Brent Taylor, North Ogden mayor, has been killed in Afghanistan. He was deployed as a member of the National Guard. He had taken a leave from his mayoral duties. It is said to be an insider attack.

He was a BYU grad and father of 7.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/11/04/utah-mayor-brent-taylor-killed-afghanistan-insider-attack/1883961002/

Very sad for his family, friends and community. I am thinking of a young widow with seven children. Tough days ahead for a long time to come. Hopefully she will get a lot of support. Tragic for him as he has lost many years of life and happiness.


(NB: Edited to fill in some info. Originally brief due to posting from cell phone)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/2018 11:50AM by Nightingale.

What a tragic loss for all who knew and loved him.

May he R.I.P. And his family find solace and comfort through their tears.

Thanks AJ and Cheryl. A little compassion goes a long way. We can feel for a US service member lost on duty and those who mourn him. Sure they sign up. Doesn't mean it's a laugh fest if they end up being casualties.

And as usual, the mormon church makes this tragic situation even worse. Both doctrine and culture will discourage (if not outright prevent) her from marrying another "worthy priesthood holder" and so easing her future financial and emotional burdens.

She'll be in the single market soon enough, with that many children. She'll try to find a helpmate to ease the loss of her husband *unless* no one else can replace him.

My beautiful step-sister lost her husband in an airplane crash when their children were yet young. She didn't remarry though she had ample opportunity to. Her husband was, is, and has remained the love of her life.

If she'd wanted to remarry she could have. She made a conscious choice not to. She was LDS. Her late husband wasn't.

That's the problem. She'll be in the singles market, but her value will be quite low in mormon currency.

She'll be told NOT to marry outside the church, lest her new husband be a bad influence on the kids or try to raise them without mormon values. She'll still have to find a "worthy priesthood holder."

Thing is, this "worthy priesthood holder" will have to be OK with raising 7 kids not his own. And here's where the doctrine really takes hold. She and Husband #2 can't be temple-married since there's no basis to cancel her sealing to Husband #1. Any children she and H-2 may have together will belong to H-1. What active mormon guy is going to put up with that situation, when his own kids are only his "for time"?

She is going to have a very hard future, thanks to the church.

Maybe not. Not if she meets someone who really loves her and vice versa.

That happened with my great grandma when her first husband died (my great grandpa.) She waited a few years. Several suitors tried to win her affection, but she held out until the one who not only won her affection, but her children's as well. That was the one she ended up marrying. He was as devoted to her as ever.

The great love of her life continued to be my great grandpa, but she loved husband #2 nonetheless. They shared more years together. Had four daughters together. She was married to him more than 50 years, happily. They were poor, but happy. They didn't get sealed together in the temple, but they did go through together. She and great gramps were sealed before he died 7 years into their marriage.

She had a hard future. Left bereft and penniless. The Mormon lawyer in town defrauded her out of her husband's land he owned after his death, forcing her to move from the home where they'd spent their marriage years to make a life elsewhere, starting over from basically nothing. My great grandpa had been a Civil War veteran who I believe had a land claim rather than a pension. It was the land claim the lawyer stole outright from my ggrandmother.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/2018 02:54PM by Amyjo.

What are they doing sending National Guard guys with seven kids to Afghanistan?

It’s a tragedy for sure. Saturday’s Warrior didn’t end like this.

It takes a lot of moolah to feed seven hungry children. His National Guard stint might've looked good signing up for it. He likely had no idea what he was signing up for until after the ink was dry.

+He knew what he was signing up for and obviously wanted to go. I did the same thing, I spent 23 years in the National Guard and was eligible for retirement when we were called up to go to Iraq. I was given two opportunities to go home, I passed on each one.

I spent one year in a combat area in Iraq. It was the most productive year of my life. I enjoyed it.

I came home and used my Veteran's benefits to increase job opportunities.

story still active, it was on ABC network news tonite (Sunday), it showed glowing pictures of him.

If I was family & happened to be watching the news, I would have bawled for hours after seeing that.

From what I've heard, people tried to talk him out of going as he volunteered for this deployment. He had gone on other deployments, so theoretically, he didn't have to go, but he made the choice to ignore those who tried to talk him into staying home.

In a situation like this, when friends are having gut feelings telling him not to go, the wife should take out extra life insurance.

besides Mayor, does anyone know if he had another occupation?

i.e. is N Ogden mayor considered a full-time position?

Story still running;


I feel so sorry for him/family, & all other victims.

I have to wonder what the real/authentic driver behind this military action * & others similar* really is.


I'm thinking more & more the Peacemakers are right, even without alternatives that many could buy into...

Again, I'm sorry for All Wars, All Violence, All those killed & injured.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2018 11:26PM by GNPE.

I just don't get it, feeling like leaving 7 children and wife to serve out country.

Opium fields don’t protect themselves.

Unocal pipelines don't protect themselves.

Death, especially untimely death, is a part of life. One year ago I was in the UK for the funeral of a twenty something great nephew who committed suicide. Barely one year later his only sibling, also in his twenties, has died and I have just returned from the funeral of my only sister there. It has been a very bad year for my family and examining the reasons, what ifs and maybes, does not make grief any less. A said day indeed for those who loved this man.

It's tragic, our management talked about this at length yesterday at our company meeting, it's very sad.

7 kids ?
Is this responsible breeding ?