Sheila S. Brown - February 17, 2024

Hemet, CA

Sheila Brown passed away peacefully in the wee hours of February 17, 2024 at the age of 84 after succumbing to the maladies of aging. Her final days were spent in the company of her youngest son and long-term partner. Sheila was a British citizen born and raised in the city of Manchester. Her mother, Dara Brown (Scotson), passed away from cancer when Sheila was a young girl and so she was raised by her father Frank Brown, older brother Tom, and “Aunty Hilda”. As a brave and fierce young woman Sheila left England as a teenager to immigrate to America. She spent, as she would describe with a wry smile, “two cold years” in Canada waiting for her Form I-151 “green” card. Once she made it to California however, she never left. A lover of the ocean, the sun, and the warmth, she was truly at home in the western edge of the new world.

Sheila was a mother, a grandmother, a partner, a friend, a kind stranger, a trail blazer, an entrepreneur, a teacher, a community volunteer, an exercise enthusiast, a fighter, a protector, a good time, and a truly wonderful person. She was complex and had faced many challenges in her life, but was blessed with a great sense of humor, a devilish wit, the gift of self-reflection and kindness, and the desire to always be a better person. She had a challenging childhood, been married and divorced three times, and had experienced the pain of a child passing. But she was also blessed with two thriving grandchildren, a loving son, good friends, and an amazingly caring partner.

Sheila raised her two boys, Derek Gaertner and Michael Stanley, in Manhattan Beach and Novato, California. She lost her eldest son, Michael, a few years ago. Her youngest son, Derek, lives in Encinitas, California with his wife Andrea and two sons Ames and Tate.

Sheila’s first home in America was in Los Angeles, and despite no formal higher education, she worked in the emerging field of computers in the 1960’s and 70’s. She could tell stories of selling computers as big as a room and being the only woman on a sales team of 30 plus people. She was a decorated salesperson with the photos and plaques to prove it! In the early 80’s she moved to northern California just north of San Francisco. There, she established businesses in real estate and mail order clothing. Although entrepreneurship required long hours, they were flexible so she could always be there for her boys and be the team mom for literally hundreds and hundreds of youth soccer games.

In the mid 90’s, after her youngest son left the nest, she moved to Santa Barbara where she purchased a retail clothing store. Then in the early 2000’s she sold her business and moved to Hemet to be close to her eldest son and semi-retire. Always the exercise enthusiast she embraced her new community with her life-long passion for fitness. Sheila taught exercise classes at various locations in Hemet eventually being recognized for community service and for positively improving the lives of many.

In Hemet, she found peace and happiness in a community of friends and a special partner of 17 years in Michael Olguin. Together they enjoyed fabulous nights out dancing, dining, and socializing with friends. She loved their trips, visiting the coast, walking the dogs, and visiting with and hosting friends and neighbors. At home she found peace and quiet in the views of the surrounding San Jacinto mountains and the rhythms of the ducks and the turtles out her backdoor. She is truly missed by her family, partner and friends.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 2pm on March at Valley Evangelical Free Church, 341 N. Lake Street, Hemet, CA 92544.