Ferral J Ogilvie, born March 9, 1917 in Richfield, Utah, passed away peacefully in his daughter Linda's home in Magna, Utah on December 16, 2014. He looked forward to rejoining his dear wife Cleone (who passed April 10, 2001), his parents Ida and William, his children Robert "Bob" and Janette, his brothers Kendal, Homer, and David, his sister Renee, and the other loved ones who preceded him. Ferral cheated death many times before he left us. As an infant, he had walking typhoid. In the Army, a horse kicked him in the face, a paperwork error kept him off the Bataan death march, and a sodium pentathol allergy stopped his heart. Later in life he survived hepatitis, prostate cancer, and heart valve replacement surgery. One cardiac doctor gave him at most two years to live, and he was still with us more than a decade later. He faced many hardships, but he was a loving brother, father, grandfather, friend, and prolific storyteller to the end.
He grew up in Salt Lake City, where he and his siblings shared a paper route for over a decade, and Ferral's dedication earned him a visit to the 1934 Chicago World's Fair. He graduated from West High School. His adventures in Salt Lake with an irrigation canal, watermelons, strawberry pie, or his Model T were just a few of the many tales in his collection.
During World War II, Ferral served in the U.S. Army's horse-drawn Field Artillery, and he attained the rank of Captain. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Utah, and then worked for many years as a mechanical engineer at BYU. He also started and ran an insulating business for many years, which he passed on to his son Blaine. Ferral's work sheds held welders, table saws, all manner of power tools and hand tools, and many machine parts and other raw materials for his many projects, which included a dunking machine that became a regular attraction at the Mapleton July 24th picnics, as well as household extensions, adaptations and repairs too numerous to list. He was generous with his knowledge and his time, and he continued working on such projects well into his 90s.
Ferral married Cleone W. Jones on August 19, 1946 in the LDS Salt Lake Temple. Over the next three decades, they raised nine children. The home he made with her held many books, puzzles, craft supplies, and musical instruments, and much love. They taught their children to work with their hands, develop their minds, and open their hearts.
Ferral and Cleone served an LDS mission to Texas, and they spent many devoted hours doing temple work. They were called as Temple workers in Provo and Seattle Temples. Ferral served in many positions in his wards and stakes, including in a bishopric. His heart was in his missionary service with everyone he met.
Ferral is survived by his children: Paul Ogilvie and wife Marcie, John Ogilvie and wife Kristy, Yvonne Krieger and husband Henry "Butch," Blaine Ogilvie (Judie), Gary Ogilvie and wife Edith "Edie," Anne Warner and husband John "Jack," and Linda Bowers (Richard). He is also survived by his siblings Donna Griffin (Wally), Eileen Ipson (Grant), Glen Ogilvie, and Richard Ogilvie and wife Loretta, and by well over a hundred grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren.
Services will be held Saturday, December 20, 2014 at the Magna Ward, 3084 South 8400 West, Magna, UT, at 11:00 a.m. Services will be preceded by a viewing at the Magna Ward at 10:00 a.m. Saturday. An earlier viewing—at a different location—will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, December 19, at the LDS Church located at 3610 South 8400 West. Interment will be at the Salt Lake City Cemetery, 200 North N Street, Salt Lake City, UT. Funeral direction is being provided through Larkin Mortuary, 260 E. South Temple, Salt Lake City, UT. The family also thanks Encompass Home Health Care and Hospice for their kind assistance.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to organizations that assist veterans.
