Carol Esther Gutke Dunn

Carol Esther Gutke Dunn, age 96, passed away peacefully on June 14, 2024. She was born December 19, 1927 in Shelley, Idaho, to Sylvester Charles and Nellie Williams Gutke. She married Dennis Fredrick Dunn on September 30, 1958. Carol is survived by her husband Dennis, and their three children: Tracy (Frank), Robin, and David (Odette). She also leaves behind seven Grandchildren – Megan, Peter, Zachary, Luke (Emmy), Madison, Olivia, & Elizabeth – her brother Gordon (Shirley), many nieces and nephews, and her beloved dog, Millie. Preceding her in death are her parents, Sylvester and Nellie Gutke, her brothers William Gutke and Milan Gutke, and her sister, Rowena (Ronelle) Gutke.

Carol’s life was filled with music. She grew up in a house with musical parents – her mother an accomplished pianist, and her father playing both the trombone and the violin. Carol loved music and learned to play many instruments. She was a very accomplished pianist and graduated from the University of Utah with a bachelor's degree in music. Though she originally started playing the violin, she soon realized that her true love was the piano, where she excelled. A dedicated musician, she could sight-read nearly any music that was placed in front of her. Classical music was her favorite, which she played masterfully, but she could also be found playing more contemporary music as well as Jazz.

She enjoyed a long career as an accompanist for two highly regarded classical voice teachers, Alex Canapari and later Blanche Christensen. She was loved by them for her ability to play any piece of music the student brought in, even if she had never seen or played it previously.

Carol also worked as a hair stylist for years, having her own salon in downtown Salt Lake City, and later serving a small group of women in her home salon.

Carol and husband Denny loved travelling. They toured around many parts of Europe and the world, having a particular affinity for the Kuleana Resort on the island of Maui in Hawaii. They went there often to enjoy the clean fresh air, and beautiful scenery from their condo.

They also tackled many projects together, from digging, by hand, who knows how many cubic yards of dirt in the backyard of their first home to make it useable. Then there were the endless cubic yards of dirt, on the rocky hillside at their property in Mount Aire Canyon, to make room to build a cabin. They loved taking care of their home and yard and constantly strived to improve their surroundings.

Carol had many other talents: the ability to adeptly use a sewing machine, bottle fruits and vegetables, knit, make fudge, caramel, and divinity, to name a few. She was a huge fan of men’s professional tennis, and loved to watch her two favorite players, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer. For much of her life, she was also an avid swimmer. In her twenties, Carol could be found linking some turns at Alta Ski Resort, and she enjoyed fencing as well while she was in school at the University of Utah.

Carol’s life was not without struggle. She gracefully and patiently dealt with bad hip joints, needing her first hip replacement in her mid-50’s. She had several surgeries, eventually having both hips replaced. That did not seem to slow her down though, as she and Denny took on many more projects over the years and continued to travel extensively.

One particularly frustrating health problem was when the arthritis in her hands made it no longer possible to reach a full octave on the piano. But again, with grace and patience, she adapted. And if you didn’t know she couldn’t reach a full octave, you would never know it while listening to her play. She was, and is, truly amazing.

Carol was kind, giving, and took loving care of her family, encouraging her children in anything and everything they were interested in pursuing. We, her family, will greatly miss her as she returns to her heavenly home, but know she has already found her musical home at the piano bench.

A viewing will be held at Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park on 26th June, from 12:00 to 1:00 pm, (3401 S. Highland Dr., Millcreek, UT 84106). A graveside service will be held immediately following the viewing.