Shirley Ann Christensen

Shirley Ann Christensen (born Gregory), a daughter of Idaho soil and covenant light, passed from this life on December 25, 2025 in Pocatello, ID at the age of 89. She was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and her family finds comfort in the Savior’s promises—especially the hope of resurrection and eternal family.

Shirley was born on October 1, 1936 in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, to Angus B. Gregory and Ruby (Benson) Gregory. Her earliest years were shaped on a family farm in Lava Hot Springs, where the land and the seasons teach lessons that don’t need a classroom: steady work, quiet strength, and the kind of resilience that grows best in open air. Those roots stayed with her—an Idaho beginning written in practical love and enduring faith.

She graduated from North Marsh High School in McCammon, Idaho, in 1954, stepping into adulthood in a world that was changing fast, while she carried forward the grounded steadiness of home.

In the spring of that same year, her life joined with Shirley Rex Christensen—a man whose own Idaho story began in Salmon, Idaho, and who resided in Robin, Bannock County, Idaho, at the time. Their marriage license was issued in Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho, on April 30, 1954, and they were married in Lava Hot Springs, Bannock County, Idaho, on May 21, 1954, by Morris W. Teeples, L.D.S. Bishop.

Yet for Shirley and Rex, the defining milestone—the one that families remember with reverence—was the covenant that reached beyond the horizon of mortal years. They were sealed in the Logan Temple on May 24, 1954, binding their lives together in sacred promise and pointing their family toward eternity. They shared 56 years of marriage, and Shirley was a widow since 2010.

In later years, Shirley was known to have lived in Chubbuck, Idaho, and she was long connected to the Pocatello, Idaho area—places where family ties run deep and where love tends to gather again and again, like homecoming.

Shirley’s faith was not an accessory to life; it was a foundation. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, she lived with a view of forever—believing that families can be sealed, that the Lord remembers His children, and that the story does not end at the grave. The temple sealing in Logan was not simply an event on a calendar; it was a compass point for her family’s history.

And even the small, everyday joys mattered to her. One of Shirley’s simple delights was the Game Show Network–the quick questions, the bright moments of suspense, the satisfying click of an answer landing true. There’s something fitting in that: a life that appreciated the ordinary, enjoyed the spark of a good moment, and found light in simple things.

Shirley is survived by three children: Tony Christensen (Janet) of Pocatello, Idaho; Cindy Steed (Larry) of Chubbuck, Idaho; and Tracy Christensen (Justine) of Irwin, North Carolina. She is also survived by 9 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held on January 10, 2026 at 11:00 A.M. at Wilks Funeral Home. Wilks Funeral Home is located at 211 W. Chubbuck Rd. Chubbuck ID 83202. A viewing will be held between 9:30 AM and 10:40 AM at Wilks Funeral Home prior to service. Interment will be at The Lava Hot Springs Cemetery following the service. Additional service information, including clergy/officiant and ward/stake details, will be provided by Wilks Funeral Home.

As Shirley’s family honors her life, they do so with gratitude for what was, and with faith in what is promised. In the Latter-day Saint tradition, death is real—but it is not final. In Christ, separation is temporary. In covenants, love is not merely remembered; it is carried forward.

May the memory of Shirley Ann Christensen be held close—like a warm lamp in a familiar window—until that promised morning when families, sealed and gathered, meet again in joy.

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