Penny Rae Behunin
CEDAR CITY - Dear Family Members, Loved Ones,
Friends, Neighbors, and Everyone who waited in a teller line for Penny to take care of them:
For the record:
Penny Rae Behunin was born on June 22, 1944, to
Beryl Curtis Hutchings and Reid Devey Hutchings of Lehi, UT. She was the only child of Beryl and Reid and was born in Bell, California, as the family stayed there after Reid’s military service in World War II.
She passed away on April 26, 2024, of Alzheimer’s.
That said:
In every measurable way, Penny was her parents’ treasure. Hutch (her father Reid) frequently called her his “little money” because her charisma, charm and kindness always turned up around every corner. But let’s face it—and she was open and honest about this—as the only child of a hard-working, well-to-do post World War II family, she was (in her own words) “just a little spoiled.” Which was also part of her charm. Because she was so well taken care of, she always tried to take care of others (again, in her own words) “how she wanted to be cared for.”
She grew up in Downey, California, graduated from Downey High School, was a devoted Carpenters music fan and a closet Elvis fanatic. Oh, yeah, our calm, cool, collected, bank teller could loosen up a bit at an Elvis concert (or at home with her records when she thought we weren’t watching!).
Penny almost missed her senior prom. Her prom date was in a tragic car accident just a few days before the prom. Her uncle, an LDS Bishop, happened to know a handsome (Clark Gable/James Dean mix) army guy on leave from Fort Ord. Bob and Penny went to the prom in 1962, married January 4, 1963, in the Los Angeles Temple and lived their best life for 61 years---fourteen years in Downey and forty-seven in Cedar City.
For the most part, Penny always worked on the front lines of customer service. Her first bank teller job was at Downey Savings and Loan, she worked at State Bank of Southern Utah, and she retired from Mountain America Credit Union. She made several career departures here and there. For a few years, she was an aid in the Iron County School District helping Shayla and Deena Maxwell get to their classes. She loved (and we loved) those girls.
Penny and Bob were a good team, working together to raise the four kids:
Rob, Frank, Devey and Jennifer. Truthfully, from our perspective, there wasn’t anything the two of them couldn’t do, provide, and survive. Even in our darkest hour, the untimely and unfortunate loss of Frank, Penny’s genuine compassion, her understanding of the power of forgiveness and her uncanny ability to emotionally and spiritually transfer that understanding to the family while carrying the burden of her own grief saved us all.
In her own elegant, kind, caring and unprejudiced way Penny has left a lasting legacy in the hearts and minds of many. We know this because so many of you stop us in the supermarket, at church or even the Salt Lake Airport and say, “I love your mom. I always waited in her line no matter how long because I wanted her to wait on me.”
From all of us, Bob, Rob, Devey, Jenny and Penny’s entire extended family, we thank you for all your love and support and for loving Penny as much as we do.
Funeral services to honor Penny will be held on Saturday May 4, 2024 at 11:00 am at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints located at 520 South 1100 West Cedar City, Utah. Viewings will be held Friday, May 3, 2024 from 6:00-8:00 pm at Southern Utah Mortuary (190 N. 300 W., Cedar City) and on Saturday prior to the service from 9:00-10:30 am at the church. Interment will be at the Cedar City Cemetery, under the direction of Southern Utah Mortuary. To view a livestream of the service and leave online condolences, please visit www.mortuary.org.
In lieu of flowers, we request that if you wish to honor Penny please consider making a donation to our local Cedar City Hospital. Penny’s legacy was one of taking care of others. Funds contributed to honor Penny will be used to help those with Critical Care needs who require financial assistance.
•Make your charitable donations through checks made payable to Intermountain Foundation.
•In the memo line or with a note, please share that the gift is in honor of Penny Behunin, for Cedar City Hospital.
•Mailing address: 1380 E. Medical Center Drive, St. George, UT 84790
•Questions? Please call 435-251-2480