Grover Bless “apa”, 69, of Orem, passed away on Jan. 1, 2021, surrounded by his children and devoted wife. He was married to Lida Isabel Bless in 1977, and recently celebrated 43 years of beautiful marriage. Grover is survived by his four children Gustavo Bless, Meckin Bless, Ian Bless, Taisia Bless and many, many, family members and friends who loved him dearly. He was the best grandpa, “apa”, to his six grandkids who also miss him greatly.
Grover brought joy to everyone he came into contact with. He was the light of his family. Known as the family jokester, he was infamous at making even the most serious of person laugh out loud with his crazy jokes, “occurrencias”, dancing and stories. His charm, mischievousness, and love of life were unforgettable.
Grover was born to parents Eduardo Bless and Maria Bustamante, on April 24, 1951, in Trujillo, Peru. He attended Colegio Nacional San Juan in Trujillo Peru, where he had some of his fondest trouble making memories. Here is where he got the nickname “loco”.
After graduation, Grover became an air traffic controller and worked for CORPAC until his retirement in 1999. Being the adventuring spirit he was, Grover moved to Utah in 2000 with his wife and children for a change of scenery and a taste of the American dream. Known for his love of travel, prior to the pandemic, Grover had recently completed a long six cross-country European trip, and was in the works to visit Barcelona again this upcoming fall. He rarely sat still.
Grover loved to learn and try new things. He was an avid chess player, artist, sportsman and talker. His favorite sport was soccer, but lived for chess and painting his favorite style of art, abstract art. He participated in chess tournaments and had his art even hung in the Provo library as part of a community exhibit. A man of many talents, he was known to excel at anything and everything he tried. Grover would collect books on chess, and Peru, but was most known for his collection of Hawaiian shirts, which he would wear all year long.
Being originally from Trujillo, Peru, he treasured Peruvian food, and loved to make his family ceviche on special occasions. He would educate his children and grandchildren on their heritage with pride, and would play Peruvian criolla music on weekends for the Sunday brunch with his family. He was a naturally happy and social person. Forever we will remember his wittiness, and nicknames he gave the whole family. A family man, he left a great example to all of what a son, brother, dad, grandpa and husband should be.
Grover treated one and all with great affection. He was one in a million and always a fun and loving person to be around. He is described as being the light of the family because when he walked into a room everyone felt his presence and laughed and felt his good energy. He was an example to us all how family is everything; something that is to be cultivated and preserved. Thank you for these life lessons Grover. Loco you leave a deep emptiness in our hearts. We never thought you would leave us so soon. Even if you had lived to be 100, it would have been too soon. I know he would not like us to be crying or feeling sad. If he knew he would laugh at us all, shaming us saying something like “ya basta, …con esas caras de cojudos…!”
In lieu of a funeral we request friends and family take a video or picture of them lighting fireworks in his honor and post it to his Facebook page if you haven’t done so already. Poppers work as well. If all else fails throw on your most colorful Hawaiian shirt and take a selfie! If you do not have a Facebook account, we request you send your picture or video to Gustavo or Meckin to upload. Don’t be shy! Please help us spread the word about posting as much as possible.
