Dolores Sanders Telford

Dolores Sanders Telford passed away December 25, 2020, surrounded by loved ones, at the age of 90.

Dolores was born June 16, 1930, to Andrew and Delilah Webb Sanders. She was raised in Hurricane, Utah, during the Depression years. In her life sketch she wrote, “I supposed we were poor but so was everyone else. Dad and mother worked hard and always provided for us.” One of her early memories is that of kneeling and placing her head in her mother’s lap while she was taught to pray.

She attended 1st-6th grades in the schoolhouse on Main Street in Hurricane, Utah, which also served as her church house. It had a bell tower that would ring a half hour before school, church, and other special occasions such as Christmas and the arrival of Santa Claus. It was one of her favorite memories.

At the age of nine she began taking steel guitar lessons, a talent that served her well and gave joy to many over the years. High School became her happy place where she developed many lifelong friendships, was a lead in plays, went to dances, and was a senior class officer. When she was sixteen years old, she was selected from her high school to attend a two-week music course at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. She chose to study vocal lessons. She enjoyed singing in ward choirs, performing various duets and solos, and being part of the Heritage Choir.

She recognized how much this added to her life and later wrote, “I wish I would have thanked my parents more and showed more appreciation for all the music lessons and special opportunities I had such as BYU. I am sure it cost them more than they could afford.”

On August 30th, 1948, she married Brice Adams in the Salt Lake City Temple. They were both 18 years old. She once expressed, “I loved him so much I thought death would be better than living without him.” She set her course very young, bringing five babies into this world by the age of 26. It was a large family just like the one she grew up with.

Throughout her life she served in many church callings in primary, relief society, and ward music callings. She even served a mission to southern Utah. In her later years she married Robert Junior Telford on October 8th, 2012. He was her sweet companion for nine years. They spent many days working in the St. George Temple together. He preceded her in death. December 23rd, 2020.

Dolores had a simple but powerful testimony, and she closed her life sketch with these words, “I truly want all my loved ones to know that I have a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for this testimony and all the blessings it has brought into my life. The prayers have been answered, a few personal spiritual experiences that have brought light and knowledge, especially the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ that I can never deny.”

Dolores is survived by her loving children, Kathleen (Brett) Hoskins, Marilyn (Philip) Call, Rebecca Ann (Peter) Paulos, Michael (Debbie) Adams, and Norman (Barbara) Adams; her sisters, Lila Bingham, Emma Ann (Allen) Nelson, and Andra Crawford. She has 28 grandchildren, 70 great grandchildren and 3 great, great grandchildren.

We children celebrate our mother for her desire to fortify her faith. We salute her for her powerful goodness. We celebrate her spirit, her humor, her intelligence, her joy of sharing her talents and her compassion for all God’s creatures. Mother has taken off her apron of earthly duties. She is off to dance with stars, sing with the choir of angels, teach Monet oil painting lessons, and entertain those who have gone before by playing the Tennessee Waltz on her beloved steel guitar.

Thank you, mother, for giving us life, touching our hearts, and nourishing our souls. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for giving us this extraordinary woman to be our mother.

Funeral services will be held at the Larkin Sunset Gardens 1950 E 10600 S Sandy, Utah 84092 On January 6th, 2021
The Viewing will be held from 10:00-11:00am,
and the Funeral will be held from 11:00-1:00am.
Dedication of the grave will be held in Hurricane, Utah, on January 9th, 2021, at 1:00pm.

Family and friends can attend the funeral services via zoom:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84286758570?pwd=dDFWMEF3YWFNNi9qditSMzdaQ3hGdz09