Florence Hardy Bertagnole, 85, passed away on January 5, 2020 at her home in Salt Lake City after a courageous battle with colon cancer. Her two sons were by her side. She was born at Holy Cross Hospital in Salt Lake City on December 17, 1934, daughter of Edward V. Hardy and Evelyn Reeves Hardy. She has a brother Ted and sister Kaye.
Florence graduated from the University of Utah in 1957 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education. She joined the Pi Beta Phi Sorority and was an active "Pi Phi" alum late into her life.
Florence married E. Gene Lyman in 1957 (divorced 1964) and had two children with him, Anne Florence Lyman Schmidt (Vernon) and Timothy Gene Lyman (Cynthia). Florence married again on February 1, 1966 to Gerald Edmund Bertagnole. They had one son, Bradford Edward Bertagnole.
Florence was an active member of Wasatch Presbyterian Church where she also taught preschool for most of her later years. "Miss Florence" had to abandon teaching with the diagnosis of her cancer in 2018. She also was active in the local chapter of P.E.O.
One of her favorite pastimes was playing Bridge with her friends. She would even tell her doctors to schedule her treatments around her Bridge games because she loved that so much.
A tragic plane crash took the life of her daughter Anne and Anne's husband Vern in April of 1990. Florence took in and raised Anne and Vern's three children, Thomas, Katherine (Katie) and Jonathon. She also has two other grandchildren, Angela and Ian Lyman.
Preceded in death by her parents, husband Gerald and daughter Anne. Survived by her brother, sister, two sons and five grandchildren.
The family thanks the doctors, nurses and staff of Utah Cancer Specialists for their care of our mother and grandmother and help with her cancer treatment. We'd also like to thank the staff at St. Mark's Hospital and Valeo Hospice for their support and comfort at the end.
A memorial service for both Gerald and Florence will be held Saturday, February 8, 2020 at 11:00 a.m. at Wasatch Presbyterian Church, 1626 South 1700 East, Salt Lake City, Utah.
In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to the cancer charity of your choice that is helping to research and find a cure.
