January 22, 1949 — June 10, 2020
Yvonne Nadine Reber, 71, died June 10, 2020, with her family by her side in St. George, Utah. She bravely fought cancer for three years and was taken from her family far too soon.
Yvonne was born Jan. 22, 1949, in Salinas, California to Claude and Dortha Michael. She was the third of 10 children. Her father was a welder by trade and the family moved frequently to follow work. During World War II, her parents both worked in the shipyards in Washington state. They spent time in Kansas, as well, finally settling in Bakersfield, California in the 1960s.
Yvonne graduated from Bakersfield High School in 1967 and met Mike Reber in 1968. Mike, entranced by her blue eyes, stopped by the Dairy Queen where Yvonne worked daily until she finally agreed to go on a date. She attended Bakersfield College and earned her LVN in 1969. Mike and Yvonne married in 1969. While Mike was studying at the University of Hawaii, Yvonne worked in the pediatric ICU at Queen Kapiolani Hospital in Honolulu. Mike graduated and they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area with their first child. Yvonne raised five children and ran the household, returning to the workforce as a nurse in the 1980s. She earned her RN degree in 2008 and retired from nursing in 2017.
Yvonne was an avid tennis (and later, pickleball) player. She loved to garden, sew, craft and cook. She appreciated the outdoors, and happily took all five children (including babies and toddlers) camping. She loved visiting the ocean, especially in the Monterey Bay area, where she spent much of her youth. Her favorite color was a dusty blue. Her favorite scents were eucalyptus and carnations. She adored babies of all shapes and sizes, and because she was beautiful, gentle and silly, they loved her back. She had a talent for making her children laugh, especially when she hatched up a silly word or phrase. She was not fond of dogs but grew to love her daughter Amanda’s dog Ava so much that she was heartbroken when Ava died and she buried Ava at the family’s mountain house in Pine Valley, marking the grave with a statue of a Yorkshire Terrier. She had a tremendous capacity to love.
Yvonne was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She is survived by six of nine siblings, her husband, Mike; and her five children and 11 grandchildren: Amy (spouse Jenna, son Zachary), Leah (spouse Steve, sons Dana and Garrett and daughter Laney), Ben (spouse Natalie, daughters Gracie and Emmy, son McKay), Jo Ellen (sons William and Hank), Amanda (spouse Levi, son Cooper and daughter Gemma).
At her request, there will be an intimate graveside service for immediate family and close friends on June 27, 2020, at 11 a.m. Her remains will be interred in a cemetery overlooking a lush valley, surrounded by the beautiful peaks of the Dixie National Forest, in Pine Valley, Utah, where Yvonne and her family spent their summers together.
Arrangements entrusted to the care of Metcalf Mortuary, (435) 673-4221. Please visit our website at www.metcalfmortuary.com for condolences, complete obituary, and funeral listings.