Sharon Beth Nakich, 41, of Forest Hill, Maryland, passed away peacefully surrounded by family and in the arms of her loving husband, Matt, on Saturday, March 23, 2019. Born May 29, 1977 in New York City, New York, she was the daughter of Robert and Carolynn Ranftle. She was preceded in death by her father, Robert.
She is survived by her husband, Matt and her stepson, Lucas Nakich. Brother: Michael Ranftle of New Jersey, In-Laws: John and Michele Nakich of Berlin, Pennsylvania, Sisters-in Law: Jenny Nakich and Becky (Kyle) Courtney, and three nephews: Tyler, Max, and Beau, and one niece: Rudy, all of Berlin, Pa. Also survived by her beloved Goddaughter, Daisy Burton of Wayne, New Jersey, her Aunt Barb and Uncle Kent (deceased), cousins Kent, Mike, Tim, and Chris (Utter), and Aunt Ellen and Uncle Charlie, cousins Will and Bob (Millar).
Sharon grew up first in New Milford then River Vale, New Jersey. Always happy and vivacious, she made friends wherever she went. Especially fun were family vacations to the Jersey Shore in the summer and ski vacations in the winter.
Sharon was a joy to her family growing up and as an adult. Her loss will forever be felt by them. She was a 1995 graduate of Pascack Valley High School of Hillsdale, New Jersey.
She attended the University of Maryland where she earned a Bachelor Degree in English and began working on her MBA at George Washington University. She worked for ADS, Inc. of Virginia Beach, Virginia, where she slayed company sales goals and made friends with everyone she met. Prior to ADS, she worked as a program manager at both NIST and Leidos.
She loved teaching English at CCBC Es as an adjunct professor. Sharon loved life and its little pleasures. She especially enjoyed being outside.
Whenever it snowed, she would run out to her backyard and sled ride all day long. Ski trips with her family to Killington and Hidden Valley were among her favorite ways to enjoy the outdoors. She also loved the summer months when she could go to the beach, kayak, and float down Deer Creek.
She adored Luke and loved to watch him play baseball. Sharon was an adventurer at heart. Throughout her life, she visited many beautiful places with her family and friends, and always had plans to travel somewhere new and exciting.
When she wasn’t outside, she could be found snuggled up somewhere reading, surrounded by stacks of books. Sharon loved music and dancing, and always found a way to get everyone up to dance with her. She also loved wine, cat parades, mozzarella cheese fries, sea salt kettle potato chips, and cheesy horror movies.
Sharon fought with unmatched strength and bravery. She had an infectious laugh and a smile that lit up the world. Her presence made everyone she knew feel safe, warm, and at-home.
She will be remembered for her sunshine and her sweet, loving, beautiful soul. She was so bright and colorful, and always went along with any crazy idea Matt ever had. To him, she was everything.
She will be greatly missed. Family and friends are invited to honor Sharon’s life on Sunday, March 31 at 4:00 p.m. at Evans Funeral Chapel – 3 Newport Drive, Forest Hill, Maryland. In lieu of flowers, the family would prefer donations in Sharon’s memory be made to the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation (netrf.org/donate/).
If you found any mistakes, or you would like to add/remove to this obituary, please contact us by email: info@obituary.memorial. We never ask money for this.
