1934 – April 20, 2022
Mary Vivian Grover Wood, age 88 of Leeds, Utah joined her husband, parents, siblings, and grandson in heaven on April 20, 2022. The youngest of seven children, Mary was born to Leo Thomas Grover and Lizzie Leone Wilding Grover, in Sugar City, Idaho. She learned how to work early in life raising animals and gardening to help sustain the family. Her father farmed and built houses which took them to various locations in Idaho, and when she was 12 the family moved to Mapleton, Utah.
When Mary was just 15, she met her soulmate, Blaine D. Wood and were married February 3, 1950. After a few years they moved to St. George. From the time they were married they preferred spending most of their time together working, playing, raising their four children, and serving those around them.
Her favorite place to be was with him and they spent most of their time together through their 68 years together. She worked side by side with Blaine, pumped gas and helped him manage Premium Oil, kept books, hoisted bags and blocks of ice into ice trucks and rode with him to deliver it. They were entrepreneurs and started many businesses including: the Kings Chicken, Tropic Travel, Tropic Ice, Dixie Amusement and Vending, and Red Hills Distributing.
As a mother, she taught her children how to work and play hard. Together, the family loved boating, snowmobiling, water skiing, camping and four-wheeling. She was always up for a fun adventure and usually lead the pack. Mary was an amazing person. She enjoyed serving and working with the Young Women as stake and district camp director. She was a survivalist, loved hiking and nature, and was very organized. The girls, and leaders alike, enjoyed those trips. She could identify herbs, plants, different animal tracks and had more than her share of common sense.
Mary was an artist and had a great eye for beauty. She made jewelry, learned to oil paint and designed her homes. She had a special knack for making a place feel comfortable as well as beautiful. She enjoyed sharing her bounty and many enjoyed staying at Blaine and Mary’s cabin at Kolob over the years. Her home was always welcoming. She made many beautiful quilts and 100’s of crocheted hats for those in need. Her oil paintings adorn the walls of her home as well as children and friends.
Blaine and Mary were among the first to help with rescue searches in Washington County and loved helping out. While spending the winters in San Filipe, Baja California they gained many friends as they served there. She loved her wards and her communities in St. George, Ash Creek, Toquerville and Leeds.
She was an avid genealogist and loved her extended family – gathering and sharing records and histories. She looked forward to times spent with siblings and relatives, both Grover and Wood, and had many fun times together. She was Blaine’s loyal, forever sweetheart. She tenderly cared for him for the last decade of his life as Alzheimer’s gradually took him away four years ago. She was a wonderful mother, and grandmother.
Mary is preceded in death by her parents; her dear husband, Blaine D Wood; her grandson L Brant Wood; her siblings, Elmo Grover, Leone Grover Nourse (Leon), Ben Grover, Joel Grover (Bonnie), Hart Grover (Laura), and Beth Grover Bonnenburg (Rudy); and her husband’s siblings, Lothair Wood (Leah), Athene Slater (Arthur), Thelma Ludlow (Lynn), Francillo Wood (Bernice), Darrell Wood (Betty), Kenneth Wood.
She is survived by her children: Dorothy Bates, Washington, Utah; Lyle (Lori), LaVerkin, Utah; Gary (Kathy), Farmington, Utah; Dean (Allyson), Delta, Utah; Grandchildren: Monyca Stemmons, Tarek Thomas, Crystal Morey, Darci Shields, Courtney Wood, Matt Wood, Kyle Wood, Angela Dana, Tomi Durham, Jordan Wood, Dustin Wood, Kacie Bennett, Kristie Romberg, Tyler Wood, Kimberly Sant, Michael Wood, Blaine Wood, Taylor Wood, Candice Dingman, Nikki Wood; 75 great grandchildren and 2 great-great grandchildren, Siblings in law: Faye Grover, Carrol Grover, and Jay Wood (Glenda).
Funeral services will be held April 30, 2022, in the Leeds LDS Chapel at 10 a.m. with a viewing beginning at 9 a.m. There will also be a viewing held the evening prior from 6-8 p.m. at Metcalf Mortuary. A private graveside service will be held at Kolob Mountain Cemetery at a later date.
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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.