Rich Family Christmas Party

24 pillows made with care, from Grandpa Ben's shirts he used to wear.......Hey !  I'm a poet :)
One for each of the kids and grandkids, and a special one just for Grandma Ben.

Joni had a great idea, and brought these props for photo ops.
Turned out great !
J.P., Ryker, Parker, Addison, Harper, Trapper, Kroix

Grandpa's pal's

Miss Brightyn loves to eat IF she gets to sit on anyone's lap while doing so :)

OLD Grandpa and Grandma Porter with their grandbabies :)

Kayla and Sidney with Autumn and Jocelyn

The Porter Crew (adults..........maybe)

Kayla and Brytain

Sleepy Rudolph

Cheesy Rudolph

Notice the "Naughty" boy, caught between his dad's legs for a split second photo shot.

Megan's bunch.

Brenda' s bunch

Hello Santa !

Mushy Mushy

Love this little family :)

Go Brightyn !!

Love these guys (and girl :)

Addison and Parker
Jared and Shaina's sweeties

Layna, Trace, Tyrel

Nathan and Jocelyn

Truer captions were never held...........

Todd, Nikki, Sawyer, Cedar

Had to capture this bunch without props....
Darrins' family

Grandma Ben (LuAnn) with all the GREATS and a couple of great greats

We sure missed Grandpa this year.
We wondered if we should cancel, but thought he would want the crazy show to go on.

I asked Roger later, how he was doing, because everyone always says to me, "How's Roger doing?" and I never know what to say.......He's a man of few words (haha, don't I know it!)   He said the thing he missed most was just sitting by his dad at the party, and watching the action.

After the party, Roger and I went up to the cemetery, and put little Christmas trees on Ambure's and Grandpa's graves.
We sure need to get Ambure's headstone redone.  You can't even read the writing on it any more.

Merry Christmas Grandpa

Layna gave Grandma a Christmas decoration out of wood, with the following words (at least I think these are the words)

Christmas in Heaven
What do they do?

They come to earth to spend it with you.
So save them a space, one empty chair

You might not see them,
but they will be there

Beautiful Funeral - Beautiful Tribute

The great grandkids sang
Families can be Together Forever and
I am a Child of God.
It was so cute, and I'm so glad Kelly took this picture :)

The pall bearers were the oldest sons of each of Ben and Lu's kids.
Zac, Chase, Heath, Casey, Darrin, Keysto
(belonging to Roger, Kelly, Lynette, Layne, Linda, Joni)

The Veterans were there at the cemetery to give a salute with their rifles.  The spent shells were then given to all of the grandkids.  Boy they thought that was neat !

Rog and Manda

This was such a solemn ceremony.  So very very respectful. 

Bless his heart, Tim Carter read the tribute.  His voice was shaking.  It was very emotional.  He was Kelly's good friend as kids, and loved Ben and Lu very much.  

Kelly, Tim, Roger

Grandma and CJ

Grandma LuAnn

Lynette, Layne, LuAnn, Joni, Kelly, Roger

I just love this picture - I don't know what was said..........but apparently they all got a laugh out of it.  I can hear each of their individual laughs, and see their smiles.  I love each of them so very much.  These last few weeks have been hard, but the love has seemed to grow, and bring them even closer together.  Ben would be proud of each of them I'm sure. 

Landon and family

Zac and family

Camryn and Grandpa

Chase, Brayden and Kelly.
Boy Kelly did such a beautiful job at the funeral.  I can't say enough about how great he did while reading the words that his brothers and sisters had given to him to put together and read. His talk is at the end of this blog post.  

Kelly spoke at the funeral, and this is what he read. 

Life Sketch

Delore (Ben) Rich was born on August 17, 1926 to Charles and Laura Rich.  Ben was the baby of the family.  He had 3 brothers, Randall, Don, & Grant, and a sister Ethelene.  Ben grew up on the family farm in Richville.  When he was younger he worked in the fields, milked cows, raked hay, and helped with all the usual “fun” chores that kids did in those days.  He graduated from Morgan High School and severed honorably in the Merchant Marines during World War 2.  In 1957 he met and married LuAnn White from Porterville, they celebrated their 58^th anniversary on October 12^th of this year.  Ben & Lu had six children, Linda, Lynette, Roger, Layne, Joni, & Kelly. 

