Allen Eric Bergin, 89, died at home on February 15, 2024, after a fall/stroke a few days before. His figurative heart was huge and strong, which probably kept his literal, quintuple bypassed heart going a few days longer than it might have otherwise. He would want his wife of 68 years, Marian Shafer Bergin, included in this first paragraph because they were and are inseparable, now in spirit only for a time. He titled his memoir Because of Marian: My Life of Family, Faith, and Psychology, and she was at his side when he took his last breaths.

Allen was born on August 4, 1934, in Spokane, Washington, to Vivian Kullberg Bergin and Bernard Francis Bergin. They were teenagers, and Allen was their first child. After a loving childhood, Allen attended MIT on a scholarship. After a year, he decided MIT lacked "heart" and transferred to the liberal arts powerhouse Reed College (Portland, Oregon), where on registration day he met Marian, a 17-year-old Mormon from Utah.

Allen and Marian married in 1955 after both transferred to Brigham Young University and after Allen joined the Church of Jesus of Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was a devoted member for the rest of his life, serving in many positions, including bishop, stake president, member of the LDS Sunday School General Board, and counselor in two mission presidencies. His priority, far above any positions, was living a life of integrity and kindness, with Jesus Christ as his example and guide.

In 1961, after earning a PhD in clinical psychology at Stanford and spending a post-doc year under his mentor Carl Rogers, Allen took his first career job at age 26 as an assistant professor at Columbia University in New York City. He soon earned a reputation for research about what works and doesn't work in psychotherapy. In 1972, he took a faculty position at BYU, where he became known for his research about integrating spirituality and psychotherapy. He was president of the Society for Psychotherapy Research and of the Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists.

He earned many national and international awards during the last decade of his career, including the American Psychological Association's award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Knowledge. He wrote in his memoir that one award was "especially satisfying," the Oskar Pfister Award from the American Psychiatric Association, "after hearing psychiatrists for decades belittle psychology as 'lesser.'"

Though professional and church life were important to Allen, family life with Marian and his nine children was most important. He became an even more involved father after triplet boys were born in 1973 and after one of the triplets, Daniel, nearly drowned at age 2 and was subsequently disabled until he died 38 years later. When Marian was 42, Allen began working from home more so she could finish her undergraduate degree and go on for a master's in social work, then work in a hospital setting and later as a private practice therapist.

At 54, Allen developed myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. Its symptoms made life harder to enjoy for almost 40 years, especially the last 10. He experienced short-term memory loss starting about age 75 but remained independent, a remarkable conversationalist, a voracious reader, and an observer/critic of world events (if you're reading his deep dismay about Trump between the lines, you either knew him or are perceptive). He was aware of his limitations and commented on them frequently. The last few years, whenever anyone asked him how he was, he said, "Old and slow."

Allen spoke often of dying and looked forward to reuniting with his two sons, Michael Robert (died 2003) and Daniel James (died 2014), who were identical twins; his parents, his brother Roger, and many other beloved relatives. He is survived by Marian and their children David (Christi), Sue, Cyndy Bennett (Scott), Kathy Cook (Chad Hickman), Eric (Mary), Ben (Brooke), and Patrick. He is also survived by his dear sister, Carol Bergin, and by dozens of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

We are deeply grateful to the many caring and skilled providers at St. George Regional Hospital and Dixie Hospice.

We will celebrate Allen's life on Friday, February 23, at Walker-Sanderson Funeral Home, 646 E. 800 N., Orem, Utah. Visiting time 9:30-10:30 a.m., service at 11:00. Burial at Eastlawn Memorial Hills Cemetery in Provo.