John Varon Boss

John Varon Boss, 83, died Wednesday, June 12, 2013, in Ogden, Utah, of cancer. He was born Oct. 28, 1929, in Willard, Utah, to Joseph Abinida Boss and Clara Elzada Hansen, the youngest of nine children. He married Genevieve Hazel Bair on Nov. 15, 1947, in Ogden, and they had three girls, all of whom are surviving: Shirley K. Boss Morrison, of Syracuse; Judy Lynn Boss (Gerald) Kinder of Hacienda Heights, Calif.; and Peggy Ann Boss (David) Barney of Farmington. He had nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. His wife died of cancer in 1963. He later married Marilyn Joyce Plum Gilbert, who also had three children, Cynthia (Vern) Andrews, Sandra (Rick) Ropelato and William Gilbert (deceased). The two later divorced. He served in the Utah National Guard 222nd Field Artillery Battalion and was honorably discharged in 1948. He worked for three decades at Defense Depot Ogden, where he received many awards and commendations. He was a good carpenter, plumber, electrician, mechanic and general handyman and supplemented his income doing contract work as well as owning rental properties. John could be called a renaissance man. He taught himself to play the harmonica and an old squeeze box accordion from pre-WWII Germany. In his youth, he developing black and white prints from a Brownie camera in a makeshift darkroom along with his brother. He also shot 8 mm video. He once took pilot lessons. He was a good cook, making everything from pickled eggs to sourdough pancakes. He raised backyard chickens and for many years had a large vegetable garden and fruit orchard. He had a keen interest in local and state politics, though he was never active in politics. He loved old cowboy music, TV shows and movies. He loved animals and they loved him. He loved long drives and walks in the west desert and in the mountains. He also liked camping and fishing. He was proceeded in death by his brothers and sisters: Willis Edwin, Ella Janette, Joseph Alfred, Aurthur Leslie, Mabel Violet, Alvy Franklin, Ferril Leon and Frances Eugene. Besides his daughters, also surviving is a sister-in-law (wife of Francis Eugene) with whom he was very close, Vernamay (Riggs) Boss, of Ogden.

The family would like to give special thanks to John's grandson and his wife, Sean and Flo Morrison, of Ogden, who did much to care for him in his final years. The family would also like to thank Dr. Pramod K. Sharma and Dr. Vincent L. Hansen and their staffs, along with Hearts for Hospice. Condolences to the family maybe given at www.aaronsmortuary.com.

The funeral will be private. In John's memory, contributions may be made to Best Friends Animal Society online at bestfriends.org.