September 2, 1963 – October 11, 2014
Will any one person ever truly know another completely? We may share life experiences, but what brought two or more people together in the first place? How did our paths cross? How can someone be a total stranger one day and suddenly our best friend the next? I have been asked this last question numerous times this week with regards to my sister, Sherry. The outpouring of love from family, friends, and entire circles of people (locally and globally) has been enlightening as to how one soul can touch so many lives for the better. Sherry’s adult life was filled with fearless adventures, impulsive decisions, and, above all, love; a love that did not just exist, but gave her the strength to live without regret or shame.
“Oh, to be Sherry, just for one day,” was a complimentary statement our eldest sister, Lora Lei, has often said. To walk into a room with Sherry was to accept you were about to have the time of your life! What was the force behind her vivaciousness, enthusiasm, and optimism that caused her to shout out, “WOO HOO!” at any given moment? As I reflect on her life I hope the answer will reveal itself and allow anyone to experience such unbridled, fearless, and, guilt-free happiness.
Sherry Louisa Garrison died instantly after falling from a horse at the end of an afternoon trail ride in Love Valley, NC when a stirrup broke loose and her horse was spooked. She passed away doing something she loved and cherished, having always said she wanted to go out with her boots on. She demanded she be allowed to live life on her terms and God seemed to grant her every blessing.
Please join our family for a celebration of her life this Saturday, October 18, 2014 at The Bonnie Kate Cafe (115 Sycamore Street, Elizabethton, TN 37643) starting at 7 p.m. Refreshments will be provided as we gather to swap stories and tell lies about a great woman and lady, Sherry Louisa Garrison.
The family would like to send a special THANK YOU to the staff of Tennessee Donor Services, specifically, Kathy Clifton. We would also like to thank Dr. Donna Wyche-Bashor, MD and her team at The Allergy & Asthma Center in Johnson City, TN for the additional years and quality of life Sherry so cherished. Lastly, we’d like to thank all the cowboys and cowgirls that filled her days with joy, laughter, music, horses, and unlimited “WOO HOO’s!”
Sherry is survived by her son, Thorne Potter and his wife Kendall and their son, Briar; her son, Jamie Wright; her father, William R. (aka Billy Bob) Garrison; her sister, Lora Lei Garrison-Joplin and husband, Dr. Karl Joplin; brothers, Robert M. “Robby” Garrison, John “Dusty” Garrison and his wife Nancy Garrison; nephew Darby Humphreys; nieces Isaline Barrington Humphreys and Madyln Louisa Garrison (her namesake) and Sienna; “adopted brother” Rory Jones; beloved aunts, uncles and cousins, David McKinney and his wife Karen Grubbs and their sons Calan and Carson; Bonnie and Larry Eads and their daughters Tami and Jaime; Darrell and Martha Garrison; Ricky “Possum” Garrison; Helen (Garrison) and Tommy Humphreys and their son Rocky Humphreys; and Mitch Potter and Cindy Thompson. Special friends Kathy Clifton and Kathie Neal: aka Sherry’s “Kathies.” Her mother, Lorna McKinney Garrison, preceded Sherry in death.