Sharon Lynn Dayhoff
(Sherry) passed away in Overland
Park, Kansas (near Kansas City)
from complications due to
Parkinson’s disease on Friday, May
17, 2024 at the age of 71. She was
surrounded by her lifelong friends
and sorority sisters, Nancy
Chalmers and Nan Berry, as well as
her care team who had grown to
know and love her.
Sherry was born on November 11,
1952 in Rome, New York to parents
Charles S. Dayhoff II (Chuck) and
Bernice H. Dayhoff (Bernie). She
grew up with older brother Charles
S. Dayhoff III (Skip) and Freckles
the dog in the Catholic Italian
neighborhood with snowy winters
and hot summers filled with
sailing competitions at the local
yacht club. She participated in
Girl Scouts, with her mother
Bernie as the troop leader. She
graduated from Rome Free Academy
High School, New York in 1970 and
received her Bachelor of Science
from Baker University, Kansas in
1974.
Sherry was a Business
Science-Economics major in college
and a member of Zeta Tau Alpha
sorority. She served as the
sorority House Manager, and later
served on the Sorority House
Corporation in an alumni capacity
following graduation. She remained
lifelong friends with her sorority
sisters and a member of the Zeta
book club. After
graduation she went to work for
the Social Security Administration
as a Claims Representative in
Wichita, KS, retiring after 31
years.
Her hobbies included photography,
finance, genealogy, a love of
nature and animals, travel, and
spending time with her friends and
family. As a young woman, she
traveled to the French
Mediterranean to visit her brother
Skip while he served in the Navy.
As an adult, she traveled
regularly to Florida to visit him
and his family. She also enjoyed
snow skiing in Colorado. She
traveled to Churchill, Canada to
photograph polar bears and Beluga
whales, to Yellowstone to see
wolves and other wildlife, and
took a whale-watching cruise to
Alaska. She was entertained for
several years by her pet guinea
pigs, Fred and Barney, and was
“mom” to her 15-year-old
dachshund/Jack Russell terrier,
Addie.
Her friends describe her as the
most genuine person they have ever
met. She was kind, generous,
compassionate, funny, and always
had a positive attitude toward
life. Her family fondly
remembers her love of the classic
Pink Panther movies, how she was a
deadly opponent at Trivial
Pursuit, and a loyal fan of the
Kansas City Chiefs football,
Kansas City Royals baseball teams
(especially George Brett), and
Taylor Swift. She selflessly
devoted over a decade of her life
to the caretaking of her parents
who lived into their early
nineties and ultimately passed
away from Alzheimer’s disease.
She is survived by her brother
Charles S. Dayhoff III (Skip), her
niece Darcy K. Berry, her
grandniece Deirdre C. Berry, and
her nephew Charles S. Dayhoff IV.
Her service will be held at
Langsford Funeral Home in Lee’s
Summit, Missouri on Thursday, June
27, 2024. Her friends and family
express their gratitude to the
many individuals who cared for
Sherry, especially: the staff at
Alto (Rose and Leandra were two
special ladies among many others),
Brighton Hospice Staff, and Always
There Health Care aids (in
particular Joana Starnes who
insisted to stay with Sherry until
the end).
“And as to those of us who knew
and loved Sharon . . . well now,
weren’t we the lucky ones?” – Nan
Berry
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I shared some classes
and lunch everyday for two years with
Sharon. She was honest,
unaffected, and funny. A
friend. I wish
I had stayed in touch longer with her
after high school, but we went our
separate ways and drifted apart.
I'm glad to see that her life was full,
and I hope it was a happy one. - Linda
Rossi
