CENTERVILLE, Utah, Aug. 26, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — Neal and Elaine Jenkins, the Centerville couple killed this week in a boating accident in Idaho, will be laid to rest Monday.
Elaine Jenkins, 65, and her husband, Neal Jenkins, 68, were boating with a friend on Aug. 21 near Blacktail Park at Ririe Reservoir. The boat took a sharp turn, and all three aboard were thrown into the water.
The boat, circling out of control, then struck all three. Elaine Jenkins died at the scene. Onlookers could not offer help until the boat ran out of gas and stopped.
Neal Jenkins and boat operator Mike Kingston, 63, of Idaho Falls, were transported the hospital, Jenkins by helicopter and Kingston by ground ambulance. Jenkins succumbed to his injuries, which were more serious. Kingston survived.
The couple will be remembered at a graveside service at 2 p.m. Monday in the Bountiful City Cemetery. According to information on the Russon Mortuary website, a memorial service will follow at 3:30 p.m. at the Bountiful Ridge Golf Course Pavilion.
The couple’s full obituary follows:
On August 21, 2017, Neal and Elaine Jenkins left this world as they had lived in it — together.
The weight of this sudden loss is immeasurable. But so, too, are the memories of two lives well lived.
Neal and Elaine shined as parents, raising three remarkable children of whom they were so very proud, and also as a couple, whose mutual love and respect was evident to everyone lucky enough to spend time with them.
They will be grieved deeply by their children and grandchildren and their many, many loved ones, whether family or friends. But they will also be celebrated and honored for the legacy of love, fun, and laughter they have left for all of us.
Neal Jenkins and Elaine Carter were married in 1971, following a chance meeting at Southern Utah State College in Cedar City, Utah, the year before. The pair lived briefly in Alpine before moving to Bountiful in 1974, where Neal had accepted a position as the city’s first ever golf course superintendent.
Neal dedicated his professional life to the City of Bountiful, as the city’s Director of Parks and Recreation and retired after an impressive 32-year career in 2006. In addition to raising her children, Elaine worked as a systems engineer for various companies across Utah.
Together, the Jenkins family spent many happy years in Bountiful and Centerville. They built their dream home in 1992, which became the centerpiece for all future family gatherings, holidays, and the best summer BBQs, and it is where family and friends have retreated to find refuge and comfort over the past week.
Neal and Elaine were soul mates in every way, and rarely would you see one without the other. They were so perfect for one another that when Neal needed a kidney, Elaine proved to be a perfect match. Their love for each other showed what true devotion to someone could look like, and they extended that love to their family and friends.
The examples set by Neal and Elaine will carry forward with those who loved them so much – especially their ability to live their best life. The pair built a mountain retreat in the Uintas where for decades they welcomed their wide circle of loved ones for memorable weekends and the world’s best bloody marys, and, more recently, found joy and reprieve in Mesquite for golf and ATV rides with great friends. And in this same spirit of living life to its fullest, on the final day of their lives, Neal and Elaine experienced the solar eclipse at 100 percent totality. As in all of their adventures, they were together.
Edwin Neal Jenkins, 68, and Elaine Carter Jenkins, 65, both of Utah County, Utah, are survived by their children: Amanda (Patrick) Uchtman, Kari (Jonathan) Barker, and Layne (Joanna) Jenkins; their five beautiful grandchildren: Kaleb, Mason, Blayke, Ashton, and Violet; Elaine’s mother, Pauline Carter; Elaine’s brothers, Dennis (Diana) Carter and Jon (Michelle) Carter; and Neal’s brother, Larry (Bea) Jenkins.
A graveside dedication will be held Monday, August 28, 2017, at 2 p.m. at the Bountiful City Cemetery, followed by a memorial service at 3:30 p.m. at Bountiful Ridge Golf Course pavilion, 2430 Bountiful Blvd, Bountiful, UT.
To read additional service details or send condolences through the mortuary website, click here.
