Sherry Kay (Bragg) Snare, age 82, of Arma, Kansas passed away suddenly on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in Joplin, MO after suffering multiple organ failure. A memorial visitation for Sherry will be held Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, from 1 to 2 p.m. at Church-Archer-Pasley Funeral Home, 119 East Franklin Street, Liberty, MO 64068, followed by a memorial service from 2 to 3 p.m.
Sherry was born on March 17, 1942, in Pueblo, Colorado to Charles Edgar and Catherine Elizabeth (French) Bragg. Sherry graduated from Raytown High School in Raytown, MO and pursued a nursing career. She earned her nursing degree from Research Medical College of Nursing, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Missouri - Kansas City. She had always dreamed of becoming a nurse, and it didn’t take her long to start changing lives.
Sherry worked in nursing for many years before deciding that she had the chops to teach others to be as great as she was, and got a job teaching prospective Certified Nursing Assistants at Johnson County Community College. On the first day of class, she asked each of them to put some info on a card for her: their name, favorite color, and something they liked. This was to get to know her students better, of course, but she also had another reason. She would hang onto the cards until the students were preparing to graduate, and using the information on the card, would make each graduate a custom set of bandage shears. Some of these custom bandage shears can still be seen around local hospitals, and it’s undeniable to say that Sherry’s teaching had a high success rate: in over a decade of teaching, she only had a dozen students fail to graduate. As proof of this, she was nominated for the Best Teacher Award from JCCC.
Sherry met her future husband, Robert S. Snare, Jr., in Jan. of 1967. They fell in love in a whirlwind romance, and were married on June 30, 1967. Sherry became pregnant not long after with her first son, Scott. Sadly, Robert had been called to duty for the Vietnam War, and couldn’t be there for the birth of his son. He soon returned home, though, and they had two more children, Gary and Brian. They also adopted their grandchild, Roman Skyler Snare, many years later when Roman was only two. They raised Roman as their own, considering them just as much their child as they did Scott, Gary, and Brian, with the added benefit of getting to take Roman to do fun grandparent-grandchild activities, like family vacations. Sherry especially enjoyed their family trip to Niagara Falls.
Sherry was nothing if not crafty, as seen by her custom bandage shears. She enjoyed making jewelry, but also painted. Her mother painted, and they took Bob Ross painting classes together. Sherry was a huge fan of Bob Ross when The Art of Painting first came out, and she learned to paint alongside her mother by following along to his shows. She even got to meet him when he went on a tour to her local TV station! Her paintings were later featured in the 1997 Prairie Village Senior Arts Council Art Exhibit, showing just how amazing an oil painter she really was.
One of the other things Sherry was most known for was her sewing and quilting. She worked on the sewing machine as a young woman, but picked it back up in the early 2010s and began quilting. She made beautiful, detailed quilts for all the people who made her smile. She was especially proud of her hummingbird quilt, a state bird and flower themed quilt that she sent around the country to be worked on by many different quilters, and what her family agrees is her magnum opus, a quilt depicting Jesus, with her favorite poem, “Footprints in the Sand,” on the back. It’s the only quilt she ever made two of. Sherry was an active member and held several offices over the years at the Little Balkans Quilt Guild. She entered several quilts in contests, earning a number of awards and accolades, but most of her quilts were gifts for friends, family, and other loved ones, to wrap them in her warm, loving hugs when she can’t be by their side.
Sherry was a collector, gaining joy from her many interests. She collected decorative spoons and ceramic thimbles from her travels, beautiful dolls and soft cuddly bears, clown figurines and more. Her greatest collection was that of her Cicely Mary Barker Flower Fairies. She had figurines, glassware, tea cups, clocks, embroidery, books, and far more. Besides her quilts and paintings, her love for the Flower Fairies is one of the first things to come to mind when thinking about her.
Sherry was a very religious woman. She believed strongly in Jesus and was an active member of her church for most of her life. She was an Honored Queen of Job’s Daughter and a major in her Job’s Daughter Drill Team. Leading up to her passing, she took great comfort in reading her Bible, especially Psalm 91. Sherry also shared her love of Christ through her clown ministry. “God led me to do clowning,” she wrote in one of her keepsake books. She had attended a human skills conference for nurses in St. Louis, and became a professional clown not long after. She was an “official hug therapist” as her clown persona, Silly Sally, and spread joy, laughter, and the word of God in hospitals, nursing homes, and churches.
Sherry will be fondly remembered and deeply missed by dozens, if not hundreds, of people’s lives whom she changed forever. The world is undoubtedly a darker place without her beautiful soul in it. Those who love her will carry her memory and light with them for the rest of their days.
Sherry was preceded in death by her parents, Catherine and Charles.
Sherry is survived by her husband, Robert S. Snare, Jr.; her sons, Scott Snare (Melissa), Gary Snare (Stacey), Brian Snare, and Roman Skyler Snare (Lauren); and her brothers, John (Cheryl) and Richard Bragg. Sherry also leaves behind a number of nieces, nephews, and beloved friends, as well as her dog, Miles.
Arrangements are under the direction of Church Archer Pasley Funeral Home, Liberty, MO, 816-781-2000.
