Sharon Lynne Haywood

Sheri, as she was known to family and friends, passed away peacefully in Greenwood Village, CO on November 24, 2017 after an extended illness. Born September 21, 1938 in Jacksonville, IL she was the only child of the late Edison and Mary Haywood. She graduated from Jacksonville High School in 1956. She participated in several pageants to earn college scholarships and was selected as Miss Jacksonville in 1957. She went on to the Miss Illinois Pageant, where she placed sixth. She attended Western State College, Macomb, IL, majoring in English, where she was a member of the Sigma, Sigma, Sigma sorority.

Her early work was as the Student Activities Advisor at McKendree College in Lebanon, IL. In 1970 she relocated with her children to California where she worked for Lincoln Properties, Corp. as an advertising copy writer and newsletter editor. She began her career in interior design by staging apartment models for the company. After a few years she moved on and started her own design consulting business. Near the end of her career she worked as a designer for Martino’s in Los Gatos, CA, and Ethan Allen Galleries in Mt. View, CA. In 2004 she retired and moved to Colorado to be near her grandchildren.

Sheri is survived by her daughters, Stephanie Smith Kallet and Jennifer Smith; her son-in-law, Michael Kallet; and granddaughters, Rebecca, Jordan and Julia Kallet. As an only child, she spent many of her childhood days with her cousins and is still close to them. She is survived by dear cousins Jack Gillespie, Suzanne Evans, Barbara Sapp and Marvin Geisness. She also leaves many friends in Illinois, California and Colorado.

Memorial contributions may be made in Sheri’s honor to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, online at www.stjude.org.