Saundra Zirker Maeser Obituary (1937 - 2020)

Click HERE to view Funeral Services for Saundra Zirker Maeser Softly and tenderly Saundra Zirker Maeser left mortality early on the morning of Sunday, November 15, 2020. She had work to do, but had been hampered by a diseased body. She fought a two-and-a-half-year battle against pancreatic cancer. She was at home when she passed, surrounded by her children, and welcomed by her husband into the eternal realm. Saundra was born in Myton, UT on July 10, 1937 to Willis Norman Zirker and Mary Fredonia Forsyth. She had two brothers, Norman Forsyth Zirker and William Roe Zirker, who died when just eight days old. Saundra often said she had a very happy childhood. When she was about 6 years old, her family moved to San Diego, CA. She loved living in Pacific Beach and had many memories of visiting aquariums, museums, fairs, and musical performances with her dad and brother. The relationships Saundra developed with her aunts who lived in such exotic places as California, Arizona, and Utah were very important to her. They cared about her and made her feel important. She loved them dearly. As a teenager, she developed a special relationship with her Grandma Forsyth, who she described as a great, cheerful, woman with lots of personality. Saundra felt truly blessed with the meaningful life-long friendships that were developed growing up in San Diego. She was a member of the Pacific Beach Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The ward was her life. Her friends there were also her friends through Junior High and High School and beyond. She loved the weekly church dances. She graduated from La Jolla High School in the class of 1955. Saundra attended BYU and the University of Utah. She worked for KSL, Primary Children’s Hospital, and Litton Industries filling various clerical and administrative roles. In January of 1963, Saundra serendipitously met Earl Maeser when he came to her apartment to pick up one of her roommates for a date. The roommate wasn’t home yet, so Saundra visited with him until the roommate came home. Two weeks later, Earl called Saundra for a date and the romance blossomed. On July 27, 1963 the two were married in the Los Angeles Temple. Saundra and Earl resided in Salt Lake City, UT together for 57 years. Earl brought a daughter from a previous marriage into this marriage, and Saundra immediately loved her. Five more children were born to Saundra and Earl. When the children were mostly grown, Saundra returned to work. She worked for the American Cancer Society, the University of Utah Purchasing Department, the Pediatric Pulmonology Department at Primary Children’s Hospital, and the State of Utah as an administrative assistant to the Senate. She enjoyed working, especially because of the relationships she gained in doing so. Saundra served in many callings in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As a young girl, she recognized in the Church and its members as the way to have the happy life that she desired. She was a powerful influence for good in the lives of many as she served them. In her later years she served with Earl as directors of the Salt Lake Inner City project, a Church program focused on helping the poor become self-reliant. She also played a vital role for her husband who was the Stake Patriarch of the Salt Lake Grant Stake by typing patriarchal blessings. Saundra loved to create. One of the ways she expressed herself was through sewing. She began when she was just a girl. At age 11, Saundra made a dress by hand for the heirloom doll her Grandma Zirker left to her. Saundra made clothing for herself and her children. If she didn’t have a pattern, she would make one. She would buy a craft item and then go home and recreate it -making it better than the original. Often, she used not just fabric but old sweaters, dresses, curtains, ties, quilts, etc. Sometimes she would dye the fabric to get the color she wanted. These masterpieces were not only kept for her own home, but were given to her children, grandchildren, neighbors, co-workers and friends. Her love of creating carried over into her yard, where she spent hours in her flower gardens, making sure they stayed vibrant and hydrated in the hot summer months. She was constantly propagating plants to add life and color inside her home. Plant seedlings were saved and given away to brighten others’ homes as well. Saundra had a hugely kind heart. In 1980 she saw an advertisement in the newspaper seeking families to sponsor refugees from Vietnam. She decided her family had capacity to help, so she convinced Earl and they brought a single mother with a young son from a refugee camp in the Philippines to our home and helped them to gain a foothold in America. She did the same thing a few years later with a young Vietnamese boy. She loved people of all religions and political affiliations; of all tax brackets; of all races and nationalities. She loved to hear people speak languages other than English and often reached out to them. She was a terrific cook, and could make great meals out of seemingly thin air. She taught her kids how to ride the bus and how to drive. She taught mostly by her example, rarely by her words. In her prime, Saundra was five feet five inches tall. I would mention her optimum weight, but that would not be proper for a lady. She had hands that she called “peasant hands” though everyone who knew her thought she must be descended from kings and queens. Saundra was predeceased by her parents, her brothers, and a daughter-in-law Tanya Ellis Maeser. When the cancer diagnosis came, it was her righteous desire to outlive Earl because she worried about who would take care of him as his health declined. Earl passed away, almost four months before she did in July, 2020. Another of her righteous desires was that she would live to see her youngest grandson, Nathan, baptized. He was baptized November 7, 2020 and Saundra was in attendance. Saundra cherished her family. She leaves behind six children: Amanda (Mark Rasmussen) of West Linn, OR, Earl Stanford Jr. (Lorah Evans) of Lehi, UT, Mark (Ann Hasek) of Lindon, UT, Jon (Anna Lalbeharry) of Millcreek, UT, Meredith (Paul Gardner) of Grand Junction, CO, and Nate (Tanya Ellis, deceased) of Midway, UT. They were blessed with 23 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. Saundra loved her grandchildren, and they loved her, deeply. As her health declined many of her grandchildren visited her in person or video chatted with her. These were precious moments. We, her family, will miss Saundra terribly but are confident that she has been welcomed into the arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ and has heard the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” And that she is, even now, at work. There will be a viewing Friday evening, November 20, 2020 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM at Jenkins-Soffe Mortuary, 4760 South State St, Murray, UT for friends and family. We will be wearing masks and practicing social distancing. Funeral services for the family will be held Saturday, November 21, 2020 at 11:00 AM at the Ridgedale Ward building, 3400 S. 1100 E., Millcreek, UT. The services will be broadcast on Facebook live at www.jenkins-soffe.com/obituaries. Burial will be at the Salt Lake City Cemetery at a later date.