Sharron Brim

SHARRON LOUISE BENSON BRIM 1936-2025

Sharron Louise Benson Brim passed away peacefully in her home in Provo Utah at 4:30 AM on Monday March 3, 2025, after a courageous four-year battle with ovarian cancer.

Sharron was a woman of remarkable beauty, talents, courage, and commitment to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She was fun-loving (friends all commented on how they loved to laugh with her), generous, and very deeply sensitive, empathetic, and wise. She approached her life with confidence, humor, and faith. She excelled in everything she did, from gourmet cooking to choir directing. She made deep friendships lasting from childhood to her last breath and extending from California to Belgium. She had a special love for her pets, especially Taffy, McGregor, Bonnie, and Schatzi, and fully expected to see them beyond mortality.

Sharron was born March 22, 1936, in El Centro California, a depression baby. Her parents, Louise Moser and Joseph Marvin Benson, had moved from Utah to California to work in agriculture. During the first seven years of her life, Sharron, her parents, and sister Maurine (four years older than Sharron) moved from town to town in the San Joaquin and Imperial valleys of California following the cycle of the various food crops. When Pearl Harbor happened, fear that the California coast might also be attacked prompted the family to return to Utah.

Shortly after the move to Utah her father joined the Navy Seabees and her mother moved to Salt Lake City to find employment, leaving Sharron and her sister in the custody of their grandparents Aldine and Henri Moser in Logan. Sharron attributed her deep faith and love of the gospel to her beloved Grandma Moser. Sharron’s grandfather, Henri Moser, was a well-known artist. Watching him paint Sharron learned to love fine art, especially Henri’s, and she became a lifelong collector and advocate for his work.

Just before Sharron’s ninth birthday while still in the care of her grandparents, she and her sister, Maurine, learned by telegram that their Daddy, Marvin, was killed in action in the first wave of the Iwo Jima invasion, February 19, 1945; a devastating experience and loss. Despite an ache in her heart from the loss of her father and separation from her mother, Sharron had a remarkably upbeat and positive approach to life. She performed baptisms in the temple for her beloved ancestors, visited the married student couples in her neighborhood offering free babysitting and household help, organized class parties in school, and rode her bike and roller skated. She innately recognized the value of relationships, serving others, and being active. After four years in Logan, Sharron and her sister were reunited with their mother and moved to Pomona California.

The move to the sophisticated Pomona/Claremont California culture was challenging, but Sharron did not change her approach to life. Her teachers soon became aware of her beautiful lyric soprano voice and opportunities for vocal training and performances multiplied. While in high school the premier vocal coach at Claremont College accepted her as a student. Sharron sang at weddings, funerals, and church services, both of her own faith and other faiths, stake conferences, missionary farewells and homecomings, and community events. Sharron made many friends in high school and enjoyed being highly involved in high school activities including cheer leader, student council, and rally chairman.

Sharron attended Brigham Young University, graduating with a degree in elementary education. She paid her own way with a stipend from the GI Bill, working as secretary to the music department, and teaching ballroom dancing to high school students. At BYU she continued her energetic and fully engaged life as a member of the BYU Program Bureau and the BYU a cappella choir, where she was a soloist. Sharron was chosen Belle of the Y and was one of the famous BYU Song Leaders. As head Song Leader Sharron got the Dean of Women’s approval (signed and dated) to bring the Song Leader uniforms into the modern era and shorten their skirts six inches. Sharron created the patterns and sewed her own uniform. In keeping with Sharron’s impeccable sense of style, they were made of velvet with white fur trim!

Following graduation Sharron began her teaching career in the Culver City school district in Los Angeles. She loved teaching elementary grade students and was recognized for her highly creative and innovative teaching and class management methods. During her five years in LA Sharron directed the Wilshire Ward choir, organized and directed a single adult choir, had a busy social life, and made many lifelong friends.

In 1963 Sharron decided to accept a teaching position in the Cupertino School district in northern California. On the first Sunday she attended the Stanford Singles Ward in Menlo Park and met Larry Brim, a PhD student at Stanford. They were married a year later, July 31, 1964, in the Logan Utah Temple.

Sharron fully supported Larry as his education and employment led the family to several locations: Stanford, Chicago area, Mission Viejo California, Antwerp Belgium, Tampa Florida, Logan and Provo Utah. Children were born along the way: William Joseph at Stanford (1967), Rebecca Lynne in Chicago (1972), and Katherine Louise in Belgium (1976). Sharron continued vocal training at Northwestern University while in the Chicago area and continued vocal performances in each location. She was a member of the Irvine Master Chorale while in Mission Viejo.

In 1975 Sharron and husband, Larry, were called to open the Belgium Antwerp Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Sharron’s deep testimony, outgoing personality, and joyful approach to serving won the hearts of the missionaries and the wonderful Flemish members of the church. Early in her service in Belgium, Sharron organized and trained a missionary choir to participate in a famous Flemish folk music festival in Antwerp. The missionary choir received a standing ovation. She is fondly remembered by the missionaries for her famous Holiday Dinners for all the missionaries with turkey and all the fixings. Sharron was loved and appreciated by the Flemish members for her efforts and amazing ability to learn the difficult Flemish language so she could associate with them and make lasting friendships. Sharron wanted Bill and Becky to be fluent in Flemish also, so Bill was enrolled in a Flemish elementary school and Becky attended a Flemish pre-school. Daughter, Katherine, was born in Belgium.

Throughout her life Sharron was deeply involved serving in various callings in the Church including multiple Relief Society and Young Women presidencies, serving as president in both organizations. But her favorite calling by far was choir directing. She directed ward, Young Women, and stake choirs in almost every place she lived. A highlight of her life was organizing and directing a choir for the Atlanta temple dedication in 1983.

Above all, Sharron’s greatest desire in life was to be a mother, and she succeeded spectacularly! She not only loved her three children, she also thoroughly enjoyed each of them and was totally engaged and interested in everything about them. She treasured every moment of her sacred calling and taught her children faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and that they could be anything they truly wanted to be. She also took great joy in her role as a grandmother and made a point to be highly involved in the lives of her grandchildren. Birthdays, baptisms, school plays, recitals, Eagle Scout ceremonies, graduations, mission farewells—she attended them all as often as she could regardless of the travel involved. In addition there were frequent visits and special times spent playing games, sharing stories, and simply being there as a constant positive presence in their lives. Her loving influence has now extended to her great-grandson and will continue throughout eternity.

Sharron is survived by her husband, Larry; her three children, William Joseph (Sunny Anhder), Rebecca Lynne (Mark Felt), and Katherine Louise (Joe Beatty); her eight grandchildren: Matthew Brim (Kimberly Fletcher), Emily Felt, Johnathon Brim (Elliana Rambo), Rachelle Felt (Zachary Lyman), Allison Brim, Jessica Brim, Brock Felt, and Ingrid Beatty; and great-grandson Carter Brim.

Celebration of Sharron’s life with be on March 22, 2025, Edgemont North Stake Center, 345 East 4525 North, Provo Utah. Visitation from 11:30 AM to 12:45 PM with services following at 1:00 PM. Burial will immediately follow at the East Lawn Memorial Hills Cemetery.