Sheryl Martinez

WESLACO – Sheryl Anne Martinez, born on January 24,1956 passed away Wednesday August 6, 2014 at the age of 58 after battling Ovarian Cancer for just over 3 ½ years. She was the daughter of the late Donald Swain MacMahan Jr. and Mary Jane Raher. She was born in Washington D.C and lived her early years in Maryland. Sheryl was the oldest and loved spending time with her siblings Susan and Brian. Sheryl enjoyed spending most of her time with family. Sheryl was a very caring individual that was always willing to help others. She was such a compassionate person who always gave great advice and was very optimistic. She was a struggling student and mentioned she barely finished high school. Her academic struggles triggered a fire within her to go to college and she wanted to become a teacher. She wanted to impact lives as an educator and wanted to help all students succeed. Sheryl earned an Associate’s degree in Arts from Montgomery College in 1977 . She then went on to earn her Bachelor’s Degree of Science from Frostburg University in 1979. Considering her early academic studies, Sheryl graduated from college with honors. After completing her education, Jobs in the Teaching industry were scarce to none up North. Sheryl was very fortunate and was hired by Weslaco ISD. She made the decision to move to South Texas to pursue her teaching Career. Sheryl bonded with her father when they were on out of country trips. On a trip with her father to Mexico D.F in 1981 Sheryl met the love of her life Pancho. She knew the very moment that they were introduced by her father that this was the man she was meant to spend the rest of her life with. Sheryl and Frank were married by the civil court in Virginia in September of 1983. They wanted to celebrate their love with God and their family, so on December 18, 1983, Sheryl and Frank united in marriage at a Catholic Church in Mexico D.F. Sheryl was employed in Mexico D.F. as a Teacher at the American School. In 1984 Sheryl had been blessed with her first daughter Michelle. Sheryl wanted bigger opportunities for her growing family and made the decision to move back to Texas with her husband and Daughter. Her family continued to grow and she was blessed with 2 more daughters Leslie in 1987 and Melissa in 1991. She was so dedicated and fascinated with education and went on to earn a Masters Degree in Early Childhood from UTPA. Sheryl was employed with Weslaco ISD and decided to continue teaching and finished her teaching career in Edcouch-Elsa ISD. She impacted so many students’ lives because of her passion to help students succeed and always go beyond means to help. It would always give her such great joy to see her former students greet her with hugs and thank her for all she did as their teacher. Sheryl took pride in her job and loved her coworkers. Every Christmas she made sure to make time to bake her homemade banana nut bread for friends, coworkers, and neighbors. Sheryl dedicated and lived her life solely to please everyone around her. She fulfilled her life goal of being a devoted and loving mother. Activities she enjoyed were baking, reading, and swimming. Sheryl enjoyed spending all her time with her girls. What brought the most joy to her was being a grandma. She devoted and spent as much time as she could with her grandsons. Sheryl is preceded in death by her father Donald Swain MacMahan Jr. Sheryl is survived by her mother Mary Jane Raher, husband Jose Fransisco Martinez 52, Siblings Susan Dodd, Brian Raher, Fredi Medina. Daughters Michelle Karina 29, Leslie Anne 27, and Melissa Christine Martinez 22. Grandson’s Joshua Rogelio Hernandez 7, and Ryan Adam Cano 8 months.
“Those we love don’t go away, they walk beside us everyday. Unseen, unheard, but always near. Still loved, still missed, and very dear.” - Unknown