Norma Hodges Arnell

Norma Hodges Arnell returned quietly home to our Heavenly Father late in the evening of 6 May 2017, following a brief stay at the Bear Lake Memorial Hospital located in Montpelier, Bear Lake, Idaho, where she was surrounded by loving family members and a dedicated nursing staff. Norma had recently celebrated her 97th birthday on 10 April… she was born on that date in 1920 at the home of Nathaniel John Hodges and Rose Ellen Earley Hodges in Garden City, Utah, the youngest of six children. All preceded her in birth and all preceded her in death… two brothers, Lamont Earley Hodges and Ross Weston Hodges… three sisters, Lolita, Lillian, and Edna Hodges.

Norma enjoyed a splendid childhood on the shores of the beautiful Bear Lake in Garden City, Utah. Her father owned the local grocery store and managed a huge garden. She attended the local grade schools and then North Rich High School in Laketown, Utah, where at the end of her senior year she was honored to give the Valedictorian address for the graduating class of 1938, and her 10 fellow seniors. She encouraged her fellow classmates to pursue higher education, something she wished to attain following the example of her older sister, Lolita. But alas, she had been dating a dashing basketball referee from St. Charles, Idaho, and within the following year she managed to win the heart of Cleneth Edward Arnell. They were married on 7 June 1939, in the Salt Lake Temple. Cleneth had been married before to Corinne Wilhelmsen who died just over two months following the birth of their son, Douglas Cleneth (Garna Smedley), in 1934. So Norma became a mother on her wedding day. Five more children blessed their home in St. Charles… Gary Lee who preceded her in death in 1960, John Roger (Judy Lynn Alder), Dallas Hodges (Theresa Mae Ellett), Cleneth Brent (Jan Kate Brower), and her favorite, Maxine (David Harvey Matthews). She is the proud grandmother of 29 grandchildren and is well into her fourth and fifth generation of descendants.

Norma kept her journals faithfully and the several dozen she leaves behind are a constant source of information and inspiration to her family. She served faithfully as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints all of her life, holding many ward and stake callings, serving two missions to Georgia and California, and then 20 years as a temple officiator in the Logan Temple. She is a glorious example of service to all who know her.

Norma and Cleneth always raised a large garden and Norma delighted in a large variety of flowers and shrubs. She was a wonderful mother and homemaker and worked hard to make sure her family were comfortable and happy. In her later years, she always made sure the cookie jar, candy dish, and sucker tree were well stocked and the grandchildren were frequent visitors. Her efforts extended to all she knew and she was loved by all who knew her. She loved watching snowstorms from her front room door window and always stayed on the front porch to wave good-bye to her frequent visitors.

After Cleneth was called home in 1982, Norma relied more heavily on Dallas and Theresa who lived next door to her for over 40 years. Their family checked on her every day and kept her independent and happy. The last few years of her life were spent with Maxine and David Matthews in Paris, Idaho, where she was adored and pampered by her only daughter and patient husband. Celebrations marked her 90th,95th and 96th birthdays in the last decade, but nothing can compare to the ongoing celebration that accompanies the completion of her second estate and joyous return to her heavenly home.