Kathleen Emmett Mitton

 KATHLEEN EMMETT MITTON

Kathleen Emmett Mitton, born July 10, 1937, in Portland, Oregon, passed away peacefully on June 29, 2022, in Lehi, Utah, at the age of 84, encircled by the tender care of family and medical staff.

Kathy will be forever known as a vivacious, faithful, and big-hearted daughter of God who constantly championed for the underdog while edifying those whom she admired and respected. The eldest of four children to Zalia Huntsman and Thomas Young Emmett, Kathy married Fredrick Robert Cornilles in 1956 with whom she parented nine children.

Being a mother and grandmother was Kathy’s greatest pursuit and joy. Having chosen a lifestyle that would allow her to focus on creating and caring for her home, Kathy was a loving matriarch. She was an ardent defender of her children but not above correcting their misdeeds or mistakes. She insisted on acquainting them with the good things of life, particularly music, food, the entertaining of guests, and developing relationships with extended family.

A voracious genealogist, Kathy loved to celebrate the fascinating and inspiring stories of her ancestors. Through decades of genealogical research, she became highly knowledgeable of family histories – researching up to one thousand years into her family line. Before the limitations brought on by age, Kathy would regularly encourage her progeny to appreciate the outstanding as well as unsung contributions of those who had passed.

Beautiful choral and modern-day music was always ringing in Kathy’s home, whether through the sounds of her children practicing the piano or the rhythms of pop artists like Neil Diamond and John Denver booming throughout the home. She was an accomplished, self-taught choir director for her church, serving off and on (but usually on) for more than 40 years. She would often receive glowing compliments for her choir’s quality and professionalism from regular and visiting members alike. Hundreds of individuals, whether those who sang under Kathy’s leadership, or those who listened—and felt—the results of her impassioned efforts, came to better appreciate music’s beauty because of Kathy’s unique love and respect for its power.

Even with seven kids at home, in her 30s Kathy (with Fred’s help) organized a singing group called “Summerfield Sound”. Comprised of teen-aged and adult singers and instrumentalists of various performing experience, this group achieved local yet high acclaim by performing popular covers of the day in malls, schools, corporate and church events, and family gatherings.

If music wasn’t reverberating through the house, Kathy’s sewing machine was. She was a gifted and admired seamstress, sewing costumes and men’s suits for her husband. Her signature flare for color and polka dots were evident in the clothes she would construct for herself. And church missionaries needing repairs to their tattered suits would often end up on Kathy’s doorstep, leaving with mended clothes, a full stomach, and lots of laughs and hugs.

Kathy participated in the business world for more than a decade, serving as the assistant to the senior executives of Robison Jewish Home in Raleigh Hills, Oregon.

Above all, Kathy’s most notable trait was her undying advocacy of “the little guy”. Whether adopting then eight-year old Thomas upon the death of his natural mother, inviting South American foreign exchange students (she had a special place in her heart for the Latino race) to spend academic years in her home, or insisting that the friends of her children spend their recreational hours in the family’s backyard pool and party-magnet basement, Kathy was constantly expanding the number of people in her care with a heart capable of holding them all.

A lifelong and devoted member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Kathy was a quiet testifier of Christ through her acts of service, unquestionable loyalty, and enduring faith. Perhaps her greatest delight was to know that up to her last breath, she raised a posterity of equally faithful (though not perfect, she would say) daughters and sons. In turn, their own spouses and children and grandchildren brought her unbound joy and satisfaction. None of Kathy’s progenitors ever doubted that “Kathy/Grandma loves me!”

After moving from her beloved Oregon to Utah in 2006, Kathy met and married Boyd Laurence “Mitt” Mitton of Farmington, Utah, in 2007. By 2016 they located to St. George, Utah, to enjoy the warmer weather and red rocks.

Kathy is survived by her husband Mitt, sister Susan Emmett, brother John Emmett, and children Karen Lesser, Nancy Haupt, Thomas Cornilles, Christopher Cornilles, Cay Craig, Robert Cornilles, Bradley Cornilles, and their spouses. She leaves 28 grandchildren and 34 great-grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her parents (noted above), brother David Emmett, and her stillborn children Kathryn and Scott.

The viewing will be held Tuesday, July 5th from 9:30 – 10:30 at Kaysville South Stake Center 900 S Main, Kaysville Ut 84025 followed by services at 11:00.

For those wishing to attend virtually. The ward will be streaming services starting at 11:00.

https://zoom.us/j/95847724300?pwd=MGQ1eHBWaXRkVmordW5uRDNvUXN6QT09

Passcode: 937321