Raelene Clarke

Aurora, Utah - Raelene Ann Jorgenson Brooksby Clarke, age 77, passed away May 15, 2013, after a valiant struggle with cancer, surrounded by family, at her home in Aurora. She was born April 2, 1936 in Nampa, Idaho, a daughter of Deward Christian and Annie Zelma Cordingley Jorgenson. Raelene's was a well-lived and much loved life that was magnified as the matriarch of two large families joined 40 years ago when she met David R. Clarke at a fireside for single LDS adults in Las Vegas, Nevada. He proposed the day after Valentine's Day, and they married on March 31, 1973. They were sealed in the St. George Temple on their fourth anniversary, March 31, 1977. Raelene was eminently self-sufficient; her marriage to David was for love. Before meeting David she went back to school, renewed her teaching license and started teaching, got a master's degree, and nearly completed her PhD, all while raising six children. She lived a rich and varied life: mother, quilter, ceramicist, tailor, educator, grandmother, dancer, planner, early-technology adopter, chef, great grandmother, family historian, renaissance woman, missionary, and a valiant Daughter of God. Nothing was too mundane for her creative talents. From breakfast to birthdays, from campfires to church callings, each was approached as a potential work of art. Of course, her greatest work was showing her love to each member of this very large family. Raelene is survived by her husband David Clarke; children and stepchildren Scott (Karen) Brooksby; Denae (Phil) Bastian; Blake (Catherine) Brooksby; John (Jacque) Clarke; Sherilynn (Mike) Buckner; Janeice (Teddy) Opunui; Kathy (Richard) Turnbow; Craig (Sonja) Brooksby; Pauline (Bruce) Holyoak; Bill (Stacie) Clarke; Georgieann (Brent) Elliott; 45 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren. Her surviving siblings are Lavern (Ella May) Jorgenson; Bernice (Earl) Smith; and Eldon (Neva) Jorgenson. Preceded in death by parents Deward and Zelma Cordingly Jorgenson. Funeral Services will be held Saturday, May 25, 2013 at 12 Noon in the Aurora 1st LDS Ward Chapel, 85 North Main Street in Aurora. Friends may call for viewing at the Springer Turner Funeral Home, 150 East Main Street in Salina, Friday evening from 6 to 8 P.M. or at the ward chapel in Aurora, Saturday morning from 10:30 to 11:30 prior to the services. Burial will be in the Aurora Cemetery under the care of the Springer Turner Funeral Home of Richfield and Salina, Utah.