Obituary for Sharon Diane Sanderson On Thursday, July 5, 2018 many lives were forever changed as Sharon Diane Ormond Sanderson, surrounded by loving family and friends, entered into the arms of her Heavenly Father. Family and friends will seek to find comfort from Ecclesiastes 3 which tells us there is a proper time for everything; a time to be born and a time to die, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance. Sharon, the oldest daughter of Allen and Louise Ormond, grew up in Lenoir County nurtured by maternal grandparents Troy and Mary (Mae) Rouse better known as Pappy and Mammy to many.
She began her career at Dupont in Kinston shortly after graduation from North Lenoir High School (LaGrange, NC) in 1973 and retired in 1999 after more than twenty years of service, training many employees and making lifelong friends. Sharon was the wife of Billy Dean Sanderson. Sharon and Billy built their home on the farm previously owned by her grandparents where she had learned many a lesson in her youth from driving the tractor to working in tobacco and raising vegetables.
She and Pappy accidentally found the most efficient way of collecting pecans: repeatedly running into the tree with a tractor. She loved her home and took such solace in living in the place where she had always felt truly loved, for Mammy and Pappy knew how to make one feel well loved. Sharon took pleasure in cooking for her friends and neighbors and would often receive requests for special recipes that might include a cobbler with more crust than berries or her famous chicken salad that would always wind up being more than she intended to make and enough to share with many.
Those who knew her best knew of her secret superpower for finding anything they might need on the internet from a special car part to detailed instructions for how to repair this thing or that. She often presented those she loved with gifts chosen especially for them as she navigated the web. During the past few years friends and family watched as Sharon, learning to live on her own following the death of her husband, sought to do many things independently.
Sharon had difficulty walking and for many years rarely left her home. She experienced a rebirth of sorts when she discovered, with the use of an electric wheelchair, she could buy her own groceries, go to her own mailbox, tend to her own business and simply enjoy time outside. The UPS truck was seen weekly delivering supplies of cat food to Sharon’s home and the neighborhood strays, each one having been assigned a name, would gather on her back porch in the evenings for “family time”.
One of her greatest pleasures was to travel to Rocky Mount to spend time with her sister to shop or visit Downtown Live to enjoy outdoor music. Sharon was smart, quick-witted and always ready to share a laugh or to help find a solution to a problem. She had a fierce love for life and for family, friends, and neighbors and took great pleasure in their joys and successes.
She experienced newfound freedom in the use of her electric wheelchair and van, personally upfitted for her by Billy shortly after his diagnosis of cancer. Sharon looked forward to visits from her family and friends and loved to hear about trips taken, events at work and school and new gadgets on the market to make her life easier and more pleasurable. Her home was a place where “Hey Shug” meant “Welcome to my home; I adore you”.
She was generous and kind, always ready to help in any way she could. Sharon was known for staying up late and those who loved her knew they could always call late at night when they needed a listening ear and a caring heart. Sharon’s sweet spirit will forever be missed by her family, friends and neighbors.
Upon learning she could go anywhere and do anything with the use of her wheelchair and van, she began to delight in those monthly visits to get her hair done because it was more than a “hair fix” in those visits, it was an opportunity to see a new friend and to share with him what was going on in her life from worrying about how to keep her many cats sheltered in the winter, telling him about new things she had learned to do or hearing about his horses or just his week at work. It was a special time of sharing and laughing for the small price of a haircut. She loved people.
Those arriving at her home to pick up her trash, repair her air conditioner or do carpentry repairs left with a new friend in Ms. Sharon. Hearts are broken as her tragic and unexpected passing is mourned. Many a phone is missing a text or call, but both friends and family can take comfort in knowing how deeply they were loved and that Sharon will forever be a part of those who loved her.
Sharon is survived by her mother, Louise Ormond and youngest sister, Kimberly Dawn Ormond of LaGrange; her middle sister, Pamela Ormond Casey and husband, Mac, (her “good-looking” and only brother-in-law) of Rocky Mount; her nephew, Matthew Clayton Casey, of Arlington, VA and niece, Mary Elizabeth Casey, of Raleigh; her special kitties, Baby and Pumpkin; and her many friends and close neighbors. The family expresses heartfelt gratitude for the heroic measures taken at the Vidant Heart Center in Greenville, NC to save Sharon’s life and for the kindness and compassion shown to family and friends as they gathered around her bedside as her time for departure became evident. The family also wishes to thank each and every one who has reached out in any way during this time of deep sorrow.
A memorial service to celebrate Sharon’s life will be conducted on Wednesday, July 11, 2018 at 11 a.m. at Farmer Funeral Home (109 Second Street, Ayden, NC 28513) with the Reverend Allen Ham officiating and visitation to follow. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to SAVE A CAT, a non-profit organization which specializes in catching and spaying feral cats (PayPal: swh507@gmail.com, Mail Donations to: 1087 NC 241, Kinston, NC 28572). Sharon took pride in caring for the cats on her farm and believed in protecting and loving those who needed it.
To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Sharon Diane Sanderson please visit our Sympathy Store.
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.
