MaraDee Peterson Hansen, a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend, returned to her heavenly home on June 5, 2024.

MaraDee was born on March 4th, 1945 in Coalville, Utah, to Vere T. Peterson and Mary Deseret Sargent Peterson. She graduated from Lehi High School in 1963, Ricks College in 1964, and Brigham Young University in 1971—ultimately earning a master's degree in business education.

While at BYU, MaraDee met her husband, J.R., on a blind date. They were married in the Salt Lake City Temple in 1967 and were blessed with three sons.

During many weekends and afternoons of her life, you could find MaraDee watching sports. She was her sons' and grandchildren's No. 1 sports fan. Whether it was baseball, basketball, football, soccer, golf, bike racing, or skiing, she'd be in the crowd cheering her family on.

MaraDee also loved celebrating holidays with her family and likely was the most festive person anyone knew. In fact, she had a holiday tree in her entry way that was not only ornamented for Christmas, but for every holiday you could possibly think of. After each holiday gathering, MaraDee made sure that her children and grandchildren left the house carrying a bag of goodies and leftovers even though they were already stuffed from her delicious rolls.

In her professional career, MaraDee worked as the Textbook Manager at the BYU Bookstore for over 20 years. She helped tens of thousands of students receive the materials they needed to further their education. MaraDee also served in various callings throughout her lifetime within the Church, including serving as an Ogden temple worker for approximately five years. She and J.R. were called and faithfully served in the Slovenia-Croatia Mission.

MaraDee is survived by: her husband J.R.; her three sons, Travis (Tammy), Branden (Deborah), and Gage (Jenny); her cherished grandchildren, Cassidy, Chase (Bri), Brenden (Jaydin), Abbie, Braxden, Rocwell, Ryder, Gwen, and Marley; and her siblings, Vere LaMont (Vicki) Peterson, Alan Blake (Shauna) Peterson, and Rebecca Ann (Edwin) Cutler.

We will celebrate MaraDee's life with a funeral on Thursday, June 13th, at the East Bench Stake Center, 900 N. 1200 E. in Lehi. The viewing will begin at 10:00 a.m. and a service will follow at 11:00 a.m. Internment will be held in the Lehi City Cemetery after the service. There will also be lunch at the Stake Center following the internment.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to your favorite cancer research fund.