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Ben’s Parentage

Chapter 1

BEN’S PARENTAGE

Ben’s FatherBen’s father, Lucius Levier Gardner, was born 19 July 1892 in Annabella,

Sevier Co., Utah to Benjamin Gardner and Barbara Ann Bingham, a distantcousin of Louisa Bingham, mother of President Harold B. (Bingham) Lee. Benalways felt that his Father and President Lee had much in common, includingblack hair which they both combed straight back and guardian angels whichwarned them of danger.

When Lucius was two months old, his father was called to serve a missionto the Southern States with headquarters at Chattanooga, Tennessee. Thecolorful, J. Golden Kimball was mission president and George Albert Smith wasmission secretary and a fellow missionary.

After his father's return from the mission field, the family spent severalyears on remote ranches where every one learned to work hard and to be self-reliant. Ben’s father later said of these experiences: “The memory of those years...will stay with me always. Such fun! Such thrills! We rode horses, chased cows andwild horses, and took cows and horses across the swollen Sevier River at floodstage.”

He plowed, harrowed, rolled, and cultivated land for crops, and mowedalfalfa, red top, timothy, and wild hay from the meadows. They raised a great dealof grain and he helped cut, shock, haul, and stack it in the barnyard to await thecoming of the threshing machine with it's crew of hard-working, hungry men,whom his mother had to feed.

Lou, as he was called, learned to fish, make and use bows and arrows, asling shot, and to aim and shoot a gun, all of which he greatly enjoyed and becameproficient at doing. He caught a young magpie which he trained to “talk,” andwhich was at the center of some hilarious experiences. He and his older sistermilked the cows and made butter and cheese which they used along with a feweggs from their small flock of chickens to trade for other needed items in thenearby town of Marysvale. The skim milk and whey, left after making butter andcheese, was put in the swill barrel and mixed with bran and table scraps and usedto feed the hogs.

During those growing up years, Lou attended a one-room school house nearthe ranch which also served for parties, dancing and other social activities, and forchurch. Later he attended Brigham Young Academy at Provo, Utah, for one year,

Ben’s Parentage 3

Lucius Levier Gardnerabout 20 years old.

the same year his future bride, Ben’s mother, did,although they didn't meet there or know each other atthat time. Also, like Ben’s mother, he was an aptstudent, enjoyed reading and writing and had beautifulpenmanship. Neither of Ben’s parents had theopportunity for more years of formal education.

Ben’s father was present when the firstlocomotive came into Marysvale and he witnessed afrightened horse tied near the railroad tracks choke todeath trying to escape the terrifying, smoking, bellowingmonster. Life in those days, in those remote places and underthose primitive frontier conditions, was challenging andrequired skill, knowledge and self-reliance, faith in God,and dependence upon the guidance and protection ofthe Holy Spirit.

Lou’s faith grew as he witnessed his father and others use the power of thepriesthood to heal his younger sister who was in the final stages of the dread brainfever, spinal meningitis. Family prayer night and morning was a part of his lifefrom birth and it was used to express gratitude to a kind and loving HeavenlyFather for rich blessings of health and strength, for pure air to breathe, for goodfood to eat, for clear water to drink, for eyes to see, and ears to hear, and hearts tofeel, and minds to understand and appreciate the beauty and wonders of Hismarvelous creations. Prayer was the means of asking for help when you didn'tknow what to do or how to do it.

Once when he was helping his father get several large, dead, dry trees off theside of a high steep mountain, Lou was given the responsibility of getting the treesto the wagon while his father got the next tree ready to drag. They had left thewagon down on the road below and had chained a large tree to their two horses todrag down the mountain. The task assigned him was difficult and dangerous,requiring strength and skill and careful attention to see that what he was draggingdidn't strike a rock or stump, which could cause it to tip over upon himself and thehorses. He reached a place where he could see no possible safe way down themountain. He stopped the team and knelt down and prayed that he might beshown the way. As he arose he could clearly see where he should drive the teamand soon had his load safely down the mountain side.

Lucius felt he was watched over by a faithful and attentive “guardian angel.”Numerous times he heard a warning voice which he always heeded, and whichsaved him from death and serous injury. Once when he was alone in themountains riding on his big black horse, he came to a hillside that was just red withripe berries. He got off his horse and started to reach into a bush to pick somewhen a voice said, “Stop!” He was a long way from any houses or people and waspositive he was alone. He found a stick and struck the bush and out crawled alarge diamond-backed rattlesnake.

