Rita Louise Boyles Lampkin

Rita was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, on October 10, 1945 and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee. She was one of four children, Michael (Mickey), Barbara Jean (BJ), Rita, and Joe Patrick, all born to Jack and Mildred Boyles of North Hills, Tennessee. Rita graduated in 1963 from Knoxville’s East High School, where she performed in school plays and was considered a talented thespian. Her first appearance on television was at age 12, and in 1974 she performed with BYU’s Showcase Hawaii for over 30 million people, including two special performances in Taiwan at the request of Madame Chian Kai-Shek. She later entertained as a singer/soloist at the U.S. military bases with two different groups in Japan, Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines, Guam and other Pacific Islands. She received a bachelor’s degree in Englis from the Church College of Hawaii (now Bringham Young University) where she graduated magna cum laude. While studying for her degree Rita worked as a tour guide a the Kahuku Sugar Mill in Hawaii. Rita learned to speak Japanese on an 18-month mission in Japan for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during 1971-72. She then taught Japanese for three years at the Language Training Mission in Hawaii concurrently studying for her degree at BYU-Hawaii campus. Rita taught Japanese culture and language for travelers at California State University (CalState) in Los Angeles, she also taught English as a second language at BYU Hawaii Campus, and spent a year teaching Japanese language at Nippon Electric Company Study Center in Japan, and at the Excellence Corporation in Salt Lake City, Utah, plus she spent two years teaching Japanese language to new missionaries at the Language Training Mission in Hawaii. She produced and distributed both hiragana and katakana flash cards available at books stores and also distributed to missionaries bound for Japan. In 1977-78 she developed and taught a course in Japanese for Disney University at Disneyland for employees for the park and later wrote and taught the curriculum for Japanese language at Mt. San Antonio Community College in Walnut, California where she taught for over 18 years. She has written, co-written, illustrated or edited over 24 textbooks on Japanese language which may be found in larger bookstores (Barnes and Noble, Crown books, Kinokuniya Bookstores, etc.) In 1987 Rita served as president of the Associated Latter-day Media Artists and her official Church callings include Relief Society president in two wards, Primary president in tow wards, Gospel Doctrine teacher, Councilor in the Stake Relief Society, and several other callings. Among her may talents, Rita worked for a book distributor selling books to Utah libraries and schools, studied piano and guitar, grew vegetable, clogged, built a shed, made several home improvements, studied genealogy, did cross stitch, jigsaw puzzles, balloon décor and loved to keep busy. She and her husband, Al Lampkin, were sealed in the Provo Utah Temple July 19, 1979 and lived together in West Valley City, UT.

Rita Louise Boyles Lampkin

October 10, 1945 - August 1, 2024