Sharon Mae Neale

Sharon (“Shari”) Mae Neale passed away peacefully during the night on April 7, 2024.  Born in Los Angeles, California on November 23, 1940, to Jean M. and Landon R. Conry, she grew up in LA with her sister, Patricia Rhodes.  She married Robert Neale Junior and had two children, Robert Neale III (“Bobby” or “Bob”) and Elizabeth Baker (“Beth”).  

Shari’s surviving family includes her son Bob Neale and his wife Louisa Morris, granddaughter Brandi Griffith, her husband Trace Griffith, and great-grandchildren Annabelle and Hunter; granddaughters Jesse D. Neale and Stefanie S. Chen Welch; sister Patricia Rhodes, nephew Brian Schlosser and niece Jean Newcomb.

Shari spent most of her life in southern California, though she moved to Santa Rosa in 2022. The stories she told and memories she shared most often over the last few years centered around her family: her mischievous childhood with her sister Pat;  raising Bobby and Beth with their cousins Brian and Jean; and time spent with her grandchildren Brandi, Jesse and Stefanie and her great-grandchildren, Annabelle and Hunter.  She also shared many stories about her childhood and her mother and father.

And her cats!  Goodness-she loved and doted on all of her kitties over the years, as her family and friends know.  Shari was truly a “cat whisperer.”

Shari was very proud of the years she spent working for California State University - Long Beach as well as her degree in Anthropology, which she achieved later in her adult life.  She had a curious mind and keen interest in natural history; she volunteered as a whale watching guide, a trail monitor in Palos Verdes, and spent many hours with her grandchildren at local tidepools and gardening in the yard of the little yellow house in Lomita.  Her love of nature was a profound force in her life which Shari shared with everyone she met, and through this she touched and influenced many lives.

Shari was also very proud of her 43 years of sobriety and the service role she played within AA.  She had a large AA family, and these friendships helped her greatly over the decades.  She was a spiritual person and loved going to church.  She had a quiet but very strong relationship with God that gave her strength and saw her through dark times.

People adored Shari.  You couldn’t walk with her from her apartment to the front door of the building in less than twenty minutes (and it was only a five minute walk), due to the “hellos” and “how are you’s” that occurred along the way.  And it wasn’t just her friends and neighbors, but the vet techs, delivery people, receptionists, and wait staff who all have shared their fondness through their Shari stories, demonstrating her kindness, love of life, and wonderful sense of humor.  

Shari/Mom/Grandma/Aunty will be missed deeply and forever.  Please add your stories and photos here, so everyone can see and share in her me

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Sharon Mae Neale, please visit our floral store.