Another time he was working in a large “room” down at the 350 ft. level ofa mine in Knightville, Utah when a voice said, “Run!” He immediately ran and

4 Ben’s Parentage

Ben’s dad with bow and arrow. He madebows and arrows and was instrumental

in getting an archery club started in Mesa.

moments later tons of rock and ore crashed down on the exact spot where he hadbeen, trapping him and several other men who were working at that level.Although no one was fatally injured, he and the other miners trapped with him,spent several hours of frantic digging on their side of the cave-in, coupled with thework of rescuers on the other side, before enough rock and ore could be removedto allow their escape.

Later in his life while driving a truck carrying a load of gasoline late at nighton a dark and deserted road, Lou felt that it wasn't necessary to come to a stopbefore crossing the railroad tracks he was approaching, as required by law, and ashe had always done before, because he felt no one was around. As he was aboutto continue across the tracks a voice said, “Stop!” He immediately stopped,narrowly missing a train which whizzed by without lights and almost withoutsound. He said as he related those experiences, “The Lord has been good to me allmy life, helping me do what I needed to do, protecting me and giving me warningswhen, necessary to preserve my life.”

Lucius, although short of stature, 5 ft. 7 in., was deep chested and well-muscled and excelled as a runner in his youth. He loved hard physical labor andreveled in the feel of tools in his strong capable hands. He loved the out-of-doorsand was a skilled woodsman and hunter.

At age nineteen, Lucius experienced serious health problems and wasadvised by his doctor to move to Mesa, Arizona. He was told that one of hiskidneys wasn't functioning at all and the other one just barely. He was given ablessing and told that he would recover. Testifying later he said that the Lord gave

him a new set of kidneys. Except for someproblems with allergies, mostly hay fever, heenjoyed good health most of his productive,adult life.

He moved to Mesa in October of 1911.After moving to Mesa, he met and marriedWinnie Estella Le Baron November 26, 1913,and raised a family of eight children. Hetaught his children, mostly by example, howthey were supposed to live, and he expectedthem to live that way. No matter what theendeavor, whether using an ax, hammer,shovel, pitchfork, bow and arrow, caring forlivestock, holding a pen or pencil, orwhatever, he insisted it be done correctly.

He couldn't tolerate gossip, foullanguage or uncleanliness in speech or action,and his example in this respect was mostcommendable and inspiring. Impatient withpoor performance or any deviation from“choosing the right,” his children sometimesfelt as though they couldn't measure up, butthey never doubted that he loved them.

Ben’s Parentage 5

Ben’s parents when they were courting.

In later years, Lucius was called to serve among the Indians on the SaltRiver Indian Reservation where he learned to love the children of Father Lehi.Later, while serving on a stake mission, he and his wife, Winnie, were called asfull-time missionaries to the Eastern States Mission, headquartered in New YorkCity. They labored mostly among the Seneca Indians, where Lucius served muchof the time as the Branch President. A high-light of their mission was a testimonymeeting in the Sacred Grove with the other missionaries who were helping to puton the Hill Cumorah Pageant in 1959.

Lucius received the gift of healing, which was exercised in his behalf manytimes during his childhood and youth by his own father. He used it to bless thelives of countless others, especially those of his own family who frequently calledupon him to use the Priesthood to give them needed blessings. In Ben’s PatriarchalBlessing, Patriarch Franklin Thomas Pomeroy described his father as a “Noble,worthy faithful parent.”

Ben’s MotherBen’s mother, Winnie Estella LeBaron, daughter of William Johnson

LeBaron and Zina Susetta Johnson, was born February 9, 1892, at 237 WestSecond Avenue in Mesa, Arizona in the house her father built, and in which shelater gave birth to seven of her eight children. All four of her grandparents andthree of her great-grandparents joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-daySaints in the early days of the restoration. They knew personally the prophets,Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, and many of the other leaders of thisdispensation. They participated with them in many of the marvelous experiencesrelating to laying the foundations of this glorious latter-day work and the sacrificethat accompanied it. The firm testimonies and great faith of those valiant grandparents helped to kindle her own testimony and gave her a burning desire todo her part in advancing the cause for which they sacrificed so much. Her

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Ben’s Mother about 18 years old.

childhood experiences were centered aroundchurch and family where she quickly learnedthat true joy in life comes in being loved andappreciated, in feeling love and concern forothers, and in expressing that love throughacts of unselfish service at home, at church,and at school.

