May 19th, 1954 – January 1st, 2023
Gregory “Pop” Cozzens, AKA “Popalopagus”, was called home on January 1st, 2023 at the age of 68. He unexpectedly passed away in his ski shack in Provo, Utah from natural causes.
Greg was born on May 19th, 1954, in Lovell, Wyoming, to Carrie Verniece Moncur and Ralph Dee Cozzens. His brother Dee Cozzens (deceased) and sister Sharon Roth were delighted to welcome him to the family. In his youth, Greg enjoyed playing in the dirt with his trucks and cars, riding dirt bikes, driving his truck in the hills, playing his saxophone, and participating in the high school performing choir and theater group. Word on the street is that he started out as a bit of “an ornery cuss”, but he had a perfectly round head.
Attending Northeastern Wyoming Community College on a music scholarship, Greg played the saxophone and sang. He also studied business at the U of U, NYU, and BYU where he met, fell in love, and began a life with Alisa Nelson, of Warrenton, South Africa. Greg’s career and passions first took his family to New York City, where three of his children were born, and where he and Alisa managed a thriving diamond-cutting and wholesale business. Greg also worked in San Francisco–where his 4th and final child was born–as a stockbroker and small business owner, and in Virginia as a software sales engineer.
Greg served an LDS mission in South Texas. He continued to serve the Lord throughout his life in various ward and stake callings, as a temple worker in the Washington DC temple, and as a faithful husband and father.
In addition to his family and the Gospel, Greg’s passions included traveling, skiing, camping, fly-fishing, sailing, aviation, technology, weather watching, porch sitting, driving tractors, and sharing these passions with his posterity, all while making them laugh. His family suspects that Greg was single-handedly responsible for keeping John Deere, Patagonia, Apple, Levi’s, GMC, and Pepsi in business for the last 30 years, as an entertainingly dedicated customer and advocate of these brands. He spent his last weeks happily sailing the British Virgin Islands, skiing in Utah, and visiting all 20 of his grandchildren spread throughout the country.
Greg is survived by his older sister Sharon, his wife Alisa, his children Christi Romney, Joseph Cozzens, Cory Cozzens, and Lauren Mallett, their spouses, and their children. All who knew Pop would describe him as understated, sweet, subtly humorous about everything, unconditionally loving and generous, and the world’s biggest teddy bear. Memories of Greg will continue to bring love and laughter to his family for generations to come.
Memories of Greg can be seen at www.cozzens.org/memories. To view service go to this site and then click on funeral program and then scroll down below church address and there is a button that says watch online here.
Condolences can be offered at www.legacyfunerals.com.
