Charlene Whitehurst

Charlene Whitehurst

The dictionary defines a flavorant as something that alters a substance’s composition and characteristics, giving that substance flavor. Charlene Frances Holiday Whitehurst was the epitome of a flavorant, and when she passed away on December 5, 2016, she had truly given rich flavor to the world and so many people.

She often spoke of being a descendant of royal Swiss chefs, but Charlene’s own story began in very humble circumstances on May 10, 1938, in West Los Angeles, California.  She immediately began introducing her trademark ingredients of joy, love, infectious laughter, and fun into the world around her. She was soon joined in her journey by her younger brothers, Bob and Jim, and together the three explored the neighborhoods, woods, and flavors around them as their family moved from Los Angeles to Oregon to Las Vegas and back to West Los Angeles. Charlene faced those difficult younger years with an optimism that gave deep meaning and profound strength to her memorable smile throughout the rest of her life.

Charlene’s adventures continued as she began a family of her own and moved to San Diego, Illinois, and Hawaii, and Washington before returning to Los Angeles, bringing new stories, life, and perhaps most apparent to those around her, recipes and food. She studied cookbooks, experimented with flavors, made meals into feasts, and warmly opened her home to friends and family to take part in the culinary and family traditions she was crafting, always with a smile.

What many didn’t immediately recognize was that all along the way Charlene was also bringing the individuals she interacted with everywhere she went to vibrant life, giving them purpose and excitement to face the world and make life into their own adventures.

Charlene’s proudest work was raising her three daughters, Debbie, Denise, and Deana, as a single working mother, instilling within each of them the ingredients for a happy life and an eternal family. And when she became a grandmother, life took on new meaning, and special occasions became extraordinary. She loved playing games with her family and telling stories about the children who enriched her life. But here again, it was Charlene who was the one hard at work, giving flavor to another generation.

Charlene’s artistic and creative skills also extended into painting and flower decorating.  And late in life, Charlene faced the world head-on, traveling Europe with her lifelong friend, Ruth Heath, and gaining first-hand experiences of the cultures, ingredients, and dishes that had influenced her cooking for so many years.

With Charlene, Christmas celebrations were also an art. They were marked with huge, beautiful Christmas trees and dazzling ribbons and ornaments, and she made Christmas-gift wrapping something to behold. The food and desserts she brought to life filled her home with the scents and smells of Christmas, and made mouths water and loved-ones gather, all eager to take part in Charlene’s magical Christmas traditions.

But most importantly, she embodied the spirit of the Christmas season and made everyone near her feel special and loved. She accepted the Lord’s command to love thy neighbor as thyself, and in so doing, even though she had been crafting both literal and metaphorical recipes her whole life, it was her own composition and characteristics that had been altered in the end, making her the salt of the earth.

Moments before Charlene left this world, on December 5, 2016, Charlene shared the secret ingredient that she had been using all along: “love everyone, love everyone.” It was an ingredient she had generously added for nearly 80 years to the lives of the family she loved unconditionally and who survive her and will carry on her legacy: her two younger brothers whom she’d remained close with her entire life, her three daughters—Deborah (George) Nowland, Denise (Richard) Wheat, Deana (Jerry) Molleman—17 grandchildren, 24 great grandchildren (with two more on the way), 14 nieces and nephews, and a world of family and friends forever altered by her life.

Please come celebrate Charlene’s life with us on Saturday, December 17 at the Bountiful 24th Ward Chapel, 720 East 550 North.  Visitation 10:00 am with funeral services at11:00 am.  Interment following at the Centerville City Cemetery.    Services entrusted to Lindquist’s Bountiful Mortuary.