Vera Young

And so begins the task

I have dreaded the coming of

For so long

I wait for the sun

To remind my body

It needs restin’

And I must learn to ‘live’ without you now

I must learn to give only part somehow”

(Stephen Stills “So Begins the Task” ​Manassas)​

Vera Martha Kondratieff Young

April 30, 1954 ~ May 4, 2019

And so begins the task for Vera Martha Kondratieff Young’s family, friends, and loved ones to say goodbye to her. She left us May 4, 2019, only a week after her 65th birthday after a two-year-long struggle with cancer. Now, we must learn to “live” without the beloved center of our world.

Vera was born on April 30, 1954, in Kansas City, Missouri, as the twin of her brother Boris. Her parents, Johanna and Boris Kondratieff, had barely touched American soil to start a new life after emigrating from Germany that same year. In 1966, after their father had died and mother completed her American education, the family started a new life in Greeneville, TN, at Tusculum College. Here Vera graduated from Greeneville High School, in 1972, where she was voted “wittiest” student of the year.

Not only did her wit define her, but her beauty, kindness, and empathy towards the disabled lead her to a long career as a special education teacher. This began in New Castle, Virginia, and after moving to Utah continued for another thirty-years at Mount Ogden Junior High School, in Ogden, Utah.

Along the way, Vera attended Plymouth State College, Plymouth, NH, and received her degree from Tusculum College. At Tusculum, she met her husband, Dr. James Young and together they had two beautiful sons, Yuri and Sveva. Vera’s love for her family and the beauty she created in their home together was her greatest accomplishment.

Vera is survived by her husband, Dr. James Young; sons, Yuri and Sveva (Carlie Benson); brother, Dr. Boris Kondratieff; his daughter, Maiya; and her younger sister, Kyra (Tom Hudson); nephew and niece, Julian and Kiki. Along with her four legged poodle friends Phebe, Harriet, and Zelda, Vera’s loss in our lives will be more than we can “give ... somehow.”

Memorial services will be held on Sunday, May 12, 2019 at 3 p.m. at Lindquist’s Ogden Mortuary, 3408 Washington Blvd.

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