Justin Buck

David Justin Buck passed away on January 15, 2025, due to medical complications. He was born on April 11, 1975, to David Kyle Buck and Vernae Woodbury Buck in Provo, Utah. He was born on his mom’s birthday, and this created a special bond between them that lasted all through his life. He grew up in Spanish Fork, Utah and Littleton, Colorado, moved to Pocatello, Idaho when he was a junior in high school, and later moved back to Utah.

Justin had 5 sisters. After the youngest was born, he’d had enough of sisters, so he ran away from home. He decided to come back just a few hours later, which was good because he ended up being very close with all of them. He loved making up games for them to play when they were little, walking to the library with them, and they became some of his closest friends as they got older.

Justin was an Eagle scout and served a mission in Taiwan for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He spent two years at Rick’s College, got his bachelor’s degree from BYU, and earned a master’s degree from Utah State. While he was attending BYU, he worked at the Mt. Timpanogos temple in the laundry facility. All the little old ladies there tried to set him up with their granddaughters, but he was never really interested in dating. Until he met Sara.

The two of them attended the same family home evening activity one night in Provo, and Sara knew after that first meeting that he was the one. Justin was also very interested, but he was too nervous to ask her out. He finally got brave enough to ask Sara’s friend for her number, then spent hours pacing back and forth in his apartment trying to work up the courage to call her. Finally, Justin’s roommate grabbed the phone, dialed Sara’s number, and made Justin get on the line. Sara and Justin were married 4 months later, and his whole world has revolved around her and their kids ever since.

Justin loved spending time with Sara – he always called her his EC (eternal companion) – and he loved being a dad. He attended all his kids’ programs, and he loved picking them up from school and taking them to lunch. He would rather hang out with his family than anyone else. Even when he was working and going to school, he would come home at night and take time to read to his kids. When they were little, they loved asking him who his favorite child was. He’d always answer with a mix of all their names: “Ryleahgail.”

Justin loved traveling, trying new foods, learning about different cultures and religions, studying history, watching the stars, and listening to the Clark Howard podcast. He was very musical. He loved singing, going to concerts, playing the piano, and he even had perfect pitch.

He also loved being outside. Camping and hiking were some of his favorite things to do, and he spent lots of time camping with his dad and his son Ryan. They made sure to get at least one trip in together every summer. Justin took Ryan on his first father’s and son’s campout when Ryan was just 1 year old, and they haven’t missed a year since.

When he was on vacation with his family, he would convince them to sing Super Loud Karaoke. He’d give them a genre, and they’d have to figure out a song to sing as loudly as they could that fit the genre. They’d get their revenge by making him play, too, and assigning him a “teenage girl” song to sing.

He also really loved Christmas. He would get so excited every year that it made everyone around him excited. Christmas traditions were very important to him. He loved eating Christmas candy because his mom always made it for the holidays. He never had to learn how to make it himself, though – his sisters learned how and always made sure he was stocked up. He watched Christmas movies with his family all month long, took the kids sledding, made sure the house was decorated, and really enjoyed going to the kids’ holiday choir and orchestra concerts. He loved picking out the kids’ Christmas presents every year, playing the piano on Christmas Eve while they sang along, and making cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.

But Justin’s love for God and his family was the very most important thing to him. His faith was always so strong. He loved volunteering at the temple and reading about church history. He was so selfless – everything he did was for his family. To the very end, he made sure his family would be taken care of, and that they knew how much he loved them.

Justin is survived by his EC Sara, their three kids Abigail Kate, Aleah Lydia, and David Ryan, his 5 sisters Rochelle (Brendon) Taylor, Tiffani Buck, Laurel (Nick) Kelly, Wendi (Marcus) Simons, and Candice Buck. We’re sure he had a sweet reunion in heaven with his mom, his dad who passed just 13 days before Justin died, and his 170-pound lapdog Nana.

There will be a receiving line from 12:00 to 12:45 pm at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 548 S 400 E in Santaquin, Utah. The funeral service will follow at 1:00 pm. The funeral will also be streamed at this link https://www.youtube.com/live/-MQ3_VGw8Ps. Interment will follow at the Spanish Fork City Cemetery.

We’d like to extend a special thanks to the ICU team at Huntsman’s Cancer Institute for their kindness and compassion. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Huntsman’s Cancer Institute. You can make your donation at the link below. https://give.huntsmancancer.org/page/71762/donate/1