Shirlee C. Dale

08/19/1926 – 01/04/2021

Mother slipped away on January 4, 2021.  She was born on August 19, 1926, in Ogden, Utah, to Velda F. and Harold E. Christensen.  The eldest of three children, she attended public school, graduated from Ogden High School in 1944, and took classes at what was then Weber State College.

From the very beginning, Mom demonstrated courage and spunk.  While still a teenager, she killed a coiled rattle snake threatening a group of girls she was leading up a trail.  She dispatched the snake with a rock and took the rattles as a trophy!

She married Donal G. Weaver in 1947.  Together they had a daughter, Leslee, born in 1954, and a son, Bradley, born a year later, who died at six months.  Don and Shirlee divorced in 1975.

Although the death of her baby profoundly affected Mom, she remained a go-getter.  Whatever she did, she did with style and verve.  A placard on her desk read, "A Woman's Place is in Command," and no motto could better capture her spirit.  Always a leader, she was an officer for the American Association of Medical Assistants, Secretary for the Weber County Medical Society, President of the PTA, and a member of many other organizations. In her work life, she served as Secretary to the McKay-Dee Hospital Administrator and was eventually promoted to Fundraising Officer for Intermountain Healthcare where she brought in enough money to build the Bear River Hospital in Northern Utah.

On the domestic side, Mom wasn't much for cooking, but she made a mean rump roast on Sundays, usually accompanied by Jell-O salad, and the gooiest caramel corn this side of the Rockies.  She was also known for her toasted tuna fish sandwiches with chips, Dr. Pepper ("DP"), and Oreos.  In fact, she was such a good saleswoman, she had my friends convinced for years that because she had the Oreo recipe, she baked her own!

Mom relished her newspapers, magazines, and "wish books."  She loved fashion, Miriam Haskell jewelry, and interior design.  People were known to say that she dressed "like a million bucks," and that her home looked like "something out of a magazine."  No one ever suspected that evenings and weekends, Mom donned what we called her "jungle dress," an inexpensive housedress with a wild print, that was so well worn it was held together with Bondex.

But she especially loved gardening.  "This is what heaven looks like," she would say of her flowers.

Later in life, after each had lost their respective spouses, Mother and Daniel D. Dale struck up a correspondence which led to marriage in 1978.  Mom had been Mr. Dale's secretary at the Ogden Chamber of Commerce many years before.  After their wedding, Mom moved to Memphis to make her home with him there.

Her Memphis years were a pleasure.  Mom enjoyed entertaining out-of-town guests who always wanted to see Graceland, Nashville, Mobile, and New Orleans.  Mom's garden with its dogwoods and azaleas was particularly spectacular.  It took her a long time to create—the notorious Southern humidity taught her lessons in slowing down.

Mom and Dan enjoyed their brief time together before he passed in 1983.

Eventually, a new adventure beckoned in San Rafael, California, where Mom ran a one-woman office, had fun decorating and landscaping her Eichler home, and enjoyed trips to San Francisco.

But she had left her heart in the South, so she returned, working for Data General as a Regional Service Representative, and living in Fairfax, Virginia, and then Charlotte, North Carolina, both of which she loved.  She made the rounds in style, driving her 1987 yellow Cadillac Coupe de Ville, a car she prized and still owned at the time of her passing.

When it finally became too difficult for her own mother to live alone in Ogden, Mom "retired" and bought a home in Fresno for the two of them.  Even though Mom thought she had left the workplace behind, she couldn't stay away for long.  She eventually landed a Channel 30 receptionist spot, where she made many great friends and memories.

Mom leaves behind her daughter, Leslee Weaver; sister, Beth Ashby; brother, Phil "Chris" Christensen; nieces, Meredith Fowler and Gail McLelland; nephew, Guy Ashby; and several great- and great-great-nieces and nephews.

In addition to Mom's many loving friends, deep gratitude goes to her devoted caregiver, Pamela Rodriguez; Meredith Fowler and Gail McLelland; and great-niece, Carolyn Dunkle for their compassionate care and support.

As soon as it's safe to travel and gather again, we'll celebrate Mom's life and lay her ashes to rest in her hometown.

In the meantime, please consider making a donation in Mom's memory to Hinds Hospice, the Alzheimer's Association, the Humane Society, or the World Wildlife Fund.

I recall that whenever I'd  tease or argue with Mom, she'd remark, "You're gonna miss me when I'm gone" -- and I do!  But now delight in your heavenly garden, Mother.  You've earned it.