Sharon Theresa Dunn

1946 - 2025

Sharon Theresa Dunn, 79, of Westmoreland, NH, passed away on November 22, 2025, from complications following her long and courageous battle with Alzheimer's disease. Her spirit, her will, and her smile stayed with her to the very end.

Sharon was a friend to all. Whatever she did in life, she did with love, grace, and a deep connection to people, animals, and the natural world. And she always loved a good conversation.

Born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland, Sharon attended the University of Maryland and the Washington Montessori Institute. Bringing her degrees to Keene, she helped found - and was one of the first teachers at - the Keene Montessori School. Teaching, especially the Montessori method, was her lifelong passion. Along with gardening, cooking and traveling.

For a time, Sharon was a rural mail carrier in West Brattleboro, and if you were near your mailbox when she arrived, you could be sure she would stop for a chat. Later, when she became "the passport lady" at the Brattleboro Post Office, you left with your passport, often only after a lively conversation about your travel plans. Sharon was also a businesswoman, founding and operating the Elliott Street consignment shop Twice Upon a Time.

Sharon was deeply involved with Brattleboro Area Hospice, both as a trained caregiver and as one of the "Sortin' Sisters," a group of friends who organized, tagged, and helped run things at Experienced Goods. She also served on the Board of Brattleboro Affordable Housing. An avid gardener and a cook of near-professional talent, she shared her bounty generously with neighbors and the broader community in Westmoreland and beyond.

Above all, Sharon was a fierce and loving mother to her children, Forrest Bencivenga and her husband, Shalem of Keene and Dylan Pierpont of Harrisville; a devoted wife and partner to her husband of nearly 40 years, Paul Berch of Westmoreland; and a proud grandmother to Julien, Rosa, and Harvey. She is also survived by her big brother, John Dunn of Carmel Valley, California, along with countless dear friends who were, in every way, family.

Please take a moment today to give a hug-if you can-to someone you love. Sharon would approve. If you wish to send flowers, the family asks that they be sent to the Fourth Floor at Maplewood Nursing Home in Westmoreland, whose extraordinary staff cared for Sharon with compassion, dignity, and love.