Milburn Donnella Kendall Jr.

Milburn “Dip” Kendall, Jr. of Layton, Utah passed away unexpectedly April 3, 2021. He was born December 16, 1953 to Milburn D. Kendall, Sr. and Carrie Butcher in Salt Lake City, Utah. During his childhood he lived in Lander, Wyoming for a time, which fostered his love for the outdoors. After returning to Utah, he lived in West Valley City and graduated from Granger High School in 1972 where he was on the swim team. He served briefly in the U.S. Coast Guard before marrying Linda Hepworth on August 16, 1974. They were later sealed in the Salt Lake temple August 16, 1983. They were married for 40 years until they divorced in 2014. During those years they were blessed with six children.
Dip was very musically talented. He played in a band in high school, and sang with a rich, deep, voice. He also played the guitar and keyboard. He loved hunting, fishing, camping, and taking drives to the mountains and lakes. He passed that love on to his kids with many family camping trips. He loved traveling, especially road trips to places like Yellowstone, Mount Rushmore or Hood River, Oregon. He also had the opportunity to travel to France, the Bahamas, Mexico, and Hawaii. He also loved classic cars and never missed a Woodruff car show.
He had a great sense of humor and loved to tease and joke. That was usually how he showed affection. He would sing funny songs, some of which he made up himself. He also loved reading and learning and claimed that he read encyclopedias as a kid. He always wanted more “input” as he called it. He had a photographic memory and always knew the answer to any question he was asked. He was a great storyteller and would often recount stories from his youth.
Dip worked for many years as a welder. When he was employed at Peterson Engineering, he received specialized training as a welding inspector and was able to travel for his job. He later worked at ATK inspecting rocket engines and had the privilege of seeing a test launch at Promontory. He loved to joke that he was a rocket scientist and was extremely disappointed when he was laid off due to funding cuts. He used that time to go back to school at the Davis Applied Technology College where he graduated in 2014 from the Architectural and Engineering Design program. He was also a member of the National Technical Honor Society. Most recently he worked in security with Allied Universal Services at Holly Frontier.
Dip could sometimes come off as a tough guy, but deep down he was a softie. He had a huge, generous heart and was very gentle and loving with babies and young children. He was a devoted grandpa and loved his grandchildren very much. For the past five years he lived with his daughter Chelsea and his grandson Hudson, which helped him develop greater patience and a special bond with Hudson. He was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had a deep love for the gospel and for Jesus Christ. He felt the spirit very strongly and had a gift for giving beautiful Priesthood blessings. His most recent church calling was serving in the Bountiful temple, which he loved.
He is survived by daughters Shanna (Mike) Nielsen, Jenni (Jared) Huffaker, Krista and Chelsea Kendall, sons Levi (Kaley) and J.D. (Katelyn), his ex-wife Linda, his sisters, Patricia Kendall and Beverly Jones, his brother Lavar (Alison), and 10 grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his parents, his Uncle Butch, and granddaughter Abbey.
A celebration of his life will be held for family and friends on Saturday, April 10, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. at Russon Mortuary, 295 North Main, Bountiful, Utah, where a viewing will be held on Friday, April 9, 2021 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. and from 9:00 to 9:45 a.m. the day of the service. If unable to attend in person, services will be available virtually on Russon Mortuary & Crematory Facebook page.