July 19, 1949-Jan. 29, 2024
Jan Graham Hunt, 74, passed away peacefully on Jan. 29, 2024, in her home in Saint George, Utah, surrounded by love and the beautiful cliffs of Snow Canyon. She was an adoring mother, a devoted wife, a dependable friend and an adventurous spirit. She was widely admired by all who knew her for her humor, brilliance and warmheartedness.
She was born Janet Ann Crump on July 19, 1949, in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Woodrow Stevens Crump and Betty Kesler Crump. She attended South High School and studied briefly at Brigham Young University and the University of Utah before finishing her bachelor’s degree in clinical psychology at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts. She returned to Salt Lake City and got her Doctor of Jurisprudence at the University of Utah Law School. She then worked as a lawyer at Jones Waldo where she was the first woman to make partner. She reunited with her high school sweetheart and first love Buzz Hunt and married him in 1989 in Salt Lake City, becoming a supportive stepmom to his daughter Liz.
In 1990 she served as Utah’s Solicitor General, then in 1992, the Attorney General, becoming the first woman to win a Utah state election on her own ballot. Her son Will was born the same year and became the center of her life. She held the position until 2001 and later transitioned to her own private practice, Graham Law Offices. There, she enjoyed a much more relaxed work schedule that involved less handshaking and more gardening. She retired in 2014 and relocated to sunny southern Utah.
Jan was a very private person with little interest in life as a public figure. Far more important to her were her family, friends and various passions. She was an avid reader, a tennis and pickleball fanatic, an expert hiker and biker, an adventurous traveler, and an animal lover. She started a podcast called “70 is the new 50” about seniors staying fully engaged in life as they age.
She was a very dedicated mother, and she adored our rambunctious beagles Mallie and Muffie. In her final years, she undertook a massive labor of love: writing a detailed account of her mother’s family history with the help of her beloved brothers and some relatives discovered on Ancestry.com. Even through various cancer treatments, she had boundless energy, a quick wit, and a zest for discovering the new and exciting.
She is survived by her husband Verl “Buzz” Hunt, son William Graham Hunt, stepdaughter Elisabeth Kay Hunt, brothers Steven Kesler Crump (Kay) and Kevin Ray Crump (Nancy), eight nieces and nephews and many grandnieces and grandnephews. She was preceded in death by both of her parents.
When Jan was first diagnosed with primary peritoneal cancer, similar to ovarian cancer in October 2014 we were told that she could have as little as six months and no more than five years. We are so proud and grateful to have gotten 10 amazing years filled with memorable trips and passion projects with minimal side effects from treatment. She and Will traveled together every year after her diagnosis, including meditation retreats in Big Sur and walking the Camino Santiago in Spain. She never stopped living her life to the fullest and was fiercely independent till the very end.
We would like to thank Jan’s oncologist Dr. Derrick Haslem, our heroic hospice nurse Megan Mott and everyone at Dixie Home Rehab & Hospice for their excellent care of Jan. We’d also like to thank Jan’s dear friend Liz Haslam, our family friends Jim, Glenda, Nick, and Zeke Bradley and Will’s partner Jose Cornejo for their support of the family during this time.
A private celebration of life will be held at the family’s home in Saint George. There will be no viewing or formal service. Family and friends are invited to share tributes online. Arrangements and memorial tree planting by Serenity Funeral Home of Southern Utah, 435-986-9100.
I love you so much, Mom, and I carry your exuberant spirit with me. You inspire us all every day.