Durrel A. Woolsey and La Rae Wood had been acquainted since they attended the same high school, so the looks they exchanged at their favorite soda fountain during a chance encounter could not be termed "love at first sight." But it was love.
"When our eyes met, we knew that was the beginning of something big," said Elder Woolsey, president of the Arizona Tempe Mission, who was sustained March 31 to the Second Quorum of the Seventy. He will serve as mission president until July 1.Their chance encounter in 1946 took place in Cedar City, Utah, where they had graduated from high school two years earlier. He had been in the Navy during the latter part of World War II, participating in military campaigns in Okinawa and the Philippines. While he was in service, she had moved to Las Vegas, Nev. By coincidence, she had returned to Cedar City for a visit and was at the soda fountain when the veteran sailor went to his favorite high school haunt to see who was still in town.
They were married a short time later, on Aug. 3, 1946, in the St. George (Utah) Temple.
They began married life on a common footing, both having grown up in southern Utah. Born in Escalante, the eldest son of Willis Arden and Ruby Olena Riddle Woolsey, he herded sheep in the valleys and mountains where his father, grandfather and great-grandfather had farmed and hunted to provide for their families.
In high school he met La Rae Wood, a daughter of George Henry and Iva Orilla Williams Wood. "We were good, close friends, but we weren't serious about each other while we were in high school," he said. That chance meeting at the soda fountain changed the course of their lives.
Immediately after they were married, they moved to Las Vegas, where he worked for an oil company during the day and played in a band in the evenings. (Ever since he was 14, when his grandfather bought him a used trombone, music has been a big part of his life. He played in high school and other bands before he went into the Navy and continued on with music, playing in bands until 1970.)
In 1950, the oil company he worked for transferred him to Trona, Calif., where for three years he ran the company's distribution plant.
"It was a great experience," he said of that time in Trona, a company town perched on the edge of Death Valley. While there, he served almost three years in the branch presidency. He found Trona was a place where he could stretch and grow in the gospel.
"We did not have a chapel there," he said. "Trona was a one-corporation town, basically. For Church, we used the recreation hall where parties and dances were held on Saturday nights. We would go early Sunday morning and clean the hall before Church. Most people worked shift work for this large corporation. Many of the times I was the only Melchizedek Priesthood holder in our meetings. I blessed and passed the sacrament, often led the singing, and conducted the meeting as a member of the branch presidency."
After the Woolseys spent three years in Trona, they returned to Las Vegas for a year before he was offered the opportunity to move to Taft, near Bakersfield, Calif., where he became a distributor for the company.
"We, at that young age in our married life, had very little money," Elder Woolsey said. "My father helped us by signing a note to assist in the purchase of two used trucks."
With that investment in 1954, he created his own business. In 1970, his company moved into a larger operation in Stockton, Calif. Woolsey Oil Inc., has been run by the Woolseys' son, Bruce, ever since Elder Woolsey was called as mission president in 1986. He spent his 64th birthday June 12 attending zone conferences in the mission.
During their mission, Elder and Sister Woolsey have enjoyed watching missionaries grow. "Some come in still struggling with their testimonies," he said. "To watch them after two years leave strong, and powerful in their testimonies, is just wonderful."
Elder and Sister Woolseys' love for missionaries is a natural extension of the love they feel for their own family. Their son and two daughters described family vacations, especially trips to Laguna Beach, and fun times at home.
They remember also how their teenage friends congregated at the Woolsey home. Some came just to talk to Elder or Sister Woolsey.
"Mom and Dad both have a great sense of humor," said Bruce, who described Elder Woolsey's interest in gardening. "Dad's father lives in Cedar City, and has a garden that is the pride of the city," Bruce related. "Dad bought some garden boxes - real things of beauty - and planted a garden. He really tended that garden carefully. Things were growing reasonably well, but not as he had hoped initially. One day, Mom went to the grocery store and bought all kinds of fully grown vegetables and `planted' them in Dad's garden. When he came home and saw those huge vegetables in his garden, he just laughed and laughed."
