Anita Marguerite (Cox) Oman, passed away peacefully on April 13, 2024, at age 83, in her hometown of Ferron, Utah, surrounded by loved ones.
Anita was born in Carson City, Nevada. She spent her childhood on her parent’s ranch in Big Smoky Valley, Nevada. Anita enjoyed the wide-open space, days spent playing with Snowball, her small donkey, and the one-room schoolhouse where she started school. She later moved to Ferron, Utah where her parents bought a dairy farm. After graduating from high school in Ferron, Anita moved to Salt Lake City where she worked at Surety Life Insurance Company and then at The Church Office Building as a secretary for ten years. As a young adult, she served a stake mission.
Anita married Dewey Kelley and lived in Blackfoot, Idaho. The couple had two daughters, Elise and Judith. Anita and her two daughters later moved to Ferron, Utah. She worked at the Wilberg Mine and then MSHA. Anita was a hard worker and was able to buy her own home. Anita married Bert Oman and they had a daughter, Summer Lynn. Anita adored her three daughters and her four grandchildren, Jaxon, Miles, Stella, and Zofia.
Anita’s home was a place of beauty and comfort where she welcomed many friends over the years. She created a stunning secret garden oasis in her backyard, which served as a place of peace and tranquility for anyone who joined her on her porch swing to relax and listen to the birds sing. Her neighbors knew her as “Anita-down-the-streeta” and the children regularly dropped by for a cookie.
Anita had a special gift for connecting with children. Perhaps it was because she was close to their small size or because she had a talent for making them feel seen and heard. She often pointed out small details in nature and on the pages of the beautiful storybooks she would read to them.
As she aged, Anita’s sunny, can-do outlook did not waver. Her faith in Jesus Christ strengthened her resolve to handle the weightier matters by focusing on the people she loved, often assuring them that she loved them, “To the moon and back”.
Anita was preceded in death by her mother and father, Luella and Fredrick (Ted) Cox. She is survived by her three daughters, Elise, Judith, and Summer Lynn; her grandchildren, Jaxon, Miles, Stella, and Zofia; her brothers and sisters, Ted, Rosemary, Elaine, Tim, and Dan; and many nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were held Wednesday, April 17, 2024, 11:00 a.m., at the Ferron Creek Ward Chapel (Ferron Stake Center) where the family received friends Tuesday evening from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. and on Wednesday morning from 10:00 – 10:45 a.m. prior to the service. Burial followed in the Ferron City Cemetery. Arrangements entrusted to Mitchell Funeral Home of Price and Huntington where friends are always welcome daily and may share memories of Anita online at www.mitchellfuneralhome.net