Obituary of Calvin Bayles

Calvin Donald Bayles of La Crescenta, CA., passed away peacefully on August 4, 2013, in the presence of his wife, children and their spouses. He is survived by Marilyn, his devoted wife of 43 years, and thirty eight descendants, including three beautiful daughters-in-law and three stalwart sons-in-law (the children and their spouses are David and Lonna Bayles, David and Dena Blood, Brock and Mary Bayles, Rebekah and Aaron Peterson, Stacy and Grant Clark, Scot and Brittany Bayles and Michael Bayles). Most of Calvin’s immediate family also survives him, including three brothers, three sisters, five brothers-in-law and three sisters-in-law. He also has forty living adoring nieces and nephews. Everyone who knew Calvin best knows that he loved Marilyn with all his heart and that he believed she was the crown jewel of his life. Crippen Mortuary is handling the arrangements for the family. There will be visitation and a funeral on August 17, 2013, at 1130 a.m. and 1 p.m., respectively, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 4550 Raymond Ave., La Crescenta, CA. 91214. The burial is August 24, 2013, in Blanding, Utah. Calvin was born on July 22, 1948, in Monticello, San Juan County, Utah, to Grant and Helen Bayles. Many of the towns in San Juan County were founded with the help of Calvin’s great grandfather Mormon pioneers. Calvin spent most of his adult life in La Crescenta, but will be buried twenty-five miles from the place of his birth, in Blanding, Utah—where he spent some of his most formidable years, growing up with his loving parents and talented six younger brothers and sisters, and graduating from high school with honors (San Juan H.S. ’66). The lives of his forefathers were often on his mind throughout his life and he discussed their remarkable faith filled lives with his family often, including many fireside chats about one grandfather, in particular, who pulled a handcart across the plains as a Mormon pioneer. Calvin was a modern pioneer in his own immediate family, one of the first to effectively balance a successful professional life with the demands of a large family. The four cornerstones on which he balanced his life were Scouting, faith, education and hard work. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout (Scoutmaster Leonard Hurst ‘61) and attended the National Jamboree (Valley Forge ’64) and the LDS International Explorer Conference (Provo, UT ’65). As for faith, he often declared before both family and strangers his abiding conviction that a loving Heavenly Father watches over us and that Jesus Christ is God's only begotten Son and the Savior of the World. Similarly, he revered all men he believed were prophets, including, especially, Abraham, Israel, Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. Accordingly, he served an honorable Mormon Mission (Brazil, ’69), and fulfilled every calling and assignment he ever received in the Church, including Elders Quorum President, Seminary Teacher, High Councilor, High Priest Group Leader, Bishop, and two terms as Scoutmaster. As for education, he loved his college years in Provo, Utah, at Brigham Young University (BYU), where he earned an undergraduate degree in History, with a minor in Political Science (B.S. ’72). He was also a pioneer at BYU, earning a law degree in the first class ever to graduate from BYU's J. Reuben Clark Law School (J.D. ’76). All of this involved and inspired his commitment to hard work, which actually began when he was a child and he asked his dad for a bicycle. To earn the bike, Calvin started a business mowing lawns which grew so much he soon had employees of his own. As an attorney, he was a litigator with an emphasis in cartage claims and real estate. As a father of seven and grandfather of twenty-five, his emphasis was coaching sports, attending games and recitals, and leading family discussions about Heavenly Father’s plan for the happiness of His children. All these he did with Marilyn by his side. We love you Dad. See you soon.