Irene Hayes

BOUNTIFUL, Utah. Irene Crouch Hayes, 89, passed away in St. George, Utah on Sunday, October 26, 2014. Irene was a very humble, loving, lovely woman who wanted to be remembered as she was in life. So, in keeping with her wishes, her obituary will be short and sweet, and there will not be a viewing.
Irene was born to Milne “E” and Katie (Kate) Thomas Crouch on December 21, 1924 in Garfield, Utah. She spent a great deal of time with her dear Thomas grandparents in Garfield and with her relatives in the Welsh conclave of Salt Lake City. She was proud of her Welsh heritage and perhaps her gift of gab came from those long Welsh words inherent in her DNA.
She learned to read at age 4, and was an avid reader throughout her life. She graduated from Davis High School in the spring of her 17th year and, that summer, was engaged to the love of her life. Though she is gone, their romance will last forever. On September 25, 1942, Irene Crouch married Mark Harrison Hayes in the Salt Lake Temple. On September 25, 2014, Mark and Irene celebrated their 72nd wedding anniversary, and loved and adored each other every day of their amazing life together.
Irene worked at Viewmont High School for several years and always loved being around the students. She was instrumental in getting the children of Bountiful vaccinated against polio. She was an extremely accepting and loving person and had a genuine love for her fellow human beings. If you felt as if you were her special friend, you were… she had that special way about her. Her love for her husband and children was incomparable. We will miss her chatter, her advice, her wisdom, her encyclopedic brain, her wonderful sense of humor and her ability to laugh at herself. It is impossible to cover her legacy of goodness in a few words. In short, if you met her, you loved her.
Irene is preceded in death by her parents, four brothers (Kenneth, Bruce, Rex and Glen) and a son, Todd Thomas Hayes.
She is survived by her loving husband of 72 years, Mark, three sons Craig (Charlotte), Bradd (Corinne), Kent (Garry) and one daughter, Gayle Hayes (fka Gayle Hayes Nielsen). She also leaves behind one brother (Jerry Crouch), two sisters (Dolores Miller and Diane Tague), eleven grandchildren (Carrie Hayes Kyrouac, Cameron Hayes, Chandra Hayes Sikkema, Rebecca Hayes Espensen, Benjamin Hayes, Todd Hayes, Robb Hayes, Dawn Nielsen, Mark Nielsen, John Nielsen, Cole Castleton), and fourteen great-grandchildren.
Per her wishes, there will be a graveside service only on Saturday, November 1, 2014 at 1:30 PM at the Bountiful City Cemetery located at 2224 South 200 West, Bountiful, Utah. Our heartfelt thanks go out to Rocky Mountain Care Home Health and Hospice of St. George and Kolob Care and Rehabilitation. In particular, we express our deep gratitude to Suzanne, Nicole and Lisa Marie. Irene was an angel on earth and it is only right that she was surrounded by angels at the end.
We know this is longer than you wanted, Mom… so, perhaps you were right. We don’t always listen and obey, but we do love you with all our hearts.