Loretta Smith Osterhout

PAUL – Loretta Smith Osterhout, 79, a resident of Paul, passed away Thursday, August 14, 2025, at St. Luke’s Magic Valley Medical Center.

She was born July 28, 1946, in Burley, Idaho, the daughter of Hugh B. and Oleta LuFay Mullen Smith. She attended school in Heyburn and at Minico High School but later obtained her GED in 1964 after leaving school at age 16 to marry. She married David E. Garner on December 5, 1962, and they were together until his death in 1975. Together, they had six children: Marie, Faye, Dave, Anita, Wade, and Michael.

In 1977, Loretta and her family moved to Declo. She worked at J. R. Simplot and Ore-Ida for several years. She met Kerry Osterhout in 1981, and they were married in the Declo Stake Center on April 16, 1983. Kerry and Loretta lived at C & Y Dairy with the three younger children until 1984, when they moved to Boardman, Oregon. They returned to Idaho in 1987 to be closer to their family and were later sealed in the Twin Falls Idaho Temple on September 6, 2008.

Loretta loved her family deeply and treasured time spent with them. She enjoyed knitting and woodworking. In the last few years of her life, she struggled with Lupus and Fibromyalgia, which prevented her from doing many of the things she loved. Still, she remained grateful to her family, who helped her fulfill many dreams. They took her to Hawaii and the Cook Islands, where 15 family members joined her, as well as to Las Vegas and Graceland. Even through illness, she found joy and fun with those she loved.

She is survived by her husband, Kerry D. Osterhout of Paul; her children, Marie Harrell of Elko, Nevada, Faye (Brent) Osterhout of Raft River, Dave (Bobbie) Garner of Paul & Cook Islands, Anita (Walter “Tommy”) Roberts of Rupert, Wade (Julie) Garner of Winnemucca, Nevada, and Michael (Sarah) Garner of Springboro, Ohio; 35 grandchildren; 27 great-grandchildren; and two sisters, Mary (Steve) Johnson of Kuna and Beleta (Alex) Morrison of Caldwell.

In addition to her first husband, she was preceded in death by her parents; her brother, Burdette Smith; two sisters, Katie Gaskill and Glenda Dean; her sister-in-law, Juanita Smith; and three grandchildren, Sam Stone, Jason Stone, and Brittany DeMain - which broke her heart.

The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, August 22, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – Emerson 2nd Ward, 127 South 950 West, Paul. Burial will follow at Declo Cemetery.

Family and friends may call from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, August 21, at Rasmussen-Wilson Funeral Home, 1350 East 16th Street, Burley, and from 10 to 10:45 a.m. Friday, at the church.