HEATHSVILLE—Sharon Brunk Oehler, 86, departed this world peacefully on February 6, 2024, at her home in Heathsville. She was born on July 13, 1937, in Lima, Ohio.
Sharon lived a full life. She graduated from Miami University of Ohio in 1959, lived for a while in California, South Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and across the pond in Vienna, Austria, while raising two children. With her full-time parenting duties completed, she accepted a position at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. A couple of years thereafter, she began a career at the Central Intelligence Agency in Langley, where she would spend nearly 20 years. She retired from there in 1999.
After retirement, Sharon moved to the Northern Neck, her sanctuary on the water. She often would say she had already passed away and was in her heaven. Her favorite moments were the quiet times sitting on her deck, overlooking the water with a Michelob Ultra in hand while watching her hummingbird friends feast at the feeders she meticulously kept filled.
Sharon was artistically gifted (her home is adorned with many of her paintings), passionate about classical music (she was a long-time patron of the Northern Neck Orchestra) and a talented cook. Dinner invitations to her home were highly coveted in her community and among her circle of friends. She constantly pushed the envelope when it came to preparing meals.
Sharon will be remembered by all who knew her as a warm, light-hearted, engaging person, with a sophisticated sense of humor. She was also an amazing listener and a wonderful person to while away the time with just sitting and talking. She had broad interests and could talk about almost any subject at length. She fully enjoyed life, but never took it too seriously. She always enjoyed meeting new people and hearing stories about their lives. She loved her time as a volunteer at the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum, where she would meet people from around the country and the world.
Sharon was preceded in death by her parents, A. Martha and Wilfred L. Brunk.
She is survived by her husband, Gordon C. Oehler of Heathsville; her son, Alan MacEachin (Monique) of Heathsville; her daughter, Amy Smoller of Benecia, Calif.; her brother, W. Larry Brunk (Gloria) of Elida, Ohio; her granddaughters, Lindsay MacEachin of Winchester and Naomi Smoller of Berkeley, Calif.; her grandsons, Brent Smoller of London, England, and Nate Smoller of San Francisco, Calif.; her great-granddaughter, Georgia Morton of Winchester; and her great grandson, Camden Jacobsen of Winchester.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Northern Neck Orchestra by visiting www.nnofoundation.org.
A private celebration of Sharon’s life will be held at a later date. While her body may have departed this world, her spirit remains and brings joyful memories to all who knew her in life.
