Pinewood derby award certificate

Obituary: Carolyn VanOrman

1914 ~ 2004

Carolyn Gibb VanOrman, 90, died Monday, August 16, 2004, in Sandy, Utah. She had been a resident of Jerome, Idaho for 50 years.

She was born August 2, 1914, in Boise, Idaho, to William Napier Gibb II and Anna Mae Tucker Gibb. Her father was a civil engineer, and when her family moved to Roseworth for the construction of a dam there, they became true pioneers in the sagebrush desert of southern Idaho. She rode bareback on a horse to a one room country school, raised turkeys, churned butter, and had many wonderful adventures. As very young children, she and her brother Bill survived being bitten by a rabid coyote.

Carolyn graduated from Buhl High School as valedictorian of her class in 1931. She attended the University of Idaho, Southern Branch, in Pocatello, and received her teaching certificate.

She taught grades five through eight in a country school at Willowdale for one year. On May 25, 1935, she married Lyle C. VanOrman in Pocatello, and they spent 60 wonderful years together until he died in 1995. Much of their married life was spent in Jerome, where Lyle's business was the VanOrman Hardware.

Later, he was a rural mail carrier for the Twin Falls Post Office. From the beginning, Lyle and Carolyn had a way of making anyone and everyone feel welcome in their home. School friends, neighbors, business associates and family were greeted warmly and treated as special guests.

Carolyn was the mother of five children, and her life was one of service to her family, church, and community.

An expert seamstress, she made wedding dresses, overalls for stuffed bears, prom dresses, trousseaus, formals for recitals, Halloween costumes, and lots of doll clothes. She loved to cook and probably made more cookies and cupcakes for school events than anyone in the history of the PTA.

She enjoyed planning and preparing big dinners for special events, and for several years she was in charge of the luncheons for her ward Relief Society.

When her kitchen was remodeled in 1962, Carolyn designed it to be a model of efficiency, but it was also the place where sick children were given special treatment, songs were sung in harmony, current events discussed, and homework checked.

Carolyn loved beautiful things, and her home and garden were impeccably kept. She enjoyed poetry, music, and lively conversation. She encouraged and tutored her children and grandchildren, attending every possible musical performance, school event, and sport activity. She had a gift for entertaining children and was always ready with a fun game to play. She championed the underdog and had compassion for the less fortunate. She had a special place in her heart for boys and was active in the Cub Scout program for over 20 years, receiving the Silver Fawn award for her years of service. She wrote hilarious skits, set up pinewood derby races, demonstrated camping skills and the tying of knots, supervised countless field trips, taught hundreds of games, encouraged sportsmanship and fair play, and lived her life by the Scout Law.

If there was ever a boy with a problem, Carolyn made it a point to help that boy become the best he could be.

Survivors include twin sons, Bob (Ellen) VanOrman of Salt Lake City, Utah; and Bill (Nancy) VanOrman of Bainbridge Island, Washington; three daughters, Marie (Ralph) Meyer of Post Falls, Idaho; Margaret (Max) Mueller of Centerville, Utah; and Kathleen (Kevon) Balls of South Jordan, Utah; 21 grandchildren; 25 great- grandchildren; two sisters, Barbara Trukken of Ramona, California and Patricia Payne of Colorado Springs, Colorado; and one brother, Jack Gibb of Los Angeles, California.

She was preceded in death by her husband Lyle, her parents, one brother, and two sisters.

The funeral will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, August 20, 2004, at the LDS First Ward Chapel, 825 East Ave. B. in Jerome, Idaho with Lavar Buttars conducting. Burial will follow at the Jerome Cemetery. Friends may call from 10:00-10:45 a.m. on Friday at the church. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of White Mortuary in Twin Falls, Idaho.