Dean William Knight

Dean William Knight, 96, from Idaho Falls, Idaho, passed away Sunday, July 14, 2024. He was the first child of William and Ora May (Dalley) Knight, born June 1, 1928. As a child, he lived in the house his grandfather built on a 160 acre farm between Driggs and Tetonia until he went to college in Pocatello. He was raised with his siblings, Arlin Dalley Knight and Lois (Knight) Taylor, both of whom he loved dearly.

The family worked hard to earn a living on the farm. In the summer he was sometimes joined by his Knight cousins, children of William Knight’s brothers and sisters. One of the wonderful things about the Knight family was the unity those boys had. They were more like brothers than cousins.

When World War II started, Dean learned how to be a ham radio operator. He set up a station in the attic of their house and it was the scene of much excitement for the “Purple Knights,” as Dean and his brother and sister called themselves. Near the end of WWII the Japanese government allowed some of the American prisoners of war to send messages to their parents at home. Dean received by short wave these messages and relayed them to their parents. Even at age 96 he could still repeat the Morse Code alphabet.

The boys also enjoyed watching the planes from the nearby bases circling over the Tetons. One day they decided to build their own plane from scrap materials around the farm. It was a wonderful creation which Arlin and Dean designed. It had room for three passengers, including a pilot, a navigator and a tail gunner. They set up model villages on the ground which they could “bomb.” It was powered by attaching it to a hay derrick with a cable which was then pulled by a horse. But one day there was no horse available so the young boys, about age 12 and 14, attached the airplane to the pickup with a cable. When the cable reached its end, it snapped and the airplane crashed 40 feet to the ground. Dean was the only one hurt – several vertebrae in his back were crushed, but he didn’t really suffer the ill effects later in life, except that he ended up a few inches shorter than he might otherwise have been.

While many of the boys in Teton Valley were drafted, Dean was not. When he was called up for his physical, the technician detected what he thought was a concerning heart murmur, so Dean was not called into service. Perhaps he felt a little left out as others, including his brother Arlin, served in the military. In later years, he and his wife Kareen took a trip to France to stand on the beaches of Normandy, which was to him a profoundly moving experience.

Dean earned a degree in engineering from Idaho State University, which was just the beginning of a lifelong love of science, math, history, and learning in general.

Dean married Kareen Lalliss on June 17, 1955 in the Idaho Falls temple. He met Kareen at work at the Idaho National Testing Station outside of Idaho Falls, Idaho. He worked as a nuclear engineer his entire adult life. Dean and Kareen made their home in Idaho Falls for the next 67 years. Together, Dean and Kareen raised 7 children: Kelvin, Cindy, Lance, Celeste, Collin, Rachelle, and Alicia.

Dean loved his children, skiing, climbing mountains (especially the Tetons), canoeing, river rafting, his work (and anything to do with science and physics), history, his membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and grass. He spent countless hours at his home (in the sparsely populated area known as Osgood outside Idaho Falls) cutting, trimming, watering, and caring for his grass, his yard, and his garden. He built a pool in the backyard and purchased a hot tub that he and his grandchildren all enjoyed. Dean, with the help of some other family members, built a cabin in Island Park that Dean and the whole family enjoyed for decades. He enjoyed traveling the world with his wife and children. Some of his favorite destinations included Jerusalem, China, Belize, and Alaska. Dean and Kareen took several cruises which they really enjoyed, including one of his favorites through the Panama Canal. Dean and Kareen worked for nearly 20 years in the Idaho Falls temple, primarily the early shift on Saturday mornings. They served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1995 and 1996 to the Morristown New Jersey mission. They also served a mission at the Idaho Falls Temple Visitor Center. Dean spent many years as Executive Secretary to three different Stake Presidents. He also spent many years working with the Spanish Branch in Idaho Falls.

In 2019 Dean’s son Lance Knight was diagnosed with cancer. He remained in his parents’ home until he died in April, 2020. In the late fall of 2022 Dean and Kareen moved to South Jordan to the Beckstead Apartments to be closer to their four daughters.

Dean was known for his Christlike love of everyone he met, his sweet temperament, his grateful heart, and his inability to say anything negative about anyone, ever.

He is preceded in death by his father William Knight, mother Ora May (Dalley) Knight, sister Lois (Knight) Taylor and brother-in-law Harry A. Taylor, sister-in-law Coralle (Machen) Knight, son Lance William Knight, and grandson Aaron Daly. He is survived by his wife of 69 years Kareen (Lalliss) Knight, brother Arlin Knight, many beloved nieces and nephews, his children Kelvin (Tressia) Knight, Cindy Knight Daly, Celeste Knight Peterson, Collin (Melissa) Knight, Rachelle (Brett) Knight Child, Alicia (Garry) Knight Cunningham, nineteen grandchildren, and numerous great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel located at 2450 West 10400 South in South Jordan, Utah on Monday, July 22, 2024. There will be a viewing from 10:00 to 10:45 AM followed by a family prayer and funeral services at 11:00 AM. He will be interred at the Cache-Clawson cemetery on Wednesday, July 24, 2024 located at 2090 W. 6000 N., Tetonia, Idaho, at 1:00 PM.