Rodney Grant Garner, of Pleasant View, Utah, died on February 18, 2018, as a result of complications from surgery.
In 1973 Rod began working with his father-in-law at Mountain Alarm. Under his leadership as president and CEO, Mountain Alarm grew from a four-person operation to the No. 28-ranked security dealer on the SDM 100 in 2017. Today, Mountain Alarm has more than 43,000 customers and employs more than 275 security professionals with 11 locations across six states. Garner was passionate about his work and never planned to retire, the company reported.
In its statement following Garner’s death, Mountain Alarm said:
Rod made friends everywhere he went. He considered many in the security industry to be some of his best friends. He valued honesty and loyalty above all else and others saw that in him.
Rod loved acquiring other alarm companies. Often sellers would choose to sell their business to Rod solely because they trusted him to do what he said he would and care for their customers. Rod helped Mountain Alarm acquire more than 30 security alarm companies over his 45-year career.
Above all else Rod loved his customers. Almost daily Rod would call a number of his 43,000 customers to make sure they were happy and satisfied. In fact a few weeks ago he noticed a house he passed on his way to work every day had a competitor’s sign in their yard instead of a Mountain Alarm yard sign. Immediately he stopped and knocked on the door to see why the customer switched to the competitor. He introduced himself as the CEO and mentioned he noticed the change in yard sign. Luckily the customer only bought solar from the competitor and still had Mountain Alarm for their security system. Rod gave the customer his card and told them if they ever needed anything to call him personally. The customer was in awe that the CEO would stop and knock on their door. He also quickly replaced the yard sign. The day before Rod passed away his primary care doctor called to check on him and Rod said after the call, “Dr. Hanson really loves his patients, just like I really love my customers.”
Rod’s greatest desire was to perpetuate his legacy in the alarm industry. His sons Josh and Eric Garner will carry on that legacy at AvantGuard Monitoring Centers and Mountain Alarm respectively.
Rod recognized that his greatest achievement was his family. Each of his five children and 21 grandchildren believed he or she was his favorite. He did an excellent job balancing his work and family life. He spent lots of time with everyone he loved sitting on beaches, skiing, fly fishing, pheasant hunting, and discussing the mysteries of life.
A celebration of his life will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday February 23, 2018 at the LDS chapel, 3602 N 500 W Pleasant View, Utah. A viewing for family and friends will be held at Linquist Mortuary, 2140 N 400 E, North Ogden, Utah, Thursday February 22 from 6-8 p.m. and at the chapel from 9-10:30 a.m. just prior to the funeral.
