Sharon Hegele

Sharon S. Hegele, 81, began celebrating her homecoming with Jesus Tuesday, June 20, 2023.

Sharon was born to love children and youth including her own family, and other's kids in school and church and often random kids in restaurants and retail stores. She also cared for elderly or ill friends and neighbors, including her own parents, Truman Carnicom and Winifred Carnicom in Ohio.

Growing up in Fostoria, Ohio, Sharon enjoyed the piano, the clarinet, was active in Job's Daughters and Fostoria Christian Church. Annual attendance at Camp Christian in Ohio helped to spark her lifelong love for Jesus.

Sharon received her BA Elementary Education degree at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, where she met her best friend Beverly Hegele, who later introduced her brother Fred. Sharon become Fred's (Phi Kappa Psi) sweetheart and ultimately his wife in 1965.

Moving from Ohio to Minnesota in the late 1960s, Sharon loved being a stay-at-home mom and community volunteer. She organized a campfire group for daughter Beth and friends beginning in early elementary school through high school. She started her own small business, Hegele Resources Unlimited, taught Jr. Great Books in Wayzata Public Schools and was active in PTA and church organizations.

Jesus called Sharon back to the college campus when her nest at home emptied. She attended United Theological Seminary after completing a masters degree in Organizational Leadership at Saint Catherine University. She was consecrated as a Diaconal Minister and later ordained as a Deacon in the United Methodist Church. At River Hills United Methodist Church in Burnsville and Messiah Church in Plymouth Sharon led children and youth activities with an emphasis upon confirmation programs. She also cherished performing many wedding services for former confirmation students.

Sharon loved being a "mom" and "grandma." She was totally consumed with activities in her kids' school, sports and extracurricular activities. She was a Sunday School teacher, a Room Mom at school. She never missed one of Beth's volleyball or softball games or Steve's hockey or baseball games. She was an artist specializing in cross stitching.

One special highlight was taking each of her six grandchildren at age 10 to Washington, D.C., to teach a patriotic spirit in her great homeland - The United States of America. The family cabin on Stony Lake was one of the sacred places in Sharon's life where she gathered together with family and her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. She plans to spend an eternity at Stony Lake in the woods with her lilies of the valley and lady slippers, but "never, never" in the water…

Sharon loved traveling and eating out as a great alternative to cooking at home. She helped organize the United Methodist Church annual Conferences for many years and together with Fred enjoyed mission work in Bolivia and Kenya. One of her greatest loves in retirement was working with Imara International in Nanyuki, Kenya, where teenage moms and their children receive an education and learn to love Jesus. And they adored Sharon.

She is survived by her husband Fred; son Steven Hegele of Shoreview and daughter Beth (Christopher) Berg of Corcoran; granddaughters Emily Berg, Kate Berg, Jessica Hegele, Ellen Hegele; grandsons John Hegele and William Hegele; sister, Sandra Tredente; and much family in Ohio and several other states.

A celebration of Sharon's life will be held at Messiah Church in Plymouth July 10 at 2 p.m. A social time together with family will start at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Interfaith Outreach and Community Partners in Plymouth and Imara International.