Sherri Roberts

On the evening of June 19/the morning of June 20, 2024, at the age of 74, Sherri Roberts passed away peacefully in her longtime family home of complications from liver cancer and end stage kidney disease. In her last days, her room was filled with visitors, hymns, and prayers as she slept peacefully.

With Sherri were her daughters Alicia and Lindsay Roberts, her sisters Carole LeCocq and Lynne Hawkins, and her cat Shasta. Sherri is also survived by her nieces and nephews (Joni Docktor, Wesley Powell, Gary Powell, Ritchie Roberts, April Thomsen, and Erin Fullmer) and their families.

Sherri made many friendships throughout her life—too many to name. Some of these friendships represent extended family, and it is impossible to think of Sherri’s life or list those who are mourning Sherri as family without mentioning them. She is survived by Mary Lou Cahow, Leesi and Doug Nickles, Cheryl and Wayne Meyers, and many others who were absolutely family to the Roberts’ household.

Sherri was born on October 12, 1949 in Santa Monica to Joe and Lee Hawkins (Joseph Hawkins and Leonora Montero). Her legal name was Sharon Lou, but when she was a teen, she started going by “Sherri.” She carefully selected the spelling—the “i” was important.

Sherri grew up in the Pacific Palisades where she attended Calvary Church with her mother, father, and two older sisters. Her family was deeply committed to the Lord, and from a young age she was surrounded with a vibrant church community.

When Sherri was born, her older sisters were eight and ten, so she was decidedly the baby of the family. Her eldest sister Carole fondly remembers caring for Sherri as an infant and child, teaching her how to swim and looking out for her.

The pool was of particular importance to the Hawkins—the entire neighborhood had ongoing swimming parties in their backyard. At one point, Joe had to install a flag to indicate whether or not their private pool was open to the community. Sherri became an excellent swimmer, and in her later years would teach swimming lessons from the pool she would go on to design and build in her backyard in Thousand Oaks.

Just as Carole took care of Sherri, Sherri took very good care of her pet monkey, Mr. Perkins. They went everywhere together, and Sherri developed a love of all animals: monkeys, cats, dogs, and especially birds.

Sherri attended Pacific Palisades Elementary School, followed by LA Baptist Junior High and High School, where she graduated in 1967. She briefly attended Biola University to study music and CSU Northridge to study neuro-cognitive psychology; while she didn’t graduate, she never lost her passion for learning and frequently attended courses at Moorpark Community College. She joked that she had enough credits to earn three AA degrees, but of course they were only in the subjects that most interested her: Spanish, art, and music.

Sherri worked at the Automobile Club of Southern California as a secretary, where she met Roy Ritchie Roberts (“Ritchie”). She didn’t work there long—they were married in 1971, when she was 22 years old. As with any relationship, there were ups and downs, but they were a committed team. They were married 48 years when Ritchie passed away in 2019.

As she moved through her twenties and thirties, she became more and more dedicated to Jesus and to her personal walk with the Lord. Her faith became a guiding beacon in her life, and her connections to the church grew ever more important.

Sherri wasn’t able to start a family right away, but she invested heavily in her church community. She was a member of the choir across multiple churches, and an excellent singer. Music, especially worship and praise music, was an integral part of her entire life.

Sherri would go on to teach piano, Sunday school, and music lessons in multiple settings. These quickly became more than just classes. She wrote and directed several professional-quality children’s musicals with high production values on shoestring budgets, personally handling everything from the set design to the scripts.

She developed her own brand, Kids ‘n Tune, and her own theories of child pedagogy—and modern ideas of learning styles and developmental needs have proven her correct. She started early—her sister Carole has a strong memory of Sherri as a young adult turning an after-school tutoring gig into a complex assignment, complete with quality props including a giant lighthouse to encourage learning and support the children’s emotional development.

She and Ritchie were always the type of people who looked out for children and vulnerable members of their community. Even beyond teaching contexts, she offered her home more than once as a safe haven for young people in need.

So it wasn’t surprising that, in 1986, when Sherri was 37, she and her husband welcomed their first foster child into their home. On March 23, 1988, they officially adopted their now-two-year-old as Lindsay Brooke Roberts. About two years later, in 1990, they welcomed baby Alicia as their second foster child, eventually adopting her as Alicia Joy Roberts on December 21, 1994 at the age of five.

Lindsay and Alicia both had invisible disabilities that made school more challenging, and Sherri made sure that they never felt ashamed of needing extra help or assistance. She taught Lindsay to think creatively to address her limitations; she designed and created a card that helped keep numbers in math problems lined up and constantly emphasized “using your tools.”

But Sherri went beyond just teaching—she was a strong advocate for her daughters within the school system, learning as she went how to get her children, especially Alicia, the best possible educational support.

