Carolyn Ruth Needham

Mayfield, Utah - Our beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, dog-mom, friend, and neighbor, Carolyn Ruth Needham, age 77, passed away on January 14, 2026 at her home in Mayfield surrounded by her family.

Carolyn was born on March 1, 1948 in Salt Lake City to Vard Rowan and Murrelyn Ruth Lemmon Erickson, who provided love and an active childhood riding horses, fishing, camping, dancing, water skiing, and spending time with family in California. She attended Granite High School and loved driving her 57 Chevy around the Salt Lake valley. She fell in love with her sweetheart, Denzel Walker Needham and they married on November 18, 1969 in Elko Nevada. They were each other's best friend, love and support for more than 56 years, raising a family and creating a happy life together. They moved to Mayfield in 2006 where they created a beautiful sanctuary and lived together until her passing.

Carolyn continued to be an active and adventurous person throughout her life. She knew how to have fun and loved to get outside, enjoying traveling, fishing, camping, quad rides, boating, wildlife watching, and gambling. She was especially talented at gardening and truly had a green thumb. She had an eye for beauty. She knew the name of every flower and grew the most beautiful flowers in and around her home. Carolyn absolutely loved animals, especially her dogs. She was a wonderful cook who made the best tuna and pickle sandwiches. She was incredibly smart, funny, and was always up for shenanigans. She loved to laugh. She taught us all that it was "better to laugh than to cry" and that if you look hard enough, there is always humor to be found in any situation.

Carolyn was the matriarch of her family, always full of wisdom. She kept everyone on track and was the person everyone went to for advice and support. She was dedicated to her family throughout her life, enjoying her children and grandchildren, and had a special bond with each of them. Carolyn's inner and outer beauty and fun-loving nature made the world a better and brighter place to live and made her truly irreplaceable to all who knew her. She was a very special soul.

Carolyn is survived by her husband Denzel, her daughter Christen Ruth Needham, her son Shawn Walker Needham; her grandchildren: Megan Carolyn Parker (Bradon Kurt Walkenhorst), Denzel Todd (Madison Brinn) Parker, Spencer Llewellyn, Jacob Llewelyn; great-grandchildren: Holden Brooks Walkenhorst, Delilah Rae Parker, Juniper Lyn Parker, Ellowyn Ruth Parker; dog-daughter Jexi Needham.

She is preceded in death by her parents, a daughter, Marnie Carolyn Llewellyn, and a great-grandson Rohan Parker.

Graveside services for Carolyn will be held in the Mayfield Cemetery for immediate family only, where burial will take place under the care of the Springer Turner Funeral Homes of Richfield and Salina, Utah.