Sharon Gay Schoumacher

Sharon Gay Schoumacher (née Brown), born January 10, 1937, in Chicago, Illinois, passed away peacefully on March 30 at the age of 89 in McLean, Virginia. She was the beloved daughter of Bernard Ray Brown and Adelaide Schoenberg Brown, and sister of Bruce Albert Brown (deceased).

Sharon is survived by her four children: Robert Schoumacher (Becky), Linda Rozett (Bill), Karen Gentry (Marshall), and Janet Hedrick (Paul). She was a proud grandmother to 12 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren, with another great-grandchild on the way.

After living in five states over the first five years of her marriage to David Schoumacher, an Air Force pilot and journalist, Sharon made her home in Virginia, where she lived for more than 50 years. When her children were young, she returned to school to complete her college degree, inspired by reading Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique. She went on to build a meaningful career with the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Adult and Family Day Care Home Licensing, eventually serving as Director for the Northern Virginia region.

Sharon was an avid reader (belonging to two book clubs) and a dedicated lifelong learner. She participated in and volunteered with Arlington’s Encore Learning program. She learned to sail with her former husband and became an accomplished sailor. As a member of the Sailing Club of Washington, she not only enjoyed sailing with friends but also taught newcomers the joy of being on the water.

Her passion for travel led her to organize a travel club through Encore Learning, and she spent many memorable vacations exploring the world with friends and family. She visited all but one continent and especially cherished sailing—both ocean and river—as a way to experience new places.

She had a lifelong love of theater and musicals, finding joy in sharing that love with her children and grandchildren. She made lasting friends wherever she went, sharing Christmas cards with neighbors from the 1950’s, and was supported in her last years by close friends who had known each other for decades.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 2, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. at Columbia Gardens Cemetery at 3411 Arlington Blvd., Arlington, Virginia 22201.

Sharon will be remembered as a devoted mother, a cherished friend, and a loving grandmother. Her interest in people and places, her warmth and love of family will live on in the generations she inspired and nurtured.