Patricia Gudmundsen Wilson

I was born February 18, 1953 in Salt Lake City. I was the 4th child, and 2nd daughter, of Ralph Wall and Mary Anne Gudmundsen. My family had moved into their home in 1946 and I still live there. There are a number of us ‘ward babies’ (people who grew up and then stayed in the ward) – Sister Kayelyn Birch, Brother and Sister Freed, Sister Shelly Waasdorp and President Hedin, to name a few. When my mother moved into the ward the neighborhood looked quite different. There were only a few houses on Parker Lane and is was it was a great big field just South of Parker Lane. Even our address has changed. Although our house number had been 740, it was changed to 746 when more houses were built on the street. At the time my parents moved in, there was our next door neighbors were the Kiepes, an older German couple who had moved into their home around 1900. They told my mom that at that time our house was here – but it was a small two room home.

When my sister was about 4 years old, Nibley Park School was being built. Since it was only 1 ½ blocks from our house, my mom was happy that they were so close to a school. However, it was in the Salt Lake City school district and we were in the Granite school district (the boundary went down the center of 8th East). So instead of going there, we went to Roosevelt. When I was in 5th grade the teachers went on strike for a day. When they came back, my teacher explained that one reason that they went on strike was to improve the conditions of the schools. She said that Roosevelt was built before 1900. The old building, which was located on the southeast side of the lot touching 9th East and 33rd South, was eventually torn down and a new one built on 8th East – kiddy corner to the old one. There wasn’t a library in our building so we would march over to the Calvin Smith Library once a week. When I went to kindergarten it was held for 6 weeks during the summer. The main activities were putting together puzzles, coloring, including coloring a placemat for our treat, having a treat of graham crackers and milk, and having a nap on a mat we would bring from home. The year I went to 6th grade they changed kindergarten over to a full year program. It was decided that, to prevent overcrowding in the school, some of the 6th graders were bused to Libby Edwards Elementary. I then went to Central Junior High School. Millcreek stream ran on the north side of the school lot. It was a bit of a rough school when I went there and throwing students into the creek was a common practice – something that I just barely avoided having done to me. I graduated from Granite High School in 1971 This was a bit of a family school for me – my father, mother, both brothers, my sister and my three sons all went there. Also, my mother worked in Granite’s cafeteria, along with Sister Kidd and Sister Rasmussen.

I have had some different callings in the church. My first callings came when I was going to church with my sister in her ward. There I was called as a Sunday school teacher, teaching the children that turned 8 that year. One of the things that I enjoyed was, as each student was baptized, taking that student out for an ice cream sundae. I was also an Assistant Ward Librarian there. At that time, not only did each class have specific pictures that they to use, there was a book that listed those pictures. Each week my sister, who was a Ward Librarian, and I would pull the pictures for the next week and put them in a packet (along with any additional pictures the teachers requested) so that the teacher would just have to pick up her packet on the way to class. I have had various positions in the Springview Ward. I have had a couple of different callings in the Cub Scouts. I have been a den mother, the pack secretary, an assistant Cub Master and a Cub Master. I have also taught a Primary class and been a Relief Society Teacher. Also, one of the ever present callings we all have, I have been a Visiting Teacher – I have had both my sister and my mother as a companion.

My education after High School was a bit drawn out. Right after high school, I went to one quarter at Salt Lake Trade Tech- now Salt Lake Community College. Quite a while later I went back there and then eventually finished up my bachelor’s degree at Westminster College. While I was working on a MBA with emphasis in Human Resources I went on an unpaid internship at National Semiconductor. It was then I decided to leave school for a while and take a position there in their production area. From this I have developed a couple of my many maxims – 1) no matter how close you are to graduation, there is a vast difference between almost having a degree and actually having it and 2) once you have left school, it is extremely hard to finish what you have started (I haven’t yet).

I share my mother’s love of dogs. With a couple of small exceptions, we have had dogs since before I was born. We have also had other pets, including a parakeet, named Jingle Bells that we got for Christmas; a cockatiel, named Lucky that was found dazed in front of our yard; and a rat, named Whisker, who would gently nibble peanut butter from your finger. We currently have 2 dogs, named Caine and Sally, and 2 cats, named Star and Stripe (because they were born in July close to Independence Day).

I am currently working for the University of Utah (I have been employed with them for about 13 years) and am presently working in the Health Information Management section of the Huntsman Hospital. I enjoy spending time with my 3 sons and my 4 grandchildren (3 granddaughters and 1 grandson).

A few more tidbits about me:

Favorite color: If I had to pick one color it would be pink. I like color combinations – orange with brown, etc.
Favorite food: Chocolate, sushi and pork.
Flower: Rose – I especially like the ones with mixed colors.
Favorite places: I used to love the Star Trek Museum. Yellowstone, any wooded area with a creek.
What I dream about: Traveling and building my dream home (I have already made floor plans three times).