Wayne Clive Bailey

On September 16, 2025 at the age of 96, Wayne peacefully passed through the Veil and joined his loving wife Venned.

Wayne was a very charismatic man, many referred to him as a man’s man. He was very intelligent & well read, he had an exceptional memory for names, faces & events. He often related stories of his life & of the world he knew growing up. He had an amazing sense of humor & would insert ‘zinger anecdotes’ during conversations. He loved those that were close to him & had a special affinity for the new babies in the family.

He was born in Escalante, Utah, a small town in southern Utah that his grandparents, who traveled by covered wagons, helped settle. He was very proud of his heritage & loved being a man with the land. He was born to Harvey Clive Bailey & Lasca Black Bailey & was raised in the country. He was the 4th of 5 children & the 2nd boy.

He was 8 years old when his father gave him his first horse, he named him Silver, he broke him to ride & went on to break horses for anyone who asked. He delivered the Salt Lake Tribune on horseback. He quit school as a teenager & hired out at different ranches in Utah & Nevada.

He married his sweetheart Venned Mitchell in 1948, she helped him get his GED. They moved their young family several times as he worked in the oilfields in North Dakota & Wyoming. They had 5 children: Wayne Keith, JoAnn, Barbara, Dorothy & Susan. They lived in a 50 ft trailer & eventually moved back to Utah in 1956 & lived in Escalante.

He went to California to obtain his Ironworkers Certificate. He worked out of Ironworkers Local 27 often traveling out of state & away from home for months at a time. He also helped put up the Kennecott Building, the Church Office Building, the Delta Center & many other large buildings in & around Salt Lake until he retired in 1992.

They moved to the Salt Lake area in 1959 & bought a wonderful home in Midvale, where he worked to improve the 100-year-old home. He had amazing vegetable gardens, fruit trees, & flower gardens. He was again a man of the land. He also was able to have horses & even a steer to get beef for the freezer. He loved to go hunting every year & made the best jerky in town. Fishing was a passion he passed on to his children & grandchildren. They were not a wealthy family, they lived below their means, but they were rich in love & experiences. Teaching good values & work ethics to their children.

Due to urban growth, they were forced to sell their house & bought a new one in Sandy, Utah where they continued living their best life, with families over, gardens, dinners & holiday celebrations. He became the master of raspberry cultivation. They had raspberry shakes & fresh raspberries & eventually the specialty was raspberry jam. Also, he was a master of homemade ice cream, using an electrical model, an upgrade from the original hand crank version. Venned would cook the ‘caramel’ to make the best ice cream ever. He & Venned joined many bowling leagues & played often & well. Enjoying the social life.

In 2010, on their 62nd wedding anniversary, they were sealed for time and all eternity in the Draper Utah Temple. In 2015, as life became more challenging, they moved in with their daughter Barbara and her husband Allen. They truly cherished the loving care they received, which allowed them to continue living life to the fullest. Surrounded by the warmth of their large family, they remained active and deeply enjoyed every moment they shared together. Venned passed in 2023, after 73 ½ years of marriage.

Wayne continued to share stories, love, and his humor, enveloping his family in a warm embrace of cherished memories. He made sure they knew, with every word and every laugh, just how much they were loved.

Wayne is survived by his children: Wayne Keith (Bonnie) Bailey, JoAnn (Bob) Mosey, Barbara (Allen) Cressall, Dorothy (Warnel) Johnson, & Susan (Roy) Bradford. 18 grandchildren, 38 great- grandchildren, & 12 great-great grandchildren & many nieces & nephews that stayed in touch & he loved dearly.

Preceded in death by: His wife Venned Mitchell Bailey, his parents & siblings, grandchildren, Cindy Bailey Zaelit, Michael Wayne Bailey, Eric Jonathon Bailey, & great-granddaughter Samantha McCall Cressall.

We cry because we loved him deeply & we feel his absence because he mattered so much.

His life & presence were a gift to us all.

Funeral services will be held Friday, September 26, 2025 at 11:00 am at the South Jordan Country Park 3rd Ward, 1988 West 11400 South Jordan, Utah. A viewing will be held Friday morning from 10:00-11:00 am prior to the service.

Friends may call Thursday evening from 6:00- 8:00 PM at Larkin Sunset Gardens, 1950 East 10600 South, Sandy, Utah.

Interment Larkin Sunset Gardens Cemetery

To watch the funeral services live via Zoom please click the blue "Watch Services" button at the top of the obituary.