Mom

After a valiant battle against breast cancer and its complications, Laurel (Laurie) Gwen Sheffield Brown slipped into the next world to join her husband, Dennis, on January 14th, 2011. Her life was distinguished by a seemingly endless supply of kindness, gratitude, and faith.

Laurie was born in Springville, Utah on July 7, 1947 to Erwin and Katherine Sheffield. As a young girl, she doted on her parents and was devastated when she lost her mother at the young age of thirteen. Refusing to be defined by tragedy, she determined to develop a positive, grateful attitude and worked throughout her life to find the good in even the most difficult of circumstances. She grew up loving her three sisters and two brothers, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Beach Boys, and BYU sports.

When she was nineteen years old, she attended Ricks College and there met Dennis Brown, a tall, dashing farmboy who had just returned from a mission to Chile. Just a few months after they met, the two were married in the Salt Lake City temple on November 23, 1967. It was then that Laurie began her great work in life: being a wife and mother.

Laurie and Dennis had four children: Jason, Mark, David, and Daniel. Being a mother to four rambunctious, sometimes difficult boys was a challenge but Laurie loved her sons steadily and without question. She encouraged them in their interests, comforted them in their heartbreaks, and always provided a listening ear. The happiness of her husband and sons was her highest priority.

Membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints provided Laurie with many opportunities to serve others. She served in presidencies for the Relief Society, Sunday School, and the Young Women organization at both ward and stake levels. She helped organize Girls Camps, Wyoming Treks, and humanitarian projects. Besides the more public aspects of her service, Laurie also made a regular habit of small, private kindnesses. She often sent notes or offered small thoughtful gifts to people who were suffering, or stopped by just to visit. She took every opportunity to brighten someone else’s day, and rarely spent any time thinking of herself because she was too busy improving the lives and lifting the hearts of those around her.

Laurie retired after a career working at Ricks College and then BYU-Idaho. She loved the friends she made as she worked as the secretary for the Theater and Dance department and, later, the secretary for the Division of Performing and Fine Arts.

Despite being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in her late thirties, Laurie didn’t let her physical impairments stop her from living a full life. She considered her full-time job to be being Grandma. Spending time with her grandchildren was one of the greatest joys of her life and she loved talking and playing with each one. She made sure that they knew how special and loved they were and, in turn, she was loved deeply by each of them.

When Laurie was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008, she didn’t think she had a lot of time left. She worked hard to stay active, engaged with her family and friends, and to serve faithfully in her calling. She lasted far longer than anyone anticipated and never lost her sense of dignity. Even in the last days of her life, she never failed to say “thank you” to those who helped her. Laurie set the highest standard of faith, kindness, and perseverance. She was a woman of uncommon goodness and her family and friends will miss her.