Michael Garrett

Michael R. Garrett

1942 ~ 2020

An amazing and wonderful man, Michael R. Garrett, passed away Saturday, August 8th, 2020 of heart failure at his home, surrounded by family. The youngest of nine children, Mike was born July 31, 1942 to Brigham Floyd and Norma Blackett Garrett in Nephi, UT and had an idyllic boyhood hiking and hunting on Mt. Nebo, playing run, sheepy, run, helping his mother bottle mountains of fruit, chewing up baseball bats by hitting hundreds of rocks into the pasture, and dribbling a basketball on a rocky patch of dirt before launching it into the net for hours every day.

By the time he was a teenager, he could hit at least one homerun in every baseball game and became the state's leading scorer in basketball as his Juab High School team won two consecutive state championships, coached by his brother, Marcus. He earned a scholarship to play basketball at Weber State College for two years, then joined the BYU team for a year before serving a 2 1/2 year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Norway where he was the mission's top-baptizing missionary.

After his mission, he spent the summer working in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he met his sweetheart and future wife, Connee, who, for 53 years, adored and supported him.  Following a year of graduate school in Arizona, the two settled in Bountiful and had four little boys - Kirt, Jon, Matt, and Brent - while Mike began his career as a banker at Zion's Bank in Salt Lake City. Anxious to raise his boys to know how to work, he took a job at Citizen's Bank in Ogden and moved the family to Syracuse where he taught them how to milk the cow and take care of the chickens, pasture and garden, always leaving enough time each night to have a rousing game of basketball on the driveway with his sons and other neighborhood boys. When his only girl, Becky, was born, he made sure she could compete with her brothers.

His banking career at Zion's and Citizen's banks, as well as starting up the business loan department at America First Credit Union and creating a new community bank - Centennial Bank - was based on his desire to help others succeed. That same desire led him to run for Syracuse City Council, serving two terms before becoming the mayor. During his tenure, he was able to make many improvements to the city that the citizens enjoy today.

Mike loved the Savior and His gospel, serving faithfully in every calling, whether it be missionary work, teaching, or leadership. After retiring from banking, he served multiple church missions - two at the Church Employment Center and four with Connee in Ukraine, Omaha, Nebraska, and two in inner-city Ogden.

His greatest love and focus was his family - 5 children, 18 grandchildren, and 4 great-grandchildren, each one believing that he/she was his favorite. He spent hours coaching, attending games, wrestling, dancing, gardening, reading, and playing ball with them.

Mike's living family members include his wife, Connee, children, Kirt (Denise), Jon, Matt (Natalie), Brent (Kaylee), and Becky (Clint) Wooten plus all of his grandchildren and great-grand children, his sister, Bonnie (Leo) Smith, and brother Richard (Gayle) Garrett. Preceding him in death are his parents and his brothers, Jack, Carl, Kenneth (Dorothy), Marcus (Garvene), Verl (Lucile), and Clyde (Carolyn).

God be with you 'til we meet again, you amazing and wonderful man.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, August 15, 2020 at 11 a.m. at Lindquist’s Layton Mortuary, 1867 No. Fairfield Rd., Layton, Utah.  Friends may visit with family, Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. and Saturday from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. at the mortuary.

Interment, Syracuse City Cemetery

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