Winnie loved to be busy in the househelping her mother with fixing meals, doingthe dishes, sweeping the floor, making thebeds, washing the clothes, taking care ofyounger sisters, mending, ironing, sewing,and other daily chores that needed to bedone. Helping her father in the orchards andgardens was a special privilege, and she veryearly learned the joy that comes fromplanting seeds and caring for the tender newplants, nurturing them until flowersemerged. Planting little trees, watering andcultivating them and watching them growuntil they produced fruit or added to the

beauty and comfort of the home brought joy and peace to her soul. Later, as a busywife and mother of a large family she planted every seed she could get hold of.Often, because of lack of time and energy, she would just scatter them on theground in a place she felt they might grow. Her backyard was covered with sweetpeas, larkspurs, morning glories, and other flowers planted in just that way. Shekept a shovel by the back door and each time she went outside she grabbed theshovel and dug up a small area until she had a large garden planted. A peach treeplanted in this way, grew to be one of the most productive trees in the orchard.

Winnie often accompanied her mother or father to minister to the needs ofa sick or lonely neighbor, doing household chores, baby sitting, fixing meals, orwhatever else needed to be done to help those in need. She liked school and seemedto do especially well in math, algebra and Latin. Her desire to learn and her willingattitude endeared her to her teachers.

Attending Primary and Sunday School classes helped Winnie develop a lovefor the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon. The young women of the stakehad a basketball program and she loved to play and was one of the outstandingplayers on her team. Very early in her life she learned that choice blessings comefrom paying tithing, keeping the Word of Wisdom, dressing modestly, being cleanin mind and body, being kind and courteous, and in short, trying to keep all ofGod’s commandments. In a Patriarchal Blessing she received as a teenager, shewas told that the Lord was pleased with her life thus far, which made her feel liketrying to live to the best she could.

A great tragedy came into Winnie’s life at about age fourteen when her olderbrother, Paul, died of typhoid fever. She also contracted the disease, but didn’tconsider herself sick enough to stay in bed. The trauma of watching her brother

Ben’s Parentage 7

Lucius Levier and Winnie Estella (LeBaron) Gardner Family about 1942.Front: Mother, Richard and Dad. Back row left to right: Robert, Barbara, Levier, Nelda, Jim, Zina and Ben.

die while she herself was struggling with the disease, left her too weakened in bodyand spirit to sit in class and concentrate, and sensing that she needed to help herparents, she quit school to get a job, a decision she regretted deeply all her life.

About the first of February 1910, at age eighteen, still not fully recoveredfrom her bout with typhoid, Winnie felt she needed a change and went to Provo,Utah, with her grandmother. She helped with harvesting and canning berries andpeaches to pay for her room and board. By the end of the following summer shehad regained her health and enrolled for the 1910-1911 school year at BrighamYoung Academy. Following her year at BY Academy, she returned to Mesa andworked at several merchandising establishments. Her employers quicklyrecognized that she was a capable loyal employee, whose integrity wasunquestionable, and often gave her the responsibility of opening and closing thestore when they, the managers, were out of town.

While working as a clerk at a store, Winnie met Lucius Levier Gardner, andthey began dating. After a courtship of two years they were married.

Severe problems with enlarged varicose veins during her first pregnancyprompted Winnie’s doctor to tell her that having more children would either causeher death or make her a cripple for life. In this time of need, she requested aspecial blessing from the stake patriarch, a practice common at the time. In theblessing she was told that if she would obey the Word of Wisdom and observe thelaws of health as she understood them, she would have the health and strength toraise a family, and to her, a family meant many children. After the birth of herfourth child, another doctor observing how critical her problem with varicose veins

8 Ben’s Parentage

was, insisted that she submit to measures to ensure there would be no morechildren. Remembering the promises of the Lord given in her Patriarchal Blessing,she declined his offer and miraculously the situation with the veins began to getbetter.

Winnie gave birth to four more children and also cared for two motherlesslittle girls for several years until their father remarried. Being mother to eightchildren was a joy for her and she wished time would stand still so she could enjoyher little ones forever.

About 1928, Winnie and Lucius purchased a ranch and bought twenty milkcows. Lou had to take another job to help meet their financial obligations andWinnie milked the cows, which left her hands numb most of the time.

