I got to room with Gaye when she was the swimming and diving trainer. She never complained about the demand of the job. I'm sure she gave over 100 rubdowns through the course of the conference meets. She would collapse on her bed with the t.v. on, only to be interrupted by an athlete needing medical assistance. On our visit the Wed. before she passed away, I said, "I had a swimmer ask me how many swim meets I have been to in my life and of course I didn't know." I then asked, "Gaye, how many trips have you been on?" Shauna responded with, "It would be easier to count how many days she has been home." Gaye you have left a huge hole to fill, but we know you are home. I thank you for your stalwart example, I will miss taking recruits into the training room and saying, "There is Gaye Merrill the best trainer in the U.S., she has toured with the U.S. National Swim and Dive team." All my love to you and your family,

Shari Skabelund

I just wanted to express my condolences to Gaye's family. She was an amazing lady with such a beautiful smile and laugh. I remember her taking care of me starting as a freshman swimmer at BYU. She didn't just take care of me, she took care of us all. I remember all of the ice bags she got for us and the warts she scraped and the laughs we had at BYU and on the road. Gaye cared about people and she didn't care if you were an All American or a walk-on, she treated everyone the same. To her, you were a person who needed help and was so willing to do what was needed to help you be your very best. That's why everyone loved her. Gaye is part of my BYU experience that I don't ever want to forget.

K.C. Cline Lemon (1987-1991)

McKell Merkley

When I first came to BYU I was a confused little freshman that was terrified of Gaye. She held all the power and if she said someone wasn't allowed to work out there was no fighting her about it. For some of the upper-classmen who's bodies were pretty broken it seemed like she controlled their entire careers and was the one who could tell them it was over- can you say scary?!

Looking back that is one of the funniest misconceptions I have ever had! Holy-Moly no one put in more time than Gaye-Bert did. She'd be with us 45 minutes before practice for treatment, sit through our long practices (boring!), and stay for sometimes hours after our practice doing treatment, paper work, or taking us to the doctors. She always did whatever she could to make sure each athlete's career the best it could be- she was our real life guardian angel!

I don't even know where to start when thinking about all the memories Gaye left with us. I narrowed it down to my "Five Favorite Things of Gaye" from the past four years...

1. She put up with a lot of rehab-ridiculousness that I'm not sure anyone else would have. When me and Nat were sick of rehab in the summer, she let us turn it into a relay and her and Pete would listen to our "We've got the blues" songs. She let us wear goggles to the underwater treadmill and reacted surprisingly well when I held a funeral for the knee brace I was suppose to be wearing. She always took the time to switch our rehab sheet every few weeks to keep it challenging and even let us skip bungy-cord runs when she was feeling extra merciful.

2. She put up with a lot of general-ridiculousness that I'm not sure anyone else would have. She let me and Dee hold tryout's for her van (aka Gaye's Cougar Cab) and would never get us lost even when the GPS had no idea what state we were in. When I secretly signed her up for facebook after she told me not to she only made me sit in the cold pool instead of murdering me like she had previously threatened. When we would go visit her at home she would never tell us to go away even though she sees us all the time, but instead would invite us in, offering M&M's or other little treats she knew we couldn't turn down.

3. So supportive of everyone and everything. No one wants to go to Missouri, Penn state, or New Hampshire in the middle of winter but she came with us every time. She let us have a party in her office when we passed our physicals and let me cry in there every time I failed the cybex machine. She always asked about school and family and was always up-to-date on everyone's lives. She bought the Seniors the most beautiful flowers for our last home meet and would go to Zupa's with us if we ever had anything to celebrate.

4. Gaye = FUNNY. She would fool you by being all professional at first, but the more you got to know her the funnier you'd realize she was. She named the big white bag "Shamu" and would joke with us about all the drivers when we were traveling. From her recent Pep Rally performance with the student trainers to the time she embarrassed Sarah Maxfield with pasties and a water bra, Gaye always had something up her sleeve.

5. She's Just All Around Awesome. Gaye was always such a rock for our team. Not only was she the best trainer we ever could have asked for, she was a great mentor and friend to everyone she came in contact with. She was such a great example for us and an amazing model for us to follow in her footsteps. Gaye was never too busy for us and was always available just to talk. She was a great mother figure for all and she'll be so missed.

Love you Gaye, I know you are already busy doing great things up there in Heaven!

Shay Goulding

Few people have touched as many lives as Gaye has. Her smile and laugh will be missed on our trips in the future. I could always count on Gaye to run in the mornings with me. She was hardcore and would still go when I thought it was too cold. One of my favorite memories is when the two of us ran together in Argentina. I think it was the biggest glimpse I got into who Gaye is. She told me about her battles with breast cancer, about her wonderful family, her career path and how much she loves her job.

Anyone that watched her in action knew she loved her job and loved our girls. Gaye truly was devoted to our athletes and our athletes were devoted to her. When I first got here, I couldn't believe just how much the girls loved and literally venerated her. It didn't take long to realize Gaye deserved all the love and praise that she received. She really was someone special. We'll miss you Gaye. No doubt you have made it back to our Savior.

Thanks for your example.

Shay Goulding

The Taguchi Family

Over the past six years, from the time our son was 8 years old and began attending BYU volleyball camps, Gaye Merrill has been so kind and generous to our son and our family.We attended many away games in Wyoming and Colorado when we live in Fort Collins. Gaye always acknowledged our presence.

When our son, Tanner, got six-packed at a game during warm-ups, Gaye came over and gave him an ice pack. When we brought a snack basket for the team during a camp, Gaye made a personalized BYU water bottle for Tanner. We still have it.

Our family has followed BYU volleyball, both teams, very closely over the past number of years, and Gaye has always noticed us wherever we show up. She was a kind and loving woman who was so good at her job. Her concern for the players was obvious.

We will miss her when we attend games in the future. Our best wishes go out to her family and loved ones--including the students and coaches with whom she worked.

Sincerely,

Rae Anne, Tomoo, and Tanner Taguchi

Terri Riding

When I taught at Tooele High School, I called Gaye to ask if I could bring my students in to do the modalities lab since all we had was a hydrocolator. She had set up this whole thing (with US, diathermy, massage, stim, etc) and then gave all my students T-shirts afterward. She didn't need to, but she did anyway.

Thanks Gaye

Stan Crump

My heartfelt sympathies go out to Gaye’s family and friends. I met Gaye while in grad school at BYU and have known and worked with her ever since. For many years, Gaye was the trainer that was assigned to swimming and diving. She traveled with our team many times. She was also, for several years, one of United States Swimming’s trainers and traveled with various U.S. Swimming teams as they competed in different parts of the world. I have fond memories of our team trips together.

Completely professional in every way, Gaye taught us new ways of doing things all the time. She was also a stalwart friend to the swimmers and divers.

I will miss her, but know we will see each other again.

Stan Crump