Maurice Dean Knighton

Maurice Dean Knighton (Dean), 83, of Bountiful, Utah, passed away on April 28, 2026, surrounded by his wife and all his children after a courageous battle with cancer. Dean was born on May 12, 1942, in Lincoln, Nebraska, before settling with his mother in Utah. His ancestors included men and women from Holland that first came to America in the 1600s and were integral to the shaping and preservation of this nation.

Dean spent his early childhood years in East Bountiful, exploring the many canyons and creeks along the Wasatch Front near his home. Here he fell in love with the natural beauty of the Wasatch Front which would shape his career. As a teenager, he moved to West Bountiful, Utah, with his family where he formed important friendships that remained throughout his life, including with his loving wife and companion of 63 years, JoAnn Page. Dean served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New Zealand. Upon returning home, he married JoAnn in the Salt Lake City Utah Temple on March 27, 1964.

Dean was determined to overcome the challenges of a difficult childhood through education. With the support of JoAnn, Dean completed undergraduate and graduate degrees in Forestry at Utah State University before taking a full-time job as a research scientist with the United States Forest Service in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. He would eventually complete a PhD in Forestry a few years later at the University of Minnesota. As a plant ecologist, his research focused on such things as “Hydrologic response and nutrient concentrations following spring burns in an oak-hickory forest”; “Growth response of speckled alder and willow to depth flooding” and “Sphagnum moss recovery after harvest in a Minnesota bog”. The work was important in his field and to health forest management and remains of interest to researchers today. Much of his research work was done in the Chippewa National Forest in north-central Minnesota, where he and JoAnn began raising their family.

Recognition for his work, along with his skills in management and problem solving, led him to accept an administrative position in Washington DC, where he worked for a time on Capitol Hill with Senator Malcolm Wallop from Wyoming. He concluded his career as an Assistant Director for Research for the Intermountain West Region of the US Forest Service in Ogden, Utah. In his retirement, he and JoAnn enjoyed fishing and camping with family and regular trips abroad to see the world. Near the end of his life, he had visited every state in the United States and more than 20 countries.

Dean lived a life of steady dedication to his wife and family. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. In each chapter of his life, he approached his work and life with careful discipline, reliability and a strong sense of personal responsibility.

He is survived by his wife JoAnn and by his children: Craig (Tracy) Knighton, Andrew (Cathy) Knighton, Jill (Michael) Lapicola, Matthew (Elizabeth) Knighton and DeAnn (Ross Barrell) Knighton; his siblings Byron and George Albert Knighton and Edith Hoskin; 12 grandchildren (Jacob, Joel, Daniel, Jeremiah, Ella, Joshua, Justin, AJ, Reagan, Shelby, Amelia, Audrey and Sophia) and 2 bonus grandchildren (Libby and Nina); and 6 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Harry Lloyd Wilson and Edith Eleanor Hageman Knighton; his stepfather, George Robert Knighton; his siblings Robert, Roger, Jenny and Kenneth Knighton; and his granddaughter Anne Knighton-Perez.

His family expresses gratitude to those who provided care and support during his final days, including his hospice care team and the supportive staff at Creekside Senior Living.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, May 4, 2026, at Russon Mortuary, 295 North Main Street, Bountiful, Utah. A viewing will be held prior to the service from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at the mortuary. He will be interred at Bountiful City Cemetery.