Robyn Lea (Root) Waller's Obituary
Our mom, Robyn Lea (Root) Waller was born January 27th, 1954, in Monrovia, California, to Sarah Ann (Davies) Root and Wallace Jerald Root. She was the second of six Root children (Randie, Riki, Renee, Rhonda Jo, and Rory “Rocky”) and shared many happy years in the house on Baskin Avenue with her parents, siblings, friends, and their beloved Saint Bernard, Charlie. She passed away peacefully due to liver failure in the early morning hours of September 12, 2024, at her home in West Haven, Utah, surrounded by her sister Jo, her children, and the “Children of her heart”. Her final hours were exactly how she hoped they would be. Peaceful and quiet, with just enough stories and few laughs in the background, and most importantly, in the home she worked hard for, loved, and where she felt our dad so clearly.
Our beautiful, blonde haired, quick witted, no-nonsense, fiercely protective mom married her high school sweetheart, Dewey Jonathan Waller, in 1973. They later moved to Seattle, Washington, and then finally, to Northern Utah where they were proud to put down roots and watch their family grow. We lost him in 2022, and she was never quite the same. She worked outside the home for a number of years, but her favorite pastimes were puttering around the house, crafting, woodworking, reading, decorating, and just sitting out on her deck drinking tea and reading the newspaper. She is survived by her sister Jo, her very special niece Tiffany Smith, and her absolute legacy; her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by our dad, her soulmate, Dewey, her parents, siblings Rocky, Randi, Riki, and Renee, and her grandson, Chase McClain. We know they came to get her, and she felt at peace, because she looked to the corner and smiled many times. She even said, “Oh!” the way she always did when she was thrilled to see someone. It took all her energy, but she was excited, and that sound was unmistakable.
Ro, as affectionately called by many, was a very intelligent and well-rounded woman. She was well spoken and knew the value of listening quietly, or shouting from the rooftops, whichever the situation required. She was the proud mom of 4 and gained 4 children of her heart; Kristina Lea McClain (Howard), Jason Phillip Waller (Tonia), Terri Ann Drca (Brent), and Erik Jonathan Waller (Tami). She never called our spouses “in-law”, she always called them “Son of my heart” or “Daughter of my heart”, and she meant it. She loved all of us out loud and we were incredibly blessed to hear and feel her love every day. She was the best example of “Say what you mean and mean what you say.” She was overjoyed to be Nana to 12 living grandchildren who adored her, and Nana G to 9 great grandchildren with a tenth on the way. What a legacy she left behind. A 13th grandchild was waiting to greet her on the other side. She always said she had a baker’s dozen. Keep her young at heart until we get there Chase, you have a very special opportunity now. Enjoy it, you’ve waited a long time for her.
According to our mom’s wishes, we will not be holding an official service. To honor her and my dad, we will be bringing her ashes home in their 1966 Chevelle. The same car they bought together in their early years of marriage and struggled at times to pay the $56 monthly payment for. The same car they rebuilt and restored together, spent countless hours cruising in, (spent countless hours fighting about during the restoration if we’re being honest), and the car that took us to and from some of our most important life events. The same car that has always been a mascot for our little family. Cruising around in the Chevy was a lifelong joy for them. They felt young, happy, and free, with only the sunshine, a few good songs, an ice cream cone, and each other when they were in that car. We thought it a fitting tribute.
In lieu of flowers, please donate books to people of all ages in any way you can. She loved reading to us and spent a lot of her free time losing herself in great stories.
Our mom ALWAYS stood on the porch and waved until we could no longer see her when we left her house. Rain, snow, wind, lightning, blistering heat, it didn’t matter. She stood on that porch and waved until we were good and gone from eyesight. Here is our final message to her:
Mom, it was the greatest honor of our lives to stand together on the porch in the middle of the night to wave you off for your final ride. We waved until we knew you were out of sight. You deserved that. It broke our hearts to see you go, we will never be the same, but we know you saw us standing there together waving and it brought you joy. Hopefully, it was a small return for the endless joy you brought us. We have wonderful lives because of you. You taught us to take on the world politely at first, and then as fiercely as we need to get the job done. You left all of us a bit of your tenacity, and we will be forever thankful. We miss you already, feel our hug. We will continue to feel yours.
What’s your fondest memory of Robyn?
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