Lana Rae Shurtliff

Our lives were forever changed on Wednesday, May 18, 2022, when our dear mother Lana Rae Shurtliff returned home to the loving arms of her Heavenly Father and eternal sweetheart having lived a full life of love and service to others.

Mom was born on January 9, 1942, to Ivan & Reva Mathews of Shelley, Idaho. She was the 3^rd of 4 children and loved her siblings strongly. She spent her days surrounded by family & friends and loved spending time with her grandmothers. She learned how to serve by watching her mother.  She was a great student and enjoyed being involved in the pep club and other school activities especially baton twirling in the Topperettes. She was proud to be a Shelley Russet.

Mom attended Utah State University where she met the love of her life. She and Gary Lee Shurtliff were married on September 1, 1961. After graduation and their first 2 children, Vint & Lynlee, their marriage was made eternal in the Salt Lake City Temple in June of 1967. Gary’s career took them to Southern California where their family was completed with the birth of Wendy and Ryan.  In 1974 Mom and Dad settled in Riverside, California where the family made many lifelong friends. She had a wonderful knack for making our home beautiful, yet warm and comfortable. She especially loved decorating for Christmas and was known to turn the house into a “Santa’s Village”. She never meet a Santa she didn’t love and bring home.

Mom loved being involved and raising her children. She was the perfect “momma bear” loving and protecting us, sometimes to a fault. She could never be proud enough of one of our accomplishments, no matter how small. She was involved in our school activities, extracurricular and especially sports! She had a reputation for cheering too loudly and at times too aggressively. No one ever questioned if Mom made it to the many games or swim meets. Mom and Dad quickly became 2^nd parents to our many friends as well making sure they knew they were welcome and had a place in our home. Always showing us the importance of home and family, she made sure we returned several times a year to her beloved Idaho so we would have the opportunity to know our family there. The family cabin in Island Park, Idaho, was always her special place of peace, where many memories were made.

She was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the church was always a focal point in Mom’s life. She loved serving in different capacities within the church whether in presidencies or committees.  She was a wonderful teacher and loved working with the sisters but especially cherished her time with the young women and summers at “Camp Shalom” with Dad back in the 80s. When she found extra time, she was also involved in many local charities including the Assistance & Junior Leagues where she worked at their Thrift Store and was proud of her work doing puppet shows for elementary schools teaching about the inclusion of special needs students.

After the loss of Dad in 1994, she served as a temple worker at the Los Angeles Temple until she moved to Centerville, Utah to be closer to “her girls” and her aging mother in Idaho. Finding she had the time she chose to live out the goal her and Dad had to serve a mission. She was called to an office mission in Winnipeg, Canada where she loved and served those missionaries from 1999 to 2000. The work was hard for her, but she loved being needed, the people she met, and the experiences she had.   Upon returning home to Centerville, she was a temple worker at the Bountiful, Utah temple. No one could have read more spiritual growth and gospel books than Mom. She could always be found with her scriptures and at least 2 other books within reach trying to learn more and be “more worthy” of the blessings she was always mindful of.

Summing up Mom’s life in one word would be ‘family’ because that is always where her heart was. Her life wasn’t always easy, but she endured to be positive and focused her strength on her children, later her grandchildren, and then those wonderful great-grand babies who called her GG, who were all the highlight of her life. She was happiest when they were around. She had such a generous heart, always saw the good in people, and was ALWAYS doing something for someone else when possible.

She will be greatly missed here on earth by her children, Lynlee Shurtliff, Centerville, UT, Wendy (Art) Fracchia, West Valley City, UT, Ryan (Melanie) Shurtliff, Centerville, UT. Also by her 9 grandchildren who were blessed to always have her love and never-ending support and 9 very special great-grandchildren.  We know right now she is in heaven playing with 2 special little girls we’re soon to meet and hopefully many more “greats” that she will hand-pick and send to us in due time.

We’re grateful for the love and support of Mom’s siblings in Idaho, Gene (Kathy) Mathews, Darwin (Linda) Mathews, Gayle (Danny) Poole who’ve always been there for her.  Her time spent with them was always too short and too few & far between for her.

She has been reunited with her sweetheart Gary Shurtliff and her oldest son Vint Shurtliff who recently left us too soon. Her parents Ivan and Reva Mathews and many special grandparents & family members I know she missed terribly on this side of the veil.

Please join us as we remember and honor this amazing woman. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 26, 2022, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Chapel, 270 North 300 East, Centerville, Utah. There will be a viewing Wednesday night at Russon Mortuary, 295 North Main Street, Bountiful, Utah, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. and Thursday morning from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at the church prior to services. Interment will take place in Shelley, Idaho, on Friday, May 27, 2022, at 1:00 p.m.

Services will be streamed live on the Russon Brothers Mortuary Facebook page and on this obituary page.  The live stream will begin about 10-15 minutes prior to the service and will be posted below.