Charlene Lind
Charlene Lind was born on December 6, 1932, as the second child and first daughter of Leslie and Elizabeth Whitmore Lind. She grew up in Midvale, Salt Lake County, Utah, attending elementary and junior high school in Midvale and then going to Jordan High School in Sandy, where her major school activities were student newspaper and debating.
As a young person Charlene was active in Girl Scouts and in 4-H club work, specializing in clothing, food, and home furnishings. Because of her 4-H membership, she won a scholarship that took her to Utah State Agricultural College (now Utah State University), where she graduated in Home Economics with a specialty in Clothing and Textiles. She worked four years in the university library.
Charlene’s first job was as a County Home Demonstration Agent in Price, Carbon County, Utah. After two years, she was a called on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Western Samoa, where she expected to be assigned to proselyte, but was, instead assigned to teach in the church’s Pesega High School. She taught type, natural science, religion, and PE, but mostly Home Economics.
When Charlene returned from her mission in 1959, she spent a year in Washington DC as a National 4-H Fellow, a program sponsored by the US Department of Agriculture (Ezra Taft Benson was the Secretary of USDA at the time). While there she completed a master’s degree in Adult Education at the University of Maryland. From there she was hired as a 4-H Club Agent in Multnomah County Oregon with responsibilities for leader recruitment and training, managing a summer camp, and the 4-H section of the County Fair.
After four years in Oregon, Charlene moved to Provo, Utah to join the faculty of the Clothing and Textiles department at Brigham Young University. She taught there for 35 years, retiring in 1999. In 1974 Charlene received a doctorate in Clothing and Textiles and Social Psychology from the University of Wisconsin. She served twice as department chair of Clothing and Textiles from 1974-1982 and from 1995-1999. In 1999 she was awarded the Outstanding Faculty Woman Award. She is a certified home economist since 1988 and pursued research and creative work in the psychology of color and weaving techniques (part in italics from Greg Reeves).
Church and family were important parts of Charlene’s life. She served in YWMIA, Sunday School, Relief Society, and briefly in the Primary. She served nine years (1996-2005) as an ordinance worker in the Provo Temple. Family History work was important to Charlene, and she served as a full-time family history missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 2005-2006 , followed by part-time family history missionary service at home from 2006-2009.
Funeral services will be held Friday, December 16, 2022 at 12:00 Noon, with a viewing from 11:0011:45 am, at the Edgemont 12th Ward, 350 East 2950 North, Provo. A viewing will also be held Thursday, December 15 from 6:008:00 pm at Goff Mortuary, 8090 S. State St., Midvale. Burial will be in the Midvale City Cemetery.