Obituary of Wayne Pendleton Taysom

Wayne Pendleton Taysom, beloved father, grandfather, and great grandfather, passed away peacefully with family members by his side on December 21, 2013 at the home of his daughter, Holly, in Olympia, Washington. Wayne leaves behind four children: Lelia Linda Wilson of Jefferson, Oregon; Daniel Taysom of Fair Oaks, California; Holly Irene Andrews of Olympia; and Robert Lloyd Taysom of Merrill, Oregon. He is also survived by one brother, Lloyd Pendleton Taysom of Bloomington, Indiana. Wayne leaves behind 15 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Carmen Margaret Brooks Taysom; two brothers, Verl Abram Taysom and Boyd Pendleton Taysom; three sisters, Jessie Erma Hinckley, Edna Louise Roos, and Olive Wyla Ames. Wayne Taysom was born on October 10, 1925 in Afton, Wyoming, the son of Abram Daniel Taysom and Amelia Pendleton. He grew up in Afton where his father operated a general store. After high school graduation and attending the University of Wyoming for a while, Wayne joined the Navy on January 20, 1944 and served until June 3, 1946. He served in the South Pacific and took V-12 officer training. He met his sweetheart, Carmen, while attending college at the University of Utah while taking a sculpture class, which she was teaching. They married on September 3, 1948 in Pontiac, Michigan near where her family was living. After graduating from the University of Utah, they moved to New York where Wayne got a Master’s degree in Fine Art from the Teacher’s College of Columbia University. After graduation, they lived in Paris for a while to pursue advanced art studies. Upon returning to the U.S., they moved to Michigan where Wayne worked as a car model sculptor for Chrysler from 1950 to 1951. From there, they moved to Eugene, Oregon where he worked as a sculpture instructor at the University of Oregon from 1951 to 1953. They then moved to Corvallis, Oregon where Wayne spent the remainder of his career working as a Professor of Art at Oregon State University, specializing in sculpture. Both Wayne and Carmen were prolific professional sculptors throughout their lives. Their four children were all raised in Corvallis and, in 1980, Wayne and Carmen moved into a “cutting edge” solar beach home that they built in Waldport, Oregon, where they lived for many years in the 1980s and early 1990s. They also spent some time in Corvallis during those years and moved back to Corvallis on a more frequent basis in the mid 1990s. In early 2001, Wayne and Carmen moved to Lacey, Washington to be near their daughter, Holly. Wayne lived there for many years after his beloved wife Carmen passed away on July 21, 2001. Wayne was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout his life and served in many callings in the various places where he lived. He served as a branch president in Waldport, Oregon in the 1980s and in various other leadership callings. He was a beloved father and husband who spent every summer with his family doing various outdoor activities such as camping and family vacations. One of Wayne’s favorite places was the seashore, which was also a favorite camping and vacation spot. He also took his family on year-long sabbaticals/adventures, living in Mexico to study Mexican art, Hawaii to study Polynesian/Asian art, and Wyoming to study Western art. Wayne was also a very good pianist and would often play during church services in the Waldport Branch, as well as play at home where family members would either enjoy singing along or in playing duets with him on other instruments. Please leave memories of Wayne or condolences for his family in the Guestbook below.