Geri Nielsen, the Woolseys' older daughter, related one of the family's favorite stories. "Mom is a really great cook," she said. "She's always making extra fancy foods. One April Fool's day, we came home and found all these little cakes so nicely decorated with whipped cream. We tried to cut the cakes, but the knife wouldn't go in. We probably spent about 10 minutes trying to figure out how to cut the cakes; we didn't want to hurt Mom's feelings, so we pretended everything was all right. She kept a straight face the whole time. We asked what kind of cakes they were, and she said, `Oh, they're just sponge cakes.' We finally scraped off the icing and discovered they really were cakes made out of little sponges."
Whether sharing a joke or just spending time together, the Woolsey family has remained close-knit through the years. Gena Jepsen, their younger daughter, said, "I've learned some great lessons from Dad. One is that even though you are active in Church and hold leadership positions, you can still make family your first priority. Dad always had time for us, no matter how busy he was with his Church callings and his job. He took time off when we needed him to be with us. He took us to lunches, one-on-one, and we had long talks. He was always there for us.
"One of the things I have learned from my mother is how to be supportive. During all the time I was growing up, Dad was in a stake presidency, so he was gone to lots of meetings. I never heard my mother complain about the fact that he was away from home so much."
Not only have the Woolseys been available to their own children but they have also been close to their 12 grandchildren. Bruce said that about four years ago, his son needed to go on a five-mile hike and camp overnight to qualify for a Scouting merit badge. "I was having problems with asthma and was unable to go with my son," Bruce said. "Dad took him. They hiked the required miles, fished and camped. While they were on that overnight outing, Dad taught my son the story of the sons of Helaman."
The 5-foot, 7-inch Elder Woolsey has always enjoyed being outdoors, and participated in many athletic events during his younger years. About 10 years ago, he conceded he no longer had time for golf, which he greatly enjoyed, along with other activities. Bruce said he never beat his dad in a foot race.
Although Elder and Sister Woolsey are now living in the mission home in Tempe, their family feels they are close by. "Dad is very busy with his mission duties, but he takes time to write letters to his grandchildren," said Geri. "He answers all their letters. My daughter had some great concerns a few weeks ago, something that was very important to her. She wrote to her grandfather, asking for his advice. Within a week, she had a two-page letter full of counsel. There are things like that which let me know that even though he is busy, Dad keeps his focus on his family."
While Elder Woolsey focuses on his family, he also keeps his eyes on the Brethren. "He is really a follower of the Brethren," said Bruce. "That's his theme. When he was stake president and now as a mission president, he has stressed the importance of following the Brethren and their counsel and being obedient to the commandments of the Lord. He's a unique mix because he's an individual thinker. He doesn't sit back and wait for things to happen; he makes things happen.
"He and I worked together a lot of years. It was very rewarding to spend eight to 10 hours a day with him, year in and year out, and never have any of my childhood images of what a father should be distorted. He is bone honest, and always has been."
Sister Woolsey said her husband has always exhibited a strong commitment to the Lord. "I've watched him over the years as various calls have come to him," she said. "His response has always been the same: `I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded. . . .' "
(ADDITIONAL INFORMATION)
Elder Durrel A. Woolsey
Family: born June 12, 1926, in Escalante, Utah, to Willis Arden and Ruby Olena Riddle Woolsey; married La Rae Wood, Aug. 3, 1946, in St. George Temple; one son, Bruce Wood Woolsey; two daughters, Geri (M. Kim) Neilsen and Gena (Harold) Jepsen; 12 grandchildren.
Employment: Owner of Woolsey Oil, Inc.
Military, community service: U.S. Navy, 1944-46; president of Rotary Club and of Chamber of Commerce in Taft, Calif.
Church callings: Currently president of Arizona Tempe Mission; president of Stockton California Stake; stake president's counselor; Bakersfield and Stockton (Calif.) Stake high councils; Bakersfield stake YMMIA superintendent; bishop's counselor, Taft (Calif.) Ward; branch president's counselor, Trona (Calif.) Branch.
