Burton Royal Pett

Burton Royal Pett, 94, passed away peacefully at home in South Jordan, Utah on August 28, 2025, surrounded by his family. He was a beloved husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and friend.

Burton was born on October 14, 1930, in Brigham City, Utah, the first child of George Burton Pett and Mary Viola Jenson Pett. Burton grew up in Brigham City and attended Box Elder High School. As a teenager, he loved playing basketball with the Brigham City 4^th Ward team which went on to win the All-Church Basketball Tournament in Salt Lake City in 1950. He attended Utah State University in Logan and joined the Army National Guard to help pay for school. After his unit was activated in 1950, he served overseas in the Korean War until 1952. He often recalled that on the way to Korea, his military transport ship was stopped in the middle of the ocean so army surgeons could perform an emergency appendectomy – on him.

After the war, he returned to Utah State where he met his eternal sweetheart, Carol Ann Roundy of Corinne, Utah. They married in1953 in the Logan LDS Temple. The following year Burton graduated with a degree in business and accounting, and accepted a job with Del Monte Corporation in San Francisco, California. During the course of his career he became a manager in the Tax Division and was responsible for the property taxes of all Del Monte properties across the country.

Burton and Carol didn’t intend California to be a permanent move, but they ended up staying in the Bay Area for 62 years. They bought a home in Concord and there raised their four children: Kathie, Janna, Allyson and Barbara. They created many childhood memories for their daughters with frequent family trips to beaches and state and national parks all over California. Burton was always there for every choir concert, marching band parade, and softball game. He also put up with many, many cats over the years along with a variety of other pets that seemed to find their way to our home.

At different times in his life, Burton enjoyed tying flies and fly-fishing, golf, waterfowl hunting, camping, and backpacking. He could repair almost anything and taught himself to do everything from plumbing to pouring cement to installing sprinkler systems. He was a very good neighbor who helped many people in quiet, behind-the-scenes acts of service. He liked traveling with Carol, especially to Hawaii and Alaska, and he enjoyed the many family reunions we held at Lake Tahoe. He served as a ward clerk in different wards for almost 30 years, and after he retired, he and Carol served as temple workers in the Oakland LDS Temple for 13 years.

In 2016 Burton and Carol moved to South Jordan, where for the past nine years they have enjoyed their Daybreak neighborhood, their ward, and their frequent visits from family members. Even at the very end of his life, he liked to go down to the end of the block to look at the mountains. Our family expresses thanks and appreciation to the neighbors, friends, and hospice workers who did so much to help during his last months.

Above all, Burton was devoted to his wife and his family. He said that the one thing that gave him the most satisfaction in life was that his kids had somehow all turned out well. And in his own words, “Having grandkids is the best part.” His life was defined by a quiet strength and generosity of spirit that steadied and blessed those around him.

Burton is survived by his wife of 72 years, Carol; his daughters Kathie (Franklin) Keel of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Janna (Brett) DeLange of Boise, Idaho; Allyson (Steve) Lambson of Nampa, Idaho; and Barbara (Michael) DeGroote of West Valley City, Utah; his grandchildren Jordan, Christopher, Kiley, Cameron, Matthew, Tyler, Erin, Zachary, Caroline, Kate, and Ellie; and his great-grandchildren Everly, Annie, Calvin, Eva, Hazel, Emma, Eastan, Ava, Leo, Maxwell, Isaac, Willa and Scarlett. He was preceded in death by his parents and his sister Mary Ray Pett Wilson.

Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 on September 13, 2025, at the LDS church located at 5072 Roaring Road, South Jordan, Utah. A viewing will be held prior beginning at 10:00. Interment services will be held at 3:00 in the Brigham City Cemetery.

Funeral services will be streamed for those wishing to attend virtually. To watch the previously held services, please click the “Watch Services” link above.