Obituary of Sharon Ann LaGuardia

Sharon Ann LaGuardia, 76, of Wyndham Hills, Cresco, passed from this earth on Monday, June 13, 2016, at Easton Hospital, in the company of her husband of nearly 49 years, Peter, daughter Anabelle and son Marc. She was in hospice care for several days, after hospitalizations for sieges of pulmonary issues, complicated by pneumonia and other ailments. Sharon was born in Louisville, Kentucky, to Margaret (Spayd) and Fredrick Leisen Packard, a civil engineer, who died suddenly when she was 4 years old. In her mid-teens, she moved with her mother and her stepfather, John Russell Lewis, a mechanical engineer, to North White Plains, New York. A graduate of Iowa State University, Lewis's alma mater, she majored in merchandising and went on to a career in retailing, beginning as an associate buyer of junior dresses for Alexander's and, later, Macy's Department Store. Later in life, while living with her family in Mohegan Lake, New York, after her children were established in junior high and senior high school, she became store manager of operations in Jefferson Valley, New York, for Boston-based Reed's Department Store, subsequently bought by Jordan Marsh. She concluded her working career as an institutional-sales coordinator and trainer for Kellogg's in Montvale, New Jersey. As accomplished as she was in her profession, she had many intellectual and home-based interests and talents. An avid reader, “Miss Sharon” enjoyed reading to the youngsters at the Countryside Pre-School and Day Care Center in Mountainhome; volunteering at Barrett Paradise Friendly Library, also then in Mountainhome, now Cresco; and participating in the library's annual book sales. For five consecutive years, she organized and ran the library's August art show “Art in Our Backyard,” an important fundraising event that showcased local artists' work. In addition, her cooking skills, acquired from her Southern-based German family as a young child, were expressed in French and American cuisine, as well. She was a natural cook, who knew what to buy and how to enhance its flavor and texture. With her husband, she enjoyed travel within the United States and to many European countries. Sharon's cherished family members always included at least one pet. For an extended period, a shepherd/husky mix cohabited with a rescued tabby cat, who surprised all by birthing four kittens, within two weeks. Animals of all sorts were loved unconditionally. A favorite pastime, in addition to watching the soap-opera “Days of Our Lives” with her husband at lunchtime, was doing the daily New York Times crossword puzzle, which usually didn't puzzle her for long. Her husband wasn't always amused. She was known for her generous spirit and her self-confidence. A frequent refrain heard in the LaGuardia household was "What you believe for you is true for you." In addition to her husband and children, Sharon is survived by her daughter-in-law, Kiernan, granddaughter Mairead and grandson Nolan, all of of New York City; her son-in-law, Christopher Hordern of Irvington, New York; and by her adoring Australian labradoodle, Sienna. The Rev. Carmen J. Perry will conduct a funeral Mass at 12:30 p.m. Monday, June 20, at St. Luke's Church, 818 Main St., Stroudsburg. The family will welcome guests in the church foyer, beginning at 11:30 a.m. Those wishing to honor Sharon's memory, might like to know that contributions made to the following would make her smile: American Welfare Society of Monroe (AWSOM), by visiting awsomanimals.org; the National Parkinson Foundation, by visiting parkinson.org; or the Barrett Paradise Friendly Library, by visiting barrettlibrary.org Private cremation has been entrusted to Bolock Funeral Home Crematory.