Cheryl Annmarion Jenkins-Brust

Cheryl Annmarion Jenkins-Brust of Vista passed away on December 15, 2021, after a four-year battle with metastatic lung cancer. She preferred to be known as "Cher", which some think was chosen in honor of her favorite singer but that is not correct; her favorite singer was Stevie Nicks. Cher was a regular at local karaoke bars, first in Escondido and later in Vista and Oceanside, for as long as she was able to go. Her rendition of "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath was especially well received and may even be considered the stuff of local legend. The same goes for her liveliness, her sense of humor, her tendency to bombard people with home-baked cupcakes, and her drive to help friends in need as much as she was able to, and then some.

Cher came into this world on November 10, 1961 in Ocean Beach, San Diego, and grew up in Oceanside. Dolphins were her favorite kind of animal, which her decorating choices made perfectly obvious, and if the circumstances had been right she probably would have made an excellent marine biologist. But returning from what could have been to what was, Cher became an excellent nursing student and then an excellent nurse at Tri-City Medical Center, first as a licensed practical nurse and then as a registered nurse. Multiple sclerosis cut her nursing career short, not long after she began her career as a mother. Despite the serious challenges of living with her disease and without as much support as our society ought to give the disabled, Cher nevertheless successfully and lovingly raised four children, who all survive her today: Michelle Jenkins-Simons (and son-in-law Roy Simons) of Toledo, Ohio; and Chris Jenkins, Ian Jenkins, and Erin Jenkins of Vista. Cher is also survived by her husband James Brust of Vista; her mother Mary Carman of Rancho Bernardo, San Diego; her brothers Pat Carman (and sister-in-law Lisa Carman) of Oak Park, Minnesota, Jeff Carman of Rancho Penasquitos, San Diego, and Shawn Carman of Diamond Bar; her grandchildren Jared Simons, Garrett Simons, and Shallyn Simons of Toledo, Ohio; her cat Willow, her grand-dog Zeus; several plants out on the patio; and a few neighborhood birds who may have found a new favorite breakfast spot by now.

Like many people, Cher contained multitudes that cannot be fully expressed here. She was an avid adventurer, a devout Christian, an expert patron of thrift shops and dollar stores, a collector of VHS cassettes, a connoisseur of crude jokes, and a true poet. She was a laugher, a lover, a fighter, and a light in the lives of everyone who was lucky enough to be enriched by knowing her.