Ben never liked a fuss made over him but today is a special day so we will make an exception.  Ben was an example of a very hard worker, whether it is working in his beautiful yard, helping his sons and daughters, or lending a helping hand to neighbors.  During his working days he was always known to never miss a day of work, even if he was deathly ill.  He was a wonderful dancer, honest to a fault, and was quite the worry wart….  He would always tell everyone, “Watch out for them damn deer”.

Before his retirement, Ben worked at Swift’s until they closed then for Ty Little at the Valley Implement, and finally at the Morgan High School.  He was such a likeable guy and has made so many friends over the years.  The teachers and students at the high school loved him dearly and were very sad to see him retire in 1992.  As a sign of appreciation to Ben, he was inducted into the Morgan High School hall of Fame just prior to his retirement. 

When we think of Ben, we think of BUZZ Haircuts, bread & milk (A nightly snack), pink peppermints, going to Morgan for a cup of coffee, western novels, his assortment of baseball caps (always on crooked), and last but not least his wonderful smile……  And Oh, who could forget his greatest passion, (Beside LuAnn) – gambling.  He was always up for a quick trip to Wendover or Vegas, and no one was luckier than he was on the slot machines. 

Ben always loved little kids, and was the best dad, grandpa, great-grandpa, that you could ever wish for.  He will be deeply missed.  He and LuAnn went to countless football, baseball, basketball, soccer, volleyball, cheer leading, & drill team competitions, always cheering on their kids, grandkids & great grand kids.  He was one of the best supporters of the youth in Morgan County.  Rarely did Ben or LuAnn miss a game.  Ben lived a great life and will be deeply missed, we love you.

 Lynette:

I remember Dad & I going to a Daddy Daughter date when I was in Young Women and dad taking me out on the dance floor, & boy he was such a good dancer.  I thought what a cool dad I have to dance like that.

I remember going to the Utah Noodle & dad would also razz/tease the waitress’s so bad.  All of us kids would just laugh and mom would always say “Ben be quiet”.

Remember dad putting sugar on his tomato’s and then eating them, raw green onions,

Roger's memories
As far as I'm concerned, no other parents gave as much to their kids as far a support for any activity they were involved in.   Whether it was football, baseball, wrestling, cheerleading, drillteam, basketball or rodeos, they were ALWAYS there to cheer us on.  Countless daily trips back and forth from Porterville to Morgan for practices and games and meets.  There was never any complaint - ever.  After we kids left the house, then it continued with the grandkids and great grandkids, from T-ball for the 3 year olds, to Junior College baseball out of state, to Crossfit competitions, marathons, school programs, soccer, dance recitals.  Dad and Mom were there as often as humanly possible.

Memories include a scary fishing trip in the small old boat on East Canyon Reservoir.  A storm blew up suddenly, and the waves got big and the boat was rocking.  Dad got us boys safely off of the water, and we were pretty nervous.  I can only imagine that Dad was pretty nervous too, but he didn't show it that I can remember.

Trips to the deer camp were a real treat.  After opening day, he would take us up to hang out with  Uncle Keith, Wayne Mortenson, and others.  We always looked forward to this.

When we were younger and growing up Mom got her hair done every Tuesday night, and that was Dad's designated night when he cooked dinner.  His specialty was Potato Soup.  We looked forward to it and loved it !

Dad always wore a buzz cut when he was younger, and he figured his sons should also.  He would chase us around the house (literally around the OUTSIDE of the house) one at a time, and tackle us down and proceed to give our heads a shave every summer.  We didn't like it at the time, but there was no getting out of it, and we got used to it.

Dad took us to the movies every Friday night at the show house.  After he was laid off when Swift's closed, even though the finances had changed, he still always made sure that we were able to go to a show.

Dad loved to dance, and so did mom.  At one time they belonged to a square dancing group with Aunt Anna and Uncle Keith, and Wayne and Marge Mortenson.  They would get all dressed up a couple of times a month and go dancing.  As the years passed, the only time they got the chance to dance was at an occasional wedding.  He was never shy on the dance floor, and was dancing with mom at a wedding of their neighbors, only 2 months ago in October. 

When he was working at the Valley Implement, it was always fun to stop in and visit him there.  It was great to have him working in town, and there for us when we needed him.

