OREM — Orem City Councilman Doug Forsyth, who will be remembered for never taking himself too seriously in the stern realms of politics, died Wednesday night. He was 62.

Mr. Forsyth was battling his third bout with leukemia. The first two times chemotherapy had successfully fought off the disease, and his family assumed this time would be the same.

"It was very unexpected," said Darren Forsyth, his son. "He had a clot in his lungs."

Mr. Forsyth was pronounced dead at 8:52 p.m. at Timpanogos Regional Hospital.

Mr. Forsyth lived in Orem for 35 years. He majored in sociology at Brigham Young University and was a pharmaceutical representative for 33 years for Ortho-McNeil Inc.

Mr. Forsyth's father was killed in a plane crash when Mr. Forsyth was a child, and he had to assume many adult responsibilities. Mayor Jerry Washburn, who knew Mr. Forsyth since childhood, remembers "the caring concern he gave to his widowed mother."

Mr. Forsyth was appointed to the City Council to fill a vacancy in July 2002. He was elected to fill the seat in November 2003. He represented the Sharon, Northridge and Sunset Heights neighborhoods.

During his time on the City Council, Mr. Forsyth worked hard to mend fences between Utah Valley State College and the surrounding neighborhood, which were at odds over issues such as student parking.

He also served on the library, recreation and SCERA boards.

Councilman Dean Dickerson chuckled as he remembered banter between Mr. Forsyth and other members of the City Council. He called himself the "liver or lungs" of the City Council.

"(Councilman) Les Campbell said Mr. Forsyth was the heart of the City Council," Dickerson said. "And Doug would kind of poke fun at that. Where Les was being maybe overly dramatic, Doug was always quick to remind everybody (that) maybe elected officials are taking themselves too seriously."

Campbell said Mr. Forsyth was dedicated in all the tasks he assumed. He rose at 4:30 a.m. on Tuesdays for church responsibilities. In the evening, he attended City Council meetings that sometimes lasted until 11 p.m.

"I've only known Doug to leave one of our meetings," Campbell said. "It was the last one we had. He was taking chemo. He was feeling ill and had to excuse himself."

Mr. Forsyth voted on difficult decisions after much thought and study. He never flip-flopped or made promises he couldn't keep, Campbell said.

"You never had a question where Doug stood on any issue," he said. "He was not a politician. He was not a wheeler-dealer kind of guy that you often see in politics. He was very clear in explaining how he felt about things. He would vote the way he felt, even if he was the only one. And that's very commendable today."

Mr. Forsyth is survived by his wife, Andrea, four sons, a daughter and 17 grandchildren.

A viewing is scheduled for Monday from 6-8 p.m. at Walker-Sanderson Mortuary, 646 E. 800 North, Orem. Funeral will be Tuesday at 11 a.m. at the LDS church at 200 N. 250 East, Orem.

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com