This post is for my sister Lauren, and in honor of her husband and our wonderful friend and brother (in law) Brian. We love you, we are mourning with you, and Brian will be a part of our lives forever. For 19+ years we have shared so many memories, and sometimes they all feel like a blur. But these past few weeks we have had time to reminisce, remember, laugh, and cry and we are so grateful for him. Life doesn't quite seem real without him yet, and it possibly never will.
Ragnar Relay 2007. He joined Cameron and my team while Lauren was back home in Montana. I know she wished she could have joined us too!
Probably talking to Lauren in between Ragnar legs
Such a great picture
And Glacier. He loved it as much as we all do. And loved being a part of Montana. Our first adventure with him in Glacier!
Backpacking summer of 2007.
We got poured on the night before this picture was taken. We had hiked into Big Salmon Lake and set up camp before heading over to the lake. It is unbelievable to hike for miles and then come across a huge lake in the wilderness with no boats, homes, or human presence of any kind. We fished and then the rain came. We couldn't' prepare our dinner and a group of horseback riders had made camp nearby and offered to feed us. Fajitas were amazing. We slept, but everything was so soaked.
Just some pics from the trip
After pic
Picture in Cameron and my first apartment
Wedding gifts
Pocatello track meet up
Wind Caves
We will always remember tossing our backpacks down a hill on this hike so we could descend easier. ;)
Glacier Hike
Brian and Aubrey
Brad Paisley Concert
Huckleberries up Six Mile
Mt Aenaes on Thanksgiving Day. Still remember waving some sort of flag/tarp while my grandparents tried to spot us with their binoculars.
Cabin
Thanksgiving in Dillon.....I thought....but it seems too warm out in this picture for that
Disney Trip
Glacier again.
Thanksgiving in Spokane
Trying out our road bikes
Sometimes we would be visiting Utah and the Astles would be in Montana. We would cross paths on Sunday as we all headed back home. We would end up at random rests stops or places along the side of the road just so we could let the kids see each other and chat for an hour.
Love this sweet picture
This is probably our earliest pic, Brian and his brothers
Ella's Baptism weekend
Music and the Spoken Word
Practicing our soccer juggling in the street
And total out of order pics. All great memories.
We are so grateful we got to spend 4ish days with the Astle Family right before they headed to Montana. For months we had planned to meet up with the Parmenters in Costa Rica. I had tracked flights, we had gotten everyone passports, and our plan was to spend the first few weeks of summer on that adventure.
For some reason, we just never booked the flights. It got to the point at the end of April and we sat down as a family to decide what to do. We gave the kids the option of Costa Rica, going to Utah, or heading to Montana. We always spend the first week of July in Utah, and the girls love the traditions that come with that trip. A majority of them said they couldn't picture our summer without our Utah trip. We thought we might miss the Astles as they were heading to Montana, but as it got closer we realized we could make it work, and actually spent more nights at their house than we ever had, and got to spend what we now know are such precious last days Brian.
Sunday after church we headed up the canyon to roast hot dogs, play crossnet, wade in the river, and just relax. It was a perfect afternoon. We played crossnet for hours, with multiple rule changes and laughs.
Brian letting Paige help light the fire.
Matching cousins
The Dad poster.....Paige had brought markers that she had bought with her own money on the trip. When we got to the Astles Paige and Ella disappeared for awhile and came up with this Dad poster. We love Dad.
Emily and Ada.
The whole crew
Logan and Penny. They get along so well I'm not joking when we say we hardly see them. They run off and play together for hours and hours.
Brynlee and Aubrey. Aubrey got to join Brynlee and some friends on some runs this year, even passing some Olympians on one.
And these two sweet friends. Paige loves Ella so much.
The power went out one evening, and the neighbors across the street had all their smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms going off. We sat on the porch and watched the show! Have to add in the memory of how grossed all the kids were as we watched the hot dog eating contest on tv as we ate lunch one day.
And our rec center day. I remember Ella's face when Brian showed up in the early afternoon. Cameron and Brian spent an hour shooting Ella and Paige around like rockets in the pool. We all talked and floated with the waves and then headed to our tradition of Pizza Pie Cafe.
Love these cousin pics
Salem Pond
Always have to get a twin picture
Photo Roulette
Cameron's friend Tommy joined us on some of the adventures.
We feel so grateful and blessed to have had such a wonderful few days with the Astles and we will cherish them forever.
