10/24/2026
Frank Jessen
Today, October 22, 2026, we gather to remember and honor our husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, son, brother, and friend, Merlin Frank Jessen — or, as many have known him over the years, “Tomahawk.”
Frank spent 57 years behind the wheel as a long-haul truck driver, traveling more than 7,350,000 miles and making his way through every state. He loved his horses, his cows, and his ranch, but his heart was truly on the road, trucking.
Wherever the road took him, Frank made friends. He never met a stranger—only someone he hadn’t gotten to know yet. He had a kind and generous heart and a sincere interest in the people he encountered. He wanted to know their stories, hear about their lives, and find that little piece of common ground that could turn a simple conversation into a friendship. Across all those miles, it was the way he made people feel that left the deepest impression: welcomed, valued, and worth knowing.
Today, we remember more than the miles he traveled or the work he did. We remember the person he was and the place he holds in our family. Each of us carries our own memories of Frank—conversations, moments together, and little things that will bring him to mind when we least expect it.
At the heart of Frank’s world was the love of his life, his wife, Phyllis Jessen or "Lady T." On June 24, 1966, they were sealed for time and all eternity in the Salt Lake City Temple, beginning a life together that would span more than 60 years.
Those years held so much more than a wedding promise. They held the everyday moments of a marriage—the laughter, the worries, the work of raising a family, and the comfort of having someone beside you who knows your story because they have lived it with you.
For a man whose life’s work carried him so many miles, Phyllis was home. Wherever the road took him, she was part of the life he was returning to, the family they had built, and the love that connected it all.
On October 22, 2026, Frank passed away at his home, surrounded by his family. At the end of a life that had taken him so many places, he was home, with the people who loved him—and whom he loved so much—close by. Coincidentally, this is the day his father passed away 51 years earlier.
Frank is survived by his loving wife, Phyllis Reay Jessen, Altonah, Utah; his children:,Deana and her husband, Robb Lindsay, Altonah, Utah; Dixie and her husband, Richard William, of Spring Creek, Nevada; Jennifer and her husband, Clay Miles, Mountain Home, Utah; Merlin Frank Jessen Jr., Altonah, Utah; Kevin and his wife, Kristy Jessen, Altonah, Utah; Misty and her husband, Garrett Taylor, Mountain Home, Utah; Austin and his wife, Lacie Jessen, Roosevelt, Utah; 32 grandchildren and 60 great-grandchildren. What a beautiful legacy of the family he and Phyllis built together.
He is also survived by his brother, Robert Glen Jessen, and Glen’s wife, Vickie, Mountain Home, Utah.
Frank was preceded in death by his parents, Asa William “Dick” Jessen and Afton Barrett Jessen; his brothers, William George “Bill” Jessen, Johnny Dean Jessen; and sister, Kathy Jean Bird.
Now, “for time and all eternity” carries an even deeper meaning. Their time together here is precious beyond words, and the promise they made in the temple remains a source of comfort and hope: that the love they shared does not end with this goodbye.
Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, October 27, 2026 at 11:00 AM at the Lake Fork Chapel in Mountain Home. Viewings will be held at the church on Monday evening from 6:00 - 8:00 PM and Tuesday from 9:30 - 10:45 AM.
Burial will be in the Mountain Home/Boneta Cemetery.
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