Elma Shurtz George

Salina, Utah - Elma Shurtz George, age 92, passed away in Olympia, Washington on March 15, 2015. She was born October 9, 1922 in Salt Lake City, Utah, a daughter of Leander and Gwen Partridge Shurtz. She was the third great-granddaughter of Hyrum Smith. Elma grew up in Escalante, Utah, where music was a large part of her childhood; she graduated from Escalante High School in 1940. She married Harold Robison George on June 18, 1943 in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. He passed away January 9, 2007. Elma graduated from Brigham Young University in 1952, and taught elementary school in Aurora, Utah. She and Harold moved to Nevada in 1954. Elma received her master's degree in library science from BYU, and worked as a school librarian for many years in the Clark County School District in Las Vegas, Nevada, retiring in 1978. She and Harold relocated at that time to Salina, Utah, where she resided for 35 years. Elma was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and held many positions in the church. She was an ordinance worker at the Las Vegas LDS Temple. In her later years, she spent countless hours doing genealogical name indexing and indexed over 200,000 names. She is survived by three sons: Robert and Kathleen George of Queen Creek, Arizona; Garth and Carol George of Adelanto, California; Dr. Roger and Linda George of Olympia, Washington; 9 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren. Elma was preceded in death by her parents; her husband and one son: Douglas Leslie George. Funeral services will be held Saturday, March 28 at 12:00 noon in the Salina LDS Stake Center, 98 West 400 North, in Salina. Friends may call for viewing at the Stake Center Saturday morning from 10:30 to 11:30 prior to the services. Burial will be in the Salina Eastside Cemetery under the care of the Springer Turner Funeral Home of Richfield and Salina, Utah.