Madlyn Gillespie Tanner

Madlyn Gillespie Tanner died from cancer on September 25, 2024. Born January 23, 1939 in Salt Lake City, she was the second of four children of Will Blaine and Norma Seager Gillespie.



Madlyn graduated from East High School and received a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Utah where she was president of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She taught English at Olympus Junior High School and the then-new Skyline High School. She returned to the U many years later to serve on the Emeritus Alumni Board for four years, including one year as president.



She married Stephen Lowell Tanner in the Salt Lake Temple on April 18, 1961, and was a lifetime member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She served three times as ward Relief Society president, twice as ward Young Women president, and also as a stake Young Women president. She and her husband served five years in the Portuguese-speaking branch of the Provo Missionary Training Center. They also served for three years in the Provo Area Special Needs Activities Program (SNAP).



Madlyn and her husband raised three children?Elizabeth, Charlotte, and Stephen?and lived in Wisconsin, Idaho, Brazil, Portugal, London and Utah. While in Brazil with her family for two years, she gave English conversation classes to the Minister of Agriculture, set up a book lending system for the International Women's Club, and taught language arts at the American School in Belo Horizonte. Her greatest accomplishment there was to add a son to her family when Stephen Will Tanner was born in 1976.



Despite a fear of flying, she survived trips to Canada, Hawaii, Ireland, England, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Israel, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, and many locations throughout the U.S. She was on the staff of two London BYU Study Abroad programs in 1989 and 1994. She was copy editor for the publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, headquartered at BYU, and worked 14 years until retirement as the executive secretary at MOXTEK.



An avid reader, particularly of mystery stories, Madlyn inspired her family to love reading as well. She was a member of the Etienne women's literary club in Provo since 1991, as well as a study group of couples in Salt Lake City for more than 40 years. She had many life-long friends from her junior high and high school days, including two from kindergarten. Throughout her life, she was a loyal, thoughtful and trusted friend to many, all of whom will deeply miss her wit and wise counsel.



Madlyn cherished her family who claimed her purpose was to make sure they didn't "freeze or starve." She was a devoted wife, a brilliant mother, and an adoring grandmother. She supported every family member's activities and made every holiday and family celebration both fun and memorable.



She was preceded in death by her husband, her parents, a brother and a sister. She is survived by daughters Elizabeth Tanner and Charlotte (Chet) Poulton; son Stephen (Jodi) Tanner; sister Lisa (Kevin) Dolan; and her Poulton grandchildren Tanner (McKayla), Cameron (Hallie), Ian, Abigail, and great-grandson Warren.



Funeral services will be Friday, October 4, 2024, at 12:00 p.m. at the Sharon East Stake Center, 2400 North 1060 East in Provo. A visitation will be Friday, October 4, 2024, 10:00-11:30 a.m. at the church before the services.