Sherman and Eileen were both born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. He chose to go into mining engineering as a vocation, and Eileen decided to become a school teacher. Their paths crossed about 1986 when the ward boundaries in their stake were realigned.

In 1988 the two of them were married. Sherman’s first wife had died about 4 years before he and Eileen married, so Eileen married into a ready made family of seven fine children—3 girls and 4 boys and 25 grandchildren.

Before marriage, they’d talked about a mission, and they submitted papers and were called to serve at the New Zealand Visitors’ Center. In October of 1994 they received a call to serve at Cove Fort starting in February 1995.

They loved their service at the Fort and were grateful for the privilege of working with the many wonderful missionaries there. More than once they likened their experience to “getting a taste of the Celestial Kingdom.”