Moira Dawn Blackmore

Moira Dawn Blackmore, age 89 years young, of St George, Utah passed away on May 25, 2023, joining her parents, her son, and (apparently) Elvis in her next adventure. Moira was born to Orpha Vance and Harold Blackmore (aka Pete) in Cardston, Alberta, Canada on April 15, 1934. She grew up during the Great Depression and WWII. In her early years she experienced a mommy struggling with mental illness and a daddy going to war. During those difficult and lonely years, she lived with and loved her Uncle Jim and Aunt Maralda Blackmore, as well as with her grandmother, Mary. As a young teenager her family was reunited, and she enjoyed a wonderful youth with her sister and five brothers. In Cardston High School she was active in sports and music. Along with her sister Carma and cousin Verla, the young ladies were Alberta’s female basketball superstars. She had the singing voice of an angel and sang at school and church functions. She was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and in 1960 was one of the first women to serve a mission in Taiwan. She mastered Mandarin Chinese to such a high degree of fluency and proficiency that native Mandarin speakers who heard her assumed she had spoken the language her entire life. She loved the gracious, kind, and humble people and the beauty of Taiwan. She completed a secretarial course after high school and had many adventurous jobs in that field, including with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and a Canadian airline company. As a young girl she had passionately desired to have a family of her own and held every baby she could get her hands on. In high school she was, in fact, voted as the most likely of all the seniors that year to get married and be the first to have a child. Later in life than she had expected, she entered a complex marriage relationship, which presented emotional and financial challenges for her, and all parties involved. Ultimately, this path led her to become a single mother, facing unique circumstances and responsibilities. With little to no financial support she often worked herself to exhaustion to care for her children and protect them to her best ability from life's challenges. She worked in a range of fields, including waitressing, janitorial contracting house, and yard care, as well as flood and fire restoration. Her children were her world. She supported her children endlessly and seemingly tirelessly in every way she possibly could. She nurtured other children and young people in her life and loved all absolutely, unconditionally. She loved and thought often of her children's other siblings and asked what was new with them. She was a woman with a huge list of life goals, number one being to help others. She was a proud mother, grandmother, and great grandmother. She adored each one of her grandchildren, attended every musical and sporting event of theirs that she could, and had a special relationship with each one. Her family are blessed to have watched her enjoy her life immensely. The pandemic slowed all of us down quite a lot and she was looking forward to summer activities this year with her grandchildren and great grandchildren. Besides time spent with her family, a few of her favorite activities were swimming with other residents of the Red Cliffs Manor, hula dancing, group discussion sessions, collecting plants, and watching old movies. Moira loved life. She loved her people. Moira is survived by her beloved canine companion, Kai, who has been by her side for the past four years. She is also survived by her dear brothers: Clay Blackmore of Raymond, Alta.; Doug Blackmore (Peggy) of Cardston, Alta.; Dave Butters of Irricana, Alta.; Frank Butters of Victoria, BC.; and Kenyon Blackmore. Additionally, she leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews. Her daughters include Mary Taylor (Howard) of Cedar City, UT; Joy Johnson (Mike) of St George, UT; Rachel Henderson of St George, UT; Becca Henderson (James) of Hurricane, UT; and foster daughter, Carmen Sanchez of Las Cruces, NM. Moira is also survived by 8 granddaughters and 14 grandsons: Aurora, Malachi, Zachary, Ezekiel, Kiara, Emerik, Thaddeus, Akaisha, Quade, Rowan, Traevon, Vance, Landon, MoiraAnn, Jenna, Shareena, Nashai, Kelton, Jett, Silas, Isaiah, Desiree. She is further survived by 9 great grandchildren. Moira was preceded in death by her mother and father, Pete and Orpha Blackmore, her sister and brother-in-law, Carma and Dean Bradshaw, her sister-in-law Shirley Butters, and her beloved son, Michael Eugene Henderson. Moira's family would like to thank the medical staff of Intermountain St George Regional Hospital, The Serenity Funeral Home, her friends from the Red Cliff Manor for checking in with her and her plant babies, and all of you who have expressed condolences, love, and sympathy for her family in our time of grief. Thank you for your love and support. In consideration of the family’s need to adjust, recover, make necessary travel arrangements for grandchildren, and attend to important matters, the Celebration of Life for Moira will be postponed for the time being. In lieu of flowers, if you would like to contribute towards the expenses associated with Moira’s Celebration of life gathering (date and time to be decided), your support would be greatly appreciated. Donations can be made by reaching out to Moira’s daughter directly at https//venmo.com/u/Joy-Johnson24; https://www.paypal.me/MaryBTaylor31; https//venmo.com/BeccaHenderson-2.

Moira Dawn Blackmore

April 15, 1934 - May 25, 2023