Tonya Lee Murdock

Tonya Lee (Dahl) Murdock, our beautiful mother, wife and friend returned to the loving arms of her Heavenly Father on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, after a courageous and inspiring battle with stage 4 Melanoma. She passed away peacefully surrounded by her husband and children who were her whole world.

Mom was born April 12th, 1952, to Verl T Dahl and Adora Kidman Dahl. She loved growing up in the small town of Syracuse Utah and learned from a young age the value of hard work. She was an accomplished barrel racer in high school and graduated from Clearfield in 1970. After attending Dixie College, where she graduated with her degree in social work in 1972, she became reacquainted and eventually married the love of her life and eternal companion Kent Olsen (K.O.) Murdock. They were married on August 17th, 1973 in the Salt Lake City temple.

Mom and Dad spent the majority of their life raising their 4 children between two homes less than a mile apart in Layton, Utah.

Mom loved shopping, decorating, girl’s trips, crunchy ice, dove chocolates, crackers and cheese, bacon cheeseburgers, McDonalds diet coke, holidays, lunch with her girls and spending time in her St George and Bear Lake homes. She especially loved back to school shopping, birthday shopping, Halloween and Christmas shopping. Mom mastered the art of the deal and rarely left a store without getting some kind of a discount after befriending a store clerk or letting a manger know how much money she had patronized them with in the past. She prided herself in not having to make many returns-a trait which she failed to pass on to her indecisive children.

Mom always took pride in looking her best. She had a joyful presence with her beautiful kept hair and nails, her bright blue eyes, contagious smile and bubbly personality. She always made sure that she allocated just as much time to getting her kids ready as she did to getting herself ready. That often meant really early mornings at the Murdock household as she had to consider hair, nails, accessories and color coordination for 4 kids.

Her most prized possession and what she valued and cherished most were her kids and grandkids. She filled her home with warmth and kindness which drew us all to her home daily. She was the reason that her 4 kids and 17 grandchildren chose to live within a 10 minute drive. She was the very happiest when she was with her kids and grandkids and watching them all do what they love most. It was rare that she ever missed a game or performance. She was our biggest fan and cheerleader.

We think that Moms greatest quality is her gift to make everyone feel loved and special. In the short time since her passing, countless people have expressed how warm and inviting Mom was. She gave the best advice and could be trusted with sacred details. She made everyone feel important.

Mom valued her role as a disciple of Jesus Christ and a devoted member of His restored church. She was a champion of the underdog. She was a servant who never expected anything in return for the kind gestures that she rendered daily. Mom had the innate ability to love unconditionally and to communicate and express her love willfully and often. Her 2nd diagnosis of Melanoma came while they were serving a mission in Melbourne, Australia from 2018 to 2019. She loved being Dad’s companion and so loved and appreciated the tender loving care he offered her during her treatment. One of her last moments of lucidity was on their 50^th wedding anniversary which they celebrated in the Huntsman Hospital. She was determined to make it to 50 years with dad before she graduated from mortality. She was like a kid on Christmas morning that evening and was able to express her love and thanks to many family, friends, and caretakers. We are eternally grateful that such a tender mercy was allowed.

Tonya is survived by her husband K.O. Murdock, her son Tyson (Heidi) Murdock of Fruit Heights, her daughter Kelli (Shane) Willard of Kaysville, her daughter Kodi (Darin) Knudson of Layton, her daughter McCall (Brandon) Lomax of Layton and 17 grandkids that all LOVED and ADORED her. She was preceded in death by her father Verl T Dahl, her mother Adora Elizabeth Dahl, her younger brother LaMonte K Dahl and her brother in law Craig H Hess.

We are so grateful for Mom’s Christlike example and will forever cherish the memories we have with her. In honor of Tonya, please attend a child’s game, perform a random act of kindness or buy something that you want but don’t need!

We express immense gratitude for the many Doctors, Nurses and Aids that provided such great care for Mom at the Huntsman Cancer Institute and also the Nurses and Physical Therapists from Hunstman at Home. We also thank the many people who have reached out in support of our family. Funeral services will be held at 1015 N. Emerald Drive, Layton chapel at 11:00 AM on Monday August 28, 2023. Friends may visit on Sunday evening from 6:00-8:00 PM at the Russon Brothers Mortuary 1941 N Main St, Farmington and again from 9:30-10:30 AM on Monday just prior to the funeral services at the church. Interment Lindquist Memorial Park Layton, Utah.

Funeral services will be streamed live on the Russon Mortuary and Crematory Facebook page and on this obituary page. The live stream will begin 10-15 minutes before the services and will be posted below.