Thirkell Bardell Klingler

Thirkell Bardell (Dell) Klingler of Rexburg, our beloved husband, father, brother, grandfather and great-grandfather, passed away Nov. 16, 2004. Dell was born Jan. 22, 1928, in Rexburg, the second of seven children of Alma and Henrietta Klingler. He was a life-long resident of Madison County. He married Arlene Martin on Feb. 18, 1955, in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. They were looking forward to celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary in February. They are the parents of seven children, 35 grandchildren and five great grandchildren. Dell loved his family, preferring above all else to spend time with and be around them. Dell is a High Priest in LDS church. During his lifetime he served in many church positions including scoutmaster, bishopric member, bishop, high counselor and in two stake presidencies. Dell served seven missions for his church, including service in the Central Pacific (Hawaii) from 1948 to 1950, in Nauvoo, Ill., from 1995 to 1996, in the LDS Church Missionary Department in Salt Lake City from 1997 to 1999 and as Rexburg Region Church Service Mission Coordinators from 2000 to 2002. He had the privilege of serving his last three missions with his sweetheart, Arlene. Dell was always thankful for his pioneer heritage and his membership in the LDS Church. Dell served in the US Army from 1953 to 1955 working in Army Systems Research and Development at Fort Belvor, Va. He also served as a Madison County Commissioner for 12 years, from 1974 to 1986. It was during this service that the Teton Dam Disaster happened and he had many leadership responsibilities in helping his community recover from this tragic event. He served as a member and president of the Ricks College Alumni Council for seven years. Dell loved his community and nation and was always actively involved in his civic responsibilities. Dell graduated from Ricks College in Rexburg and from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City in 1953 with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. He also attended graduate school at the University of California-Berkley. Dell was employed at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory from 1955 to 1990 as a nuclear and electrical engineer. He enjoyed his professional career and his many associations there. He worked the majority of his career on the Loss of Fluids Test Reactor (LOFT) project. After retiring from the INEL, he worked as a consultant on the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor at Princeton University. He was preceded in death by his parents and his older brother Lewis. He is survived by his wife, Arlene; their seven children, Ron (Nita) Klingler of Rexburg, Linda (Kerry) Ward of Rexburg, Sherri (Alban) Hatch of Iona, Kerry (Sharon) Klingler of Idaho Falls, Kathy (Daren) Bitter of Terreton, Colleen (Derek) Wadsworth of Rexburg and Chiki (Bob) Moore of Albuquerque, N.M.; his 35 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; his brothers, William (Myrna) Klingler, Val (Evelyne) Klingler and ElRay (Vicki) Klingler, all of Rexburg; and his sisters, Darlene Nelson of Rexburg and Shirley (David) Morrell of Brigham City, Utah. Funeral services will be conducted on Saturday, Nov. 20, at noon in the Rexburg Center Stake Center located at 590 Summerwood in Rexburg. Dell’s family will meet friends and neighbors from 7-9 p.m. Friday night, Nov. 19, and from 10:00-11:45 a.m. on Saturday in the Relief Society Room at the Stake Center prior to the service. Interment will be at the Rexburg Cemetery were Dell will be buried next to his parents. Services are under the direction of Eckersell Memorial Chapel in Rigby.