Mary Koldewyn Kleinman Hills Obituary (1913 - 2009)

Mary Emeline Islaub Koldewyn Kleinman Hills ST. GEORGE - Mary Islaub Koldewyn Kleinman Hills, born on September 22, 1913 in Ogden, Utah to George Almon and Sarah Davis Islaub died March 3rd, 2009 in St. George, Utah. Mary grew up and spent nearly her entire life in Ogden until 2004 when she and her husband Henry Hills moved to St. George. When she was only 5, her father died at the age of 29 in the 1918 flu epidemic. In 1921 her mother married George Q Rich. Mary graduated from Ogden High School in 1931 where she won many awards for her excellence in typing and Gregg shorthand. After high school, Mary went to work, first in jewelry and fine china sales, then as an executive secretary for Jones and Atwood, First Security Bank and for the commanding general at Hill AFB. Later, she moved to product and contract administration at Hill until she retired in 1975. Music was a major part of Mary's life. She had a beautiful voice and sang in several trios, double trios and choirs. She was a member of the Ogden Symphonic Choir for 25 years and sang in All Faces West every year from its inception. For a while, one trio had a weekly radio program where they sang phoned-in requests. There was rarely a Sunday when Mary didn't sing in at least one Sacrament meeting. Right up to the end, she was singing with her friends at Sterling Court. Bob would bring the words to a song and they would sing around the breakfast table. In fact, it was in a church choir in 1931 that Mary met her first husband William John Koldewyn. They were married in 1934 in the Salt Lake Temple. In 1938, Bill was called to serve a second mission in the Netherlands. It ended prematurely due to the immanent war. Nevertheless, Mary traveled to Europe to meet him and they were able to travel to several countries, including France and Germany. Their travels were ended unexpectedly when Hitler marched into Poland. They sailed for home on the Manhattan. A sister ship, the Athena, that sailed at the same time was sunk by a German submarine. Christmas, 1941 Mary and Bill moved into their new basement home. Over the next 20 plus years they added a ground level floor, with much personal labor and help from friends,. Bill passed away in April 1963. In 1969, Mary met Forrest Kleinman and they married in November of that year. Forrest died very suddenly in 1986. Mary renewed her friendship with Henry Hills, whom she had known for many years. They married on November 21, 1987, and spent 18 happy years together before his death in June of 2006. She is survived by her brother, Lynnwood (Kitty) Islaub, son, Bill (Kathy) Koldewyn; grandchildren, Kennis (Rachel) Koldewyn and Kami (Aaron) Koldewyn. The family would like to thank the staff and residents of Sterling Court as well as the nurses and caregivers with Southern Utah Home Health Care and Hospice. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Southern Utah Home Health Care and Hospice, or the Utah Symphony. Funeral services will be held on Friday, March 6, 2009, at 1:00 p.m. at Myers Mortuary, 845 Washington Blvd., Ogden. Friends may call at the mortuary on Friday, March 6 prior to the funeral service from 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Interment, Ogden City Cemetery. VisitationMyers Mortuary - Ogden 100 Monroe Blvd. Ogden, UT 84404 March 6, 2009 11:15 AM - 12:45 PM ServiceMyers Mortuary - Ogden 1875 Monroe Blvd Ogden, Utah 84401 March 6, 2009 1:00 PM CemeteryOgden City Cemetery 20th and Madison Ogden, UT 84404 March 6, 2009