Willy Wenston Tollesen

Wenston Tolleson was born in Little Rock Arkansas in 1932 to Willie Fernander and Verna Ethel Dunkin-Tolleson. He had three sisters... Evelyn, Lucile and Tootsie. Wenston was a loving and energetic child with a love of animals, a desire to learn and a natural curiosity about how things work. When Wenston was 3 years old, the family moved to Grant, New Mexico. Wenston left home at the age of fifteen and moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico where he went to work full time to help support himself and the family. Among other jobs, Wenston worked with race horses, caring for them day and night, demonstrating his love of and ability with animals. In fact, it is well known that Wenston always fed the animals before he fed himself. A practice he would maintain his entire life. At the age of nineteen, Wenston married Mary-Ann. The couple would welcome three children Tommy, David and Patty Tolleson. Throughout his life, Wenston would always be known as a man with an incredible sense of responsibility and a tremendous work ethic. He learned to become a diesel mechanic through mail order courses and would go on to become a master diesel mechanic, always in demand. In fact his retirement was delayed several times simply because he was too good to let go. There wasn't a motor or vehicle Wenston couldn't fix. Wenston was working in Cuba, New Mexico at the logging mill when he met Patsy Louise-Rogers-Dugan. They would go on to marry and live out their lives together sharing a tremendous love of the outdoors, hunting and fishing together as often as they could. Patsy and Wenston would find their way to Vernal, Utah where they would settle and live out their lives together. Wenston worked many, many years for R.W. Bob Jones Trucking where he was known as a "Rockstar" mechanic. Wenston and Patsy were the anchor that kept their extended family together, hosting numerous family events and never letting a grandchild go without. Boating, water-skiing, camping, hunting and fishing with each new generation with the same enthusiasm they knew themselves. Wenston was preceded in death by his parents, his sisters Evelyn and Tootsie and his loving wife Patsy. He is survived by his sister Lucile, his seven children and step-children, 28 grand children, 58 great grand children and 24 great-great grand children. He will be beloved and missed by all who knew him. Funeral services will be Saturday, October 28, 2017 at 11:00 AM at the Blackburn Vernal Mortuary. A viewing for family and friends will be one hour prior to the services.