Allan Leon Beck
4/28/1933 ~ 3/14/2023
Allan Leon Beck, 89, beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, passed away peacefully on March 14, 2023, at his home in Orem, Utah, surrounded by his family just short of his 90th birthday. Allan was born on April 28, 1933, to Earl Hafen Beck and Ruth Olsen Beck in Mt. Pleasant, Utah. He was one of five children, Earl Duane (passed at birth), Allan, Eldon, Earlene and Ruth Ann.
He grew up in Indianola, Utah, and was always very active and loved spending time outdoors, hunting, fishing, and playing football, basketball and track. He graduated from North Sanpete High School in 1951, and afterward attended the University of Utah in 1952. He served in the Utah National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve, spending time overseas in Taiwan. Allan was very proud to be a Veteran and had a great love for our nation’s flag.
He married his high school sweetheart Marian Ruth Nielson on June 4, 1953. They were married 25 years and were blessed with four children, Mark Allan, Malinda, Marianne and Matthew.
Allan had a love for learning and could build or fix anything he put his mind to. He built the first workable television in the area at Indianola in 1949. It is now in the Fairview Museum. He installed the first TV in Mt. Pleasant at Herman Beck’s home before TV stations moved their transmitting stations high on the Oquirrh Mountains west of Salt Lake City.
He founded Beck’s TV, a local business in Mt. Pleasant in 1958. His son Mark Allan took over the family business in 1980 and it continues today as a retail home furnishings business on Main Street.
In January 1958, he engineered and installed Sanpete County’s first television translator relay site, located at the base of the mountain east of Mt. Pleasant. This translator station made TV possible for Mt. Pleasant and surrounding towns and is still functioning today.
He held many offices in the Chamber of Commerce, including the president. He was a charter member of JC’s and the Sanpete County Search & Rescue and held several offices in both organizations. He served as Mayor of Mt. Pleasant (1978-1980) and worked hard to make improvements to the city, including the municipal sewer system and settling ponds west of the airport. He also was able to get the airport improved from gravel to a paved landing surface.
On July 23, 1980, he married the love of his life Betty Moulton Harvey at “The Lake” in Indianola, Utah, and increased his family by two children, Craig and Katie Sue. They were later sealed in the Provo Utah LDS Temple on April 28, 1984. They made their home in Orem, Utah.
They loved spending time in Indianola, and created a Hideaway there, constantly improving and caretaking the pond on the mountain (“The Lake”) and considered it their home away from home. Their family, including children and grandchildren, have come to love The Lake and the beautiful surroundings that Allan has been instrumental in creating.
Allan also worked at Wells Distributing and then Ryan Distributing, both in Salt Lake City, as Service Manager of their appliance division, and later worked at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center (Provo) in the Engineering Department, fixing and maintaining all the electronics in the facility. He retired from Intermountain Healthcare in 1996 so that he could spend more time in his favorite place, Indianola.
He is survived by his wife, Betty Moulton Beck and 6 children, Mark Allan (Laura) Beck, Malinda (Scott) Overman, Craig (Carolyn) Harvey, Marianne (Patrick) Davis, Matthew (Becky) Beck, Katie (Eric) Peterson, 24 grandchildren and 60 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held Monday, March 20, 2023, 11:30 a.m. at the LDS chapel on 500 South 600 West Orem, UT. Viewing 9:00-11:00 a.m. prior to the service. Interment will be in the Mount Pleasant City Cemetery. Many thanks to Dignity Home Health & Hospice team, especially Markae, Marisela and Melissa who took great care in assisting Allan in his final days.
