Deanna Mae Wylie, 66, of Rexburg, died May 6, 2016, of natural causes.

As the eldest child of Andrew and Betty Swensen, Deanna was born and raised in St. Anthony, Idaho where she attended school and graduated. After her marriage to Gary Hartman she lived for short times in Palmer, Alaska and Carlin, Nevada before returning to St. Anthony with her family. She moved to Rexburg in the late 80's where she has remained.

She was married to Gary Hartman in 1967 and together they have five children, Rhonda, Amie, Tina, Gary and Daniel. They were later divorced. A few years later she married Ken Gentry. He later died after an illness. She then met and married Calvin Wylie who has been her husband since 1993.

During her time in Alaska she and her husband operated a lodge with the accommodations of a restaurant, motel, and service station. Other times she worked as a waitress, but while her five children were young, her main occupation was wife and mother.
In the early 80's she began working for the school district as a teacher's aide for Special Education. It was an occupation she truly enjoyed. Her involvement coaching Special Olympics gratified her heart as she helped her students achieve victory. Through her years of experience working for the school district she developed the skill of caring for people with needs. Later she decided to become a CNA. As a CNA, she worked as a home health care nurse who always developed special rapport with people she cared for and truly enjoyed helping others. After that, she worked at East Idaho Regional Medical Center as a CNA and as an Activities Coordinator.

Deanna loved her family tremendously. She always desired to share special occasions with them and considered every occasion of time with them as special. Birthdays and holidays were precious opportunities for her to re-express how much she loved her family. She enjoyed to sew and made quilts for babies as mementos of affection.

Deanna was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She always enjoyed participating in activities and serving in her ward.

She is survived by her husband, Calvin Wylie; children Rhonda (Don) Ellis, Amie Hartman, Tina (Kelly) Carlson, Gary Hartman, Daniel (Katie) Hartman; siblings Trenna Williams, Connie (Bob) Carraway, Trixie (Rocky) Palmer, Lorene Andrews, Aaron (Sandy) Swensen, Janet (Jim) Huml, Elva (Kevin) Schultz, Kristy (Larry) Hatch, Tim (Cindi) Swensen, Verla Strutz, Tammy (Greg) Ostemier; twelve grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents and brothers Brad and Rick Swensen.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 11, at the Park Street LDS Chapel, 700 Park Street in Rexburg. The family will receive friends Tuesday from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. at Flamm Funeral Home in Rexburg and Wednesday from 10:00 to 10:45 a.m. at the church. Interment will be in the Wilford Cemetery.