Shari Wright Moran

On Tuesday, October 21, 2025, the world lost a bright and tender soul. Shari Wright Moran, MDiv passed away peacefully at the age of 69 in Orlando, Florida.
Born on a midsummer night in 1956 in Newport News, Virginia to Donald E. Wright, Sr., and Louise Compher Wright, Shari came into the world as the smallest of three triplet girls, the first set to survive in the city's history. She grew up near the James River in Hilton Village, surrounded by siblings, friends, laughter, and the lessons that would shape her lifelong strength and empathy.
From her earliest years, Shari learned the value of resilience. Though her family faced hardship and loss, she carried forward a spirit of compassion, humor, and forgiveness that touched everyone she met. She worked hard, loved deeply, and believed in second chances for herself and for others.
After graduating from Warwick High School, Shari began a long and successful career as a database analyst, spending 21 years at NASA in Hampton, Virginia before continuing her work at the Medical College of Virginia (now VCU Health Systems) in Richmond, Virginia. At 25, Shari married Tom Moran, and together they welcomed their son, David, in 1983. Being David's mother was her greatest joy and deepest pride. The bond they shared was a constant source of love and laughter, a reflection, she often said, of God's own tenderness.
Shari's sharp mind and strong work ethic supported her family and opened doors for new beginnings. While working full-time as a single mother, Shari earned a college degree from St. Leo University in 1995. Until going to seminary, this was one of her proudest accomplishments.
Shari's truest calling came in the 2010s - a spiritual vocation to bring comfort and hope to others as a minister and hospital chaplain. She moved to California and earned her Master of Divinity from San Francisco Theological Seminary in 2016. Her faith was not merely belief but lived love, grounded in grace, inclusion, and the boundless compassion of God.
Later in life, Shari came out as a lesbian and embraced her truth with courage and grace. Through all seasons, she cherished the friendships that filled her life, from the Hilton gang to her coworkers from NASA and MCV to her bowling team and poker groups to her church and seminary communities. Her circle of friends, stretching from Virginia to California, became her extended family.
Shari's faith journey was central to who she was. From an early experience of salvation to her discovery of an open and affirming church, she came to believe deeply in a God whose love crosses every boundary - social, political, or personal. She lived by the words of Isaiah 61: "to bring glad tidings to the meek and bind up the brokenhearted." And that is what she did every day, through small acts of kindness, understanding, and care.
For Shari, her beloved family, friends and animals meant the world to her. In addition to her parents, Shari was preceded in death by her brother Donald E. Wright, Jr. Her "precious pups" Oscar and Maple also predeceased her. She is survived by her son, David Moran; her brothers David Craig Wright (Ann) and Steve Wright (Lee); her triplet sisters Joy Wright Whitenack and Beth Wright East (Larry); her nieces Amanda Wright, Rachel East Nicoletto (Rob, Naomi, Lydia and Blair), Emily Wright (Mitchell), and Laura Wright Sturgill (Chris, Dorothy and Kayla); and many dear friends and extended family who will forever remember her humor, honesty, and faith in love above all else.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her honor to Feeding America, the Metropolitan Community Church of Richmond, or the American Cancer Society. A celebration of life for Shari will be held at a later date. To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Shari, please visit our floral store.