Emly Blair Harvey

Emly Blair Harvey passed away in her home, Sunday, July 13, 2025 surrounded by her precious family of six children, their spouses and 24 grandchildren. Jeanette (Darren) Seamons, AmberLynn (Mark) Wilcox, Kearsten (Jason) Bingham, Anthony (Melissa) Harvey, Natasha (Damien) Bellos, Chandra (Parker) Jackson.

She is the daughter of Melvin and Emmy Lou (Romney) Blair, both deceased, and sister to ten siblings who survive her. Pamela (Darrell) Neville, Damon, Gary (LouAnn) Blair, Denese Eggett, Jill (Kent) Naylor, Julie (Chris) Morgan, Margie (Doug) Cramer, Angela (Glenn) Brandt, April (Greg) Stoddart, Jinny Lou (Ken) Marker.

For the last 44 years Emly has been a true friend, companion and soul mate of Malcolm Randall (Randy) Harvey, sealed together for time and all eternity in the Salt Lake City Temple on September 1, 1981.

She was a faithful and devoted member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints serving in many callings. Her favorites were teaching primary with her husband and as Stake missionary prep teacher for five years in Wyoming and as primary chorister, aka baby choir.

Emly was born in 1957 in Odgen, Utah and moved to Clinton, Utah then Kaysville, Utah during the start of her high school years. It was here that her talent for and an insatiable love of music was developed, learning to first play the violin then viola and piano. After High School she worked at Layton First National bank earning money to buy her own car and prepare for nursing college at Weber State. Her plans were interrupted when she took a yearlong opportunity to become a nanny for an LDS mission president and his family of seven in Minnesota.

On her return she became reacquainted with her husband to be, discovered that he wasn’t as weird as he was before his LDS mission and gave up nursing college to become his wife and a mother.

Emly gave life to six beautiful children. An early example of her many devotions to these was the way in which she faced and dealt with the profound health challenges with her first child. At a very early age, this daughter developed sever seizures and, with two other younger siblings in tow, Emly had to frequently travel many hours a week to the doctor for this child. All three children were still in homemade cloth diapers!

Owing to a true modern miracle, the seizures stopped, and her child was left now in need of special teaching to advance her to age level understanding. After being told by the local school counsellors that this daughter was learning disabled, Emly recognized the true potential in her child and with tenacity and love taught this daughter at home. When this daughter was retested seven months later the officials were astounded that Emly had brought her to age level comprehension in such a short time and re-classified the daughter into a positive learning environment. This daughter is now married with six beautiful children. Similar dedications to each child were common in the rearing of all of her children.

Emly and her husband took their family to Livermore, California for seven years where she loved to spend all the time she could at the beach and we discovered that she is part fish. She loved to swim. The family then then moved to Hyde Park, Utah where Emly took on the monumental task of teaching all six children in her home. She devoted her life to them, reading scriptures as a family, early morning, one moan and groan at a time (from the kids), practicing faith, teaching a love of learning, work, good music and having fun. Each of the children learned at least two instruments from a list of piano, violin, viola, cello, guitar, banjo, bagpipes, mandolin and ukulele. Emly played them all but the cello. In the months before she passed, wanted to learn the cello.

Her other interest was reading. She literally acquired thousands of books, both in print and online. She loved family history and “Hallmark” murder mysteries. We didn’t remember the color of the walls in our previous home until after we recently moved to a smaller home and took down the book shelves.

Another herculean feat to her credit was to coordinate the weddings of three daughters within four and one half months and still remain sain!

For two years Emly was the music director at Utah State University for the youth string program. She played in a variety of amateur orchestras from the Bay Area Orchestra in California to the local Cache Chamber Orchestra in Logan, Utah. She also had a studio in which she taught private lessons for youth just learning to play the violin. Handel’s Messiah was her favorite composition.

Emly loved the ranch life and requested that all calves with any white on their face be “her” calves, each named appropriately for their markings. Before she lost her sight, she ran the tractor with the large round baler and the kids affectionately called it “Nannas tractor”.

Emly was always up for an adventure including taking the Astro van off-roading and ripping off the trailer hitch. Just last year Emly kayaked the Green river below Flaming Gorge with her family.

For past Christmases, Emly custom cut out and sewed, detailed minkes, pillow cases and pajamas for all family members. Each uniquely different. She often solicited help from her husband and at home kids the week before Christmas. On other occasions she made numerous dresses and shirts.

Her prize calling was as “Nanna” to 24 grandchildren. Even in her last days when heavily sedated, whenever she heard a baby cry or a child would come up to give a hug and kiss, she would attempt to respond and reach out.

We know that Heaven has received her in full glory, a dear wife, devoted mother and above all an eternal friend. You have certainly blessed us beyond measure!

We look forward to meeting again!