Cheryl Lee (Sprague) Cozzens

Cheryl Sprague Cozzens, 79, passed away peacefully encircled by family on March 10th, 2023, less than three months after Chuck, her husband of almost 59 years, passed away. Cheryl was born in July 1943, in Oakland, CA to Thelma Griggs Sprague and Leonard Sprague.

Cheryl has an older sister, Bonnie, and two sets of younger fraternal twins, Chuck and Charlene, and Debbie and Doug. When Cheryl was a baby, the family moved to Worland, Wy, where she spent her elementary and middle school years. She was a scrappy youngster with an active imagination that enjoyed camping in the backyard in her prized pup tent. In middle school, Cheryl played clarinet in the band, was a tap dancer, and loved singing in the choir.

In 1958 the family moved to Powell, WY, where Cheryl spent her high school years. She worked at her dad’s War Surplus Store and in the radish fields during the summers. Cheryl had a zest for life and contagious enthusiasm, and in school, she participated in Debate, Band, Choir, FHA, Student Council, and Cheerleading, before graduating in 1961. Only days after moving from Worland in the summer of 1958, she met the love of her life, Chuck, while visiting her grandma in a neighboring town. They dated for the remainder of high school.

She attended Northwest Community College and BYU while Chuck served his two-year mission. They married on August 28, 1964, in the Idaho Falls Temple. They are the proud parents of five children, 21 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. While at BYU, Cheryl and Chuck were dorm parents in Heritage Halls. She graduated with a degree in Speech Pathology and worked in the Provo School District before starting their family.

After earning their degrees from BYU, Chuck and Cheryl lived in Edison, NJ; Minneapolis, MN; Billings and Helena, MT; Naperville, IL; St. Louis, MO; and Highland and Vineyard, UT. Cheryl was always passionate about community involvement and helping others. While raising her family in St. Louis, she received an academic scholarship to Washington University. She earned double Master’s degrees in social work and Gerontology and subsequently found her passion and career as a therapist. For almost 30 years, Cheryl had a reputation as a no-nonsense yet compassionate therapist. Her specialties ranged from leading addiction treatment programs to working with abuse victims. She took particular satisfaction in helping military veterans and first responders who had experienced severe trauma. After retirement, Chuck and Cheryl served a mission from 2018-2019 in Hawaii and loved working with their college dorm daughters.

Preceding her in death was her husband, Chuck of Vineyard, UT, younger sister, Debbie Newcomer of Mesa, AZ, and parents, Leonard and Thelma Sprague of Powell, WY. Cheryl is survived by her children Cortney (Ginger) of Saratoga Springs, UT; Cameron (Tami), of Las Vegas, NV; Mikelle Sessions (Tim) of Syracuse, UT; Brandon (Jessica) of Waterloo, IL; Brytni Murray (Brad) of Spokane, WA; her siblings Bonnie Haas of Stillwater, OK; Charlene Sprague of SLC, UT; Chuck of Mesa, AZ; and Doug of Canyon Country, CA.

Funeral services will be held at Noon on Monday, March 20th, at the Sundberg-Olpin Funeral Home, 495 South State Street, Orem, Utah. The viewing will be held prior to the funeral service from 11-11:45 am. She will be interred in the Orem Cemetery.

While Cheryl loved colorful flowers, her work helping first responders and their families overcome trauma can be honored by making a contribution to the Utah chapter of Concerns of Police Survivors at http://www.utahcops.org

For those unable to attend in person, you may view the services HERE

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