None of us want to relive those first few days. I was so grateful I was able to run over as soon as I could. We had some sweet moments remembering Brian amidst the hard ones.
So grateful to spend time with Brian's parents and his four wonderful brothers. Loved hearing their stories about growing up with Brian. We laughed and we cried.
We loved sharing the cabin with Brian's family. They quickly realized why Brian loved Montana so much. And I felt so much love for them all. Since I look like Lauren, and we are so similar, it's easy to just slip right in and feel right at home with the Astles.
Teaching Braden how to dive off the rock.
"Why didn't you grab the snake Aunt Lesley?" One area where Ella is more like her mom than I am.
Her cute giggles and joy when she caught the snake I spotted made my day.
Brian would have loved to be here. More laughing and crying.
And back to Utah with half our kids and half the Dalton kids.
Working on the funeral talk.
And all these pictures are out of order. But to have our Dalton side of the family together was very special.
All the youngest kids.
We missed Brian and Uncle Adam.
Quick stop at Grandma Harveys
Found a weird zucchini
Cousin love
Best friends that live way too far apart
All the Dalton cousins. Not sure if this will every happen again!
The funeral was hard, and beautiful. So many people loved Brian.
Paige, Ella, Oakley, and Kimchi
While I was in Montana our family received so much love and support as well. Many meals, help with the kids, boating, and distractions.
FSY crew headed to Utah
Of course the only time we got a sibling picture was after we had been in a rain storm.
Love you all.
And a side note....you get a glimpse of how small the world is when you are a twin. I had a number of people come up to me to give their condolences pretty much everywhere I went thinking I was Lauren. Then Lauren even ran into some of our Spokane neighbors a few days later.
I wish I was better with words, more eloquent telling stories and memories, but for now I wanted to share the pictures and memories. My testimony has been strengthened rather than shaken throughout this whole tragedy. There is still so much I don't understand, so much I think is unfair, and so much I wish I could change. I've prayed for miracles that didn't happen, but I've also seen miracles that did. I still have so many questions. But our Heavenly Father is aware of us. Our Savior felt our pain. He is sending angels, and I truly believe Brian is close too, to help Lauren and her family, and all of us through this.
He left a legacy that won't soon be forgotten. We will keep talking about him, telling stories, sharing memories until we meet again.
Brian Dee Astle, devoted husband, father, son, and brother returned home to his Heavenly Father, on July 9th, 2025 while hiking with his family in his beloved Montana mountains of Glacier National Park. He was born on February 10th, 1983 in Orem, Utah, the second son of five boys to Kent G. Astle and Denise Erickson Astle.
Brian had a happy childhood and always had an affinity for outdoor activities with his brothers and friends. He was an avid athlete who especially loved soccer, playing for the Utah Valley Rangers and Mountain View High School, where he graduated in 2001. He also participated in track and field and enjoyed music singing in several choirs. He participated in the Hill Cumorrah Pageant with his family in 2000 and 2001, portraying the role of Joseph Smith and had his own spiritual experience in the Sacred Grove.
Brian faithfully served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the Korea Seoul West Mission. He loved the people and culture deeply and welcomed any opportunity to connect with Korean friends throughout his life, often inviting them into his home. His lifelong love of service continued after his mission, serving as an Elder’s Quorum President, ward mission leader, gospel doctrine teacher, executive secretary, ward/finance clerk, and many others. Brian earned a bachelors degree in Business Finance and Marketing from BYU-Idaho and later received his MBA from Brigham Young University. He was a respected and sought after businessman with an incredible passion for entrepreneurship.
On December 29, 2007 Brian married the love of his life Lauren Dalton in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. He was a tender and loving husband who always put Lauren first and provided unconditional love always. Together they raised four beautiful children Brynlee, Emily, Logan, and Ella. Brian’s entire life revolved around his wife and children and their temporal, spiritual and eternal well being.
Brian showed his love to his children by supporting them in all their academic and athletic endeavors. His children knew who to look to in order to refine and perfect their practices. He taught them the value of dedication and hard work to achieve their goals. Brian taught them the value of hard work, perseverance and faith. Brian made it a priority to spend time with his family in Gods creations. They enjoyed many adventures in the mountains, oceans and even from home.
Brian was a strong disciple of our Savior Jesus Christ. His unwavering testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ shaped his life and deeply influenced all who knew him. He never wavered for standing up for what is true and right. Everyone who met Brian saw his strength, passion, kindness and love. He left a lasting legacy in the hearts of all who had the blessing of knowing him.
