Wayne West

Service Recording

Wayne West was born in Ogden, Utah in 1925 where he spent a great portion of his childhood being raised by his grandparents. He moved to Salt Lake City with his family and went to various schools, graduating from South High in 1943.

Dad spent the summer of 1943 on a road trip through Mexico with his brother, Ray. Upon returning they joined the Navy together in December 1943. He was trained as a signalman and was part of the Marine escort during the first invasion of Iwo Jima where he fought and helped secure the island for an entire year.  Dad was extremely proud of his service to his country during World War II.

After the war he graduated from the University of Utah. He married his sweetheart Betsy Empey on June 20, 1949 in the Salt Lake Temple and began raising a family shortly thereafter. He started teaching at Holladay Elementary in 1950 and transferred to Howard R. Driggs Elementary when it opened in 1964. He taught there for 23 years, retiring after 37 years of teaching in 1987, having touched the lives of countless children.

He enjoyed retirement with our mom, doing all sorts of things including traveling, gardening, and a lot of reading. Mom and Dad always enjoyed getting the house and yard ready for family parties because they were both so proud of the growing family they created. Dad will be greatly missed by his family and friends, but we know he is having a great reunion with our mom, his grandparents, siblings, and other loved ones.

Survived by children Rick (Terri) West, Donald (Tag) West, Dean (Kelley) West, Cinder (Rick) Dangerfield; sister, Sharon (Stuart) Stout; 18 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren.

Graveside services will be held, Friday, February 8, 2019, 11:00 a.m. at Mountain View Memorial Estates, 3115 E. Bengal Blvd. (7800 S.)  A visitation will be held Thursday, February 7, 2019 at Cannon Mortuary, 2460 E. Bengal Blvd. (7600 S.) from 6-8 p.m.

As a family, we express our sincere thanks to our brother, Rick, who was his primary caregiver after Mom died. Also, we would like to thank all the friends and neighbors (especially Kathy & Dave) who loved and helped watched over him.

We love you and will miss you, Dad.