On July 11, 2020, our sweet mother, aunt, grandmother, great grandmother and friend, Mavis Greer Clayton, passed away after a short illness. She completed her life’s mission, returned to her Heavenly Father, and rejoined her beloved husband, Sutherland Whipple Clayton. In her nearly one hundred years of living, “Grandma Tigger”, as she was affectionately known, never faltered in her devotion to her family, church, or country. She fought a good fight, she finished her course, she kept the faith.
Our mother was born on August 31, 1920 in Blackfoot, Idaho to Charles Paul Greer and Bessie Allred Greer. Her mother died unexpectedly when Mom was only five years old and so the heartbroken little family left Idaho. She and her younger brother, Paul A Greer, grew up in Union, raised by their beloved father, with the assistance of their cherished grandmother, loving aunts, and later by their stepmother. She attended Union Elementary, Union Junior High School, Jordan High School and LDS Business College.
On May 29, 1941, Mavis married Sutherland Whipple Clayton (Sub) in the Salt Lake Temple and they enjoyed a long and happy life together. From 1941 to 1978, Sub and Mavis made their home in Centerville, Utah where they raised their five children. They particularly enjoyed building and spending time at the family cabin in Lamb’s Canyon, and later, they bought and renovated a winter home in Washington, Utah. After their children were grown, they built a home on the Greer family property in Union, now Cottonwood Heights, Utah. Mavis loved living at Birchbrook on Greer Lane, with several of her children as neighbors. She also dearly loved her Union First Ward family and neighbors, and they viewed her as the matriarch of the ward.
As an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mavis served throughout her lifetime in many capacities. She particularly enjoyed her many years as the Stake Young Women’s President in the Davis Stake. From 1979 to 1980, she and her husband served a full-time mission at the Hawaii Temple Visitors’ Center. She had a great interest in family history and temple work and shared that enthusiasm with her children. She also instilled a love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in her children, teaching them by genuine devotion and humble example to be faithful and productive.
Mom loved living in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah and always appreciated the beauty of nature and being out of doors. She loved antiques, refinishing furniture, and was especially famous for her doll collection. She also had a lifetime passion for reading and instilled a great love of scholarship and education in her children. She loved learning about the arts and cultures of other peoples, and traveled extensively throughout the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and the South Pacific. She was well-read and well-informed to the very end of her life.
Mavis was a loyal and supportive wife and helped her husband establish his nursery business, Western Garden Center, working many long hours at his side. She was generous with both her resources and time, and was actively involved in volunteer service to her community. Mom was a member of the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. She also served for many years as a Pink Lady at South Davis Hospital, as a 4-H teacher, as an organizer and leader of the Literature, Music and Art Club in her community, and as a local election judge.
Mom loved life, and cherished her involvement in the lives of her family members and her many friends and neighbors, reaching out with unselfish concern for others. She was adventurous, patriotic, intelligent, energetic, honest, frugal, and industrious. Because of her ability to always look for the positive, and her empathetic nature, family and friends loved to spend time with her. Her wise advice always inspired her family: “Have an attitude of gratitude. Look for something beautiful every day. Leave a place better than you found it. Spend less than you make. Be kind to everyone. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem.”
She will always be remembered for the hundreds of thoughtful birthday cards she sent. In her later years she knit over 600 hats which she donated to the Humanitarian Center.
Mavis is preceded in death by her husband, Sutherland, her parents, her brother, Paul A. Greer, and her great-grandson, Jacob Travis Anderson. She is survived by her children: Paul Douglas (Mary) Clayton of Salt Lake City, Christine (Russell) Tueller of Cottonwood Heights, Ann (John) Jackson of Salt Lake City, Lon Greer (Grace) Clayton, and Kathleen (Yves) Perrin of Cottonwood Heights; twenty-four beloved grandchildren, eighty-one great-grandchildren, and twenty-nine spouses of her descendants, whom she loved as much as her own progeny. She also leaves behind many friends who loved her dearly.
We are especially grateful for the incredible loving care offered by family members during the last years of her life. We also appreciate the hospice staff and caregivers who provided much-needed support during the last few months.
We will miss you, Grandma Tigger, but we will always remember what you taught us and strive to honor your legacy.
