Friends, Family, Colleagues Remember Major Brent Taylor at Funeral Service

NORTH OGDEN, Utah – Friends, family, and fellow soldiers said their final goodbyes to Army Major Brent R. Taylor at the Dee Events Center Saturday afternoon.

For more than an hour, the people who knew Maj. Taylor best spoke at a funeral service about their memories and the legacy he leaves behind.

“We envisioned this as a local service at a local church. It soon became apparent that the compelling story of Major Taylor, Mayor Taylor, and Jennie and the children captured the attention of many,” said Taylor’s father, Bishop Steven Taylor, addressing the large crowd that had gathered. Bishop Taylor conducted the funeral service for his son.

Taylor’s brother, fellow Utah National Guard soldier Derek Taylor, said his brother’s attitude could be summed up by three “C”s.

“Commitment, confidence, compassion. These three attributes, they were the driving force in everything he did, but for me the most important, or the one I will remember the most, is his compassion,” Derek Taylor said.

He said faith was also a huge guiding force in his brother’s life.

“Of all the things I will miss about Brent, it will be his example to me of what a disciple of Christ should be,” Derek Taylor said.

Taylor’s friend Toby Mileski, who was mayor of a neighboring city, said Taylor set an example his kids and, really, everyone could learn from.

“Kids, your dad had an incredible sense of doing the right thing for the right reason. He was always fighting for the people, and you could count on that. This is proof right here, of the impact he had,” Mileski said.

The adjutant general of the Utah National Guard, Major General Jeff Burton, said Taylor excelled as a soldier and a leader.

“Brent Taylor wasn’t a bystander. He was fearless and he positioned himself where a leader should be. His loss is bitter, at this young age of 39, but he accomplished more in 39 years than most and he leaves us with a memory of a life well-lived,” Burton said.

As Maj. Taylor’s casket arrived at the Ben Lomond Cemetery in North Ogden, there were a few final honors. Soldiers handed American flags to his widow, Jennie Taylor, and each of their seven children.

As Utahns says goodbye to Major Brent Taylor today, friends and family know he will live on in the example he set for so many others. Family asked that, instead of flowers, people donate to Brent Taylor Memorial Scholarship Fund at the University of Utah.