Eleanor Johnson Rust

****Notice**** Address change; Services will be at the Vernal Stake Center.

Livestream Link: https://my.gather.app/remember/eleanor-rust

Eleanor Johnson Rust, 83, passed away peacefully at her home, surrounded by loved ones, on Sunday, February 1, 2026. She was born on August 30, 1942, to Ernest James and Lucille Marshall Johnson, in Tooele, Utah. The youngest of four girls, she grew up in the small town of Stockton, Utah, where she lived until she left for college attending Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 1964. While at BYU, Eleanor met David Walker Rust and the two were married and sealed for time and all eternity on June 10, 1964, in the Salt Lake Temple. After David graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from BYU, the couple moved to Vernal, Utah.

Eleanor is survived by, and loved and honored by, her husband David; 7 children: David Wayne (Shanna), Richard James (Susan), Jeffrey Alan, Bruce Johnson (Charise), Thomas Edward (Amber), Ruth Ann (Travas), and Brian Edwin (Shara); 42 grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; and 11 spouses of grandchildren. Eleanor was preceded in death by her parents and her three sisters and their spouses: Miriam (George), Darlene (Eugene), and Naomi (Leo), as well as her niece Diana and her brother-in-law Dilworth Rust.

Eleanor’s life can best be encapsulated as one of love and service to others. She loved her family, loved her Savior and the gospel of Jesus Christ, loved the temple, loved her country, loved to travel, and loved to learn. She instilled a love of service and strong work ethic into all her posterity, always opening her home to friends and family for gatherings of food and fun. She served diligently her whole life in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints starting as an organist as a teenager, teaching in primary, serving as Relief Society president, Ward Primary president, and Stake Primary President for 7 years. She and David served alongside each other in the Vernal Utah Temple as ordinance workers for more than 17 years. She fulfilled one of her dreams by attending and worshipping in all temples in Utah. Additionally, she was a proud member for 55 years and an avid contributor to the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers (DUP) organization, to which she faithfully served until her passing. Education and learning were always an integral part of Eleanor’s life, as a substitute teacher, full-time teacher, and in the PTA as a president and board member.

Eleanor always had a strong love of country, cultures, and the world. She traveled extensively with her husband and family, visiting all 50 of the United States, Canada, Mexico, much of Central and South America, most of Europe, and several countries in Asia. She and David and their family of 6 children lived in England for a year on a teacher exchange where they also served in the local church branch. After retirement, she and David served three full-time missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (England London South Mission, Madrid Spain Temple Mission, and Buenos Aires Argentina Temple Mission). She and David also spent a year teaching English at Nanjing University in Nanjing, China. Additionally, while living in Vernal, they served a Regional Indian Mission in Randlett, Utah and a service mission at the Dry Pack Cannery in Vernal.

Music was always an integral part of Eleanor’s life, from learning saxophone, piano, and organ as a youth, to a life-long love of singing, especially hymns and primary songs. She loved attending concerts, theater, and any kind of cultural event, and often led music in church services and participated in choirs all her life. For her, “the song of the righteous” truly was a prayer unto the Lord.

Thousands of lives world-wide have been touched by her goodness, service, and love. All that knew her have been both physically fed by her wonderful food and spiritually fed by her testimony and Christ-like example. She leaves an everlasting legacy of love, a posterity of peace, and a tender testimony of gospel truths. Eleanor has gone on to join a heavenly chorus of ancestors, reuniting with her parents and sisters. She will be sorely missed and forever remembered.

Funeral Services for Eleanor will be held Saturday, February 7, 2026 at 12 noon at the Vernal Stake Center (850 W 100 N) with Viewings held Friday from 6-8 PM at the Blackburn Vernal Mortuary and from 10:45 - 11:45 am prior to service at the Chapel. Burial will be in the Vernal Memorial Park, under the care of Blackburn Vernal Mortuary.