The situation with Winnie’s parents was not good during this time. Herfather, William J. Le Baron, who was seventy-two, was an invalid and themortgage on their home was about to be foreclosed. She and Luicus made thedecision to sell their ranch, pay off the folks’ mortgage, and help care for her agingparents. Giving up the ranch they loved was a great sacrifice for the entire family.Although her father died a short time later, her children had the blessing ofgrowing up with their grandmother being part of their household.

January 2, 1944 was a tragic day in Winnie’s life when her sixteen year-oldson, Robert, was killed in an automobile accident. This shock induced the onsetof diabetes and she had to give herself daily shots of insulin for the rest of herlife–about fifty years.

Lucius and Winnie were called as Stake Missionaries June 15, 1958, andnine months later they received a call to serve a full-time mission to the EasternStates Mission. During their mission they participated in the Hill CumorahPageant and worked with the Seneca Indians in the area around Palmyra. In aformal ceremony, the Indians adopted both of them into their tribe and gave themIndian names. That was an honor given to only a few non-Indians. After theirmission they returned to Mesa to live.

On November 26, 1963, Lucius and Winnie enjoyed a 50th weddinganniversary party given by their children. They completed another eight yearstogether before Lou died in 1971. For awhile Winnie lived alone until it seemedevident that she needed to be with her children. Each of her children, that wereable, invited her to stay with them. She rotated her time among those children, anddied at the age of ninety-three in Mesa, Arizona.

Before she died she bore her testimony in writing to all of her descendantsin which she testified that she knew that:

(1) both the Book of Mormon and the Bible are true witnesses thatJesus is the Christ, the living Son of the living God; who

(2) suffered and died for our sins and rose again from the graveguaranteeing that all who die will live again; that

(3) Joseph Smith was the Prophet chosen to restore the Priesthood,and the Gospel and the true church of Jesus Christ, and, that

(4) each prophet who succeeded Joseph Smith is truly a prophet of God.

Ben’s Parentage 9

Benjamin Gardner as a young man.

Ben’s Father’s FamilyBen’s father’s father, Benjamin Gardner,

“Little Grandpa” as he was affectionately calledby his grandchildren was not quite five feet tall.He had a cheerful optimistic disposition and atwinkle in his eye. He was seventy years old whenBen was born, having been born January 2, 1859in Payson, Utah. His mother was the seventhwife of Elias Gardner. He always expressedappreciation for his father and his other“mothers” who were plural wives of Elias. “Healways spoke of his father and mother and aunts(as the other wives were called by the children),and all of his forty-two siblings with much loveand respect.” (Life story of Benjamin Gardner)

As a six-year old boy Benjaminexperienced some of the tragic consequences ofThe Black Hawk War, which took place between1865-1867. His family had to leave Payson. Theyleft bins of grain and many other necessities andtraveled north seeking protection from the Indians until a peaceful end to theconflict could be achieved. While there, his brother became ill, died, and wasburied in Fountain Green, San Pete County, Utah. They moved back to Paysonwhen the war was over, but they had lost their farm, and it was necessary for hisfather to glean from wheat fields that had already been cut to have grain to feed hisfamily.

Those were difficult pioneer times. Benjamin said he never rememberedgoing hungry, but said, “sometimes we ate boiled wheat and milk pert near threetimes a day.” He said he had to work hard as a boy. He helped grub out sage brushwith a hoe, haul wood from the canyons that surrounded the area, care for thehorses, and keep the wood box full of wood. He loved the out-of-doors. When hewas ten years old the railroad became a reality in Utah. The United States ofAmerica had been through a terrible conflict known as the Civil War. It haddivided the country, and the driving of the last spike of the railroad at PromontoryPoint in the territory of Utah on May 10, 1869 helped unite the nation.

Benjamin moved to Salem, Utah in his early twenties, and while there metBarbara Ann Bingham. He affectionately called her Barbrey. They dated for fouryears, but Barbara’s father would not give his permission for them to marry, sothey eloped. Benjamin was twenty-seven years old and Barbara nineteen. She wasquite a bit taller than Benjamin, which may have had something to do with herfather’s reluctance to give his permission for them to marry. They moved whereverBenjamin could find work, and in those early years lived for a while in ThistleValley, Salem, Marysvale and Annabella, Utah.

After the birth of their third child, Benjamin was called to serve a missionin Tennessee in the Southern States Mission. That required a “leap of faith” onboth their parts. Their oldest daughter was three years old and their son, Lucius,

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Benjamin and Barbara Ann GardnerHe is standing on a step to increase his height.

