Tamara Bowles

Tamara Smith Bowles passed away peacefully on March 11, 2026, at her home in the mountains, surrounded by her loving family. Raised in Hyrum, Utah, as the second child of Gary and Dawna Smith, she followed closely behind her older brother and Irish twin, Thom, and was soon joined by three younger sisters who remained her lifelong friends and sources of support. After her family moved to a rambling farmhouse in Fairview, Idaho, she graduated from Preston High School and briefly tried her hand at barrel racing.

Her life truly blossomed when she married Zan Bowles on August 9, 1978. Together they put down roots in Fairview, building a life centered on faith, community service, and above all, family. Tamara had a natural gift for motherhood. She gave birth to six children and raised five of them with deep devotion. Though she later moved with Zan to their mountain home in Cub River, she embraced her new surroundings, forming cherished friendships and finding peace in the mountain sanctuary she came to love.

Tamara adored her five sons-in-law, often siding with them in playful arguments and nurturing individual relationships with each one. Yet nothing brought her greater joy than being a grandmother. Known as Grandma Cordee to most, Grandma Roxy to some, and simply “the grandma who lives in the mountains” to the youngest, she created magic for her twenty-two grandchildren through traditions like Bear Lake family reunions, birthday breakfasts, Christmas cabin sleepovers, and rodeo nights filled with licorice. Her love was unconditional, playful, and deeply felt.

She shared a beautiful marriage with Zan, who often said they had done marriage right. Their devotion to one another, marked by shared adventures and quiet companionship, left a lasting impression on their family and all who witnessed it. Tamara faced cancer with courage, supported by dear friends and dedicated caregivers. She was preceded in death by her father, Gary Smith, her son Zan Brock, and her granddaughter Grayce Smith. She is survived by her husband Zan Bowles, her mother Dawna Smith, her four siblings, her five children—Trisha (Matt) Smith of Franklin, Dani (Brett) Bloom of Fairview, Andrea (Trevor) Hatch of Fairview, Brittin (Ben) Turnbow of Weston, and Dixon (Malik) Van Hoozer-Bowles of Orlando—three extra children by love, twenty-one grandchildren, and two grandsons-in-law.