Mary Anne Fullmer Gudmundsen

Mary Anne Fullmer Gudmundsen was born January 25, 1922; the fifth child, and third daughter, of Margaret Farish and Lorenzo Babcock Fullmer in Spring Canyon, Utah. This was a small town just west of Helper, UT – which is just north of Price. This area is mining country. Mining is a major part of Mary Anne’s Family story; her maternal Grandfather Farish came to Utah for the mining and was killed in the Schofield Mining accident on May 1, 1900. Also, Mary Anne’s maternal Grandmother Farish came from a mining area in Wales at the age of 8. She came over with her Grandmother, who had part of her foot cut off in a mining accident as a child.

When Mary Anne was quite young, her mother became a single parent. In order to provide for the family, she worked cleaning houses. As there were no day care centers at that time, the only provisions available to care for her children was in an orphanage which also tended children of single mothers. As soon as Mary Anne’s mother thought her children could take care of their selves during the day, she took them out of there. Things were bleak at this time. However, they changed when Mary Anne’s mother met and married a widower from Spring City, Utah; Marian Allred. Mary Anne was very glad to have a father and a mother who could be at home all day. Although it was during the “Big Depression” and times were hard, she and her family never went hungry and they always had warm clothes to wear. Mary Anne has happy memories of those years.

When Mary Anne was in 4th grade, her family moved across the street from Woodrow Wilson Elementary School and went to the Central Park Ward. At that time they had a cow. One day, to the embarrassment of Mary Anne and to the delight and laughter of the other students, the cow had got loose and was grazing in the schoolyard, munching on the delicious grass.

Mary Anne graduated from Granite High School in 1940. Although she would have liked to study nursing, there was no money to go to school. In an attempt to earn money for nursing school, Mary Anne worked as a waitress. At one of these jobs she met her future husband, Ralph Wall (Goody) Gudmundsen, who worked as a mechanic. They were married on June 2, 1941 and had 4 children; 2 girls (Margaret (Peggy) and Patricia (Tricia)) and 2 boys (Ralph and Steven). Shortly after Mary Anne became pregnant with their 2nd child (Ralph Jr.), Goody was drafted in the Army. He was stationed in Texas as an instructor, teaching auto mechanics to the young recruits for two years.

On March 8, 1946 (on her oldest daughters 3rd birthday) the family moved into Mary Anne’s current home. She has never wanted to move from this home as she has had such good neighbors and has enjoyed her Ward Family. Although she has lived in the same house, she has lived in 3 wards – Wandamere, Grant 2nd, and Springview.

She was a stay at home mom until her youngest child started school. She then worked in several jobs until she was hired as a Cafeteria worker in the Granite School District – first at Olympus High School and then Granite High School. She retired after working there for 17 years. One of the things that she enjoyed about working there was serving a lot of the young ward members that would eat at the cafeteria. Sister Ruby Kidd also worked there and they would often walk to and from work. She enjoyed the women she worked with and years after her retirement she would have lunch with them.

The saddest two days in Mary Anne’s life were when her husband died, after 45 years of being happily married, Aug. 8, 1986 and when her son, Steven, died Feb. 16, 2001. In 1990 she went through the temple and was sealed to her husband for all eternity.

She has had different callings in the church; Sunday School Teacher, Primary Teacher, Primary Secretary, Den Mother and Young Women’s Teacher. At one time, shortly after she was married, she was a substitute Sunday school teacher in her mother-in-laws ward. One of the young boys in the class was Thomas S. Monson (they also participated in a Ward Road Show together). Mary Anne is currently a Visiting Teacher and is one of the compassionate service ladies (a calling she REALLY enjoys).

She is currently the grandmother of 13 and the great-grandmother of 24 that is very proud of she enjoys spending time with whenever she can. As her oldest great-granddaughter is now engaged, she may be a great-great-grandmother in the not too distant future.