Ben’s father, two months old. His mission was in an area where there had beenconsiderable hostility against the Church. In fact, some Elders had sufferedwhippings and several had been shot and killed. He told us that one night when

they were having supper with a familythey heard that a mob was coming. Hesaid that he distinctly heard a voice tellhim to walk on two miles after supper.When his companion questioned whatthey should do, he said, “After supperwe’ll walk on two miles.”

He said they calmly finished theirsupper and then obediently walked ontwo miles where they saw a manstanding at an open gate waiting forthem. When the mob arrived at thehouse where they had suppered, theywere disappointed to not find themthere.

Benjamin served faithfully for alittle over nineteen months and wasreleased to return home to provide forhis family. Following his call to themission field an economic depression hitthe United States and the ward fromwhich he had been called was not ableto keep the commitment they had madeto provide for his wife and children andhelp him with mission expenses.

He was ninety-seven when hepassed away–more than half-way into

his ninety eighth year. He had expected to live to be one hundred and he almostmade it. By contrast, Grandma Barbara Ann Bingham Gardner died when shewas seventy-four years old of unknown causes.

Ben never knew his grandma Gardner, but a grandson with whom wecorresponded wrote that “she always had a twinkle in her eyes.” In fact he said :“Her eyes just sparkled.” He said she was a wonderful grandma–always had astory to tell and was a great cook.

Life had not been easy for her. Her first child, a son named Benjamin EarlGardner, died when he was less than two years old and having to part with herhusband while he served a mission when she had two babies must have been agreat trial of faith. We are thankful for her faithfulness to family and church.

Ben’s Mother’s FamilyBen’s Mother’s father, his grandfather, William Johnson Le Baron, was

born in Payson, Utah, February 6, 1856. Shortly thereafter he moved with his

Ben’s Parentage 11

W. J. LeBaron

family to Salt Lake City and later to a farm nearUtah Lake where, in addition to the regular farmchores, he joined his father and brothers inhunting, fishing and trapping to supplement thefamily living. These early experiences engenderedin him a love of nature and the out-of-doors whichremained with him throughout his life.

W. J., as he was called, was twenty-twoyears old when he married Zina Susetta JohnsonSeptember 13, 1878 and five years later, in 1883,came to Arizona, settling first in Tempe and thenin Mesa. He and his brother, Benjamin F. LeBaron, owned and operated a successful businesswhich eventually merged with the CooperativeMercantile Company. “The Co-Op” was the maingeneral merchandise business in Mesa for years.He loved the opportunity to serve the public.

W. J. was an active member of the church and served for many years on theHigh Council of the Maricopa Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-daySaints. He later became a Counselor in the Stake Presidency to President CollinsR. Hakes. He helped support his brother and his brother's family while his brotherserved two full-time missions for the Church, and also fulfilled his brother'smanagement and labor obligations at the Co-Op in addition to his own during thissame period of time.

W. J. organized the Mesa Militia and was it's Captain for years. He servedas secretary for the Mesa Canal Company and was one of the three originaltrustees of Mesa. From 1889 to 1895 he was a member of the City Council andMayor of Mesa, and from 1904-1907 he was again a member of the Mesa CityCouncil.

W. J. was an unusually kind and compassionate person and would neverrefuse anyone who needed groceries or merchandise, or help of any kind. Duringthe time that there was no dentist in Mesa, he kept a pair of forceps at the storeand extracted teeth free of charge for anyone who requested his services. TheIndians from the nearby Salt River Indian reservation found in him a specialfriend and benefactor. An elderly friend, whose son was a doctor, had a runningsore on his jaw that wouldn't heal. The man finally went to a clinic in the East andthe sore appeared healed for a time, but then erupted again. Almost from the start“W.J.,” insisted that the cause was more than likely a loose fragment of bone thatshould be removed. His continued insistence finally wearied the old gentleman andhe one day impatiently barked, “OK, then if you're so blankety blank smart takeit out.” W. J. quietly went to work and found the offending piece of bone andremoved it. The sore healed quickly and permanently.

Another dramatic example of his desire to help those in need, and his faithin God and in himself to do so, came when a young boy fell off a load of hay ontoa fencepost and was disemboweled. The scene was so terrible that when the doctorarrived he refused to attend the patient saying that there was nothing that could be

12 Ben’s Parentage

done. W. J. insisted that an attempt be made to save the boy's life and asked for atub of clean water and prevailed upon the doctor to instruct him as he washed theboy's internal organs and replaced them and sewed up the wound. The boyrecovered and lived a normal life. W. J. attributed his recovery to the faith andprayers of all those concerned with the boy's welfare.

