Sharon Marie Leyden

At her last horse show, Sharon Leyden organized a pizza party for all her barn friends. While picking up the food, she gave every worker at Domino’s a tip. That was the essence of Sharon, planning ways to provide happiness for friends and family and taking care of strangers.

Sharon Marie Smith Leyden, 67, of Indianapolis, died suddenly at St. Vincent Hospital on August 27.

She was born in Oak Park, Ill., raised on the shore of Lake Geneva in Fontana, Wis. and graduated from Marquette University, where she met Tom Leyden. They would have a marriage made in the College of Journalism.

Their first stop was the Sun-Journals on the Illinois-Indiana border, where Sharon sold advertising and Tom reported. Once, while waiting at an intersection in northwest Indiana, fire trucks rushed by. “Aren’t you going to follow them?” Sharon asked. Tom knew he had the right partner.

In 1980, Tom took a reporting job at The Indianapolis Star and Sharon cried all the way down I-65.

As the years piled up, they bought their only house, raised two daughters, Catherine and Maureen, and a handful of dogs.

Sharon continued selling newspaper advertising and later worked at Indianapolis Monthly. When the girls were in school, she worked several years at Welch Wholesale Florist; the perfect place for a flower lover.

Her ultimate passion was horses. Sharon relished in the training and caretaking of Little Joe and Echo. A horse show weekend was a culminating event where she was proud to see her horses compete but also cheer on everyone else. She often planned large gatherings of friends and competitors to celebrate the weekend. She wanted her horses to do well, but she wanted just the same for everyone else. Sharon was a selfless cheerleader; a rarity in the horse world.

Not one for extensive travel outside the quiet beach towns of Lake Michigan, her family took two big trips in the 1990s to Denver and the infamous road trip to Disney World. Sharon always summed up these experiences with beautifully written poems that combined both colorful descriptions and humor.

Sharon reserved her energy for celebrating holidays. Halloween decorations went up in early September and Thanksgiving by Halloween. After the turkey and stuffing were cleared from her dining table, set perfectly in all the shades of fall, Christmas wreaths were pulled from her basement storage which resembled a Marshall Field’s stockroom.

In continuing her need for excess and innate desire to spread joy to others during the holiday season, Sharon was known for her gingerbread house decorating parties. In one fell swoop, the candy aisle of the Glendale Target was emptied as she rolled two carts to the checkout. There would be no shortage of Tootsie Roll log piles, green frosted sugar cone evergreen trees, and coconut snow.

Sharon’s spirit of generosity is a bright light within all of us. Remember her when you’re planning a party, putting Halloween lawn decorations out on Labor Day weekend, or leaving a tip. You are creating happiness for those around you and that is what Sharon aimed to do every day of her life.

Tom, Catherine, and Maureen will host Sharon’s Celebration of Life party on Saturday, September 24 from 5:00 - 9:00 p.m. at Ambrosia Restaurant, 5903 N. College Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46220. Remarks will take place at 6:00 p.m. Come with a story to share.

Donations may be made in Sharon’s memory to Morning Dove Therapeutic Riding or Boulevard Place Food Pantry.

Sharon is survived by her husband, Tom, daughters, Catherine (Pete) Donovan and Maureen (Matt) Craver; grandchildren, Erin and Nora Donovan and Jack Craver; brother, Thomas N. Smith Jr., sisters, Penelope Hughes and Joan Boehmer; three and many nieces and nephews.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.leppertmortuarynora.com for the Leyden family.