DALE C. MOURITSEN
Obituary
Dale Clark Mouritsen died in Gig Harbor, Washington on Sunday, May 8, 2022. He was 79 years old. He was born on July 11, 1942, in Murray, Salt Lake County, Utah, and was the eldest son of Glendale Mouritsen and Jean Brockbank Mouritsen.
Dale was reared in Utah and attended kindergarten in Draper; first and second grades in Granger; third through ninth grades in Lewiston; and graduated from North Cache High School and Seminary in Richmond in May 1960. Dale began studies at Brigham Young University in 1960 and after completing one year he was called to serve as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was assigned to the Eastern Atlantic States Mission where he served from 1961 to 1963 in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. Upon completing his mission, he resumed his work at BYU.
In 1964 Dale met Marta Christensen, also a BYU student, from El Monte, California, and they were married in the Los Angeles Temple on January 27, 1965. Both continued with their studies and graduated with BA degrees in 1966 and MA degrees in 1968. In 1966 Dale was employed by the Church Educational System and taught Seminary in Lehi for three years and Orem for two. In 1971 he was transferred to California where he spent the balance of his professional career as a CES Coordinator in South Bay stakes and teaching at the Institutes at Stanford and San Jose State Universities and De Anza and West Valley Community Colleges. Dale completed a PhD in history at BYU in 1982. He retired in 2011 after 45 years of teaching. After retiring, Dale thoroughly enjoyed volunteering at the Sunnyvale Heritage Park Museum and all his associations there. The family resided in Sunnyvale, California for nearly 50 years.
As an active member of the Church, Dale served as a teacher in several organizations, elders quorum president, senior stake seventies quorum president, high councilor in the Santa Clara and Los Altos California Stakes, bishop of the Lawrence Station Ward, and counselor in the presidency of the Los Altos Stake.
Dale is survived by his wife of 57 years, Marta, and seven children: Stuart & Maren Christine Bunderson (Chesterfield, Missouri); Rob & Jenifer Jean Gunderson (Laguna Niguel, California); Matthew Clark & Darby (Brighton, Colorado); Mark Jared (Rancho Cordova, California); Craig & Lara Michelle Hedlund (San Jose, California); Brian & Kathryn Dalene Olson (Doylestown, Pennsylvania); Robert & Melissa Kaye Holmes (Gig Harbor, Washington); nineteen grandchildren: Joslyn (Steven), Jenica, Jilian, Garrett, Maren, Jeffrey, Jaimee, Tyler, Carson, Audrey, Zoey, Maya, Wyatt, Kaia, Mallory, Owen, Phoebe, Benjamin, Charli; and seven brothers and sisters: Lela Scholes, Robert G. Mouritsen, Paul B Mouritsen, Seth Stewart Mouritsen, Kathleen Kilgrow, Jed L. Mouritsen, and John M. Mouritsen. He is preceded in death by a sister, Maureen (1990), his father (2000), his mother (2001), and a brother, Richard (2021).
Long before his death, Dale planned every aspect of his funeral – including this obituary. While some might call that morbid, those who knew his meticulous attention to detail will nod and smile. And so it is with some risk that we insert a short addendum. Dale was respected, loved, and admired by so many, but especially by those who were privileged to call him teacher – including his children. Teaching was his greatest passion, followed closely by real country music. He was a purist when it came to his tunes.
He loved a witty joke, California weather, and early morning basketball. And Dale loved people. His mantra of “Everybody gets clobbered with something,” expressed both his love for all who were heartsore from the effects of this fallen world and his understanding that we’re all heartsore in our own way and time. It was this empathy that allowed him to love people of all religions, races, backgrounds, and – yes – even political parties, so deeply. Although we miss him profoundly, the influx of well-wishes and letters of gratitude from friends he knew through all stages of life tells the story of his remarkable legacy of lives changed and faith strengthened.
Friends are invited to call at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1552 East 750 South, Spanish Fork, Utah, on Saturday, May 21 from 11:00 AM-1:00 PM. The funeral service will begin promptly at 1:30 PM and conclude within one hour (per Dale’s instructions). Interment will be at the Spanish Fork City Cemetery at 3:00 PM. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions to the Humanitarian Aid Fund of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
To view the service remotely, go to Legacy Funerals & Cremations Facebook page, or copy and paste this Zoom link: https://wustl.zoom.us/j/94469103505
To leave condolences to the family, visit www.legacyfunerals.com