Perhaps the ultimate service rendered by this compassionate and humbleman came during the terrible flu epidemic that took such a huge toll of livesfollowing World War I. Throughout the entire period that the flu ran its course, hewould work days at his job and then spend the nights visiting and nursing the sickback to health. Many attributed their recovery to the unselfish, tender, loving carehe gave them. His own health, which held up remarkably well during this wholeordeal, broke soon afterwards and he remained an invalid for several years untilhis passing November 19, 1929.

In honor of his life of unselfish and devoted service the following resolutionclosing all public offices and business places in Mesa during his funeral was passedby the City Council:

Resolution of CondolenceWHEREAS, the Honorable Wm. J. Le Baron passed away at

Mesa, Arizona on the 19th day of November 1929, andWHEREAS, the deceased was long a resident of the City of Mesa

and one of its most highly esteemed citizens, andWHEREAS, the deceased has heretofore served his State, Country

and City and has always enjoyed the highest respect and confidence of thepeople with whom [he] associated, and

WHEREAS, the deceased was a member of the City Council andMayor of the Town of Mesa City in the years 1889 to 1895 inclusive anda member of the City Council in the years 1904 to 1907 inclusive and assuch Mayor and Councilman rendered service to the people of Mesa overand above the call of public duty and endeared himself to the people of thismunicipality by his unselfish and painstaking efforts in behalf of the publicand his considerate and seasoned judgment upon public questions,

NOW THEREFORE:Be it Resolved by the Common Council of the City of Mesa that the

sorrow of the citizens of Mesa on the passing of Wm. J. Le Baron bepublicly expressed; that condolence be sincerely extended to the bereavedfamily of decedent; that the funeral hours between 2:00 o'clock p.m. 21November 1929 and 4:00 o'clock p.m. of said day be proclaimed andobserved as hours of mourning; that all public offices and business placesof the city be closed during such hours and that this resolution be spreadupon the minutes of the Council.

signed J. G. Peterson, MayorAttested to by:J. Edwin Miller, City Clerk

This resolution was a fitting tribute to a man who, although unusuallyendowed with good health, strength and wisdom was, nevertheless, tender and

Ben’s Parentage 13

237 West Second Avenue–The Old Home Place–built by W.J. LeBaron.The home where Ben was born and where three generations of his family lived.

Zina Susetta Johnsonabout 18 years old.

compassionate and found his greatest joy in rendering unselfish service to hisfamily, his church and his community.

Ben’s Mother’s mother, his grandmother, Zina Susetta Johnson, was bornAugust 3, 1860 in Santaquin, Utah. She was the second child and daughter ofBenjamin Franklin Johnson and Susan Adeline Holman. Her sister, SusanCelesia, who was several years older than Zina, was an invalid from birth. All ofZina’s growing up years were heavily involved helping to carefor Celesia. Zina was a descendant of a noble worthy heritage.Her father, Benjamin Franklin Johnson, was a friend andbusiness associate of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Her parents lived through the terrible persecution and expulsion of themembers of the Church, first in New York, then Ohio,Missouri, and finally, Illinois. They were among those faithfulpioneers who crossed the Plains seeking religious freedom inthe West. Their heritage comes through other noble, faithfulpeople who came to America seeking religious freedom,including Degory Priest who came over on the Mayflower.

Zina’s father, Benjamin Franklin Johnson, was calledupon by the prophet Brigham Young to settle in various placesin Utah to help establish new communities and businesses. His last call in the1870's was to leave the beautiful home, gardens, orchards, and profitablebusinesses he had established in Utah, and move to the Salt River Valley inArizona. While in Mesa, he was called as a Patriarch.

Zina’s mother, Susan Adeline Holman, was a busy self-reliant pioneerwoman. Susan’s granddaughter, Ben’s mother, wrote that “Susan made her ownand children’s clothes just by picking the wool from the skin of the sheep after they

14 Ben’s Parentage

W. J and Zina LeBaron

had been killed Then she picked and fluffed the wool, corded it into rolls, spun itinto yarn, colored the yarn, then wove it into cloth.” She also knit her ownstockings. and “made all of her soap and candles when she could afford thetallow.”

