Obituary for LaRae Reynolds Gourley

August 5, 1927 – June 16, 2023

LaRae Reynolds Gourley our kind and loving wife, mother and grandmother, age 95 passed away this last week at her home in Provo surrounded by her four children.

LaRae was born in Springville, Utah on August 5, 1927 to James Ernest and Ruth Louise Clark Reynolds. Her grandfather HT. Reynolds served as mayor of Springville, co-founded Central Bank and was the owner of the large HT Reynolds Company building, which still stands today in downtown Springville Her father Earnest Reynolds worked for the Reynolds Construction company when she was very young and the family moved several times. She lived in Price, Salt Lake, Park City, Monticello and Mt. Pleasant. At age 6 the family moved to Provo and she has lived there ever since.

She began her schooling at Parker School, where she learned to read and write and was voted class president in each grade! Each year in the fall the school had a flower show and she always took home blue or red ribbons for the beautiful flowers that her parents had raised. In the sixth grade she went to a beautiful new elementary called Joaquin. There she participated in the school plays and also won awards for the best scrap and poetry books. From these activities we can surmise that at an early age she like to compete and she always wanted to win! In 1934 her mother had another beautiful baby girl and she was named Carol Ann. LaRae was thrilled to have a baby sister.

On November 24, 1935 LaRae was baptized in the Provo Fifth ward. As a young girl her mother took extra care in grooming her hair and sewing clothing for her. Her father was patient with her and they enjoyed having friends over during the holidays for family celebrations.

The family vacations took them to Durango and Mesa Verde, Colorado and they visited Zion's and Bryce Canyons where her father's company helped build roads. They visited Twin Falls in the summer where her aunt and uncle lived. They also had fun trips and adventures to California and Yellowstone Park.

After elementary school she attended Farrer Junior High where she participated in Girl's Chorus and was pianist for the school orchestra. It was there that she learned to type. She was very active in the LDS church and loved Sunday School and Primary. She graduated from Primary and became active in the youth Mutual program. Her mother taught Mutual classes and they would put on plays, dances and sing songs.

LaRae went on to attend Provo High School and took dancing lessons for several years, learning both tap and ballet. She was active in theatre training and was in several plays. In high school she learned shorthand and participated in fashion shows and dance reviews. She graduated from LDS seminary and was an organist for all of her classes.

During her junior year she met Carlyle "Red" Gourley and it was love at first sight. His family had moved from Eureka to Provo and he was a football and track star for the Provo Bulldogs. They attended many dances and school functions together and often walked to school together. During the summer of 1944 he turned 18 and joined the Navy during WWII. He was in the service for two years and she missed him terribly.

While at Provo she belonged to Sub Deb Sorority , Pep Club and Accapella Choir. She also carried the banner for the Bulldog Marching Band. In the summers she did book work and typing for the Reynolds Construction Company and also pumped gas at a local service station. She loved music and took piano and accordion lessons.

She graduated from Provo High in 1945 and attended the University of Utah for a semester before transferring to Brigham Young university. At BYU she was a member of O.S. Travata sorority and she was also a charter member of the BYU Cougarettes. She majored in food and nutrition and minored in clothing and textiles, classes that helped in the future to raise her family.

Red returned from war in the spring of 1946 and they were married in the Salt Lake Temple on June 4, 1947. They went on a 2-week honey moon trip visiting the Utah Canyons, Las Vegas and Southern and Northern California. They returned home and LaRae continue at BYU for one more year.

Their first daughter Rebecca was born in February of 1949 and they were thrilled with their darling baby girl. Carlyle graduated from BYU in June of 1949 and went to work for Reynolds Construction Company doing road construction. He traveled every week and it was hard for him to be away. Eventually they bought their first home in north east Provo and lived there for the next 31 year.

In 1951 they had a little boy Carlyle George. who she described as a very good baby. Then in 1952 another little happy red headed girl named Linda Louise, followed by a loveable little boy Roger in 1956. Carlyle and LaRae felt very blessed to have a family with two boys and two girls.

By this time Red had gone to work for Geneva Steel. In 1975 he had a serious accident in the open hearth, which resulted in the loss of his leg. He recovered from the injury and returned to Geneva, working in the Plant Security Department for another 5 years.

The family went on vacations to California, Wyoming, Yellowstone Park and Nevada. George and Roger played sports in high school and the family always attended their games. They later played football at BYU on scholarship and Red and LaRae usually traveled to their away games. Rebecca and Linda were active in school clubs and Rebecca worked at First Security Bank, while Linda worked full time at Taylor's Dept Store.

In 1976 Red and LaRae moved into a new home at 2566 N. 930 E. in Provo in 1976 and have lived there ever since. They enjoyed traveling and took trips to Jeffersonville, Indiana, Chicago, Illinois, Branson, Missouri and Mt, Rushmore in South Dakota.

They were active members of the LDS Pleasant View 5th Ward. During her life in the church LaRae served as Relief Society Organist, Primary teacher and counselor, Stake Sunbeam Leader and Sunday school teacher. She was a fulltime home maker and enjoyed collecting depression glass and dolls. She was an avid golfer and bowler. She belonged to two bridge clubs and belonged to the Camitas Literary Club. LaRae treasured her wonderful friendships in these activities, which spanned the last 60 years.

All of their children are married and sealed in the temple. Larae is survived by her four children. Rebecca (Bill) Brown, George (Cindy) Gourley, Linda (Bill) Freeze, Roger (Helen) Gourley and her sister Carol Ann Christensen. In addition, she has 23 grand-children and 72 great-grand children.

Funeral Services will be held on Thursday June 22, 2023 at the Walker Sanderson Funeral Home, 646 E. 800 N. in Orem, Utah. There will be visitation that morning from 9:30-10:30 AM with services to begin at 11:00 AM. Interment will be held in the Provo City Cemetery. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.walkersanderson.com