Elaine van den Boogert Dyreng

Elaine van den Boogert Dyreng “won the dollar” when she passed away peacefully on July 7, 2023 at the age of 87. She was born in Ogden, Utah on June 9, 1936. She was the oldest of 4 children. Her parents, Abraham Machiel Antonie “Charles” van den Boogert and Elisabeth Cornelia “Betsy” Van Maare were both recent Dutch immigrants, making Elaine the first US citizen in her family.

As a child as young as 7, she was helping her parents with their business by answering phones and making appointments.

She remembers packing boxes of food in their basement to send to relatives in Holland at the end of WWII, carefully weighing each box to meet strict regulations.

At the age of 13 her dad took her to his homeland for 3 months, making the transatlantic journey aboard RMS Queen Elizabeth. Perhaps this is what ignited her love of travel. She visited all 50 states and nearly 60 countries on 5 continents.

She married her sweetheart, Ivan Leland Dyreng, Jr. on her 18th birthday, just a week after her high school graduation. The pair went to Southern California on their honeymoon that June of 1954 where they got to see Disneyland while it was still under construction. They returned at least once a year for more than 50 years, and enjoyed sharing time there with their entire family, planning reunions there for both their 40th and 45th anniversaries. Once they even flew down and back on the same (very long) day! They also visited Disney World and Disneyland Paris.

Ivan and Elaine enjoyed 67 beautiful years together before his passing in 2022. We know Ivan and Elaine’s reunion on the other side is a joyous one, even better than “E-ticket ride”at Disneyland.

Ivan and Elaine lived in the Avenues nearly all of their married life. She worked tirelessly for many years managing their apartment building on South Temple and raising their 4 children, plus Ivan who, as she would proclaim, was the “world’s oldest teenager” since he spent nearly 40 years in high school.

Elaine loved interior decorating. Her home was full of antiques and treasures from their many travels and also included many family heirlooms. Every item in her “museum-style” home had a story she was always willing to share.

Grandchildren delighted in counting the number of windmills they could find in the decorations throughout her home. No one ever managed to count the same number twice, so we don’t know the actual total, though it far exceeds 300.

Elaine is survived by her 4 children, Russell (Trisha), Judy (Scott) Thompson, Doug (Jenny), Karen (Jim) Stucker, 14 grandchildren and 19 great grandchildren, and a sister Delores Vincent. She is preceded in death by her husband, Ivan; her parents; and her two brothers, Bruce and Brent Boogert.

A viewing will be held on Wednesday, July 12 from 10-10:45am at Larkin Mortuary, 260 E South Temple, SLC, UT 84111. A graveside service will follow held at Noon at the Ogden City Cemetery. If you are unable to attend in person, click "Watch Services" tab above. A personal Zoom account is required (username and password).

A special thanks to Canyon Hospice and dear family friend, Codie Bonnin for their loving service and tender care of Elaine and our family throughout this difficult time.