When Zina was eighteen years old she married W. J. LeBaron. She hadbeen married about eighteen months when she gave birth to her first son, William.He only lived sixteen months. She was seven months pregnant at the time of hisdeath, and gave birth to her second son, David Almon in Springlake, Utah, inDecember of that same year. She and her husband moved to Arizona along withmany others of the Johnson LeBaron families in 1883, settling first in Tempe andseveral years later moving to Mesa. Her son Edwin was born while they wereliving in Tempe, and her daughter Zina Susetta, born two years later and wholived only one day, was born in Mesa. Her other children, Paul, Winnie, Myrl andThora were all born in Mesa. Thora died when she was about eleven months old.

Thora’s death and the births of Zina’s last four children occurred during aperiod of time when her husband was very busily involved in church andcommunity service. Paul died when he was fifteen years old from complicationsof Typhoid fever, and Myrl died when she was about twenty-seven from what wenow call Multiple Sclerosis.

Zina loved to knit, crochet, and make rugs out of scraps of cloth fromclothing that was no longer serviceable. We have been told that she was a verygood cook, and during the time of her husband’s service in the stake presidency,visiting authorities looked forward to the delicious food she prepared, especially herSouthern fried chicken.

Zina wasa faithful mem-b e r o f t h eChurch. Herdaughter Winnier e l a t e d a nexperience, them e m o r y o fwhich remainedw i t h h e rthroughout herlife. She said,her mother hadtaken her, andher sister Myrland bro therP a u l t oC a l i f o r n i a ,w h e r e t h e yspent time on

the beach and enjoyed a vacation. She said her mother was always a faithful tithepayer, taking out the tithing before spending any of the money she received. While

Ben’s Parentage 15

vacationing there, the money her husband usually sent to her had not arrived andthey were out of bread. She asked her children what they thought she shoulddo–use the tithing money to buy bread or go without. They all felt that they shouldnot use the tithing money, and said they’d like to take a walk on the beach, sincethere wasn’t any bread to eat. They hadn’t walked very far when one of thechildren accidentally kicked up a quarter that was lying hidden in the sand. Shesaid, it was just the right amount to buy the bread they needed. It was a testimonyto all of them about the way the Lord looks after His faithful tithe payers.

Ben’s grandmother lived with his family all through his young life. Shepassed away almost two years after he was married, in April of 1949 at the age ofeighty-nine.

A Priceless HeritageAll of Ben’s predecessors, were early founders and contributors to the

legacy we have enjoyed as citizens of the United States of America. The onlyexception was his paternal grandmother, who joined the Church and immigratedto Utah from England. Those ancestors came here seeking religious freedom, weredesirous for an atmosphere of freedom and liberty, and were willing to pay theprice for it, even with their lives, if necessary. They took an interest in civilgovernment in the areas in which they lived, and sought education for themselvesand their children. They believed in God, were a bible reading and commandmentkeeping people, and recognized the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as restoredthrough the prophet Joseph Smith, when they heard of it.

When driven from their homes in the eastern part of the United States, theyfollowed their prophet, and made many sacrifices to colonize the western part ofthe country; clearing land, planting trees and gardens, building homes, establishingschools and businesses, and giving freely of time and talent to create peaceful law-abiding cities that afforded the opportunity for growth and prosperity. Theyaccepted calls from the prophet to lay aside personal interests and go whereverthey were called to help lay the foundation of the restored Church.

We are the inheritors of a priceless heritage and have the challenge toprotect and preserve it for those who follow after us.

16 Ben’s Parentage

TO MY DAD

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and YOU,Fathers of old and fathers of New,

Servants of God in their church and their home,Giving of all that was ever their own.Men who were righteous, but human,Who erred–though not very often–

Men who have cared,And have left an inheritance eternally measuredOf spiritual, temporal gifts we have treasured.Daddy, when I meet the Lord face to face,

I’ll tell Him that no one could stand in your placeAnd do any better, for you’ve done your best.

He knows, but I’ll tell Him how you’ve passed the testAs head of our family and father of six,

As a student and teacher and principal mix.He knows, but I’ll tell Him, I’ll tell everyone

About all the good teaching, and all the good fun.He knows, but I’ll tell Him how we all love you.He knows, you’re His son, and He loves you too.

–Teresa Elene Gardner, June 1978Dancing with Words: A Collection of Poetry, Vol. I, p. 64.