Anita Jensen Charles, 71, of Salem, Utah, passed away October 6, 2024.
Anita was born March 9, 1953, the daughter of Grant and Edna Jensen. She was born in Fort Collins, CO and grew up in Spanish Fork, UT where she attended and graduated from Spanish Fork High School. She loved to tell the story of a series of small miracles that put both her and a certain young man, David Charles, in Provo, UT for a brief moment; long enough for them both to know they wanted to know each other better.
Despite living on opposite sides of the country, Anita and David stayed in touch and were married a short time later on May 11, 1973. They lived in Washington, DC while David served in the Navy and was stationed aboard the Presidential Yacht, Sequoia. On January 23, 1975, they were sealed in the Washington DC Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In 1976 David and Anita moved to Utah where they would live and raise their family.
Growing up, Anita wanted to be a mom more than anything else in the world. She was blessed with six children and loved being a mom. She devoted her life to her family and only wished that her time as a mom with children at home could have passed slower and lasted so much longer. Her children and grandchildren knew that she loved them more than anything else in the world.
Anita loved beautiful words and filled her heart and mind with uplifting words. She found immense comfort in the words found in favorite books, Shakespeare, hymns, poetry, fairy tales and folk tales from around the world. The words she loved and studied most were the words of the scriptures and living prophets. Throughout her life she turned to the words of the Savior and prayer for comfort and strength.
Anita loved sharing books with children and spent countless hours sharing stories in schools, as a librarian and story lady, and at BYU bookstore. She believed strongly that if a child didn’t love reading, they just needed a little help finding the right book. She was an amazing resource when looking for a book for yourself or someone you love. She shared her love through thoughtful and individualized book recommendations.
Anita loved the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and followed the Savior’s words, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” She loved the Savior and devoted her life to serving Him and trying each day to become more like Him. As the last few years of life became more and more challenging, Anita more fervently turned her heart to the Savior. She took every opportunity to bear witness of the Savior and to recognize the blessings He so abundantly blessed her with.
Anita is survived by her children David (Michelle) Charles of Spring Lake, UT, Grant (Kacie) Charles of Mountain Home, UT, Delight (Brian) Payne of Albuquerque, NM, Eve (Darrin) Bolhuis of Soap Lake, WA, Rachel (Matt) Swenson of Spanish Fork, UT, and Ammon (Cammie) Charles of La Pine, OR; twenty-nine grandchildren; and her siblings Judith (Stephen) Jackson of Provo, UT, Gini (Keith) Lovell of Mesa, AZ, Ron (Sheri) Jensen of Salem, UT and Kim Allred of Heber, UT.
Anita is preceded in death by her husband David Stuart Charles, Sr., her parents Grant and Edna Jensen, and her great-grandson Bryce Ewell. Funeral services will be held Friday, October 11, 2024 at 11:00am. A viewing will be held prior to the service from 9:30-10:45 am. Both the funeral and viewing will be held at the LDS church located at 1138 E 100 S, Payson, UT.
2 Condolences for Anita Jensen Charles
Condolences(2)
Michael and Leslie Carr says
October 11, 2024 at 2:07 am“We’re thinking of the your entire family and sending caring thoughts and prayers your way to support you through this”
Elizabeth Graham says
November 8, 2024 at 7:41 pmI was just snitching a Baby Ruth candy out of my children’s Halloween stash, and it made me think of Anita. I think of her pretty much every time I eat a Baby Ruth because she was always generous about sharing her stash of them at the BYU bookstore with the student employees. Eating the candy just now made me wonder how Anita was doing and what she was up to, so in this age of information I got onto Google and did a search. I was so sad to see that what popped up was an obituary! I would’ve loved to see her again. She was always so kind to me in the short time I worked in the General Book Department. I remember a particular incident where she discovered that I desperately wanted to go to the Books for Young Reader’s symposium that year but didn’t have the money. I asked if she knew of any discounts if you volunteered or such, and found out from one of the other bookstore department heads that she had emailed around, trying to find a way for me to go. My mom ended up gifting me a ticket to the symposium, but I was so touched that Anita had gone out of her way to try and fulfill the wish of a poor, newly-wed student employee. I can only guess that she was like that with everyone she met. What a wonderful lady. She is missed, even by those who only knew her for a few months.