June 16, 1944 ~ Jan. 14, 2024
John Leslie Lyman died peacefully in the company of his wife and family on January 14, 2024, due to complications of multiple sclerosis.
John was born on June 16, 1944, to Frank Anderson Lyman and Virginia Porter in Delta, Utah. He developed strong values of hard work, diligence, and honesty throughout a childhood spent working on his father’s farm with his younger siblings, Susan, Karrol, Carl, Ray, and LuAnn. John loved his Delta community and family, and greatly valued the positive impact they had on his life and character.
During his high school years, John was recognized for his intellectual gifts in the areas of math and science. He eventually decided to attend Brigham Young University as a Chemistry major, with minors in both Physics and Mathematics.
After a year of college, John was called to serve as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Western Canada Mission. He served from 1963-1965.
Upon completing his missionary service, John returned to BYU and graduated in 1968 with High Honors. It was at this time that he first started working with lasers, which would become the focus of his lifelong career as a physical chemist.
After two years of courtship, John married Jean Eliason in the Salt Lake Temple on August 9, 1968. In his own words he has said that “everything I accomplished since then is due to her love and support”.
Within weeks of their marriage, John was drafted to serve in the Viet Nam War. He was inducted into the Army in February of 1969 and went through basic training in Fort Ord, California. He served as a Physical Science Assistant at Dugway Proving Grounds for the duration of his Army service, achieving the rank of Spec 5. His first child, Michael John Lyman, was born at Dugway Proving Grounds during his service. Upon completion of his service, John returned to BYU to continue a PhD in Physical Chemistry. A second child, Roger Mark Lyman, was born in Provo during the first year of his doctoral program.
John concluded his doctoral education and dissertation research Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, where he would spend the rest of his professional career. John and Jean established a home of 30 years in Los Alamos, where they had the three more children, Katherine, Jared Eldon, and Jeanette Lyman.
As John continued his research at Los Alamos National Laboratory, his professional reputation began to grow, especially with his development of laser isotope separation. This research ultimately led to him appearing with his peers on the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. Shortly after that, John began to receive invitations from universities and laboratories across the globe. One of his proudest accomplishments was being named a laboratory fellow in 1983 at the age of 38, the youngest person ever to receive that honor.
These invitations and honors eventually led to summers spent in Germany, Australia, and Japan to do research. During those summers, John would take his wife and family of five children to see the countries of western Europe and much of Australia and New Zealand. These and other efforts with their family led to their being recognized as New Mexico Parents of the Year in 1997.
John and Jean relished their opportunities to travel and did so extensively both for pleasure and professional purposes, eventually visiting over 70 countries. At the end of his career, John and Jean spent a year and a half living and working in Sydney, Australia. John further developed his laser isotope separation research and Jean and John served extensively in the Mortdale community. They also served a 23-month humanitarian mission in Cambodia with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Humanitarian Services. Additional church work included callings as temple workers in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Sydney, Australia; London, England; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Bountiful, Utah, and work in Johannesburg, South Africa with the Perpetual Education Fund. John and Jean also acted as service mission companions for a granddaughter over the course of her mission.
As devoted grandparents, John and Jean expanded the spiritual, intellectual, and cultural lives of their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Book recommendations, tickets to concerts, temple service, and trips around the world distinctly enhanced the lives of all their posterity.
John will be remembered for his kindness, patience, and testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His example as a disciple of Jesus Christ is especially valued by his posterity.
John is survived by his wife, Jean Eliason Lyman and four children: Michael (Amy Eilert), Roger (Ruby Dawn Asay), Katherine (Ryan Jones), and Jeanette (Steven Lukens). He is also survived by his five siblings and their spouses and children. He is preceded in death by one son, Jared (Emily Hedengren). John and Jean have 20 grandchildren, three great grandchildren, with one more great grandchild expected in March.
Funeral services will be held at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 17th Ward (225 West 500 North, Salt Lake City, Utah) on Friday, January 19, 2024. All are invited to a celebration of life brunch from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. followed by a funeral at 11 a.m. Dedication of the grave will take place immediately after the funeral at Elysian Burial Gardens (1075 East 4580 South, Millcreek, Utah).
Instead of flowers, we kindly invite you to contribute to the BYU Chemistry Student Aid Fund in honor of John. His profound dedication and affection for his time at BYU have left an indelible mark on both his career and family. Your support of the fund will not only commemorate his cherished memories but also make a meaningful impact on the educational journey of future chemistry students at BYU.
https://donate.churchofjesuschrist.org/contribute/byu?funds=30123322
