In Memoriam

Remembering friends of the University of Utah

Eugene "Gene" Grant Pack II, 86, classical music radio host and actor, passed from this life March 3, 2019, in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was born July 29, 1932, in Salt Lake City, Utah. He is the son of Eugene Grant Pack I and Lucile Clara (Payne) Pack, who preceded him in death. He is survived by a brother, Dennis (Carol) Pack, of Winona, Minnesota, two nephews, two grand-nieces, a grand-nephew and several cousins.

Radio and the theatre were his passions. He joined the radio club in high school, and starred in a play at Kingsbury Hall at the age of 12.

Gene received a bachelor of fine arts from the University of Utah. He worked at KUER, the University of Utah's public radio station, from before it went on the air in 1960 until his retirement in 2002. He had many titles and responsibilities, but is best known as the producer and host of music and fine arts programming.

Recognition he received includes the Honors in the Arts Award from the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce in 1983 for significant contributions to the cultural heritage of the State of Utah, the Madeleine Award from the Cathedral of the Madeleine in 1990 for distinguished service to the arts and humanities, the Utah State Governor's Award for Arts Education in 1990, and election to the Utah Broadcast Hall of Fame in 2005.

Gene had major roles in scores of plays in many venues, including Theater 138, the Pioneer Memorial Theatre, Kingsbury Hall, the Salt Lake Acting Company, Grand Theater, Theater Works West, the Lagoon Opera House, and Park City melodrama. He appeared as a narrator with the Utah Symphony Orchestra and with the Zivio Ethnic Arts Ensemble. He also appeared in several theatrical films and in commercials.

Gene enjoyed the company of good friends, and he had many of them. His kindness, wit, and wisdom will be sorely missed.

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James (Jim) Fitzgerald BS'61 passed away on Feb. 22, 2019, surrounded by his family. Jim was born in Draper in 1936, the ninth of 11 children of Leland W. Fitzgerald and Eva Allen Fitzgerald. He was raised on a large family ranch and graduated from Jordan High School in 1955. He then graduated with a degree in physics from the University of Utah, while serving in the Utah Air National Guard. He married Kareen Nielson of Sandy in 1957 and had five children.

Jim worked in the aeronautics and space industry from 1958-67. During this time, he was a scientist for the NASA and military missile programs during the pioneering age of space exploration. He worked on the Atlas, Minuteman, Apollo, and other missile systems with his unique combination of razor-sharp intellect and farm-boy common sense.

In 1967, he decided to follow his lifelong dream of owning his own farm. He started with a piece of land covered in sagebrush and built a 450-cow dairy in the middle of the Utah County desert. He was an innovator in the industry and operated one of the few fully integrated dairies in Utah, growing his own feed, processing and bottling the milk, and delivering it directly to stores throughout Northern Utah.

In 1985 he returned to the aeronautics industry where he served as the lead engineer for the United States Air Force's flight test program for the Peacekeeper and Minuteman III missile systems, all while building and operating another dairy in Willard, Utah.

Jim retired in 1998 and spent several years traveling around the western United States, Canada and Alaska with his wife and beloved dogs.

Jim is survived by his wife Kareen, daughters Marcy Wright, Shanna Clark, Shala Hatch and son Chet Fitzgerald. He has also been blessed with 15 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, daughter Kristin F. Cook, grandsons Wynd Wright and Wysee Cook and great-granddaughter Eva Clark.

His indomitable spirit, confidence, intellect and strength under pressure are a great inspiration to his family and everyone that knew him. He was a truly remarkable man, and we are fortunate to have known him.

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Heather Bennett passed away on March 18, 2019. The eldest of six, Heather spent her first nine years in Bountiful before moving to SLC.

In 1976, Heather graduated from Skyline, after surviving Hodgkin's disease and excelling at debate, theater, and journalism.