Even after adopting her two girls, Sherri continued to teach professionally. She taught “bug classes” at the community center so that children could learn all about insects; she taught piano and swimming from her home; and she taught music and Spanish at Little Oaks Elementary where she also put on spectacular music programs.

The family attended a variety of churches, and she became actively involved with every one. They attended Chapel City Church, the Church at Rocky Peak in Chatsworth, the Christian Church of Thousand Oaks, Calvary Community Church in Thousand Oaks and then Westlake Village, Evangelical Free Church in Newbury Park, and Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Newbury Park, among others.

As just one example, she designed and then taught the fifth and sixth grade Sunday School at Calvary Community Church in Thousand Oaks. She believed very strongly that fifth and sixth graders developmentally require a curriculum and level of engagement distinct from fourth grade but also from junior high. She created a community for fifth and sixth graders similar to a youth group, with outings and special projects.

In her 60’s, Sherri put her old administrative skills and detail-mindedness to good use as she worked with Christian Solidarity International to free enslaved Sudanese Christians. She became an indispensable member of the Thousand Oaks office, refining procedures and allowing dollars to go where they were needed most.

Sherri had many pets throughout her life, nearly all of them rescues. She had an especially close bond with her birds, particularly a cockatiel named Mijíca. She even had a pet sitting business as a retiree, caring for many of her community members’ cats and dogs. She and her husband worked together to grow this business and lovingly care for these furry family members.

In her later 60’s and into her 70’s, she and Ritchie became involved with Sonshiners, the senior ministry at Godspeak Calvary Chapel. At Sonshiners, she and Ritchie felt accepted and welcomed, and Sherri was so grateful for their support of Ritchie’s spiritual development.

After Ritchie’s death, Sherri became increasingly homebound from her IgA nephropathy, a congenital and incurable auto-immune disease that led to her kidney failure and liver cirrhosis, and ultimately hepatocellular carcinoma. Throughout this time, Sherri began attending home Bible study groups, where she was supported and welcomed by a smaller community of older adults at Godspeak.

Sherri described herself as a “rough edges artist.” Drawing, painting, and crafts were very important to her throughout her life. She particularly loved pointillism, and would make complex and beautiful drawings entirely out of individual dots. She was always asked if it was stressful, but she’d reply that making a bigger picture out of tiny little dots was relaxing for her. Through the pandemic, after Ritchie’s death, she became focused on improving her portraiture skills, spending many hours in online art classes to work on a portrait of Ritchie for her kids.

Sherri hated the idea of burials and cremations. She believed very firmly that her soul would be in heaven with Jesus and her Earthly body would be of no importance. She was focused on the loved ones she would see in heaven—her husband, parents, and friends who preceded her—and looking forward to being united with her beloved Jesus.

After much thought, Sherri decided that she wanted her organs donated to people who needed them—just as she had needed a kidney—and what was left of her remains be donated to science. Unfortunately, because of her liver cancer and kidney disease, she was ineligible to make these donations. Her daughters ultimately decided to go with Recompose because she had made it clear that she wanted her body to be of use somehow. Most of her remains will be used to restore damaged wild lands or to nourish the soil on loved ones’ properties, while a small amount will be spread with Ritchie’s ashes in Carpinteria.

As she saw that her time was coming up, Sherri worked hard to develop a program for her own memorial—a unique one, as she had never found comfort in traditional memorial services. She wanted one focused not on her but on sharing the gospel, primarily through music. It was of utmost importance to her that it contain an explicit salvation message. She asked that we focus our eyes not on her or on her remains, but on heaven.

This memorial service will be held at 11am on Saturday, July 20, 2024, at Godspeak Calvary Chapel at 320 Via Las Brisas, Newbury Park, CA 91320. Reception will immediately follow. A second gathering will take place at 3:30pm that day at Sherri’s home, with folks invited to swim. This gathering will go into the evening. Both gatherings are open to all.

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Sherri’s invitation:

“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” John 11:25-26

Sherri lived a life rooted in faith, dedicated to following the path of her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. She asked that we take the time to reflect upon the truths that she held so dear.

The Bible tells us that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Our sin separates us from God, but His love for us is immeasurable. John 3:16 declares, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This is the essence of the Gospel — the Good News.

Sherri held fast to the truth that God, in His infinite mercy, sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to live among us, to die on the cross for our sins, and to rise again on the third day, conquering death — that through His sacrifice, we are offered the gift of eternal life. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23, NIV).

Sherri invites us to reflect on our own lives and our own relationships with God. It was her last wish to make sure you knew that the promise of salvation is not just for a select few but for all who believe. If you have not yet accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, she personally invites you to do so now. Acts 16:31 says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.”

In the quiet of your heart, you can pray this simple prayer of faith:

“Dear God, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe that He died for my sin and that You raised Him to life. I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as Lord, from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do Your will. I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.”

As we bid farewell to Sherri, may “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7).