Uncle David

Last Sunday, on Easter Sunday, my dear Uncle David passed away, surrounded by his wife, Louise, and all of their nine children. It has been a hard week for me, the hardest being yesterday, which was the day of the funeral. My heart was heavy. Last November, Jeff's grandma died and it was harder than I thought it would be, especially since I didn't get as much sleep as I wanted the night before. I cried a little at that funeral. I did get more sleep the night before yesterday, but yesterday was still no different. We got to the church where the viewing and the funeral were being held. I was able to see and briefly visit with many, many cousins, a lot who I haven't seen in a while. I loved briefly visiting the two of the nine children closest to me in age, Julie and Linda. Julie and I shared a couple hugs and an emotional conversation. I was surprised how emotionally strong Linda was (I know I couldn't be that strong). We had a good short conversation and hugs as well. I will never forget those moments. The funeral service was so special and so spiritual. All nine of the children spoke and shared wonderful stories and memories of their dad. They also sang "Come, Come Ye Saints" (with their spouses). At the end, they played a 1976 recording of Uncle David singing a song he wrote called "Through the Eyes of a Child". After the service, we went to the grave site where he was going to be buried... on a hill close to the mountains in north Provo. It was a beautiful place. There, we sang a few more hymns and children's songs. I haven't been in Primary since I was a Primary teacher for 2 years before my mission, so I forgot some of the words to a couple primary songs. I either hummed or listened, and I felt the spirit so strong. My uncle has been a great influence to me and many others, and his death and funeral has made me want to be a better person.

I do have one memory I would like to share about Uncle David. About 8 1/2 years ago, I was looking for a car to buy since the car my parents gave me when I moved to Utah had problems that would be more expensive to fix than the car was worth. I found these two Toyota Camrys that this older guy was selling. He also had a couple Hondas he was selling... he repossessed these cars from banks and was selling them. I was interested in the two Camrys. They were both 1995... one was beige/tan and had 92,000 miles and the other was black and had over 130,000 miles. The black one was around my price range and the beige/tan one was a little over my price range. Since my parents were still in Missouri, my dad suggested I call Uncle David to take a look at the two cars and test drive them. I called Uncle David to set a time to meet at the house where the cars were (which was on Canyon Rd. in Provo, not too far from where Uncle David was buried). Uncle David test drove both cars. We both could tell the black one was more used and the beige/tan one was taken very well care of and was in nicer condition. Even though the beige/tan one was a little over my price range, he suggested I get that one. With the help of my parents loaning me the money (which I was able to pay back very quickly), I was able to get the beige/tan car that is 16 years old now and that I still have. Uncle David had many, many great talents and his knowledge of cars was one of them and I will never forget the help he gave me with that.

Below is a picture of my Uncle David that was used on the cover of the funeral program. Below that is his obituary. I love and miss him a lot!


David Lee Higginson

1943 ~ 2011

Our Father in Heaven chose Easter Sunday to call our dear husband, father, and grandfather home. He passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family from the effects of cancer.

David was born October 3, 1943 in Nampa, Idaho to John Detton and Merle Harris Higginson.

He was a valiant member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and served a mission to New Zealand from 1962-64. He had a deep faith in his Savior, Jesus Christ and shared his love for Christ with his family and countless others.

While attending BYU, he met and married his sweetheart, Louise Lewis. They were sealed for time and all eternity on June 2, 1967 in the Salt Lake Temple.

Music was the essence of his life. He was an amazing choir and orchestra teacher in Utah and Idaho, a musician, songwriter, and arranger. His children's treasured memory is singing around the piano on Sunday evenings. He was the creator of The Professional Chord System and touched the lives of so many people as he traveled around the country to share his gift.

He is survived by his wife, Louise and 9 children, David (Heidi), Michael (Marci), Amy (Brenden) Clements, Rebekah (Jim) Edwards, Brian (Lisa), Julie, Linda (Danny) Strauss, Robert, and Jared.