Calvin Tyde Tanner

Calvin Tyde Tanner was born on August 20, 1959, in Gallup, New Mexico. He was the third of six children born to Don and Louise Tanner, who Tyde would certainly say were practically perfect parents. He grew up knowing he was loved and became a person who loved. He often said his parents’ one and only flaw was not delaying his kindergarten enrollment by a year, making him the youngest and the smallest in his class. To hear Tyde tell it, that decision alone cost him a career in the NFL.

Tyde left Gallup after high school to attend Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, where he earned a degree in Business Marketing. He took dedicated time out of his college studies to serve a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in London, England. Truthfully, he didn’t take well to the damp cold, but he never let that dampen his love of the British people or Jesus. While Tyde made his career in Entrepreneurial Sales, he’d be the first to admit the greatest sale he ever made was convincing Linda Eckery to marry him.

Tyde and Linda were married in the Washington DC Temple on May 1, 1987, and moved to Gilbert, Arizona soon after—making it their forever home. They welcomed their first child in 1992 and six more followed in quick succession (as in seven kids in the span of nine years). He would often say “Seven is heaven” and he meant it. Tyde reveled in fatherhood. It was his truest calling in this life. He found magic in every moment and his kids grew up knowing they were magical. When it came to instilling confidence in his kids, Tyde cracked the parenting code. His love was loud and sure. His praise, abundant. He showed up for every event, big or small, because he understood that time is love—and his family had forever dibs on both.

In a family of storytellers, no one told a better (or taller) tale than Tyde—it wasn’t so much the content, but his laugh. That laugh deserves its own obituary. Oh, how we’ll miss it. It was a laugh that gathered you in, a laugh to wipe out worries and ward off weariness. A laugh that healed when times were tender and loss loomed large—one that could stitch together the pieces of a broken heart. His laugh was as infectious as it was loud, making it impossible not to join in. Two times in his life, Tyde laughed so hard that he actually passed out, causing those around him to worry (for several eternal seconds) that he might die laughing. He wasn’t worried, saying if he ever did, we’d know he went out on top.

If only life had been so kind. Tyde suffered a series of strokes over the past four years. Two and a half years ago, he suffered complications during a preventative surgery that left him unable to move or speak. Suddenly, the guy this world could never contain found himself confined to the walls of his bedroom. We’ll never fully know how deeply he despaired or how many prayers he whispered to God in his darkest moments, but we do know this: he never gave up on God and never stopped loving and trusting in Him. Tyde believed in a God of miracles. Maybe the miracle was each of us witnessing him never lose his hard-won faith.

Tyde taught us countless lessons these past two and a half years, but that was only a glimpse into the life lessons we learned from him. Here are just a few: love and laughter are inseparable friends—flood the world with both; stay loyal (Packers fan for life, baby!); Hallmark movies are underrated; nothing tops Triscuits and telling stories on the beach; love your people and while you’re at it, make everyone your people. Give until you can’t and then give some more. Tyde took his family’s long legacy of giving to heart and would willingly go without if it meant helping someone in need. Be the friend who always shows up, for the happy and the hard. And of course, when all else fails, laugh. Tyde was as generous with his love as he was his laugh. How lucky were we to have basked in both.

We’re feeling homesick for heaven as we picture the reunion Tyde’s having with his parents, his brother, Sheldon, and countless close friends and family we hold dear. While our world has gone too quiet, theirs is erupting in laughter and love. Tyde is survived by his wife, Linda, and his seven kids, Young (Diane), Jackson (Charlie), Beau, Sabrina, Dawson (Mary), Savannah, and Brooks, as well as his grandson and newest best buddy, Ace. He is also survived by his siblings Don Jr. (Pam), Mitch, Sterling (Brenda), Rachel (Matt), and Sheldon’s wife, Liliane.

In lieu of flowers, love like Tyde did. Loud and sure.

Funeral Service:

Tuesday, April 22nd at 10 AM

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

777 E. Elliot Road

Gilbert, AZ 85234

For those unable to attend, the service may be live-streamed: