René Sybel (Plehn) Kempton, 66, of Rexburg passed away Sunday, August 22, 2010 at the home of her son, Randall Kempton.

She was born May 1, 1944 in Pocatello, ID. At age four, her family moved to Whittier, CA; she graduated Magna Cum Laude from Whittier High School in 1962. At BYU, she met Charles Dennis Kempton, whom she married in the Los Angeles LDS Temple September 4, 1964. In 1966, she graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor's in English.

René loved to read and preferred books to dolls as a child. In 1992, with most of her children grown, she returned to BYU to earn a Master's in Library Science and became a librarian in Salt Lake City where she was very happy. In 2003, due to the progress of early onset Alzheimer's disease, she retired and went to live with her mother in Orem, UT. She came to Idaho in January 2009.

She will be greatly missed by her mother, Sybel Benson Plehn of Orem, UT; her children: Randall (Jennifer) Kempton of Rexburg, ID; Kristie (Tony) Martin of Idaho Falls, ID; Lisi (Greg) Kempton-Schwarzer of Boulder, CO; Cory (Ursula) Kempton of Orlando, FL; Holly (Chris) Austin of Lehi, UT; and Kasey Kempton of Mesa, AZ; and 19 grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her brother, Clayton; her father, Keith Robb Plehn; and a granddaughter, Elisabeth.

René considered the gospel and her family to be life's greatest blessings. She taught her children to love the Lord and served Him all her life.

Funeral services will be at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2010 at the Burton LDS Chapel in Rexburg, ID, with interment at the Burton Cemetery.