Growing up in Porterville was great.  Roger and Layne had a great group of friends, and in the summer time it was one big party, with everyone trading off where they would sleepover that night.  They got around mostly on their bikes, and one night when they were supposed to be sleeping over at Chet Adams house, they were all out on their bikes riding around.  They stopped to talk with Barclay Earl right in front of Dad and Mom's house, and it was pretty late (or I should say EARLY in the morning).  I guess they were being pretty loud, and it woke Dad up and he started yelling.  The boys headed off on their bikes, peddling as fast as they could down the hill by the old Porterville Church, and heading up Highway 66 to Chet's house.  When they saw the headlights from dad's old truck coming down the hill after them, they went faster!  I don't think they ended up spending the night at Chet's that night.

As we grew and started our own families, Dad was always there to help us out around our own homes and yards.  Shoveling snow off the roof after a huge snow storm, hauling hay in the field, cleaning out Uncle Don's old barn, and getting wood in the Uintas winter.  One trip up to get wood almost resulted  in Dad getting hit by a tree that had been cut down.  As the tree fell,  it looked like it was coming towards Dad, so he moved out of the way, but  he misjudged the angle of the fall, and seemed to run right into the trees path!  At the last minute, he took a flying leap out of the way, chainsaw in hand.  That sure got a lot of hearts beating that day !

Dad loved the PBR (Professional Bull Riding) - some of his favorite riders were Chris Shivers and J. B. Mooney.  One time we took a trip down to Vegas to watch the finals.  We all had a great time, and of course Dad took the casinos by storm as usual.

Dad LOVED gambling, and there was no one luckier than Dad.  It seemed he never lost.  All of his kids and grandkids wished they could have the luck that he did.....but his luck never seemed to rub off on ANY of us. 

Dad always loved a good trip out to Wendover. He had a system.  You left Morgan at a certain time, always got gas at a certain Maverick, ate breakfast at a certain place, and went to the casinos in a certain order.  Mom was sure a good sport about this, and we know he always appreciated her acting as chauffeur.

Dad took such pride in his gorgeous lawn.  He would mow it 2-3 times a week and get down on his hands and knees to get those dang dandylions.  Before we got the sprinkling system in, he would pull that hose all around the yard constantly.  It was a great thing when the sprinkling system was installed, and you would think it would have saved him some worry, but no - he would sit outside in his lawn chair, watching the water, and making sure the different zones came on at the right time. He just didn't trust that timer.   Dad liked to give us kids a bad time about our own yards.  If we had a weed coming up, or a dry spot, or if the grass was a little bit long, he made sure to let us know.  We will miss that.

He was a good dad.  We loved him.  It was hard to see him change after his first stroke 19 years ago, but we are so glad we were able to spend the extra years with him.   In these last years he always said he was "Gonna be dead", and it's hard to believe he now gone.  It is hard to be without him, but we know he is free from pain, and is happy that he and walk and talk without trouble.  He is with Linda and Ambure, and all of his family and friends in heaven.  We will miss you Dad.

Layne:

Some of my greatest memories of dad was how he was always so supportive of anything we did, especially sports.  He was always at every game or wrestling match, and even did the same with his grand kids and great grand kids, he was always there cheering them on.  Also going deer hunting up hardscrabble when we were younger was something we loved.

When I was younger I had a problem of hitting deer in my truck and dad would always chew my butt and say I was driving too fast.  Then he himself had 2 separate incidents where he ran into a whole herd of deer in Richville and then another on his way to East Canyon, then it was my turn to tell him to slow down.  He absolutely loved the opening day of fishing season, he and a friend would always go to East Canyon Dam first thing and fish all day long. 

Joni

When I was little sometimes dad would take me to Hopkins café and we would have a Root beer milk.  Friday nights when Roger & Layne would get to go to the show house &I was too little dad would take them & bring us back malts. 

Every Tuesday Mom would get her hair done and would be late getting home so dad would make Potato soup for dinner.  Daddy would eat bread & milk – sometimes with sugar & sometimes with onion.  YUCK, he also liked Oyster – Yuck.  He put sugar on lettuce.  He loved sugar cookies & run them under water and eat them. 

Dad loved fishing.  We fished up at East Canyon, Soda Lake, &even the Uinta’s.  He would get a bite and start to reel it in – he wouldn’t set the hook.  As soon as the fish got to the shore or the boat it would get off.  He would always look at you like it was your fault.

