Obituary of Sherri Lynn Stelljes

Sherri Lynn Hardy Stelljes, 65, left this earth peacefully to be with her Lord, on Saturday morning, October 23, 2021, with family by her side. Sherri was born on November 18, 1955, the first of six children born to George and JoAnne Hardy. Sherri loved being a big sister and growing up in the small ranching community of Unity, Oregon. Life in Unity was filled with close-knit families, working hard and supporting one another. Throughout her teen years, Sherri was a natural born leader. She never wanted the spot-light, but her natural kindness, genuine friendship, and willingness to help found her forever leading and serving in her school and community. After graduating from Burnt River High School in 1974, she attended Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon, earning her Associates Degree in Secretarial Science. Sherri moved to Spokane, Washington, where she met the love of her life, John Stelljes. John and Sherri were married on June 4, 1978, at St. Joseph's Catholic Church, in Unity, Oregon. They began their married life in Elk, Washington. In 1982, with a daughter and son in tow, John and Sherri moved to Idaho to begin the adventure of starting a small dairy farm, which they appropriately named Udder Chaos Dairy. They settled in the small farming community known as "Nu Acres," located between Parma and Fruitland, Idaho. There they leased some dairy cows and slowly started acquiring their own registered Jersey cows. Dairy farming was a hard, 7 days a week, 365 days a year job. However, the two made a perfect team and hard work is what they did best. They continued to grow their dairy herd to a manageable size of around 70 cows, and their family grew by two more sons. The demands of a dairy farm and caring for a family did not stop Sherri from jumping in and helping anywhere she could. She often visited elderly neighbors and held the hands of friends and neighbors during their dying days. She considered it a great honor to help with church funeral dinners, celebrating the life of others. If there was a fundraiser for Fruitland Schools, 4-H, church, Catholic Women's League or any worthy cause, Sherri was always there in the midst of the event. Her beautiful sewing skills were often put to work creating quilts for raffle fundraisers, fashioning vests for the very first elementary school honor choir, altering band uniforms, making drill team flags, or altering bridesmaid dresses. She especially had a heart for teaching and helping children. She became a 4-H leader, a cub scout leader, helped facilitate vacation bible school, and taught weekly catechism classes at her parish of St. Aloysius in New Plymouth, even serving as the Director of Religious Education for a short while. When her own children were grown, she continued to help with the children's liturgy of the word at her parish of Corpus Christi in Fruitland. She loved teaching anyone who wanted to learn-it didn't matter if it was cooking, canning, sewing, gardening, or truths of the faith. From time to time, when the opportunity would arise, Sherri would take a part time job to supplement the farm income. Over the years she made many friends working at Anderson's Corner Store, Limbaugh's Farm Market, the Fruitland Middle School kitchen, and for the last 14 years in the office at Parma Company. Every election season you could also find her volunteering at the polls of her local voting precinct. Sherri was very civically minded, and never took for granted the privilege and duty to vote, no matter how big or small the election. Sherri was a woman of deep faith who loved the simple things in life. Besides baking and sewing, she took great delight in growing plants of all kinds and sharing starts of plants with family and friends. She prayed unceasingly for others and saw God in the little moments of everyday life. She never sought after wealth or acknowledgement. She was content living and working in the country with her beloved husband. Even after the kids were grown and the cows were gone, the two of them were forever working on projects together. Sherri was always elated when John would build something for her, especially her chicken house and cherished greenhouse. Those who knew her will always remember her as a devoted daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend. To Sherri, every life was precious whether expected or unexpected. She was overjoyed to tears with the birth of each grandchild and all her great-nieces and nephews. She had a warm heart full of love and kindness, and a mind firm in what was right and wrong, never afraid to speak up against the wrong. Sherri Lynn--a strong, bold, and brave woman who also knew the power of silence, prayer, and a simple, supportive hug. Sherri was preceded in death by her parents, George and JoAnne Hardy. She leaves behind John Stelljes, her husband of 43 years, her four children - Erika (Jeff) Cowman, David (Angie) Stelljes, Karl (Cassie) Stelljes, Michael (Erin) Stelljes, 5 granddaughters and 4 grandsons. She is survived by her sisters Theresa (Ed) Schumacher, Alicia Mena, brothers Rob (Kelly) Hardy, Bryan (Jeanette) Hardy, Dan (Kristen) Hardy, and many nieces and nephews. A Funeral Mass will begin at 11:00 a.m. (MT), Saturday, Nov. 6th at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, in Fruitland, ID. A rosary with meditations will be prayed at 10 a.m. in preparation for the funeral. Family and Friends are invited to a luncheon in the parish hall following the Mass. Interment will take place in Oregon at the Unity Cemetery at a later date. Donations may be made in Sherri's memory to Corpus Christi Catholic Church, or to Treasure Valley Teens 4 Life, c/o of Shaffer-Jensen Memory Chapel, P.O. Box 730, Payette, ID 83661. Services are under the direction of Shaffer-Jensen Memory Chapel. Condolences may be made to Sherri's family at www.shafferjensen.com. Service Details. Rosary Service When: Saturday, November 6th, 2021 10:00am Location: Corpus Christi Catholic Church Address: 900 NW 7th St. Fruitland, Idaho 83661 Funeral Mass Saturday, November 6th, 2021 | 11:00am When: Saturday, November 6th, 2021 11:00am Location: Corpus Christi Catholic Church Address: 900 NW 7th St. Fruitland, Idaho 83661 Interment Location: Unity Cemetery Address: Address: Not Available Unity, Oregon Online Memory & Photo Sharing Event Ongoing Online Event About this event In Loving Memory Of Sherri Stelljes October 23, 2021 Look inside to read what others have shared Family and friends are coming together online to create a special keepsake. Every memory left on the online obituary will be automatically included in this book. View Tribute Book