Click the links below to hear BYU students express their memories of Elder Wirthlin

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, an apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away Monday at 11:30 pm at his Salt Lake City home, according to an LDS Newsroom news release.

Elder Wirthlin was the oldest living apostle at age 91. His oldest daughter, Jane Wirthlin Parker, who had been caring for him, was present at the time of his death. He died peacefully of age-related causes shortly after going to bed.

Elder Wirthlin was born June 11, 1917, in Salt Lake City, to Joseph and Madeline Wirthlin. He was the oldest of five children and grew up during the Great Depression.

As a young man, Elder Wirthlin earned his Eagle Scout award and was the high school quarterback. He went on to attend the University of Utah where he was the starting running back.

Elder Wirthlin attended the most recent BYU vs. Utah game on Nov. 22 to watch his alma mater win. According to the Deseret News, during a news conference Monday, Elder Wirthlin's son, Joe Wirthlin, was asked whether his father had enjoyed the game.

"Absolutely," he told the media. "He had a great love for both teams and for all sports."

Elder Wirthlin continued working in his office right up until the Thanksgiving holiday.

Bryan Perry, a BYU student from Sandy, reminisced about Elder Wirthlin.

"I liked his humility," Perry said. "He was a track star and football star, a very capable man in everything that he did, yet he was always very humble."

Elder Wirthlin's father served a mission in Germany, and the apostle said it was his dream to serve as his father had. He left his formal schooling to fulfill his dream of serving a mission for the church in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, from 1937-39.

During the unstable time in world history just before World War II, Elder Wirthlin said he remembered the difficulty he faced.

"Those times of seeming failure may have been some of the most instrumental of my life, because they prepared me for greater things to come," Elder Wirthlin said.

Katie Vargo, a junior from Cottonwood Heights said: "I loved his optimism. After listening to his talks, I felt like I could conquer the world. I felt like he was my grandpa, and I'd never met him."

After returning from his mission, Elder Wirthlin set his sights on a new task - finding the woman he would marry. He said he knew his wife was the one from the first time he laid eyes on her.

He married Elisa Young Rogers one year later on May 26, 1941. They were married 65 years before his wife died in 2006. Before her death, Elisa told stories of their dating life. Elder Wirthlin was busy working and going to school, so the two would meet at the gas pump on campus between classes and work. According to the Mormon Times, that pump was the place Elder Wirthlin proposed to his sweetheart.

Equipped with a business administration degree from the University of Utah, he ran the family meat processing business. He later received an honorary doctorate of Christian service from BYU in 2001 and became the president of a Utah trade association.

The Wirthlins raised seven girls and one boy.

Over the years Elder Wirthlin served in various church callings and was sustained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve on Oct. 4, 1986.

Patrick Koelling, a BYU student from Littleton, Colo., said he remembers meeting Elder Wirthlin as a new convert.

"I was new to the church, so I didn't know what all the hoopla was about," Koelling said. "But at that moment, I could tell the calling he had was divine, and it was an actual mantle he held, and I felt when I shook his hand and looked him in the eye."

Elder Wirthlin delivered his last conference address in November titled, "Come What May, and Love It."

In the talk he said: "One of the blessings of the gospel is the knowledge that when the curtain of death signals the end of our mortal lives, life will continue on the other side of the veil. There we will be given new opportunities. Not even death can take from us the eternal blessings promised by a loving Heavenly Father."

To honor Elder Wirthlin, the flag at BYU has been lowered to half-staff where it will remain until the evening of funeral services.

Funeral plans have not yet been announced.

Patrick Koelling shares a missonary's experience of meeting Elder Wirthlin.

Stefi Faust: Elder Wirthlin was genuine and had a sweet disposition.

Katie Vargo: Elder Wirthlin's optimism was contagious.

Kyra Stevens: Elder Wirthlin was humble and persistent.

McCall Barrick loved Elder Wirthlin's stories.

Bryan Perry: Elder Wirthlin was a humble man.



Copyright Brigham Young University 3 Dec 2008