Tonya Murdock Obituary, Farmington, Utah, Tonya Murdock Has Died

Tonya Murdock Obituary, Death – Tonya Lee (Dahl) Murdock, our beloved mother, wife, and friend, died on August 22, 2023, after a courageous and heroic struggle with stage 4 Melanoma. She died peacefully, surrounded by her family, her entire universe. Mom was born on April 12, 1952, to Verl T Dahl and Adora Kidman Dahl.

She grew raised in the little town of Syracuse, Utah, and learned early on the value of hard work. In high school, she excelled at barrel racing and graduated from Clearfield in 1970. After graduating from Dixie College with a degree in social work in 1972, she reconnected with and finally married the love of her life and everlasting partner Kent Olsen (K.O.) Murdock. On August 17, 1973, they were married in the Salt Lake City temple.

Mom and Dad raised their four children in two homes less than a mile apart in Layton, Utah, throughout the most of their lives. Mom loved shopping, decorating, girl’s vacations, crunchy ice, dove chocolates, crackers and cheese, bacon cheeseburgers, McDonald’s diet Coke, holidays, lunch with her daughters and spending time at her houses in St George and Bear Lake. She loved shopping for back-to-school, birthday, Halloween, and Christmas. Mom had mastered the art of haggling and rarely left a store without securing some form of discount after befriending a store staff or telling a management how much money she had previously spent there.

She took pride in the fact that she didn’t have to make many returns, a practise she didn’t pass on to her indecisive children. Mom was always concerned with her appearance. Her well-kept hair and nails, sparkling blue eyes, contagious grin, and effervescent demeanour oozed joy. She always made it a point to spend the same amount of time preparing her children as she did herself. That frequently meant very early mornings for the Murdock household, as she had to consider four children’s hair, nails, accessories, and colour coordination.

Her children and grandkids were her most valuable belongings, and they were what she cherished the most. She filled her home with love and kindness, which drew us all in on a daily basis. Her four children and seventeen grandchildren decided to live within a ten-minute drive of each other because of her. She was happiest when she was among her children and grandkids, watching them do their favourite things. She rarely missed a game or performance. She was our staunchest ally and cheerleader.

Mom’s best quality, in our opinion, is her ability to make everyone feel special and cherished. Countless individuals have commented on how gracious and welcoming Mom was in the short time since her death. She provided sound advice and could be trusted with sensitive material. She made everyone feel important. Mom was proud to be a disciple of Jesus Christ and a loyal member of His restored church. She advocated for the disadvantaged. She was a servant who never expected anything in exchange for the small acts of kindness she performed on a daily basis. Mom had an instinctive ability to love unconditionally and to openly and regularly show her affection.

Her second Melanoma diagnosis occurred between 2018 and 2019 while they were on a mission in Melbourne, Australia. She adored being Dad’s companion and appreciated the kind loving care he gave her during her treatment. One of her last moments of clarity came at Huntsman Hospital at their 50th wedding anniversary celebration. She was determined to live another 50 years with her father before dying. She felt like a kid on Christmas morning that evening, and she was able to express her love and gratitude to many family members, friends, and carers. We will be eternally grateful that such tender kindness was granted to us.

Tonya is survived by her son Tyson (Heidi) Murdock of Fruit Heights, daughter Kelli (Shane) Willard of Kaysville, daughter Kodi (Darin) Knudson of Layton, daughter McCall (Brandon) Lomax of Layton, and 17 grandkids. Her father, Verl T Dahl, mother, Adora Elizabeth Dahl, younger brother, LaMonte K Dahl, and brother-in-law, Craig H Hess all died before she was born. We will cherish our memories of Mom and will be eternally grateful for her Christlike example. In Tonya’s honour, please attend a child’s game, perform a random act of kindness, or buy something you want but don’t need!

We are appreciative to the many Doctors, Nurses, and Aids at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, as well as the nurses and physical therapists from Hunstman at Home. We’d also like to thank everyone who has reached out to us in support of our family. Funeral services will be held at 1015 N. Emerald Drive, Layton chapel, on Monday, August 28, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. Friends may pay their condolences at the Russon Brothers Mortuary, 1941 N Main St, Farmington, on Sunday evening from 6:00-8:00 PM, and again on Monday from 9:30-10:30 AM, shortly before to the church’s funeral services. He was laid to rest in Lindquist Memorial Park in Layton, Utah.