Laurel Ann Mergl

Laurel Ann (Snow) Mergl died on Tuesday, August 4, 2026 at Mayo Hospital in Jacksonville, FL. She was born in Beaufort, SC on November 30, 1970, to Dr. and Mrs. James Snow. After adding a younger brother, Ryan, her family moved to Darien, GA in 1971, and to beautiful St. Simon’s Island, GA in 1979.

Laurel was a talented performer from the start, and she treasured her memories of the

Children’s Summer Workshop under Joan Harris. She attended Frederica Academy on St.

Simon’s from kindergarten through graduation, where her love of music and performance was encouraged and refined. Whether she was performing “Pie Jesu” or singing in the car to Duran Duran, if you ever heard Laurel sing, you understand the power of music to transport and heal.

High school Spanish classes and a summer spent in Costa Rica sparked a love for the Spanish language and culture and led her to a major in Spanish at Georgia Southern University. After a summer abroad in Segovia, Spain, she returned truly bilingual, and when offered a teaching position at Glynn Academy, she took it despite her insistence that she didn’t want to teach.

Not surprisingly, she was beloved by both students and staff. She taught with enthusiasm, joy, and kindness, and her room was a brightly colored haven designed to inspire students and to share her love of the culture. She was later named Teacher of the Year in recognition of her passion for language and her gift for sharing it.

Laurel’s life grew richer when she started chatting with a friendly Canadian in a frozen yogurt shop. Terry was visiting from Ontario, Canada, but soon enough, he decided to make Georgia home for good. They married on November 14, 1998, and everyone lucky enough to spend time with them witnessed love in its purest form. That love grew with the birth of their son, Christopher, on July 8, 2000. Family was always key and love was always first. That, of course, included many four-legged family members who were loved and spoiled.

At the age of 27, Laurel was diagnosed with lupus erythematosus, an autoimmune disease that can affect major organs. Lupus-related heart and other systemic complications led to many hospitalizations and eventually to her early retirement from teaching. After each setback, she fought to regain her health and did so valiantly for almost 30 years.

Despite the many setbacks, she always took time to call or text a kind or funny word to family and friends, sharing memories and photos from the past to make you smile. She was a friend to all and the kind of patient who asked her nurses and doctors about their lives and families, even on her sickest day.

Her loss leaves a hole in the lives of all who loved her, who are countless, but in honoring her love of music, an Irving Berlin quote seems most appropriate: “The song is ended, but the melody lingers on.”

Her melody continues in the hearts of her husband, Terry; her son Christopher; her parents, Dr. and Mrs. James Snow; her brother and sister-in-law, Ryan and Paulina Snow; her mother-in-law, Sharon Lee Gerber; her brother-in-law, Scott Mergl; her nephews, Jack Ukleja, David Snow, Braydon Mergl, Ron Hinebaugh, and Michael Hinebaugh; her niece, Sammy Mergl; Aunt Carol and Uncle Bob Matthews; Aunt Di and Bernie; Aunt Caryle and Graham Sutherland and many cousins; friends near and wide; Glynn Academy graduates; and of course Jaxson and Ripley, her loved and spoiled pups.

Services will be held at 11am on Monday, August 17, 2026 at St. Williams.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Lupus Foundation of America or to Mayo Hospital in Laurel’s memory. The family gratefully acknowledges the medical help and assistance of the staff in the Emergency Room at Southeast Georgia Medical Center the staff at Mayo Hospital in Jacksonville and of Dr. John Limberg on St. Simons. Laurel loved them all.