Elsie LaVelle James Eastman died on April 7, 2017, of causes incident to age. She was born in Tooele, Utah, on Aug. 1, 1925, to Gilroy James and Elsie Ordina Mortensen. Growing up in that small town was enlivened by her neighbors, who were ‘double cousins,’ daughters of her father’s sister and her mother’s brother. Her other boon companion was Coalie, the family dog, who would meet LaVelle at school and walk her home every day.
She met Dan Moroni Eastman when she sold him a movie ticket at the Ritz Theater on Main Street in Tooele, and married him when he came home from service as a bomber pilot in World War II. They lived in San Francisco, then Elko and Ely (Nevada), while Dan was studying mortuary science, and settling in Salt Lake City, where she has lived ever since. LaVelle and Dan were divorced in 1975.
LaVelle is known for her artistry as a seamstress: her family has a notebook with pictures of the more than 100 wedding dresses she made over the years. She continued to sew until well into her 80s. She also has left a large amount of beautifully painted china and porcelain, as well as a number of finely executed watercolors.
Though she herself never drank, LaVelle got to know most of the bartenders in town when she was organizing the Ugly Bartender Contest for the Utah Multiple Sclerosis Society, where she worked for many years. She was also instrumental in putting together the MS Society’s annual “Utah’s Best Dam Bike Tour” event several times. LaVelle finished her working career as a secretary at the University of Utah’s Division of Continuing Education.
LaVelle is survived by four children: Alan (Vickie) of Salt Lake City, Julie Menzie (Mark) of Petaluma, California, Scott (Helen) of Bolivar, Missouri, and Kelly of San Francisco. She also leaves seven grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, April 14, 2017, at 11 a.m. at the Fortuna Ward Chapel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 4407 S. Fortuna Way. Visitation will be one hour prior to the services. Interment and a private family service will be in the Tooele City Cemetery following the funeral. Online condolences may be shared at www.jenkins-soffe.com.
