Lavon Freeman Larson

LOGAN, UTAH: Lavon Freeman Larson, age 94, passed
away Friday, May
27, 2005 at Logan Regional Hospital from a heart
arrhythmia incident to age. He was born January 13,
1911 in Logan, Utah to August and Nellie Clifford
Larson. Lavon married Maurine Smart June 16, 1939 in
the Logan LDS Temple. He was an active member of the
member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day
Saints.

Mr. Larson is a 1948 graduate of Utah State
Agricultural College, today known as Utah State
University, in the field of Mechanical Arts. He
taught there for three years. He designed and built
the first electric remote control scoreboard in the
old Smart Gymnasium at USU. He worked for Logan city
Power for 10 years, Franklin County Sugar Company for
three years, Thompson Electric, Utah Power and Light,
and then after twenty-three years of teaching machine
work and drivers education, retired form the Bureau of
Indian Affairs, Intermountain Indian School at Brigham
City. Before dual controls in the drivers education
cars became commercially available, he designed his
own controls and adapted them to safely teach his
driving students. Lavon was a man ahead of his time.
He also developed his own windshield defrosters before
that feature was marketed in automobiles.

As a young boy, Lavon would fill his containers with
buttermilk from Borden milk factory where his father
worked, and then head uptown to sell his buttermilk.
The Bluebird Restaurant and the prominent Eccles
family were among his customers. Jobs were hard to
find, but he was very industrious.

In his youth he won a contest for riding his bicycle
the greatest distance on a narrow rail without falling
off. He was the exuberant bicycle man of Cache valley
who could be found riding around town while sitting
backwards on the bicycle seat. His lucky daughters had
the luxury of riding on his personally designed and
constructed child bicycle seat. It was made of wood
and fit over the bar on his bicycle. This was all
before things of this type could be purchased at a
store. Daddy’s home-made stilts were the delight of
his children.

Our family fondly thinks of Lavon as our own “Johnny
Appleseed”. Wherever he lived he planted apple trees.
He gifted many with apple trees to plant. He relished
not only eating the apples but also ate the cores
seeds and all. Courtesy of Lavon our family has
savored a lifetime of the most delectable apples
Grandpa could grow or purchase.

After the passing of his wife Maurine, Lavon moved to
his beloved Hillcrest Avenue home where he was
embraced by neighbors and the members of the LDS
Hillcrest Second Ward. He loved it there and often
expressed gratefulness for that blessing. Lavon was a
responsible steward taking immaculate care of his home
and yard. When it came to exercise and good nutrition,
he lived what he taught. Each morning, until the age
of ninety-one he walked across USU campus, down
college hill, and back up to his home.

Gentle man,
Selfless soul,
Gift from God…
To bless our lives,
We love you, DAD

He is survived by his sister Marie Moser (Marlow)
Logan, Utah, and his brother Emery (Doreen) Larson of
Salt lake City Utah, his three daughters and one
stepson, Sharon Bickmore (Bill) St. George, Utah, June
Smith (Cleve) Hyrum, Utah , Barbara Hill (Dave)
Casper, Wyoming, and Dr. Arthur Gene Smart
Irvington, Alabama. He enjoyed visiting his eleven
grandchildren, Eric, Holly, Heidi, Lance, Chris,
Shauna, Kimberly, Lacey, Tracy, Reggie, and Clair and
also his twenty-three great grandchildren. He was
preceded in death by his wife Maurine Smart Larson,
his parents, August and Nellie Larson, Sisters Eunice
Young (Preston), Verda Kelly (Howard), and brothers
Max and Delvar Larson.

Funeral Services will be held 12:00 noon Friday June
3, 2005 at the Allen Hall Mortuary Chapel., 34 East
Center Street, Logan, Utah. Friends and family may pay
their respects on Thursday evening form 6-7:00 PM and
on Friday from 10:30-11:30 AM on Friday at the
mortuary. Interment will be in the Millville, Utah
cemetery. Online condolences may be sent to
www.allenmortuaries.net .