Theodore “Ted” Peterson Holm

Elsinore, Utah - Theodore "Ted" Peterson Holm, age 82, passed away peacefully on the morning of September 13th, 2026, at his home surrounded by loved ones. He was born on August 30th, 1944 in Buckley, Washington to Waldo Niel Peterson and Ilean Marie Nelson Holm.

Ted graduated from South Sevier High School in 1962. He spent most of his life working as a heavy equipment operator and retired from Western Rock out of St. George, Utah. He often said he “never worked a day in his life” because he loved his job so much — especially running the paver. He could tell you nearly every street, road, and business he paved throughout his long career and he was proud of the work he did. 

Ted married Marilyn Gardiner on August 31, 1964 in Elsinore, Utah, and together they had five children. Though they later divorced, Ted found a devoted life companion in Jula Taylor, with whom he shared 23 years.

A man with a deep love for the outdoors, Ted was happiest hunting, fishing, searching for arrowheads, and wandering the mountains he knew like the back of his hand. In his younger years, he even enjoyed panning for gold. He could name every canyon, body of water, road, and trail on the mountains surrounding Sevier Valley and beyond. He had a memory like a steel trap and a deep love for history and geology. If he read something once, he never forgot it. He loved to share stories of the long-ago past, including tales of his ancestors who helped settle the state of Utah. Ted respected the past and the people who came before him. He enjoyed finding the graves of long-passed relatives and making sure they never became, as he put it, “one of the forgotten.” Each Memorial Day, he decorated graves in their honor. He was a man who saw value where others saw none. Ted was a collector of treasures big and small. Pressure cookers, Afghan blankets, quilts, picture frames, dutch ovens, history and geology books, and so much more. He delighted in gifting these things to the people he loved, often insisting they take them. He was incredibly handy and could repair almost anything with whatever he had lying around. In his later years, Ted enjoyed building chicken coops and flint knapping antique glass into arrowheads, crafting hundreds of pairs of earrings. He loved bottling fruits, vegetables and meats, making jams from elderberries and chokecherries that he and Jula picked. Always keeping a pantry full of bottled goods and a freezer full of mutton — always prepared for anything.

Though often gruff and stubborn as an ox, Ted had a big heart and always looked out for the underdog. Often giving money to Veterans, paying for stranger’s groceries and picking up hitchhikers. You never had to wonder what he thought about you or the choices you were making. He was not shy about giving his opinion or advice. He had a dry sense of humor and found joy in the small things in life. In his later years, he could often be found in his recliner reading any and all history books he could get his hands on, watching old westerns, listening to cowboy music and even enjoying talk shows — much to everyone’s surprise.

Ted loved telling stories from his travels, from the crews he worked with, and from the many adventures’ life gave him. He had a soft side too, filling his yard with irises and snapdragons and taking countless photos of the old buildings, animals and places he loved.

He is preceded in death by his parents; sister, Marie “Annette” Holm Kovach; infant brother, Neal Peterson Holm, infant twin brothers, Spencer and Steven Peterson Holm, infant daughter, Hiedy Holm and his former wife, Marilyn Gardiner Holm.

Ted is survived by his life partner, Jula Taylor of Elsinore; children: Justin (Deanna) Holm of Elsinore, Kristy (Terral) DeLange of Monroe, Katie (Ryan) Crosier of Escalante and Sydney (Logan) Blake of Santa Clara; his eight grandchildren: Marshal Delange, Jacey (Hunter) Quinney, Meghan Delange, Jaxon (Aunika) Crosier, Maycee Delange, Chapter Blake, Merit Blake and Choice Blake and two great-grandsons, Levi Quinney and Brooks Quinney. 

Burial and Graveside services will take place in the Elsinore Cemetery at a later date under the care of the Springer Turner Funeral Homes of Richfield and Salina, Utah.

“Someone is waiting

With a love that never fails

Waiting patiently to welcome me

Far along that Utah trail.”