July 8, 1938 to February 20, 2023

Orvin B. Swain, age 84, died on Feb. 20, 2023, at the Rocky Mountain Care Center in Heber City, Utah.

He was born on July 8, 1938, in Lapoint, Utah, at home. Orvin’s parents were Orville Hatch Swain and Ora May Anderson, both of Lapoint, Utah. Orvin was the second child of Orville and Ora. His other siblings were, Joleen Swain Ottosen, Gilbert Von Swain and Carolyn LaRee Swain Miller.

Orvin went to Lapoint Elementary and eventually to Union High School. Not long after graduation he worked on the Flaming Gorge Dam in Manila, Utah, and then a time with Mountain Fuel Supply installing gas pipelines in the Vernal Oil Fields. He was a bus driver and school custodian at Vernal Junior High School for Uintah School District. He coached church basketball for the Lapoint Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He loved sports and watched every Jazz game he could.

He married Barbara Joan Dye on April 12, 1970. They had one very special child, Rocky Shae Swain who  died from Leukemia at the age of Seven. He was devoted to little Rocky and loved playing with him and his tractors like Grandpa Swain had on the farm.

In 1983, his father Orville, while undergoing Heart Surgery in Salt Lake City, contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion. A few years later, Orvin’s mother caught AIDS from her husband Orville. It was a terrible disease and manifested itself a few years later as they became terribly sick. The doctors, caregivers, and neighbors were very afraid of this disease, and Orvin and his sister LaRee were the only ones willing to care for their parents. They took turns every 12 hours for days and months on end until Ora died three years after Orville’s surgery. A year later Orville died on July 4, 1988, while LaRee was caring for him at the Vernal Hospital.

After his parents died, Orvin moved to Roosevelt and continued his love of working with flowers and collecting decorative rocks. There were many trips south of Vernal in his old pickup truck with his favorite dog, Ginger, by his side. He must have collected 50 tons of boulders and rocks that decorated his yard in Roosevelt.

Some years later, Orvin was awarded a civic beautification award from the Salt Lake Tribune for his beautiful yard. Most residents of Roosevelt knew of his house on 500 east below the Stake Center where Orvin lived and often drove by and waved at Orvin as he was working on his flowers or building a rock wall.

Orvin always wanted to know how his nieces and nephews were doing. One of them, Tyler Miller, from Park City wrote this about the Orvin he knew in a text to his Mom, Carolyn LaRee Miller:

Dear Mom, I wanted to tell you how sorry I felt when I learned of Orvin’s leaving us. I know words don’t do much He was the last uncle I had and the last brother you had. I sure did like having him around the past few years and being closer to us. It was nice that Dad could spend some time with Orvin putting beads, stones, shells, and stuff into a decorative ornament to put around the house to brighten things up.

Graveside services were held at the Roosevelt Memorial Park on Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023.

Condolences may be shared at www.hullingermortuary.com.