Carley McMurtrey Arave obituary

Carley McMurtrey Arave, 89, of North Logan passed away peacefully on Thursday February 17, 2022 in St George, Utah.

She was born on February 21, 1932 in Ririe, Idaho. She was the fifth child of six born to Lawrence Jay and Annie Forsyth McMurtrey. She grew up in Shelley, Idaho and considers herself to have had a wonderful childhood despite growing up during the depression.

She went to Shelley High School where she met Clive Wendell Arave, who became the love of her life of 71 years. The two wed in the Idaho Falls temple on October 10, 1950. Soon after getting married they moved to Fort Worden, Washington where Clive was stationed in the Army and where their first child, Wendy Lee, was born.

After serving two years in the military they moved to Logan, Utah where Clive received his bachelors and masters degrees from Utah State University and two more children were born: Stephanie Louise and Joe Clive. The litte family moved to California where Clive spent a year working on purebred holstein dairy, then decided to continue his education at UC Davis and where Christine Marie was born. Carley learned to decorate cakes which became a fun hobby for her. Over the years, she decorated many wedding cakes for family and friends. She was always sharing her talents. She was there for her husband, even typing his PhD dissertation (she could type 75 words per hour!) After a brief teaching position at Chico State, Clive accepted an offer to teach at Utah State University and the family moved to Logan, Utah. The next year they built their lifelong home in North Logan. Their last children Lorraine Deanne and James Jason were born here. Their home has been a gathering place where cherished memories have been created, especially on Pioneer Day which Carley loved to host since the parade passed on their street.

Carley had many interests. She loved to learn and read and sought to instill this in her family (everyone got a book for Christmas!). She was an excellent seamstress and sewed many of her children’s clothes. She was most famous for the beautiful quilts she made. She shared these freely and they are treasured by her family. She loved doing puzzles and playing all kinds of games. She had a keen mind and was formidable at Hand and Foot! For many years, she got up early to swim every day.
She gave freely of her time in service to others. She was involved in 4-H, Daughters of the Utah Pioneers and was on the board of the USU International Wives Club for many years. She was passionate about geneology, sharing family histories with her family and making fifty flower arrangements every year to decorate graves of ancestors in Idaho and Utah on Memorial Day. She loved to travel and was afforded opportunities through Clive’s university work to see much of Europe and the Middle East. They took family vacations across the country each year to Clive’s professional meetings. They lived in New Zealand for a year while Clive did research. When Clive retired after 31 years, they volunteered for a year teaching in China. Carley loved that experience and gave so much to her students.

Carley was a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She loved the gospel and served in many positions, her favorite being an officiator in the Temple with her eternal companion. She strove every day to live a Christ-like life. She was selfless and kind, the most beautiful soul. She truly radiated love toward all she met.

Most of all, Carley’s family was the great source of joy in her life. She set the best example of love and giving and thinking of others. She made her children and grandchildren each feel special. She loved them with all her heart! She was always thrilled when family came to visit and she never let anyone leave her house hungry! She made Christmas packages for everyone and never missed a birthday!

Carley is survived by her husband, Clive, six children: Wendy (Bill Hinton),
Stephanie (Jim Aitken), Joe (Julia Wiberg), Christine (Gordon Baker), Lorraine (Bruce Helgeson), James (Shonie Davis), 29 grandchildren, 50 great grandchildren, and 3 great great grandchildren.

Memorial services will be held on Saturday, March 5th at 12 pm at the North Logan LDS Chapel, 1900 North 1550 East with a viewing prior for family and friends at 10 am. Condolences and memories may be shared online and a video presentation of her life seen at http://www.allenmortuaries.com. Services will be live streamed and can be viewed via the same link. Funeral Arrangements by Allen-Hall Mortuary of Logan..

Special thanks to all those who have reached out to our family at this sad time. Also, to all those who have cared for Carley. She was treasured by all who knew her. She was exceptional! She will be sorely missed. Till we see you again, we love you. You will always be in our hearts.