Family Friday: Featuring My Brother Alan

I am the oldest of my parents six children; I have four brothers and a favorite sister. The first of my siblings to be featured on Family Friday is Alan.

Alan is the 4th child in our family, and the first to be born in America. He is just 5 years younger than me and is the first child in the family that I can actually remember as a baby. He is also named after my Dad. He isn't "officially" a Jr. but when you have two Alan's in the family (especially during the years when they both lived in the same house) there are times when they need to be clarified as Sr. and Jr.; case in point: When Alan was in high school a teenage girl called on the phone one day and asked for Alan. As was our families practice the girl was asked, "Sr. or Jr.?" makes sense, right? The girls response (giggle, giggle), "sophomore."

Shortly after I became engaged to Mike I started a new job at the Church Office Building. I would often tell my family stories of seeing the general authorities and even the Prophet in the building or on the grounds. When Alan was in Jr. High on school holidays he would often ride the bus to Salt Lake and come to visit me at my office. He was hoping that he would see the Prophet; Spencer W. Kimball. That hope was finally realized when he did see the Prophet and the Prophet spoke to him. As I think about that now it impresses me to think of the faith of such a young boy and his desire to see Gods Prophet. I am so glad that he had that experience.

Alan served a mission to the Philippines, it was there that he met his future wife Marivic. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple on April 26, 1985; one year after Alan returned from his mission.

Alan has always been an excellent brother and Uncle. He was always willing to tend my kids for me whenever I needed him. He and Marivic stayed with the boys for two weeks when Mike and I went to England in 1992. Many times he took my boys on adventures. One that I particularly remember was when the Utah Jazz were coming home one night after a big game, many fans were congregating at the airport to greet the team and Alan called to see if the boys would like to go. They were all very excited to go and Jeremy (he was only 4 or 5) took his basketball with him so that he could get the teams autographs. At some point in the evening Alan couldn't find Jeremy (it was only a minute but if you knew Jeremy back then you'd understand). It was just a few moments later that Alan heard his name called over the PA system asking him to report to one of the counters. There was Jeremy sitting on top of the counter holding his basketball which was filled with autographs, and airport personnel standing by to make sure that he was "found".

My three boys weren't the only ones who enjoyed Uncle Alan's adventures; on our last trip to the beach house he took Caitlin to Disneyland along with his children Tara and AJ. Here are just a few of the adventures that I've been on with Alan: Sea World, Disneyland (with and without kids), 17-mile Drive, Pebble Beach, Monterey Bay, San Francisco, Reno, Lake Tahoe (when I visited Alan in Reno he said let's go to dinner, but we didn't just go to dinner in Reno, we drove to the California side of Lake Tahoe so that we could say that we ate dinner in California), Mexico (when Alan lived in Yuma he was just minutes away from the Mexican border, we drove to the border and then walked into the town of Algodones for a few minutes and then walked out and drove home). I've had opportunities to visit Alan and his family in every town that they have lived in. Alan always makes sure that we have a good time. He is always interested in going places and seeing new things. I am sure that taking a ride down the Legacy Highway is on the top of Alan's things-to-do list on his next trip to Utah.

Alan is an amazingly motivated and talented man. He worked at both KTVX and KSL television stations (not at the same time) while attending high school and then the U of U. He wanted to someday become an anchorman. After graduating from the U of U, his young families adventures began in Reno where he was a news reporter; then they went to Yuma, AZ.; Salinas, CA; and now they live in Rocklin, CA. Alan is currently an anchorman in Chico, California.

I cannot write about Alan without mentioning the significant life altering experience that he and I have both had, and that is of the death of a child. Our children were born just a few months apart, were playmates as well as cousins, and died within two years of each other. I know that one day during the millenium when all of our other siblings will be empty nesters, Alan and I will once again be raising pre-schoolers and trading baby sitting just as we did twenty years ago.

I love my brother Alan and I'm so grateful that he is in our family. If anyone has had an adventure with Alan or just wants to say how great he is....thanks for sharing!

Alan, Marivic, Tara, and AJ