Clyde Gillette, the co-founder of the Utah Chapter, passed away on June 9 at the age of 88. Clyde is held in the utmost regard by all of us here in the Military Outdoors family, and the Sierra Club as a whole. He is an inspiration to all of us who share his sense of sense of adventure and love for the outdoors. Janet, Clyde's wife of 66 years shared that, "Clyde was very proud of his 30 years of teaching artillery principles at the USAR school here at Fort Douglas, his association with conservation and mountain-climbing groups such as the Sierra Club and animal rights groups such as Best Friends, and the Utah Lepidopterists' Society, which he co-founded. Over his 88 years, he did many things but would've been surprised to be honored for doing them since they were fulfilling his passion to protect his country, its land, its wildlife (including butterflies/habitat), and domestic animals." The following is Clyde's incredible life story and obituary that Janet graciously shared:
Our husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, friend, Clyde Ford Gillette, born in Salt Lake City on March 30, 1927 and died on June 9, 2015 after a short illness. He will be remembered as a scientist, adventurer, and explorer, chasing and studying butterflies and climbing mountains for 88 years.
Clyde's love of and interest in butterflies began at a very early age and he was asked to co-author an article on painted lady butterfly migrations with Dr. Angus Woodbury of the University of Utah at age 9. He co-founded the Utah Lepidopterist Society and was known informally as Mr. Butterfly of Utah because of his extensive research into the life histories of the butterflies of the Great Basin and western states of the US, avidly exploring mountain peaks and glaciated valleys of the western states to establish the range of alpine butterflies until his stroke in 2011 curtailed this somewhat. He loved sharing his knowledge with others.
He was one of the co-founders of the Sierra Club's Utah chapter in 1959 and an avid conservationist, always cleaning up trails and campsites on family hikes. He established summit registers on the top of the highest peak in all 29 counties of Utah and has climbed the highest mountain in all the 11 western states. He loved taking his wife and four daughters on all the adventures he could find. Many times accompanied by his daughters, he climbed, among many others, the Great White Throne in Zion National Park in 1959, the Tetons and Wind River Mountains, Mexico's Orizaba, Popocatepetl, Iztaccihuatl in 1961; Mt. St. Helens in 1962 before it blew its top; and at age 80, he climbed 18,000 ft Vajanarahu in the Andes of Peru with his daughter Janee. He was inspired by the explorations of Major John Wesley Powell and early Utah pioneer Will Flanigan. He traversed the Narrows for the first time in 1947 and facilitated his wife-to-be Janet Walker's being the first documented woman to traverse the Narrows in 1948. He instigated the Sierra Club's establishment of a monument and plaque in 1972 memorializing Major Powell's exploration of Parunuweap Canyon in Zion National Park. He hiked across the Grand Canyon with his four daughters in 1960. In 1963 he joined a Utah group to raft down the Rio Urique in the Barranca del Cobre in Mexico but they mostly ended up carrying their rafts because of low water and huge boulders - he was emaciated when they climbed out of the deep gorge to rural civilization.
Clyde was in the navy near the end of WWII; joined the ROTC at the University of Utah; was in the Army Reserve for 30 years, teaching artillery classes at Ft. Douglas; commanded an Honest John Rocket Battery; and graduated from the Command and General Staff College as a full Colonel. He was a referee at many war training games in
various parts of the U.S. and was proud to have met Gen. Mark Clark on one of these exercises.
He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Janet Walker Gillette, daughters Jeralee, Janee, Heidi and Michele, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren, half-brothers Nels Larsen and Don Larsen, half-sister Phyllis Pedroncelli, cousins Jackie F. Robinson, Lark Flanigan, Glenna F. Gibbons, Shane Flanigan, and nephew Barry Gillette.
Funeral service will be held Thursday, June 18, 2015 at 11:00am at the LDS Chapel located at 3408 South Celeste Way, where a viewing will be held 9:30-10:30am prior to the service. Interment will follow at the Utah Veterans Memorial Park at Camp Williams.
Clyde was very supportive of efforts to prevent animal abuse. In lieu of flowers, contributions to the Best Friends Animal Society or Pet Samaritan Fund are appreciated.
