Laddie Pruett

Laddie David Pruett

August 19, 1946 ~ September 14, 2016

After yet another heartbreaking BYU loss to Utah, Laddie David Pruett passed away Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at his home in West Valley City, Utah.

Born August 19, 1946 in Bedford, Indiana to Lee and Joy Pruett, after being displaced by a fire the family moved to the Shawswick area of Bedford where Laddie enjoyed the life of playing in the creek, learning to navigate country roads at high rates of speed, and clearing the paths to improve their squirrel hunting efforts. After graduating from Shawswick High School, Laddie joined the Navy to escape the holler he called home. After four years of service to his country that took him to the beaches of Hawaii and Guantanamo as well as the wilds of Newfoundland, he furthered his education at Rick’s College and BYU as a beneficiary of the GI Bill.

While at Ricks, he romanced Juanita Sue Perkins and after 100 days of skunk hunting and working his way through the many requests for permission, Laddie and Juanita were married in the Logan LDS Temple on December 15, 1970. They worked through the ups and downs of marriage for 40 years until Juanita passed away of cancer in 2011. In her final years, Laddie expressed his great love for Juanita daily in her support as she fought the war of her life. Laddie went on to marry a cherished friend, Eileen Clark, later that year. Laddie and Eileen had many adventures with many trips to car shows, cowboy poetry, hospitals, and travels back East including stops in New Hampshire, Florida, Indiana, and Cleveland. Laddie’s children are grateful for the love and companionship Eileen provided Laddie in his latter years and especially the support she provided during his darkest times.

Following graduation, Laddie dedicated his life to the service of others as social worker in the Utah State Prison System where he made many friends on both sides of the bars. Laddie was always pulling for the good in those he served and proud when he’d run into old friends from the other side who had done well for themselves after release.

A lifelong faithful member of the LDS Church with a fervent testimony of Jesus Christ and the restored gospel, Laddie served in various callings including time as a High Priest leader where he could always be counted on in the last minute to join any assignment that involved speaking. Those who knew Laddie know, however, that he took special pride in his 20 years as a leader in the Boy Scouts of America.

He loved spending time in the outdoors and passed this on to anybody who had the pleasure to join him and his Dutch oven cooking. He was also passionate about gardening, classic country, and most importantly BYU football. His regrets in life were selling his ‘68 Camaro and ‘55 Chevy Bel Air. He soothed these regrets in later years by pouring his time into the love for a ‘49 Dodge B-Series Truck and money into a new “BYU Blue” Buick. Laddie had a love for genealogy, serving weekly in the Ogden Family History Center in later years. As the family patriarch, he continued the tradition of passing on oral family stories and added the caveat of putting pen to paper benefiting generations to come.

Laddie leaves a legacy as great as the one he inherited and loved. He is reunited in death with his first wife Juanita, their infant daughter, Nancy, grandson, Joshua, parents, and siblings Danny, Mark, and Bonnie. He is survived by his second wife, Eileen Clark Pruett, and the following children and grandchildren from his marriage to Juanita: son Henry (Cameron and Sydney), daughter Sarah (Colby, Corinne, Jeff Chase, Rhett, Quinton, Alexis and Remie), daughter Mary and husband Atheer (Michelle, Dante, Ebony and LaMadre), son David (Micah, Zach and Kaleb), daughter Emilee and husband Alex (Joshua), son Jacob and wife Alicia (Addison, Beckem, Leighton and Scotlyn). His surviving siblings are Beth, Phil, Rebekah, Laura, and Lisa who are saddened by the loss of a brother who refused to allow distance to impede their closeness.

Funeral services will be held at 7 p.m. on Sunday, September 18, 2016 at Lindquist’s Roy Mortuary, 3333 West 5600 South. The family will meet with friends Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m. at the mortuary. Graveside services will be held Monday, September 19, 2016 at 10 a.m. at the American Fork Cemetery.