(1927 – February 13, 2015)
Josephine “Jo” Reber passed away peacefully in her sleep the morning of February 13, 2015. Jo, as her family and friends affectionately called her, died of natural causes at the age of 88. She lost her long time sweetheart and husband, Spencer, on April 13, 2012.
Josephine graduated from Dixie High School and shortly thereafter Josephine and Spencer were married in the St. George LDS Temple in May of 1946. Jo and Spencer enjoyed 65 wonderful years of marriage. She served faithfully in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for all of her life and together, they served an LDS mission to Switzerland from 1994 to 1996.
In her adult life she went back to school and got her teaching degree and taught elementary school for several years in the San Francisco Bay area. After her husband’s retirement in 1989, they moved back to Southern Utah and settled in St. George and Pine Valley. Together they were able to travel to many places making many close and lasting friends. She was the family matriarch and an incredible example of selfless love and service to everyone she came into contact with, especially all of her six children, 31 grandchildren, and 62 great grandchildren.
She and Spencer loved the outdoors and built a beautiful cabin in Pine Valley, which they named Schangnau after the family’s origins in Switzerland. Together they spent nine months out of every year in Pine Valley where they were constantly visited by family and friends. She is survived by her six adult children, from the oldest to the youngest: Michael Spencer (Yvonne), Randy Thomas (Jillyn), Jeffrey Lynn (Susan), Abby Ann (Mike), Christopher Lloyd (Julie), and Larry Ernest (Boni), and their Tahitian daughter, Hutia (Peter).
Funeral Services
- Funeral services will be Saturday, Feb. 21, at 1 p.m. at the Pine Valley Chapel, 50 West Main Street, Pine Valley, Utah.
- Visitations will be held on Friday, Feb. 20, from 6-8 p.m. at Metcalf Mortuary, 288 West St. George Blvd, St. George, and Saturday, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. prior to services at the Pine Valley Chapel.
- Internment will be in the Pine Valley Cemetery.
Arrangements entrusted to the care of Metcalf Mortuary, 435-673-4221. For condolences, full obituary, and funeral listings please visit our the Metcalf Mortuary website.