Cheryl A. McGuire, age 71, died peacefully on Wednesday, July 31st 2019, at the Lower Cape Fear Hospice facility in Bolivia, NC.

She was born at Cook County hospital in Chicago, Illinois on August 6, 1947 to June and John Massey. An only child, Cheryl grew up in the Madison, Wisconsin area and relocated with her parents as a teen to the Hudson Valley area of New York. Cheryl attended Ladycliff Academy in Mohegan Lake, NY, graduating in 1965. A devoted football fan, her teams were the Green Bay Packers and the Clemson Tigers.

Cheryl is survived by Don, her devoted husband of 25 years; son, Craig Allan and his wife Shannon of Bristol, New Hampshire; and son, Michael Allan and his life partner, Douglas Goewey of Hersey, Pennsylvania. A long-time animal lover, Cheryl raised many rescue dogs throughout the years and is survived by her only purebred, a loyal shih tzu named Murphy.

Cheryl was employed as a school safety officer in the Dutchess County, N.Y. School system, where she met Don. Not long after getting married, Cheryl and Don moved to La Plata, Maryland, where Don became the Director of Emergency Services. Cheryl, not having to work, took to volunteering and serving on local boards, such as the Design Review Board, where she served as President. After a tornado tore through the town, Cheryl spent her days and many nights helping the residents of La Plata get the supplies and assistance they needed, all the while pushing forward to help the town rebuild.

After retirement, Cheryl and Don moved to St. James, North Carolina. Life here has been wonderful, full and rich with great friends. Book clubs, hand & foot canasta, mah jongg, and various other game groups kept Cheryl socially engaged and happy. Her spirit of volunteering never left her, as she and others started a charity in our community called Operation at Ease (OAE). This all-volunteer organization welcomes service men/women and their immediate families to St. James Plantation for an all-expense-paid weekend of R&R. In addition to being a Greeter to visiting military families, Cheryl served as Treasurer of this meaningful organization from its inception until her passing.

A woman of deep and abiding faith, Cheryl was a devout communicant of Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Her faith was a great source of strength, comfort and peace to her. A funeral mass will be held on Friday, August 9th at 12 o’clock at Scaret Heart Catholic church in Southport. A reception will follow at 1:30 pm at the Reserve Club in St. James. In lieu of flowers, donations in Cheryl's memory can be made to Lower Cape Fear Hospice in Bolivia, to the Operation At Ease organization, or to the St. James Fire Department.