- Date Of Birth: October 12, 1935
- Date Of Death: September 28, 2020
- State: Idaho
Jay was born on October 12th, 1935, in Preston, Idaho, to Delecta Roholt and Dean Westerberg.
On July 31, 1959, he married his sweetheart Carla Dawn Pack, and they spent the majority of their 58 years together living in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Their union brought them two children, Daren, 60, and Tamara (Alan), 56, and four grandchildren, Logan (Bobby), 28, Mallory, 23, Jessi, 16, and Jenna, 14.
Always dedicated to improving himself, Jay became a college student at the same time he was supporting his kids in their higher education, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Idaho in 1989.
He had a great love for the outdoors, American-made automobiles, and country music. Jay’s hobbies included reading, coin collecting and traveling. He enjoyed learning about history, and at every opportunity would watch U.S. history documentaries by Ken Burns and American Ride host Stan Ellsworth. He had a keen mind and memory, and would call out answers to Jeopardy questions almost as quick as Alex Trebeck asked them.
Jay was an eternal optimist and inspiration to his loved ones, who knew him to be continually grateful for God’s creations and the family with which he had been blessed. He exuded great faith in his Heavenly Father and even when significant health challenges came his way, he maintained a positive outlook and remained firm in his testimony of Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice. He often referred to his favorite scriptures, John 3:16 and Moses 1:39, which speak of Heavenly Father’s love for his children and the promise of eternal life. Jay bore all pains and infirmities with meekness, proactivity and perseverance, never uttering a complaint about his physical limitations. While he exemplified the scriptural call to “endure to the end,” he reframed it into his own mantra of “enjoy to the end.”
