Minerva Sevey Bailey

At about 9:30 pm On Thursday, February 15, 2007, Minerva Sevey Bailey, our mother and grandmother, finally left us, dieing at the age of 93 as peacefully and graciously as she had lived life. She was a grand lady and had become our amazing "Energizer Bunny", having experienced a debilitating stroke in early September 2006 that took away her speech and physical strength, while she just kept going and going and going. . . Mom was born on May 7, 1913 in Jaynestown, Arizona, the sixth child of George Francis and Anna Heder Sevey. She was the first child in her family to be born in the United States as George and Anna fled the Mexican Colonies by train to escape the revolution led by Pancho Villa. Along with nine brothers and sisters, Maude (Nikki) Christiansen, Lucille (Orson) Johnson, Eileen (Raymond) Cluff, Francis, Millard and Junius Sevey, Margaret (Rene) Anderson, Phyllis (Royal) Olmstead and Ruth (Darrow) Richins, Mom moved to Bowie, Arizona, Los Angeles, California and finally Salt Lake City, Utah where she finished high school at LDS High School. Her father, George, made sure she took homemaking classes so that she could become a good mother in Zion. Mom also acquired skills in typing and short hand at LDS Business College which served her well when she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in California and became a secretary at Cal Container and later B & B Manufacturing in Berkeley. As a young woman suddenly far away from home, Mother found living quarters at the Blue Triangle Sorority House with other young business women. It was during this time that she met and married Kenneth Lloyd Bailey of Alameda, California. Their marriage was later solemnized in the Oakland LDS temple and together they raised a family of three: Susan (Karl) Lind of Salt Lake City, Utah, Stephen (Randy) Bailey of Albany, California, and Cynthia Fountaine of Highland and Vernal, Utah. Today, there are twelve grandchildren and fourteen great grandchildren. Minerva was known for her wonderful cooking and she and Kenn opened their home to many good friends, family and young married couples attending UC Berkeley as well as foreign exchange students. Mom was also a wonderful seamstress and sewed hundreds of yards of net skirting on ballet tutus, sequins on formals, and designed wonderful costumes and beautiful quilts. In everything she did, she paid incredible attention to detail and thoroughness. For many years, Mom was a member of the Berkeley First Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where she served diligently as a scout leader, primary teacher and stake primary president. Among her Sunday school students was past president of the University of Utah, David Gardner. Mom was also a devoted family genealogist and genealogy teacher. Mom never slowed down. When Kenn died in 1985, she left her dear friends in Berkeley, and moved to Vernal, Utah where she spent four years taking care of grandchildren while her daughter went back to school. At age 76, she served a family history mission in Salt Lake with her sister Margaret Anderson. At 80, she fulfilled a life-time dream of traveling to Israel for three weeks with the BYU study abroad program. Minerva is loved and cherished by so many she loved in return. We all wish her God speed now as she begins her new journey with loved ones, her parents and all of her brothers and sisters who preceded her in death as well as dear nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be held in the Relief Society room of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day saints stake center at 1160 E. Vine Street (6000 S.) in Murray, Utah on Monday, February 19 at 12:00 noon. Later, a graveside service will be held at Sunset View in El Cerrito, California where she will be laid to rest beside her husband Kenn. Good-bye for now, Mom. We love you.