Eva Margaret Winterton Kohkonen

Eva Margaret Winterton Kohkonen passed away peacefully on May 30, 2016, in Logan, Utah. She was born in Charleston, Utah on July 14, 1919 and was the ninth child of Hyrum Shurtliff Winterton and Sarah Van Wagoner. At the age of seven, the family moved to Woodland, Utah. She graduated from South Summit High School and Seminary in 1938. Eva was active playing her trumpet for four years in the band and a member of the girls Pep Club and Glee club. She also had the leading part in the High School Opera, Mikado playing Petti Sing. Music was a part of Eva’s life and she sang with her sister Ruth and her mother, Sarah. She sang in quartets, duets, choirs and dance bands. Music came naturally as she played the piano by ear. On weekends she loved dances which is where she met Elmer Kohkonen in the spring of 1939. They were married December 11, 1939 in Woodland, Utah and their marriage was later solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple. Eva was an active and faithful member of the Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints all her life. She had many callings in the Relief Society and the Primary organizations and gave great service wherever she lived. In 1956 she went with her husband and family on a Church Building Labor Mission to New Zealand. She attended the dedication of the New Zealand Temple. She had the privilege of having as house guests many Church Authorities and wives including Spencer W. Kimball, Marion G. Romney, Joseph Fielding Smith, their mission president, Robert L. Simpson, and many others. Their home was a haven for many missionaries. In 1961, the family moved to Finland to serve another four years building three chapels in that country. She learned some Finnish and was loved by the Finnish church members. In 1965, they returned to Utah and Elmer and Eva worked for Bird Plastics making plastic sacrament cups for the Church for 11 years. Elmer passed away in 1980 and five years later, Eva moved to Logan where her daughter, Carol, lived.
Eva worked in the Logan Temple and the Logan Family History Center. She was an avid genealogist. She loved to do handwork, quilt and read. She had a keen mind until the last days of her life recalling stories about her relatives and friends. Everyone who knew Eva loved her, and she loved everyone she knew. Eva is preceded in death by her husband, Elmer Kohkonen, her parents, her brothers and sisters and their spouses. She is survived by a son Kent (Rona) Kohkonen of Orem, Utah, and Carol (Craig) Armstrong of Logan, Utah, twelve grandchildren and 33 great grandchildren. Our appreciation goes to Dr. Richard Stevens and the nurses and staff at Rocky Mountain Care for their kind and loving care for the last 2 1/2 years. A viewing will be held Saturday, June 4, 2016 at 10:00 am to 11:30 am in the Woodland Ward Church. Funeral services will follow at noon and Interment will be in the Francis, Utah Cemetery.
Condolences and memories may be shared online at www.nelsonfuneralhome.com