Floyd Matheson

As his late wife Dixie would have said, Floyd J Matheson “graduated” from this life on January 19th, 2019.
He will be welcomed by his parents, Verda and Owen Matheson, and three brothers, Gaylen, Cleon, and Vernile Matheson. He is survived by Karen (Ralph) Stokes of Mesa, Arizona; and Avey Weight of American Fork, Utah.

Floyd was born on September 11, 1931 in Cedar City, Utah, where he also attended school. He grew up on a farm in Enoch where he milked cows, drove a team of horses, and helped with all kinds of mechanical maintenance. He met Dixie Brunson at a Junior High dance and later married her on October 11, 1951 in the St. George Temple. They were married for 63 years until Dixie passed away in 2015. Floyd and Dixie had three children: Susan, Kirk, and Mark; 10 grandchildren; and 18 great-grandchildren.

Floyd wanted to serve a mission and received a call to the Western States Mission. But Uncle Sam won out and he instead served for two years in the European Theater of the Korean war. He completed his basic training at Fort Bliss, Texas and was later stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany where he worked as a Battalion Shipping Clerk. During his time in Germany he came to be acquainted with Volkswagen cars which became one of his most beloved hobbies later in his life.

Floyd received a degree in Elementary Education from the College of Southern Utah which landed him a job teaching 5th grade at the South Elementary. He later spent summers at BYU while completing a Master’s Degree in Education and later an Education Specialist Degree. He took his family with him for the first two summers, and later traveled home to see them every weekend instead. He invested a lot of time, work, and money in his education. His advanced degree allowed him to get a job as the Principal of Parowan Elementary which required, he and his family to move from Cedar City to Parowan Utah where he lived for nearly 50 years.
Floyd built both his home in Cedar City and his home in Parowan. After he retired, he built a shop west of Parowan where he repaired Volkswagens and literally anything and everything else with the help of his "other brother" and cousin Doug Maxwell. One of his many famous quotes applies here: "When things need to be done, the impossible just takes a little longer."
Floyd served in many church callings. He served in two bishoprics but his 9 years as President of the Sunday School was his favorite calling. He and Dixie served an LDS CES mission to Duluth Minnesota in July of 2003 where he kept a daily journal of his experiences. He met many friends with whom he kept in contact for the rest of his life.
Floyd enjoyed boating his entire life. He made his first boat and owned many others after that including a share on a houseboat at Lake Powell, his home away from home. He loved to water ski and did so until just a few years ago at the age of 84.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, January 26, 2019 at 11:00 am at the Parowan 3rd and 4th Ward building. A viewing will be held the night before on January 25, 2019 from 6:30-8:30 pm at the Parowan 3rd and 4th Ward Church and also on Saturday a viewing will be held prior to the service from 9:00-10:30 am at the Church. Interment will be in the Parowan City Cemetery under the direction of Southern Utah Mortuary.