Mary Ellen Gould

Mary Ellen Terry Gould of West Point, Utah, passed away on the afternoon of Wednesday, October 30, 2024, at the age of 86. Mary Ellen was born February 28, 1938, in Whitehall, Montana, to George Claude Terry and Jessie “L” Jolley. Her family moved to Bountiful, Utah, where Mary Ellen spent her childhood playing with her siblings Verlan (Sherry Beasley), Dawn (Duane Isaac), and Jean (Merrill Gillette). Mary Ellen graduated from the University of Utah College of Nursing.

After nursing school, Mary Ellen served an LDS mission in South Africa and then took the opportunity to travel the world. Upon returning home, she took classes at BYU hoping to meet her eternal companion. During a group counseling session at BYU, Mary Ellen invited everyone to her house for Christmas Eve. Alan was the only one to show up and brought homemade gingerbread cookies to share. This sealed the deal and Alan Vincent Gould and Mary Ellen were married on August 23, 1968, in the Salt Lake Temple.

It was difficult for Mary Ellen to leave her family behind to move to Nebraska where Alan had gotten a job working for the University of Nebraska. Mary Ellen missed her family deeply but soon found herself very busy working as a nurse and having six children in eight years: Vincent (Shannon), Diane (Adam Wall), Mindy (Brian McKibben), Jenny (Steve Gallafent), Julie (Colin Ramsay), and Jodie. They were eventually blessed with 17 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. 

Mary Ellen had a passion for genealogy and temple work. She had a life-sized portrait of Sarah Pippin (her third great-grandmother) in her closet. It inspired her to continue her genealogy work and not give up but gave more than one child a fright. She served in several temples throughout her life: Chicago, St. Louis, and most recently Ogden where she served for nine years. She also served two CES missions with Alan in Cambodia and Washington, D.C. After their missions, she and Alan moved from Nebraska back to Utah. 

Mary Ellen enjoyed many hobbies including eating out, tatting, knitting, reading, watching football and baseball, puzzles, bowling, walking, singing and playing the piano. She loved her family and hearing about what her children and grandchildren were up to. She will be greatly missed. 

Funeral service will be held on Monday, November 4, 2024, at 2:00 pm at the West Point 13th Ward meeting house at 3290 W 800 N in West Point, Utah. Friends may visit with family on Monday from 12:30 to 1:30 prior to service. She will be buried at the West Point City Cemetery. 

A Zoom link for the funeral can be found on the Lindquist Mortuary website.