Obituary for Mary Sharrah

Mary Emma Sharrah

(January 27, 1928 – October 26, 2015)

Mary Emma Norris Sharrah, 87, of Naples, Florida, beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away Monday, October 26th, 2015.

Mary was born January 27, 1928 in Ponca City, Oklahoma to Leo and Lenora Norris. Mary attended Ponca City Senior High and worked in the Kay County Clerk’s Office in Newkirk and for Conoco in Ponca City before becoming a full time homemaker.

On August 16, 1957, she married Marion “Slim” Sharrah in Ponca City. Slim worked for Conoco from 1948-1987, and retired as the senior vice president of technology in 1987. Mary and Slim were residents of New Canaan, Connecticut from 1965-1983 and moved to Naples, Florida in 1987 from Chadds Ford, PA. Mary was an active member of the Methodist Church in New Canaan, CT and frequent volunteer for a number of organizations. She will be remembered for her kindness to others, fierce independence and her indomitable spirit. Each week while living in New Canaan, she would drive to West Haven, CT where she volunteered at the Veterans’ Administration Hospital and would take her smile with her. After moving to Naples, she joined the Quail Creek Country Club and was a charter member of the Quail Women Out for Fun (QWOFF) group. Mary was an avid golfer, bridge player and beautiful water skier. Besides being an astoundingly accurate bookkeeper, Mary was an accomplished artist. Her talent was expressed in myriads of realist paintings and watercolors, portraying a wide variety of scenes through her unique ability to give life to landscapes and common objects on the canvas.

Survivors include three sons, Glenn Savage of Naples, Florida; Karl Sharrah of Houston, Texas; John Sharrah of Lyons, Colorado; a daughter, Cindy Swensen of Laguna Beach, California; six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

The graveside service will be held Saturday, November 7, 2015 at 11:00 am at Resthaven Memorial Park in Ponca City, Oklahoma with a lunch reception to follow at The Ponca City Country Club. Friends may view Mary at Trout Funeral Home Friday, November 6, 2015 until 8 p.m. and Saturday morning from 8:00-9:00 am. Friends of Mary Emma Norris Sharrah are welcome to attend the graveside service and visit with the family immediately following the service with details to be announced at the ceremony. The Sharrahs are former residents of Ponca City and Slim was a senior manager with Conoco for several decades.

In lieu of a service in Florida, a reception to celebrate Mary’s life will be held at Quail Creek Country Club on Thursday, October 29, 2015 in Naples, Florida.

Source: Trout Funeral Home