Clynn Roberts Ford

Clynn Roberts Ford, age 95, passed away at home on Saturday, September 25, 2021, with his wife by his side. Clynn was born on April 30, 1926, in Centerville, Utah, to Rulon Garn Ford and Arvilla Roberts Ford. He was the oldest of nine children and took the responsibility of helping on the farm and watching over his siblings very seriously. Clynn was blessed with a good, strong body and learned to work hard, but he also made time for athletics. Besides milking cows, weeding onions, picking fruit, and other farm duties, Clynn loved to play football, basketball, tennis, and to ski and swim. Clynn, who always had a happy, positive attitude, noticed while working on the farm that so much depended on weather and other factors that he was going to choose a different career path.

Clynn attended Davis High School and was accepted into the early naval military medical training at the age of seventeen. He was blessed with an eidetic memory and extraordinary recall. He attended SMU and the U of U, before graduating from Northwestern University Medical School. Clynn completed his Internship, Surgical Residency, and Surgical Fellowship at Cincinnati General Hospital. During his time in Cincinnati, he met the love of his life, Katherine Garrett. He was smitten by this beautiful charge nurse; however, he had to charm her into dating him. They were married on August 19, 1951. He was in the US Naval Reserve and was active duty from 1944 to 1953. During that time he served in the Marine Medical Corp. He retired from the Corp in 1965. During some of this time, Clynn and Kaye lived in Oceanside, California, where their first daughter, Caron, was born. She died several days after birth, which was a great heartache to the new parents. While in Oceanside, they both learned to play golf and enjoyed playing at many courses in their varied travels in years to come. They returned to Cincinnati, where the next three children were born. In 1960 they moved west to Salt Lake City, Utah, where two more children were born. He was on the surgical staff at the University Hospital, Chief of Surgical Services at the Veterans Administration Hospital, and Thoracic/Cardiovascular and General Surgeon at LDS Hospital. He joined the Trauma Surgical Team at LDS Hospital in 1977. He was the Founder and Director of the Peripheral Vascular Laboratory at LDS Hospital. During his career, he was on a team who separated a set of Siamese twins.

When Clynn came home from work, he was all fun and would gather his children and neighborhood kids to play baseball or football or some other activity. Being a dad was a joy to Clynn. He would do anything to help his children and grandchildren to develop their talents and abilities. He thought owning a boat was a great idea and created a love in his children of Colter Bay and the Grand Tetons, where they learned to fish and water ski. He loved nature and all its beauties. He took the family to see many wonderful sights, both in Utah and outside of it. He took the family on a journey to visit Kaye’s relatives in Kentucky every couple of years, as well as trips to both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts.

Clynn was an avid reader and retained almost all of what he read. He could tell you histories, facts, and individual stories of people he knew. He saw the good in everyone and never spoke ill of others but in contrast would rave about people’s good traits. Even at the very end of his time on earth, he was thanking everyone for all the little things they did, and he made sure we knew we were loved. He had great faith in the eternal plan and did not forget to thank Heavenly Father, even in his weakened state. He was so very grateful for his eternal companion and told us all what a great woman she is and how lucky he was to have her.

Clynn is survived by his devoted wife, Katherine (Kaye); his children, Cheri Lynn (Wayne Habenicht),
Michele (David Richards), Randon, Shawna (Craig Gurling), and Mary Ann (Randy Rawlings); fifteen grandchildren, and twenty-one great grandchildren; his siblings, Newell Ford (Kathy), Elaine Kapple, Emma (David Glover), and Mark Ford (Marcia); his sisters in-law, Catherine Ford, and Lora Ford.

Clynn was preceded in death by his daughter, Caron; his wonderful parents, Rulon and Arvilla Ford; his siblings, Kathleen (Arlin Bloomfield), Duane Ford, Joseph Garn Ford, and Walton Ford; his dear brother-in-law, Dick Kapple.

Family and friends are invited to visit on Thursday, September 30, 2021, from 6:00-8:00 pm at The Monument Park Stake Center, 1320 South Wasatch Drive, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84108. Funeral Services will be held Friday, October 1, 2021, at 11:00 am at the Monument Park Stake Center (address above). There will be no visitation on the day of the service. Interment will be in the Centerville City Cemetery, 650 East 400 South, Centerville, Utah, 84014. For those who were unable to attend the service, you may watch the recording by clicking on the "Watch Service" link above.