Sharon Diane Briggs
PHOENIX – Sharon lived a life full of love, laughter, family and friends. Sharon is survived by her devoted husband, Sam, of 50 years and daughter Katie. After many months of degradation and pain, Sharon passed away on June 6th, 2018 from an aggressive form of ALS.
Sharon was a fun-loving spirit with a funny sense of humor. She drew others in like moths to a radiant light! She was a beautiful wife, a loving mother, a doting grandmother and a steadfast friend to so very many.
After growing up in Albuquerque, NM with very little, she used her strong will and determination to create a better life for herself. She moved to Phoenix in 1967 and found a job with First National Bank, where she met Sam a year later. After a whirlwind romance they married a few months later. In 1973, they had their only child, Katie, and bought their first house where they stayed for 30 years.
Sharon spent a lot of her free time playing bridge, becoming a great player. In her 30’s and 40’s she and Sam played tennis at La Camarilla where they met so many of their dear, life-long friends. This transitioned into golf with their couples friends.
Simply put, Sharon loved people. She loved to strike up conversations with strangers or pour her heart out to her closest friends. After staying home to raise Katie, she spent more than 27 years working as an office manager and bookkeeper for several small companies. She retired in 2006 and dedicated her time to volunteering. She was a Navigator at the airport, enjoying the opportunity to help others and chat up Phoenix visitors. At Child Help she helped traumatized children JUST be kids through play, while their parents faced legal trouble. She later volunteered for the police, handing out tickets to cars illegally parked in handicapped parking spots. She was a very giving person which showed in her volunteer work and in her personal life.
A traveler at heart, she, Sam and Katie visited most of the major U.S. cities during Katie’s childhood. Later Sharon and Sam followed Katie all over the world. Sharon soon discovered how much she loved Europe and the adventure of travel. Paris was her all-time favorite but some of Katie’s best memories are of the two “girls” traveling together to several U.S. and European cities.
Without doubt, those who knew her, loved her. Our collective heart is broken at her passing. We feel an emptiness in our souls at having to release her, and at the same time a richness greater than a kingdom’s wealth for having had her in our lives.