Memories of Boyd & Gene

Letter to a 6th grade class H. Boyd Hunter taught 50 years ago. Sheila Mortimer was asked to write a few historical tidbits for their class reunion.


Memories and Hearsays
of the life of
Harrison Boyd Hunter
Born February 20, 1918-Oakley Idaho
Died January 28, 1996-Springville, Utah


Life in Oakley:
Boyd began teaching school at the Oalkey grade school in Oakley Idaho in 1942. He taught sixth and seventh grade. He also taught P.E to the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eight graders. He was also the basketball coach, playing about five games a year with Burley and other surrounding schools in the area. He always had a special way of teaching, that made you feel like you could do anything.
My brother Neil remembers dad working with the Church Pentathalons. Some of you may remember. He would take the top ten athletes from Oakley to Burley where they would compete to go to Salt Lake City and fight for the Western championship. I guess they would run, high jump, and several other events. He took a team down three or four different times. A few names Neil remembered were Robert Palmer, Deloy Pasket, Gary Loyd and the Bedkey boy.

Moving on:
Dad had a hard time making a living in Idaho. He farmed, drove bus, and taught school and still found it a bit challenging. His brother Quenten talked him into moving to California where the money for school teaching was quite a lot better. Our family moved to the bay area, Hayward California in 1964. Dad taught at Winton Grove Elementary. Once again he worked with the sixth graders. They would give him the students that had a hard time learning for one reason or another. He always knew how to help them focus. If they couldn't quit talking or were having a particularly hard day and couldn't settle down, he would have them take a couple laps around the backstop. The kids seemed to love him even more for it.

Church:
Dad had a great love for the LDS church. When he and mom married, she was not a member. He, alone would faithfully dress and bring the kids to church. We never saw him miss. Mom began feeling "left out" and a few years later she was baptized and was a great leader. Dad served as a bishop for quite a few years, and served a mission after mom died.

Family:
I am the fifth of six children of Harrison Boyd and Gene Cooper Hunter and the only girl. Dad was very proud of his sons, but he always made me feel like a princess. My father was perfect in my eyes, kind, wise, and wonderful. My mother felt the same way. She wrote of their courtship and first date, "He was so handsome with his dark wavey hair and blue eyes, and happy smile. He was wearing a stockman suit of light brown and smelled like old spice after shave. I had a great time just being with him, we talked half the night away. I remember how comfortable I felt with him. When I got home I woke mom up and told her that I had met the man I was going to marry." They were married December 27, 1944. Mom died in 1984 of cancer.

I hope this brief Personal History of my father will be of some value to the students he thought so highly of and gave so much of himself to bless and enrich their lives. I have enjoyed recalling happenings that had temporarily escaped my memory.

Thank-you,
Sheila Hunter Mortimer