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A funeral service for Sharon Lee (Clark) Cunningham, 84, of Newton, will begin at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 17 at the Mason Funeral Home in Pleasantville. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service. Burial will be in Pleasantville Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Bar None Cowboy Church, 1690 W. 19th S., Newton, Iowa. Online condolences may be left at BertrandFuneralHomes.com.
Sharon Lee (Clark) Cunningham, 84, of Newton, was called home to be with her Lord and Savior Friday, Aug. 13, 2021, at Mercy Hospice in Johnston. She was born May 10, 1937, to Leland Clark and Elizabeth (Betty Wood) Clark.
Sharon grew up in Pleasantville with her younger sister Karen. Sharon loved people and credits working in her parent’s grocery store for helping her overcome shyness. She graduated from Pleasantville High School and through the years Sharon has lived in Pleasantville, Baxter, Corydon and Newton. Prior to retirement, Sharon worked as a bank teller, was co-owner of Pizza Pizzazz in Baxter and was an administrative assistant for the Iowa Secretary of State.
She loved dogs, and frequently talked about her childhood nickname being “Wolf-gal” because she would whistle and have a pack of dogs following her around town. She would talk about how her piano teacher hated when the dogs would be outside waiting for her and howling during her lesson. Her other passion was anything that had to do with horses. She got her very first horse on her 16th birthday. He was black and white and was named Teddy. Her favorite memory at the Iowa State Fair was when her saddle group was asked to ride into the arena each day with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. She and Teddy would make it to the gate very early, waiting for hours so they could be as close to Roy Rogers and Dale Evans as possible. She also loved Bluegrass music and festivals, camping, attending Bible Studies, singing in church and was in Sweet Adeline’s. Sharon loved spending time with her family making memories, going to the Checkerboard and attending Cowboy Church. Her greatest LOVE was for the Lord and her smile and her heart radiated God’s love. Her passion was sharing the “Good News” of Jesus with others.
Sharon was preceded in death by her parents, Leland and Betty Clark. Those left to cherish Sharon’s memory include her children, Victoria Clemons of Urbandale, Gary (Beth) Chiles of Waco, Texas and Deanna (Paul) Zinter of Long Prairie, Minn.; grandchildren, Shannon (Kristin) Brown, Skye (Haley) Messerli, Sheena (Nathan) Lester, Lily Chiles, Leland Chiles, Rebekah (Andrew) White, Joshua (Brooklyn) Zinter and Caleb Zinter; 20 great-grandchildren; sister, Karen (Ron) Fee of Pleasantville; and many other family members and friends.