Join Us to Honor the Life of Operation HOPE-North County Board Member, Sharon Hall
Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 2 pm
United Methodist Church Vista
490 S. Melrose Dr.
Vista, CA 92083
Sharon was born in Long Beach, California on June 29, 1943, the only child of Donald and Phyllis Williams. As the daughter of a career airman in the US Air Force, Sharon moved often while growing up; from Long Beach to San Antonio, to Montgomery, to Honolulu. She attended nursing school in Mankato, Minnesota, and decided, after graduating, to head west to a warmer climate. After several years working in the emergency room and as a surgical nurse at the old County Hospital in Los Angeles, she completed an M.S. in nursing and began teaching at Pierce College, a Los Angeles Community College campus in Woodland Hills.
In 1970 she married Louis Brett Hall, a fellow student she met during a statistics course at UCLA, in what was a small ceremony at the Little Chapel of the Bells in Las Vegas. They bought a house in the northeast foothills of Los Angeles, and raised their two sons, Walter, born in 1973, and Gregory, in 1975.
In 1989 Sharon completed a Doctorate in Education with Brigham Young University and soon accepted a position as the Dean of the Allied Health Department at Glendale Community College. She served in this capacity until her retirement in 2005. For over forty years Sharon enjoyed the challenges and the rewards of the health care field: she was a tireless advocate for nursing education, and she cared deeply about raising up the next generation of medical nurses.
In addition to a service oriented professional career, Sharon also actively participated in several volunteer efforts to help her community. As a long-standing member of the United Methodist Church in Tujunga, California, Sharon helped organize and administer the food cupboard pantry. She also loved singing in the church choir and served as the choir secretary. She helped to coach winter softball for the Kiwanis League at Sunland Park. She gave talks at elementary schools on the importance of good hygiene and handwashing, complete with infrared lights that illuminated germs to the delight and the dismay of a room full of fourth graders.
After retirement, Sharon and her husband relocated to the Oceanside community of Oceana. Freed from the constraints and demands of a career, Sharon was able to devote even more time and energy to volunteering and community service. In Oceana she helped in various capacities for the Homeowners Association, including a long stint performing committee work for the landscape board.
Sharon served for many years as a volunteer for Operation HOPE-North County, an emergency bridge housing shelter for families and single women experiencing homelessness. She served on the Board as Vice-President and Secretary and chaired the Steering Committee for many years, as well as participated in Personnel, Governance and Resource Development Committees. Sharon’s passion for helping others made her a keen advocate for best practices within the program, and her leadership and attention to detail helped the organization to excel over the years with fundraising events. Sharon continued serving tirelessly for Operation HOPE-North County until only a few days before her passing.
Her sons, Walter (& his wife Chris) and Greg, and her twin granddaughters, Lilly & Cora brought immense joy to her life. She was also devoted to Dobie, her pionus parrot that she so lovingly cared for. After a brief illness, Sharon passed away peacefully at home on January 12, 2023, comforted by the presence of family and friends. She was preceded in death by her beloved parents, and she survived her husband of 52 years by just over six months.
