Gwen Haws

Gwen Hunsaker Haws, 93, died Sunday December 6 at her home in Logan. She was born at the family home on Salt Creek Road in Honeyville, Utah to Viola Eliason and Horace Neeley Hunsaker August 14, 1922.
Gwen attended elementary school in Honeyville graduating as eighth grade valedictorian in 1935. She completed Box Elder High in 1939 with a scholarship to Utah State Agricultural College (now Utah State University). She was attracted to a writing-related occupation at about junior high age, declared a journalism-English double major in college, and spent her professional career as a writer-editor.
She met her future husband, B. Austin Haws, working on the school paper as a freshman in college. They began dating as sophomores but didn't marry until May 22, 1945 after Austin had completed a 2-year Spanish American LDS Mission and had joined the Merchant Marines in World War II.
At the time of their marriage in the Salt Lake Temple, Gwen had just resigned as editor of The Seagull, a publication at the Clearfield Naval Supply Depot, and accepted a position at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY to begin July 1. She wrote newspaper, magazine and radio copy at Cornell while Austin completed purser-pharmacist training at Sheepshead Bay, NY, made two ocean voyages with the Merchant Marines, then joined her at Cornell as a student.
In 1947 they returned to Logan where Austin completed BS and MS degrees. Gwen wrote radio copy at KVNU, then was hired by USU to work in the news bureau, teach a radio-writing class, and produce recruiting publications.
In 1949 the Hawses moved to Ames, Iowa where Austin earned a PhD in entomology at Iowa State University. At ISU Gwen took graduate courses, edited university publications and was an instructor in technical journalism.
In January 1952 Austin accepted a research position at the University of Minnesota. Gwen worked as publications editor for the St. Paul campus of the U of Minn until Cedra joined the Haws family in 1955. Kevin was born in 1957 and in September they moved to Logan where Austin became a professor at USU. In Logan Marc and Michele were added to the Haws family.
When Austin was assigned to head a USU team in Bolivia (1968-1971), Gwen and their four children accompanied him to LaPaz where Gwen taught English and journalism at the American Cooperative School. Gwen held BS and MA degrees and was a member of the USU staff at four different periods. At the time of her retirement in 1986 she was university editor and director of Publication Design and Production. After her retirement from USU, Gwen and Tony Loosle of The Computer Station cookbooked one of the first desktop publishing systems in Cache Valley. She was fascinated by desktop publishing and being able to do on a computer what used to take a whole print shop to accomplish.
An active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gwen has taught in all the auxiliaries, was a Relief Society president in Minnesota, and edited lots of ward papers. She was editor of the Logan East Stake Star for 18 years beginning with its initial issue in 1979.
Through the years she has been affiliated with numerous organizations including: USU Faculty Women's League, USU Professional Employees Association, USU Emeriti, Daughters of Utah Pioneers, Daughters of the American Revolution, Beaux Arts and Literary League.
Gwen was started on a lifetime of preserving family history by an assignment from the Hunsaker Family Organization in the early 1950s to produce a book on her great-grandfather, Abraham Hunsaker, that had been begun by two aunts (Meltrude Hunsaker Stohl and Orpha Hunsaker Stohl). Gwen has compiled, authored, edited and incorporated illustrations into numerous family history books.
Gwen was preceded in death by her husband, two brothers, H. Desse Hunsaker and Bud Eliason Hunsaker, one sister, Joyce Miller, her parents, and numerous ancestors. Although she always tried to preserve facts accurately, she expects there will be several relatives waiting to enlighten her on what really happened. She has a lot of unanswered questions and is looking forward to meeting them. She is survived by: four children, Cedra Jensen, Logan; Kevin Hunsaker Haws, Logan; Marc A. (Laurie) Haws, Logan; and Michele (Spencer) Anderson, South Willard; nine grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren. Also surviving are one brother, Byron (Fern) Hunsaker of Honeyville; three brothers-in-law, John K. (Beverly) Haws of Afton WY, Max L (Shirley) Haws of Kaysville, and Don Miller of Fielding; two sisters-in-law, Irene Schumann Hunsaker of Prince George BC, Canada and Colleen Munns Haws of River Heights; three step-siblings, Helen Holder of Fort Collins, Colorado, Gordon Herring of River Heights, and Nadine Schoonmaker of North Logan; and uncountable cousins.

Funeral services will be held at 12:00 PM on Saturday, December 12, 2015 in the Lundstrom Park Ward Chapel, 1260 North 1600 East in Logan. A viewing will be held on Friday evening from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at the Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 East Center Street in Logan, and prior to the services on Saturday at the church from 10:30 to 11:30 AM. Interment will follow in the Logan City Cemetery. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.allenmortuaries.net (435) 752-3245.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Perpetual Education or Missionary Fund of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.