- Joey Stocking of Garden City, UT
Chris Stone Coray was born July 11, 1943 in Salt Lake City, Utah to Howard Flygare Coray and Ivy Josephine Stone Coray. He passed away unexpectedly Jan. 3, 2017, of Acute Myeloid Leukemia at the LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City. After graduating from East High School, he earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Utah. He served in the U.S. Army as a nuclear weapons officer from 1965-69. During his years in the service he was stationed in Germany, Turkey and the USA.
On Nov. 25, 1966, Chris married Bobbie Bicknell (chief editor of this newsletter) at the Fort Douglas Army Chapel in Salt Lake City.
Chris received his doctoral degree in mathematics at the University of Utah, where he was awarded an NDEA Fellowship. He began his teaching career in 1973 as an assistant professor at Idaho State University. During that time he also worked as a researcher at the Idaho Nuclear Engineering Laboratory.
He began teaching at Utah State University in Logan, Utah, in 1975 and was a full professor of mathematics. While in this position at USU he authored many refereed papers and published research. He also received several National Science Foundation grants. Chris was awarded the Gerald Sherratt Special Recognition Robins Award and the 1988 Professor of the Year in Mathematics and Statistics.
In 1979 he was baptized as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in 1980 he and his family were sealed in the Logan LDS Temple.
In 1982, he was selected to work with the University of Tokyo in a space-related research project. During this time he and his family lived in Tokyo, where Chris worked with the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science for nine months.
In 1994 he was named Cache County Chamber "Total Citizen of the Year," and in 1997, Teacher of the Year in Mathematics and Statistics. In 1997 he also won the prestigious NORCHE prize. In both 2000 and 2001 Chris was named the Department and College of Science Advisor of the Year. He also served on the USU Faculty Senate for many years.
In 1990, he was elected to the Cache County Council and served a four-year term, where he was able to implement the 911 system in Cache County and created a 10-year planning project that has resulted in making Cache Valley a better place to live.
Chris was chair of the Cache County Sheriff's Merit Commission from 1996-2002 and member of the Countywide Planning and Development Governing Board. He also served as a member of the Community Accountability Board and Adult Probation and Parole. In addition, he served as chairman of the American Cancer Society from 1996-98 and served on the board of Logan Regional Hospital. As chairman of the Logan Regional Hospital IHC Foundation he helped to raise $1.4 million towards the construction of a beautiful new cancer center. As he watched patients who had to drive long distances for treatment he became committed to building a cancer center in Logan.
Chris was a wonderful father who loved to share his love of reading (especially the "Oz" stories by L. Frank Baum) with his two daughters and now his three granddaughters. He also loved being in the sidelines at basketball and soccer games. He was thrilled when his daughters and granddaughters - whom he called his "grandberries" - excelled in violin, soccer, ballet and ice skating. As his family grew, Chris was able share with them his love of hunting, fishing and camping. Chris also found time to be a Scouting leader to young men and taught many young men the values of hard work and forthrightness.
Chris served as a bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints USU First Stake. Currently, he was serving as the High Priest group leader in the Garden City Second Ward. His favorite Church calling was as Young Men's advisor, where he was able to teach and influence many lives.
After retiring to Garden City, Chris continued to serve his community as the chairman of the Garden City Fire Department, the Sweetwater HOA Board president and the Sweetwater Water Company Chairman. He helped to build the Garden City offices and library. In his spare time, Chris was "The Unmuddled Mathematician" columnist for the Rich Civic Times. He also voluntarily tutored many young people in the community. It was always important for him to "lift people up," but his greatest joy was his three granddaughters.
In 2010, he and his wife Bobbie were called to an LDS Humanitarian Mission to Damascus, Syria, where he was associated with Damascus University and worked on LDS Humanitarian projects. In 2011, during the "Arab Spring" they were transferred to Madaba, Jordan, where Chris assisted in the founding year of a new Catholic University, The American University of Madaba.
He is survived by his wife; daughters, Kimberly Erin Coray Larson (Steve), Wendy Kristine Coray Wimmer (Marc); and three granddaughters, Savannah K. Larson, Jade Wimmer and Carmen Wimmer. He is also survived by his mother, his brother, Reed Spencer Coray, and sister, Samala Coray, and a large extended family of nieces, nephews and cousins whom he loved very much.
A scholarship endowment at the USU Department of Mathematics has been created for students in rural areas in Chris' name. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made at https://www.usu.edu/advancement/coray/.
Visiting and greeting will be held at the Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 E. Center St., in Logan, on Friday, Jan. 6, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and in Garden City at the Garden City Second Ward on 65 S. Bear Lake Boulevard on Saturday from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. with the funeral held at noon. Condolences may be expressed online at www.allenmortuaries.net.
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