Cohen, Sheryle Ruth 1946-2011

COHEN, PLOWMAN

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 3/29/2024 at 15:08:11

Sheryle Cohen
April 29, 1946 - September 16, 2011
Born in Reading, PA
Resided in Des Moines, IA

Sheryle Ruth Cohen, 65, was born to Thelma "June" Levine DeTemple and Harold "Hal" DeTemple in Reading, Pennsylvania, and she passed away at Iowa Methodist on Friday, September 16, 2011 at 5:45PM. She went peacefully, enveloped in the loving care of family, and her final movement was indeed a smile.

Sheryle richly appreciated that which she found precious, had cats for many years, and chose to follow the cat way toward death, hiding her illness and shielding and protecting all from the burdens of her declining health.

Everyone has challenges in life, but Sheryle had far more than her share. She was a very spiritual person, generous in her giving of time, spirit and love, and stridently marched to the beat of her own drummer. She was the kind of person that would give you the clothes off of her own back, and then thank you for taking them, if you needed them. Somewhat reclusive over the last few years, she truly appreciated life and friendships at Elsie Mason Manor. Her contributions to this world and some of her fondest memories include serving as a Braillelist , including the rare specialties of brailing music and foreign languages. She was known to devour books and spend hour upon hour challenging herself with word puzzles, with no great loyalty to any singular topic, but rather living engaged in a constant love affair with the power of words and the vast pools of knowledge within which they would take her to bathe. She also served as a Librarian and was once an active Sisterhood member at Temple B'nai Jeshurun. She loved her family, and had a noteworthy sweet tooth, and combining the two was indeed one of her greatest joys in life as she fulfilled her grandmotherly duties of sugaring Zoey up and sending her home. Sheryle was a loving and devoted wife, mother, mother-in-law and grandmother.

Sheryle was preceded in death by her husband, Arthur, and son Jonathan, as well as her parents and sister, Patricia Plowman. Sheryle will be dearly missed by son David, daughter in law Valerie, and granddaughter, Zoey. In Sheryle's last lucid hours she reiterated her vehement commitment to donate her body to science, and delighted in the fact that the University of Iowa would appreciate and utilize the uniquenesses of her body and specifically her epileptic brain. Codifying the intensity of this personal commitment, Sheryle stated that though she was at peace with dying, she felt that she had "not yet contributed enough to this world, and [was] so pleased to know that [her] body would be a useful and special contribution to this world."

A celebration of life will be held on Monday, September 19th at 1PM at Temple B'nai Jeshurun, 5101 Grand Avenue, Des Moines 50312.

Memorial contributions may be made to the family, in care of the Temple B'nai Jeshurun Rabbi's Discretionary Fund.

ARRANGEMENTS BY ILES FUNERAL HOMES ~ DUNN'S CHAPEL ~ The Des Moines (IA) Register 18 Sept 2011.