Erma Electa Charlton Penman, a daughter of Thomas Etherington and Isabel Skeen Charlton was born October 15, 1912 at Ogden, Weber County, Utah. The family moved to West Weber when Erma was about one month old.

Erma was a brilliant scholar and graduated from Weber High School in 1929 at the age of 16 years. She went to Mesa, Arizona soon after and resided with her aunt Electa Skeen Johnson for a year. While there, she worked and attended a business school in the evenings.

On September 18, 1931 she was married to James Andrew Penman in the Salt Lake Temple. They are the parents of the following five daughters: Alice, Ruth, Barbara, June and Pauline.

Music has played an important part in Erma's life. She has served as an organist in the MIA; organist in the Primary in West Weber Ward from 1935 to 1953, and Primary Stake organist from 1951 to 1966. She was appointed organist of the Sunday School in 1943, and with two short vacations to welcome new babies has continued until the present time (1968).

In addition to being organist, she taught a class in the Primary for four years and in the Sunday School for two years. Erma was appointed second counselor to President Laura Bell Heslop in the Ward Relief Society, September 16, 1945, and first counselor, September 29, 1946. She was released July 27, 1947.

Much of her time has been spent doing genealogical research, in which she became interested when 12 years of age. She was on the Stake Genealogical board for several years and taught a genealogy class in the Sunday School for about two years.

As a member of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, she has served as organist and secretary.

One of the highlights of Erma's life was when she and her husband took a six-week vacation and went to Finland to meet their daughter, Alice, when she was released from her mission in the fall of 1960. They traveled through ten different countries and visited the Temple at London, England and Bern, Switzerland. While in London they visited Somerset House and were able to do some research work.

Erma enjoys doing temple work; has visited nine of the temples, and hopes to visit the rest of them some day.

Source:

In The Bend Of The River

History Of West Weber 1859-1976