Daddy loved Wendover.  When he was younger he would play 21.  He& I would go to a table with no one else there & he would teach, or try to.  He was so fast at adding the cards while I was counting on my fingers.  Sometimes he would tell me to double down & put more chips out – I never really understood that but I did it anyway.  And usually he would win & I wouldn’t.  He would also tell me I’d never win if I didn’t play.

One of the greatest thing Dad & Mom did was support me.  I don’t think they missed one thing I was ever involved in.  And then when I had my kids they did the exact same thing.  They rarely missed anything my kids would do.  What a great blessing that is.

Kelly

When mom was pregnant and expecting me, Dad & Doc Martineu went on a fishing trip, (Keep in mind that Doc Martineu was mom’s doctor) as luck would have it mom went into labor and was taken to a hospital in Ogden.  She had to quickly find another doctor to delivery me into this world.  When dad pulled back into town he went somewhere and somebody had told him that mom was at the hospital in labor.  By the time he got to the hospital I was already born, when he found this out he knew mom would be very upset, when he got to her room he was so scared he didn’t dare stick his head in the room so he threw his hat in first to make sure nothing would be flying around at him.  

Delore H. (Ben) Rich - August 17, 1926 ~ December 5, 2015

Delore H. (Ben) Rich
August 17, 1926 ~ December 5, 2015

Ben Rich passed away peacefully at his home, surrounded by his family on Saturday, December 5, 2015. 

He was born August 17, 1926, to Charles A. and Laura Sarah Rich in Morgan County. 

Ben graduated from Morgan High School in 1944 and served in the Merchant Marine during World War II. 

Ben married LuAnn White on October 12, 1957.  Their marriage was later solemnized in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. They were happily married for 58 years.

He worked for Del Monte, Swift and Company and Valley Implement in Morgan, retiring from Morgan School District in 1992. 

He was also a member of the Morgan Search and Rescue and the Morgan Lions Club. 

He is a member of the LDS Church. 

Ben enjoyed working in the yard, fishing, trips to Wendover, family get-togethers, and most of all watching his grandchildren and great-grandchildren participate in all kinds of sports. 

Ben is survived by his wife LuAnn and children; Lynette Hartman, Roger (Gwen) Rich, Layne (Susan) Rich, Joni (Kerry) Porter,  Kelly (Michelle) Rich, and son-in-law Bruce Frost;  22 grandchildren; 43 great-grandchildren; and four great-great-grandchildren.

Ben is preceded in death by his daughter Linda Frost, son-in-law Randy Hartman, and grand-daughter Ambure Rich.  Also preceded in death by his parents, and siblings: Randall, Don, Grant Rich, and Ethelene Mortenson.

Funeral services will be held Wednesday, December 9, 2015 at 11 am at the Porterville Church (2700 S. Morgan Valley Dr.). The family will meet with friends on Tuesday, December 8, 2015 from 6 to 8 pm at Walker Mortuary  (45 W. 200 N. Morgan, Utah) and Wednesday, prior to the services 9:45 -10:45 am at the church.

Interment at the South Morgan Cemetery.

The family would like to thank Hospice nurses, Andrea, Carrie, and Deanna; CNA Rachel, Tracia Francis, and especially grand-daughter, Layna, who as a CNA took such good care of Grandpa. 

Goodbye - for a little while

Ben and LuAnn

Grandpa Ben died last night at 7:20 pm. - December 5, 2015, he was 89 years old.

It will be hard not to see these two together.

Oh what a tease he was.......I'm just smiling, thinking about him.
This is my favorite picture of him :)

It has been a hard 3 weeks since his stroke on Sunday evening, November 15th.  He was in the hospital for a week, and home for almost two weeks.  Hospice is wonderful, and the service they provide......Those nurses and CNA's are such angels.  Layna (a grand-daughter) works as a CNA at Family Tree, and she helped so much.  She is so sweet, and it was so special to see her take care of Grandpa.  The family rallied around Grandma, and although it was hard to see Grandpa weaken and get worse, it was a special time to be around each other, and share our love for each other.

It was special to see the love and care and concern for a husband, father and grandfather, from LuAnn and the kids.

We know he is free of pain and worry, and must be so happy to be with Linda and Ambure again, and Randy, and his mom and dad and brothers and sister, and friends who have passed on before.  What a wonderful reunion it must have been.