Sanford
July 12, 1940 – July 27, 2020
Brent Jay Sanford of Park City passed away at his home after a long struggle with lung disease on the morning of Monday, July 27th, 2020, just 2 weeks after his 80th birthday. He was born July 12th, 1940 in Brigham City, Utah to Allen *Jay* and Vaudis Korth Sanford. Brent grew up hunting and fishing with his dad and younger brother, Robert. Having a carpenter for a father, Brent was always very handy and became a skilled carpenter himself. A graduate of Box Elder High School, he was a star basketball and football player.
After High School he attended Utah State University in Logan where he played football and was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. After a couple of years, he took a break to serve the LDS Church in the French East Mission in Switzerland where he gained a love for and mastery of the French language. Upon returning from his mission, he again enrolled at Utah State where he met and married his wife of nearly 54 years, Barbara Hughes Sanford, and then transferred to the University of Utah in Salt Lake City where he earned dual degrees in Business Administration and French language studies. After college, he earned a Master of Foreign Trade degree from Thunderbird, The American Graduate School of International Management in Glendale, Arizona. Over the next 20 years he worked as a steel executive in both Brussels, Belgium and Mexico City, Mexico and literally travelled the world for business.
After his international business career Brent and Barb returned to their home and their aging parents in Utah where Brent got back to his roots as a carpenter and began a second career as a custom home builder in Park City, Utah. Once he retired as a builder he volunteered his time on the architectural committee of the Sun Peak neighborhood until his passing and was a major player in shaping that neighborhood into what it is today.
Brent enjoyed travelling and spent 2 weeks every spring at their timeshare condo on the beach in Puerto Vallarta where he could brush up on his Spanish and indulge in his love of Mexican food and culture. Brent and Barb also owned a vacation home in St. George, Utah where they spent several weeks each year and he enjoyed golf and touring Utah’s many National Parks. In his later years, he could be found tinkering with projects around the house, herding their cats and spoiling their 3 grandchildren.
Brent will be remembered as a model of wisdom, warmth, patience, compassion, generosity and strength. He was also a very funny man, with a dry sense of humor and an endless supply of witticisms and thoughtful and amusing observations on people and life. He gave his time freely, volunteering for and donating to charitable organizations inside and outside of the Park City Community.
He was a devoted husband, chivalrous and dedicated to his life partner, Barbara. As a father he was stern, yet fair and loving. As a grandfather he was a total pushover for his sweet grandkids. The hole in our hearts is a giant one, yet we are finding peace in the knowledge that he is no longer suffering.
Brent is survived by his wife: Barbara, sons: Jason (Darcy) and Jared, grandchildren: Chloe, Brennon and Vivienne, brother Robert (Janet), favorite Aunt Lena, dozens of cousins, nieces and nephews and his devoted cats: Lulu, Trent, Riley and Nacho. A celebration of his life will be announced once the world returns to some sense of normalcy and it is safe to gather in numbers and remember this one-of-a-kind soul and gentle giant of a man. He set the bar impossibly high and will be missed every single day by those he leaves behind. We love you Brent, Dad, Spank, Papoo!