Theodore James Barrett

September 29, 1922 - March 27, 2016

Theodore James Barrett passed away at age 93 on Easter Sunday due to complications from perforated ulcers. He left this life as he lived it, surrounded by his family—his 4 children, their spouses, and many of his grandchildren gathered around his bed at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center to wish him happy trails as he anticipated a joyful reunion with his beloved wife Faye and his family. During his last few moments, many of them recalled some of their favorite memories of their exceptional father and grandfather. He often dismissed praise, but he was in no position to protest. Ted was born on September 29, 1922 to John Taylor Barrett and Louise Matilda Caroline Dahl at their home on Spring Lane in South Cottonwood. His mother died when he was 15 months old; two years later his father married Minnie Anderson who, with John, raised the 8 Barrett children. Ted grew up on a 40 acre dairy farm and although there was plenty of work to do, he enjoyed the freedom of the farm. He often said, “We were millionaires in land.” Football was a passion of Ted’s, from his senior year at Granite High School to his stint as right guard on offense and linebacker on defense for the University of Utah during the 1940, 1941, and 1942 seasons. In 1942, he received “All Conference” recognition. In 1946, after his WWII service, he played first team again for the U of U and at the end of the season was named on the “All Conference Team” and received “Honorable Mention” on the “All American” selections. Even though all his sons became professors at BYU, Ted remained a diehard UTE fan. Ted was enrolled in the U of U School of Engineering when WWII broke out. He began his army service “playing nurse-maid to a mule” in the mule pack artillery. He quickly decided it wasn’t for him and took the Army Air Corps Aviation test and scored the highest ever recorded at Fort Sill. He qualified to be a pilot, navigator, and bombardier but chose to be a navigator because that was where he was most needed. After training, he was sent to England as a member of the 390th Bombardment Group of the Eighth Air Force. By the time the war ended in Europe, Ted had flown 20 missions over enemy territory; on 9 of these he was the lead navigator. His most memorable mission occurred on the 18th of March 1945 when he was assigned (at age 22) to be the Navigator in the lead plane for entire 8th Air Force, the biggest single air raid in the War in Europe. The mission destination was straight over Berlin in heavy flack and when Ted’s crew got back to England there were 110 bullet holes in their plane. But as Ted always said, “Any landing you can walk away from is a good one.” According to Ted, the greatest event of his life was courting and marrying Faye Walton. They were married on the first day of spring in 1947 and later sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. Ted wooed Faye by serenading her with cowboy songs; she couldn’t believe he knew every word to every verse. They were married almost 66 years. Ted was an active member of the LDS church serving in many ward and stake callings as a teacher and leader of youth. He applied his many skills to building people as well as meeting houses and was loved by all with whom he served. He had a firm testimony of Jesus Christ, the reality of the resurrection, and the centrality of eternal marriage and families. After Ted graduated with a BS in Mining Engineering, he took a job in Tooele where he designed and built a snug little house for his family, by himself, in his spare time, although he worked 6 days a week. He built the house with a hammer, a level, a saw, and a square. Ted said that by the time he finished, the saw was so dull it didn’t matter which side he used. In 1955, during the Uranium Boom, Ted accepted a job at Utex and moved his family to Moab. Ted, Faye and their three sons, Wayne, Robert, and Bill made the move, and their daughter Rebecca was born while they lived there. Ted worked his way up to Chief Engineer, but in 1961 decided to move to Salt Lake City and change careers from mining to aerospace engineering. He accepted a job at Hercules Inc. and the family moved into a “castle” on Harvard Avenue. During his 26 1/2 years at Hercules he worked on missile development, including the space shuttle. He was privileged to watch several launches. All twenty-three of his grandchildren were born while Ted and Faye lived in Salt Lake, and they were always welcome to come play or sleep over. Ted loved to design and build for his grandchildren, everything from arks to playhouses to furniture, but the thing they loved best about him was his gentle good humor. Faye and Ted took their grandchildren on many trips through the states and to Europe. Ted loved to travel, from the wilds of Mexico when he was young, to Egypt, Israel, and Africa. The only place he refused to go was Newark. In 2000, Ted and Faye moved to Provo where Ted designed a beautiful Tudor home. Faye passed away there in 2013. Many great-grandchildren have played there. They all love to go to Big Grandpa’s house where there are pirate ships and wind-up toys galore. No child has ever felt unloved or unwelcomed in Grandpa’s home. He has ever been a model of Christ-like love and tolerance, and his love for his family is fierce and absolute. We will miss his love, his humor, and his wisdom, but we know how much he wanted to go home to see his beloved Faye again, and we have to respect that no matter how much it hurts. Ted is survived by his children Wayne (Thaylene) Barrett, Robert (Vicki) Barrett, William (Hawley) Barrett, Rebecca (Tino) Santa Cruz, 23 grandchildren, 40 great-grandchildren, and a brother Louis (Betty) Barrett. Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 am, Monday, April 4, 2016 at the Edgemont Stake Center, 303 West 3700 North, Provo, UT. Friends may call at the Berg Mortuary of Provo 185 East Center St. Sunday evening from 6 until 8 and at the church, Monday from 9:30 to 10:45 am prior to the services. Interment will be at Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park in Salt Lake City following the funeral service. Condolences may be sent through his obituary at www.bergmortuary.com.