Before studying English at the U, Heather traveled in Israel and Egypt. In her professional life, she worked as an editor for Wadsworth Publishing in San Francisco and for Gibbs Smith in Utah before founding her own editing business, Hither & Yon.

Heather married Kevin Hanson, a filmmaker and teacher, in 1983. They lived in San Francisco, Dayton, and again in Salt Lake City for the last 26 years. She is survived by Kevin and their three children, Samuel Bennett Hanson, Hannah Harper Hanson, and Emma Rose Hanson.

Outraged by the closure of Lowell Elementary, she formed bonds with fellow activists and ran for the Board of Education in 2004, serving until her death. Among numerous accomplishments, she insured that health benefits were made available to the domestic partners of employees, and protected the identities of immigrant students. She helped found two public charter schools, the Salt Lake Arts Academy and the Salt Lake Center for Science Education (SLCSE).

On visits to wilderness, Heather spoke eloquently about geology and the night sky, sharing the wisdom they taught her. We will remember Heather in those wild places, and anywhere a love of words and beauty flourish.

The family is in the process of setting up a college scholarship in Heather's honor. Recipients will be young women graduating from SLCSE. 

Wallace A. Wright Jr., died peacefully, surrounded by family, on March 24, 2019 in Ogden after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer's Disease. Wally, the eldest child of W. Adrian and Edna Smith Wright, was born in Logan on February 19, 1935. He attended East High School and the University of Utah. He affiliated with the Beta Theta Pi fraternity where he made lifelong friends.

His adventurous personality led him to the United States Air Force, where he spent hours flying his F-86 fighter jet. Furthering his military career in the Air National Guard, he achieved the rank of major, was a command pilot, and flew KC97s and C124 Cargo and re-fueling planes around the world.

He married Jeralynn Topham and together they raised six children. They were later divorced. He married and spent many happy years with Karen Schumann Marchant and loved her children and grandchildren as his own.

Wally's professional career began in the Real Estate industry where he worked side by side with his father and brothers at W. Adrian Wright, Inc. Realtors. There, he found his passion for development, building many contemporary residential and commercial buildings throughout the Intermountain region and serving as a member of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors. 

Wally was an influential entrepreneur in the Salt Lake City and Park City communities, and a pioneer in adaptive re-use of historic structures. Wally served on the board of the Utah Heritage Foundation and Utah State Board of History, challenging the demolition of and promoting the preservation of significant historic buildings. "Trolley Wally" brought new life to Salt Lake's dilapidated streetcar barns by creating the world-renowned festival marketplace Trolley Square. His vision helped preserve landmark downtown office buildings including the Boston, Judge, and Commercial Club buildings. Similarly, he was instrumental in the transformation of the St. Louis Union Station into a hotel, shopping, and entertainment complex.

Wally's keen interest regarding the Great Salt Lake and the potential tourism opportunities there spurred his involvement with the re-imagining and construction of the Saltair Resort, creating a waterslide, gift shops, a dance pavilion, and other tourist activities. 

As an early member of the Salt Lake Convention and Visitor's Bureau, Wally was involved with bringing displays of local photographic art to the Salt Lake International Airport. Visitors to Liberty Park still enjoy the park rides, merry-go-round, and paddle boats that Wally set up there. Wally developed Park City's Alpine Slide and was proud to bring this unique activity to Utah. 

Wally is survived by his children and their mothers, Jeralynn T. Winder: Wallace "Tri" Wright (Connie), Shauna Sloan (Brent), Merrick Wright (Annmarie), Jennefer Gillette (Steve), Devin Wright (Joslin), Laurel Smith (Ric), Karen S. Wright: Brandon Marchant (Amber), Sara Marchant (Marco Diaz) and Marilee C. Latta: Andrew Latta (Chelsea). He has 28 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren. Also surviving Wally are his siblings Gary (Ruth), Kent (Betty), Colleen Dibble (Jon) and Carolyn Willey (Kimball). He was pre-deceased by his parents and brother Grayson (Mary Ann).