Dean Michelsen

Dean Philip Michelsen

October 28, 1931 – January 5, 2017

Dean passed away peacefully at the age of 85, while napping in his favorite recliner.

He was born to Neils Michelsen and Alice Spackman in Lethbridge, Alberta, the oldest of three children.  His father died when he was 11 years old, leaving him the man of the house and farm.  Upon graduating from high school in Stirling, Alberta, he joined the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.  After six years as a crime scene investigator and finger print expert in Ottawa, Ontario, he attended Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, where he received three degrees in Mechanical Engineering, Psychology and Technical Teaching.  He spent two years teaching shop and photography at Laketown, Utah, where he also became an EMT.  On his second day at BYU, he met his lady friend, Pearl Bennett, whom he had previously met at church in Ottawa.  After dating for four years, and finally graduating while Pearl taught school in Alberta, they were married July 18, 1962 in the Cardston, Alberta LDS temple.

Dean was a “Jack of all trades, master of many.”  He could fix almost anything, sometimes just by looking at it.  He had a long career as a mechanical engineer, mostly at Sperry/Unisys where he invented several engineering processes for circuit boards.  Additionally he was an electrician, carpenter, gardener, mechanic, roofer, upholsterer, plumber, construction worker and all-purpose handy man and snow remover.  Some of our best memories are of the many sightseeing and camping trips over the years.

He is survived by his wife, Pearl, and their five children, Paul (Ronda Goss), Bonnie, Philip, Carolyn (Stephen Durtschi), and Steven, seven grandchildren, and a sister, Loretta Streeter.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, January 12, 2017 at 11 a.m. at the Kaysville 13th Ward Chapel, 875 E. 200 N., Kaysville.  Friends may visit family Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Lindquist’s Kaysville Mortuary, 400 North and Thursday from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the church.

Interment, Kaysville City Cemetery.