Lloyd Crystal Merrill

Lloyd Crystal Merrill, age 94, of Menan, Idaho, passed away peacefully Sunday, May 24, 2015 surrounded by his loving family at his home. He and his wife were long time residents of Annis, Idaho and had just recently moved to Menan, Idaho. Lloyd was born October 27, 1920 at the family home in Annis, Idaho a son of Warren Lester Merrill and Mary Idell Hall Merrill. He grew up on the farm in Annis, Idaho and attended school at the Annis schoolhouse. When he was very young he would help his mother around the house with the dishes and the garden. As he grew older he would go out to help his father on the farm with field work such as hoeing beets, hauling hay and shoveling the ditches as well as the chores around the yards such as milking the cows and feeding the horses. He and his father used horses for most of the work until he was nearly 20 years old. He loved this time of his life, talking about it and telling his family stories from this time all his life for as long as he lived. Most of his family would know in an instant that when he mentioned Chub and Buck that he was talking about some of the best working horses on the farm during his early years. He went into the service during WWII, serving in the U.S. Army. He did training in Tennessee and in Texas, training to drive jeeps, tanks and amphibious vehicles. It was during this time that he was severely injured in an accident during training. The accident caused his left hand to be removed and both legs broken. He was so severely injured that the telegram to his parents stated that he was not expected to live. Following 11 months of hospitalization he was released to return home and resume helping his dad on the farm. For the rest of his life he worked hard, often outworking people who were completely healthy. The accident would be a pivotal moment in his life but his determination not to let it keep him down would remain throughout his life as he worked hard. He was a life member of the Disabled American Veterans (DAV). On August 18, 1947 he married Della Margaret Galbraith in Driggs, Idaho. They had been married for 67 ½ years when she passed away on March 1, 2015 just 84 days before he passed. Lloyd and Della would remain companions and partners on the farm for the next 67 years raising their children and making their living. He enjoyed working on his farm, keeping it in perfect condition. He made sure there were never any weeds, that the ditches were shoveled clean by hand and that all the buildings and equipment were kept in good order. He was awarded the Conservation Farmer of the Year award in 1969 for Jefferson County. His children remember very fondly working with Dad in the fields. When he wasn’t working on the farm he loved to go to the hills and pick huckleberries and in the fall a trip to Utah to get fresh peaches was a must. He also loved to visit with the extended family on Sunday afternoons and often that entailed many good stories being told. Survivors include his four children, two daughters, JoAnn (Virgil) Anderson of Burley, Idaho and Lucinda “Cindy” (Dan) Young of Derry, New Hampshire, two sons, Nolan (Sheila) Merrill of Salt Lake City, Utah and Warren (Paula Jo) Merrill of Menan, Idaho, and one sister, Ellen Drake of Rigby, Idaho, 16 grandchildren and 26 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents Warren L and Mary Merrill, three brothers, Lester, Nathan and Solyman “Vene”, three sisters, Afton, Jen and Elaine, a son Johnny Wilson and a son-in-law Ronnie D. Hewitt. Funeral services will be held Saturday, May 30, 2015 at 1:00 p.m. at Eckersell Memorial Chapel 101 West Main Street, Rigby. The family will visit with friends Friday, May 29, 2015 from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at the family home (3586 East 640 North, Menan, Idaho) and on Saturday, May 30, 2015 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at the funeral home. Burial will be in the Annis Little Butte Cemetery. The family wishes to thank the fine staff of Promontory Point Rehabilitation, Julie and Sara from Aspen Hospice and especially Kody and Eileen from QualiCare for their kind, compassionate, and loving care of our Dad during his final days on this earth.