Eunice Miriam (Wilson) Schlenker Obituary (1924 - 2021)

Eunice Miriam Wilson Schlenker of Eden, Utah, died Thursday, March 4, 2021, at Our House of Ogden. On Feb. 2nd she turned 97 years old. She was the widow of Col. Joseph Reeve Schlenker, who died on Dec. 14, 2011. They lived in Eden for 46 years. Eunice was born into a large family in Jacksonville, Florida, where her father worked as a blacksmith for the railroad. As a benefit of her father's job, she traveled back and forth Pepperdine College, then in Los Angeles, California, her alma mater, using every different route possible in order to see the country. Working her way through college, she earned a BA degree in English and Spanish. After college she met her husband, Joseph, in Anchorage, Alaska, in 1947, on another on her intrepid excursions. He was a young Air Corps lieutenant flying the Aleutian Chain as part of WWII and post-war period. As a military family, they were stationed at numerous locations, domestic and abroad, but by far their favorites were the two tours in Germany, where they perfected their skiing and golf. When it was time to retire, they chose Hill Field to explore Utah and they ultimately settled in Eden in 1974. The rest is history. Eunice was a force of nature. Everyone who knew her thought that about her. She was afraid of nothing or nobody. She decided to try out for the mostly patriarchal Nordic Ski Patrol in the early 80s and ended up patrolling there for 17 seasons. She continued to ski into her 90s. In the meantime, she was Wolf Creek Club Golf champion a number of times during the 1990s. She went back to school at Weber State with husband, Joseph, where she became a potter and showed at Ogden's Eccles Art Museum. She was also a stringer for the Associated Press and edited the WSU student newspaper. Raised as a member of the Church of Christ, she and Joseph later became members of the First Presbyterian Church of Ogden, where they worshipped for over twenty years. As part of her last wishes, she created a foundation to help care for the Navajo nation during Covid. She is survived by her daughter, Sheryl Schlenker Brown; sons Reeve (Daria Fane), Stephen, and Greg Schlenker; four grandchildren Darcy (Natasha) and Austen (Sara) Brown and Alexander and Benjamin Fane Schlenker; and one great-grandson Baxter Brown. A viewing will be held at Myers Ogden Mortuary, 845 Washington Blvd. on Monday, March 15th from 6 to 8. Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 16th at Eden Meadow View. Any memorial donations should go to the Mission Team for Navajo Strong at the First Presbyterian Church of Ogden.