It was in the early morning hours, before dawn on the 21st of June that Cheryl decided to depart this world. Cheryl was looking forward to catching up with her mom, dad, and brother Bob, all who preceded her departure.
On November 11th , 1957 Cheryl greeted the world in Fontana California, born to Angelo and Mary Romeo, she being the fourth of eight children. Cheryl was the oldest daughter and when Cheryl played house, it was all too real having four younger siblings to help care for.
When Cheryl left her childhood home she spent over a decade in Santa Barbara while she worked her way through college as a grocery clerk. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English from UC Santa Barbara. This provided her a strong foundation to practice her love of writing. She made many friends in Santa Barbara and always welcomed friends and family to stay with her.
Cheryl decided to move to Maui, where she slept on the beach until she could find work and housing. She stayed several years and made many friends there. She also spent several years in Chico California. While in Chico, she started her summer migrations to Alaska to work in the fish industry. Being raised in Fontana and having three older brothers, Cheryl was well equipped to deal with the diversity and adversity that she would encounter in Alaska. She started at the bottom and with her hard work ethic and strong swimming ability, she worked her way up the fish ladder doing everything from being a herring roe tech, quality control and safety management. She eventually became her companies first female Alaska plant manager, with 250 employees at her facility. It was in Alaska that she met the love of her life, Ron. They eventually settled in West Seattle, with Ron’s two daughters Emily and Jolee.
She enjoyed spending time with her younger extended family, sometimes releasing her inner child and playing as if she were still 10 years old. She also loved to do arts and crafts, whether it be macrame, beads, drawing, paint or whatever she currently fancied. Cheryl also had a love of travel and was fearless. One of her solo trips was to tour Guatemala camping along the way.
During her last several years, Cheryl dealt with a progressive neurological disease that gradually reduced her movement and her ability to communicate. She took on this challenge with great grace and dignity and was an inspiration to those around her.
Cheryl had the brightest smile and was always genuine in her happiness to see you. If you wish to make a donation in her honor, her favorite charity was Daughters of Divine Charity . She would also be just as happy if you choose to send some love to someone you know, call an old friend or relative and let them know you are thinking of them, or reach out to a neighbor and let them know you are there for them. That was the essence of Cheryl.