U. Sterling Cheney
1922 - 2009
Urban Sterling Cheney was born February 9, 1922 in Sunnydell, Idaho. He passed away on Thursday, October 29, 2009, at the age of 87 in Provo, Utah from acute renal failure.
Dad was the fifth of ten children born to Clarence Marcellus and Alice Leal Blackburn Cheney. He was raised on a small family farm in Archer, Idaho where he learned the value of hard work and the gospel of Jesus Christ. He was an active and faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—serving in many capacities his entire life.
In 1942 Dad enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in Arizona and Hawaii. He married Jessie Seamons in the Mesa Arizona temple on Aug. 1, 1944. Shortly after the end of WWII, Dad and Mom were called to serve as LDS missionaries to Hawaii, and upon their return, Dad resumed his studies at USU where he received both Bachelor and Master degrees in education.
Dad and Mom moved to Los Angeles in 1952 where, for the next 30 years, Dad was employed by the Culver City School District as a teacher and guidance counselor. It was here that they adopted six children and raised their family. Upon retirement, Dad and Mom served another full-time LDS mission in Tallahassee, Florida. They enjoyed 43 years together before Jessie passed away in 1987. On January 8, 1988, Dad married Kinnie Knowles Seamons, and for nearly 22 years these two have walked hand in hand, blessing the lives of their combined families. Their married life has been spent in Provo, Utah.
He is survived by his wife Kinnie; five children: Kevin (Marian), Charlottesville, VA; Craig (Carolyn), Houston, TX; Karl (Diane), Bountiful, UT; Bryan (Lisa), Castaic, CA; and Colleen (Dana) Drake, Olathe, KS.; 21 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Two grandsons are currently serving as missionaries in Japan and Africa. He has also been a step-father, grandfather and great-grandfather to five children, 31 grandchildren and 35 great-grandchildren. Dad was preceded in death by his parents, three brothers, three sisters, his eternal companion, Jessie, and a daughter, Karen.
A viewing will be held Friday, Nov. 6th from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the Walker Sanderson Funeral Home (646 E. 800 N., Orem), and on Saturday, Nov. 7th from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. at the Provo Utah Edgemont North Stake Center (345 E. 4525 N., Provo). Funeral services will be from 11:00 a.m. to noon. Interment will be in the Hyde Park, Utah cemetery.
