Elder D. Rex Gerratt, an emeritus General Authority Seventy, who lived a life of service to his family and his faith, died Wednesday, April 15, 2026, in Burley, Idaho. He was 90.
Elder Gerratt ministered to Latter-day Saints worldwide as a General Authority Seventy from 2002 to 2007, a mission leader and temple leader. His wife of 69 years, Sister Marjorie Crane Gerratt, died Dec. 18, 2024.
Decades of service and leadership were a reflection of Elder Gerratt’s faith. “I have never been given a calling I felt adequate to do, but I know that whom the Lord calls, the Lord prepares and helps,” Elder Gerratt said upon being called as a general authority. “As I have accepted each call in my life, I have pleaded with Heavenly Father to help me be effective in His hands.”
A soft-spoken crop and dairy farmer from Idaho, Elder Gerratt was called to the Second Quorum of the Seventy in 2002 at age 66. He served in the Idaho Area presidency and as a counselor in the Philippines Area presidency with President Dallin H. Oaks, who was then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, according to his obituary.
He and Sister Gerratt also served as mission leaders in the Philippines Manila Mission from 1996 to 1999 and as president and matron of the Twin Falls Idaho Temple from 2008 to 2010.
“When we are humble and call on the Lord, then get up off our knees and go to work, it always brings good results,” he said of his leadership callings.
His deep sense of duty — to his family and the Lord — was instilled in him by his parents, Donald Wayne and Ann Bailey Gerratt. Born on April 9, 1936, in Heyburn, Idaho, his family moved to nearby Burley when he was 11. There, he came to know his neighbor, Marjorie Crane. Her father was bishop, and her mother was his Primary teacher.
The high school sweethearts were married on Nov. 9, 1955, in the Idaho Falls Idaho Temple.
When Elder Gerratt was a teenager, his father gave him and his brother the proceeds from a half-acre potato crop for working on the farm. With this money, the brothers each purchased a milk cow. That became the start for a successful dairy and farm operation, as Elder and Sister Garrett raised their nine children.
In a speech given at Brigham Young University–Idaho in 2008, Elder Gerratt expressed gratitude for his wife, who he called “his best friend” as well as his eternal companion.
They worked to build a home and family centered on faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
“I can remember many mornings when our children and I would sit on the back porch with our family dog, putting on our boots to do our dairy chores,” Elder Gerratt recalled. “Sister Gerratt and I are, of course, concerned for our children, but we have great confidence in them because they all know how to work hard and they have testimonies of the gospel.”
His callings in the Church have included Area Seventy, mission president, regional representative, stake president, stake clerk, bishop, ward clerk and home teacher.
Elder Gerratt spoke just once in general conference. In his talk titled, “Follow the Instructions,” he recalled, “During my lifetime, I have been a farmer and a father of a large family. Even though personal and family prayer have always been a daily part of our lives, on occasion I have felt an overwhelming need to go into the field at night or kneel by the haystack, look up into the heavens and speak aloud to my Father in Heaven. I have always felt His warmth and knew then, as I know now, that He is listening to me and will answer my prayers in His wisdom for my best good.”
His hard work on the dairy and farm led to him being inducted into the Idaho Dairy Hall of Fame and the Southeastern Idaho Livestock Hall of Fame. He was also named Conservation Farmer of the Year.
His obituary states that he loved to build and create — barns, corrals, fences — and found joy in improving the land he loved.
“Rex’s life was one of quiet strength, steady faith, and deep love — for his family, his work, and his Savior, Jesus Christ,” says his obituary.
Elder Gerratt is survived by his children: Mary Ann (Dan Clayton), Alan (Kayla), Darlene (Glen Fish), Dale (Becky), Carolyn (Kevin Wood), Lynn (Shalawn), David (Bonnie), Steven (Michelle), and Donald (Julie); 45 grandchildren; 92 great-grandchildren; and his brother, Larry (Barbara) Gerratt, and their family.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Marjorie; his parents, Don and Ann Bailey Gerratt; two grandsons, Spencer Gerratt and John Clayton; and a great-granddaughter, Aliza Bingham.
A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 25, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints meetinghouse located at 275 S. 250 East, Burley. Burial will follow at Pleasant View Cemetery in Burley.
Family and friends will be received from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, April 24, at Rasmussen- Wilson Funeral Home, 1350 East 16th Street, Burley, Idaho, and from 9:30 until 10:30 a.m. Saturday, preceding the funeral, at the Latter-day Saint meetinghouse.
