Wendell LaVon Pope

Wendell LaVon Pope was born on January 16th, 1928, in Arco, Idaho, to Berniece Hadden Pope and Wendell Stephen Pope; the first of eight children. He was the kind of kid who much preferred to read books and would only go outside to play when his mother made him. Filled with duty and patriotism, he graduated from high school early so he could enlist in the army as soon as he turned 18. He was just under 5’ 10” and weighed 127 pounds.

Basic training was at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He earned an expert rifleman badge and was accepted into Officer Candidate School. He was one of the 36 out of 127 who completed the course. While there, he learned how to drive a tank and grew to his full height of six feet, with a 29” waist. Nine months after enlisting, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, while still just 18 years old. The following year, he was deployed as a platoon leader in the First Cavalry Division near Tokyo, Japan. He was assigned the role of commander of a Military Police Unit and supervised the first democratic elections in the town of Hachioji.

During that time, his family moved to Lemhi, Idaho. He joined them there and worked on ranches in the area. He met Dorothy Hill at a neighboring ranch, and they began dating. Wendell was recalled to active duty for the Korean conflict. He proposed to Dorothy, and she said yes. They were married on September 17, 1950, in her parents’ living room in Leadore. They honeymooned at Bryce and Zion National Parks on their way to Fort Ord, California. Subsequently, he transferred to the Second Armored Division and sailed to Germany with the 29th Heavy Tank Battalion as a First Lieutenant. Dorothy went over on a different ship and joined him there. Their first child, Keith, was born in a military hospital in January of ’53. Wendell’s term of service expired shortly thereafter. They waited until Keith was six weeks old, then sailed to New York.

Wendell was an indifferent student in high school, sometimes making the honor roll and sometimes not. He had no plans to go to college, because he knew that college students wore nice clothes and he couldn’t afford them. But the army taught him discipline, showed him that he had a talent for learning, and provided financial assistance with the G.I. Bill. He was determined to do his best. And boy, did he ever! The little family moved to Logan, Utah, where Wendell attended Utah State Agricultural College. In three short years, while working and raising a family -their first daughter, Kathryn, was born there- he graduated with a major in mathematics and a minor in physics. He was valedictorian of the entire school. The next year it was divided into five colleges and renamed Utah State University.

He accepted a job offer with the Lockheed Missiles and Space Division in California, where he helped program their computer. That fall, he started on a Master’s Degree at Stanford, where he also helped program their computer. Three children, Mary Ann, Marcus, and Linda, were born while they were living in Sunnyvale. He graduated from Stanford in June 1958 with a Master’s Degree in mathematics, specializing in scientific computation, and continued working at Lockheed. A year later, he received a phone call: would he be interested in teaching math at USU? It was for less money, but the two country kids jumped at the chance. Even in 1959, California had too many people and too much traffic.

They rented a house on Main Street in Logan. That fall, Wendell started teaching, and Dorothy gave birth to their fourth daughter, Anna. Two years later they moved the family to a house in Hyrum, Utah, that sat on seven and a half acres and had barns, dairy cows, and pole beans. In October, Malcolm joined the family. Imagine: seven children and the oldest one just nine!

Wendell’s career began shifting from mathematics to the intriguing new world of computer science. In 1961, USU purchased its first computer, an IBM 1620. As the only one with programming experience, he was asked to help. Soon he was attending seminars, writing code, and publishing articles. He then developed and taught computer programming and language classes, to the extent that by 1964, USU had the first Computer Science Bachelor of Science Degree program in the state of Utah. Wendell could rightly be considered the founder of the computer science program at USU. He never stopped learning. In 1968 he earned a Master’s in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin. He returned to become the Computer Center Director from ‘69 to ’77. Then he went back to teaching until his retirement in 1989. For thirty years he stayed abreast of a field that was, and still is, constantly changing. You can thank Wendell and his kind for the phone in your hand.

Education was so transformative in Wendell’s life that he wished to help others in their pursuit of knowledge. He established a scholarship fund for USU Computer Science students and would give a stipend to his grandchildren who went to school. One of his cherished possessions was a sweatshirt made for him by Keith that has the insignias of all the universities his grandchildren attended.

Before going to Wisconsin, they were happy to welcome their fourth son, Kevin, born in June of ‘64. While in Wisconsin they made a 17-year-old addition to the family: foster daughter Esther Thayer. And to complete the family in the best possible way, Tamara was born in November of 1971. Wendell always was good at multiplication. In the beginning, he wanted four children, but he ended up keeping, and loving, all of his confounded kids.

Wendell and Dorothy divorced in 1979. He was married to Shirlene Mason from 1979 to 1993. He was married to Marilyn Salisbury from 1994 to her recent passing on the last day of 2025. Marilyn’s children have been a great addition to his family.

After retiring from USU, Wendell spent a year and a half in Egypt (1990-91), where he wrote a management information system for Cairo’s Water Research Center.

Wendell and Marilyn served an 18-month mission together in New York City, from September 1995 to March 1997.

Wendell loved his family, church, and country. He loved to dance, sing, ski, and play golf. He spent many happy hours at his cabin in Star Valley, which he generously shared with everyone. For over 90 years he was a voracious reader. Eventually, his body wore out, but his mind never did. Rattling around in that brain of his was an unknown quantity of songs, poems, nonsense verse, and corny dad jokes, which he’d share with a shy smile and a twinkle in those brown eyes.

In the early morning of May 10, 2026, Wendell passed gently in his sleep, with family by his side. He was 98. He was preceded in death by just about everybody; however, his little sister, Beverly Shiner, and their baby brother, Keith (Chip) Pope, are still with us. He was devastated by the recent loss of his sons, Keith, and then Malcolm. Another sad loss was Esther, who passed away in 2018.

He is survived by two siblings, seven children, 40 grandchildren, 100 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren.

The family is grateful to the staff at Legacy House in Logan for their kind and attentive care. Many of them said, “We just love Wendell.” Also, we are much indebted to the caring CNS hospice nurses Debbie and Holly for helping him, and us, through this challenging period. 

Memories and condolences may be shared and expressed at www.allenmortuaries.com.