, she has served in the Primary, Young Women, Relief Society, & Sunday School organizations at both the ward and stake levels in a variety of leadership and teaching positions. She especially enjoyed serving in the Oakland California Temple with her husband and later serving as a missionary at the Church Family History Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. She has spent much of her spare time doing genealogical research. She enjoyed traveling, learning new things, staying fit, her Monday Uno nights with the girls, and book discussions. She was an avid reader, highly versed in many genres. She enjoyed the symphony, home decorating, the theater, and impressionist style painting, especially those works by Claude Monet. She was a member of The Daughters of Utah Pioneers. She has left a legacy of love, courage, wisdom, independence, hard work, frugality, self-discipline, service, humility, and compassion to all who knew her. Her testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ has given strength to many. She will be greatly missed. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, August 21st at 11:00 A.M. at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, located at 750 W. Center Street, Orem, Utah. A viewing will be held at the same address, prior to the funeral, from 9:30 A.M. to 10:30 A.M. Interment will be at Cherokee Memorial Park in Lodi, California. In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations be sent to the Missionary Fund of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.