Founders and History
Lawrence Taylor Dee was born in 1891 in Ogden, Utah, the youngest of eight children of Thomas D. and Annie Taylor Dee. Janet Sears Teller was born in 1894 in Pueblo, Colorado, the oldest of two children of Charles B. and Jeannie Sears Teller, and grew up in Chicago. They met in 1914 while traveling on a train from back east, married the next year, and settled in Ogden, where they made their home until their deaths in 1976 and 1977.
As a couple, Laurie and Janet spent their adult lives contributing to the growth and economic prosperity of Ogden. He was an astute business man, civic leader, and philanthropist. In addition to his long business career with the Utah Canning Co., he served the Ogden
community through involvement in many community and service organizations, and local boards. Janet was also active in Ogden’s development, contributing her considerable energy and enthusiasm to local community services.
They had an appreciation for the value of education, and supported learning excellence at all levels. They knew the importance of the arts, and both were involved with and supported arts organizations in Ogden and northern Utah. Foremost, they were tireless in their efforts to provide excellent health care in the Ogden community. As a young man Laurie joined his six sisters and mother to found the Thomas D. Dee Memorial Hospital, which later became the McKay-Dee Hospital, and served over 50 years as a trustee.
The founders established the Lawrence T. and Janet T. Dee Foundation in 1971 for the purpose of benefiting Ogden and the surrounding area through charitable endeavors. Their son, Thomas D. Dee II (know as Tommy), was a founding director of the Foundation and continued their vision, serving as chair until his death in 2009. The family wished to give back to a community which had supported them during their lifetimes.Lawrence and Janet Dee, and their son Tommy, will be forever remembered for their love of each other, family, friends, and community; in their service to others; and their faith in the future.
Annie Taylor Dee Foundation
The Annie Taylor Dee Foundation is a Utah charitable foundation which has as its primary purpose benefiting the McKay-Dee Hospital in Ogden, Utah. This foundation is closed to applicants other than the McKay-Dee Hospital and the McKay-Dee Hospital Foundation.