Joseph Lynn Saxton

Lynn died just after midnight on Saturday February 11th following a brief battle with septic arthritis. Dad was one of the toughest people who ever lived but, unlike his battles with prostate cancer and diabetes, this time his body just couldn’t take any more. In his 85 years he overcame more than just illness as he strove to raise a family and live a good life.

Dad was born and raised on Quince Street in the Marmalade neighborhood of Salt Lake City. His parents, Joseph Herman Saxton and Myrtle Viola Otte Saxton, raised eight kids in their Victorian home from the 1930s to the 1960s. Dad was the fourth; his brothers Lory, Glen, and Kay were older than him. Then came his sisters Joy, Gail, and Diane, followed by his little brother Richard. He lost a baby sister named Kathleen in the 1950s and his father Joseph died in 1965. His mother Myrtle died in 2003 and both Kay and Lory are gone now as well.

Dad used to tell us the best stories about what it was like to grow up in that house on Quince street. We don’t know if they were ALL true, but we do know that his childhood taught him how important it was to work hard, provide for your family, and not take money for granted.

Dad met our mom, Gail Fifield, when she also lived on Quince street and they attended West High School together in the 1950s. They got married on March 8th, 1960 in Elko Nevada while dad was on leave from the army, a month before mom turned 20. They lived in Colorado Springs for the next year and started a family while dad finished his service. They returned to Salt Lake City in 1961 where they lived for 59 years before moving to Woods Cross in 2020. They were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on their wedding anniversary in 1966.

Dad followed in his parents’ footsteps by raising a large family of his own. Cathi, Jeannie, and Carol were the three oldest, then came David, Willy, Danny, Aaron, Sissy, and Adam. He also had the great privilege of spending several years raising his grandson Dee. Along the way they lost two babies, Jeffery Lynn Saxton and Jacob Aylor Saxton. This past October, they also lost Danny.

Dad’s biggest example to us was his work ethic. He always worked extremely hard, often holding down two jobs while we were growing up. He started his career at Hercules Industries before spending almost 20 years at JC Penney. He spent about 12 years at Golden State container before finishing his career working in security at the Delta Center. He also did stints along the way working security at LDS Hospital, Northwest Pipeline, The Lion House, and The BYU Center. Dad finally retired in 2014.

Dad was very proud of his membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The year after he graduated from West High, he served a mission in Denmark, from 1957 to 1958. (His maternal grandparents had immigrated from Denmark and he loved being able to learn about his heritage through this service.) He also served as Branch President in the Rose Park North Stake Escalate Branch. He taught Sunday school to both youth and elders. He accepted multiple callings through the years and served them all faithfully.

There’s a dad sized hole in our family now. Mom is especially feeling it. Dad also leaves behind many grandchildren, great grandchildren, sons and daughters-in-law, nieces, nephews, and cousins.

There will be a viewing and a funeral service on Saturday February 18th at the Rose Park North Stake Center - 1155 North 1200 West Salt Lake City. The viewing will begin at 10:00 and the funeral service will begin at noon. Interment will be in the Salt Lake Cemetery.