Ralph Lynn Peck

NEWTON: UTAH: Ralph Lynn Peck, 69, long-time Cache
County resident and retired Utah State University
accounting instructor, died Oct. 19, 2007, in a Lima,
Peru hospital, while serving a mission for The Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His death
resulted from a heart malfunction.

He and his wife, Roberta Elma Haynie Peck, had been in
the South American country for about five months and
were involved in the church's Perpetual Education Fund
program that provides scholarships to church members
in poor countries. Some two years earlier, the couple
had
served a mission in The Central American Area, with
their headquarters in Guatemala City. Mr. Peck
traveled throughout the area to fill his assignment as
auditor and trainer for local units of the churchs.
Before the foreign missions, Mr. Peck served two
six-month terms as a service missionary in the
Cinnamon Creek Campground. After returning from the
Central American mission, they relocated from their
long-time residence in Newton to Logan.

Mr. Peck was born May 4, 1938, in Salt Lake City, the
third child of Donald Melvin and Twila Gagon Peck.
When he was a child, the family moved to the mining
town of Pioche, Nevada, and he attended local schools,
graduating from Lincoln County High School. He was
employed in
Pioche's hard-rock mines for a time. When the mines
closed, he enrolled at Dixie College in St. George for
a year, prior to his call to serve in the West Spanish
American Mission, which included portions of
California, Baja California and Arizona. During this
time, he met his future
wife. When his mission was concluded, he returned to
Arizona and they courted and were married in the Mesa
Temple, January 25, 1962.

He attended Arizona State University in Tempe and
earned a bachelor's degree in Liberal Arts, followed
by a master's degree in Accounting. He also worked
toward a doctoral degree and taught classes at ASU.
While a student he worked for Ernst & Ernst, and after
his graduation, he joined Haskins & Sells in Las
Vegas, which ultimately became Deloitte & Touche. He
was an auditor for the company for three years then
became vice president, controller and treasurer of
First Western Financial Corporation and First Western
Savings and Loan in Las Vegas.

After this period in the business world, he chose to
become a teacher. He joined the accounting faculty at
USU in 1978. and became a much loved teacher in the
accountancy department.
His devotion to students was outstanding and he was
recognized four times as Teacher of the Year in the
school, more than any other faculty member. In 1984,
he was College of Business Teacher of the Year. His
teaching went beyond the fundamentals of accountancy
as he shared thoughts, ideas and experiences that
would help his students succeed. He taught technical
update sessions for the Utah Association of CPAs and
was secretary of the Cache Valley Chapter of the
association. He served on national committees of the
American Accounting Association. He helped many
students prepare for national case and manuscript
competitions in which some received national awards.

In 1996 he became faculty advisor to Beta Alpha Psi.,
a position he held for four years. Mr. Peck was in
the forefront of preparing for and implementing the
technology explosion, which had
significant impacts on the study and implementation of
accountancy. He was deeply involved in the development
of instructional materials to incorporate rapidly
changing methods and technologies.When he took early
retirement from USU, he joined his son, Shaun Peck, in
the Logan law firm of Bearnson & Peck L.C., working as
a paralegal, a field that fascinated him and offered
new and energizing challenges.

His enthusiasm for learning new things never bent to
the passing of the years. In his 60s, he learned to
play the violin. He also played the harmonica, viola
and penny whistle. In Peru, he was collecting a
variety of pan pipes and trying to master their music.

He was an avid rock-hounder and turned raw gems into
lovely works of jewelry and other art. His penchant
for art also was expressed in sculpture, drawing
(including cartoons) and painting, The love for
literature that led to his undergraduate degree never
waned and he was an avid
and eclectic reader.

He is survived by his mother of Bountiful; his widow,
Providence, and 11 children, including ShaMayne (Jack)
Mason, Elk Ridge; Shaun (Kerri) Peck, Avon; Shaylin
(Karen) Peck, Orem; Sharik (Cheryl) Peck, Richmond;
Sheldon (Angie) Peck, Syracuse; Sheridan (Amber) Peck,
Providence; Shad (Gaia) Peck, Gilbert, Ariz.; Shiloh
(Kambria) Peck, Smithfield; Shenla Peck, Salt Lake
City; Shalee (serving with the U.S. military in Iraq);
(Jill) Peck, Richmond and Shanda (Ashton) Call,
Providence; 42 grandchildren; five siblings, Donald M.
(Florence) Peck, Lakewood, Colo.; Twila Van Leer,
Centerville; Leanne (Rod) Ward, Preston, Idaho; Joseph
D. (Julia) Peck, Peoria, Ariz.; David A. (Calene)
Peck, Pocatello, Idaho, and many friends.

Funeral services will be at Noon on Saturday, October
27, 2007 in the Newton Ward LDS Chapel. A viewing
will be held at the Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 East
Center Street in Logan, from 6:00-8:00 PM on Friday,
and prior to services at the church from 10:00 to
11:30 AM. The Burial and dedication will occur
immediately following the funeral in the Newton
Cemetery. Condolences may be sent to the family at
 www.allenmortuaries.net 
The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations
be made to the LDS Perpetual Education Fund or to the
Ralph Peck Scholarship Fund at Utah State University.