MIDDLETON / MADISON - Sherry Ann (Bean) Schaefer, age 87, of Madison, passed away on Friday, April 15, 2022. Sherry was born in Lacrosse, Wis., in 1935. Her family traces its ancestry back to Scotland.

Sherry went to high school in Mineral Point where she played the flute and piccolo in the marching band and competed at the state level in piano. After high school, Sherry attended Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Madison. Her first nursing jobs were in Viroqua and Lacrosse before she decided to join the U.S. Air Force. She was stationed in Alabama, Washington and then Clark AFB in the Philippines. This was the base where soldiers injured in Vietnam were flown. Despite her small stature, Sherry was known for her authoritative style in managing her patients and co-workers and was told she'd be a good drill instructor!

After her stint in the Philippines, Sherry was stationed at Scott AFB in Illinois where she served on a medical flight crew. It was there that she met an airman named Don Schaefer. Six months after they started dating, Sherry was sent to Turkey. While on leave, they married, but still had to wait a few months to get assigned to the same base. They were sent to Dover, Del., and later Charleston, S.C. Altogether, Sherry served 20 years in the Air Force, 10 years of active duty, and 10 in the Reserves!

Sherry helped Don take care of his parents in St. Louis in 1983, and when Sherry's parents had health concerns Don found a job in Madison so that they could be closer and more helpful. Sherry worked for a time in Employee Health at Oscar Mayer. She was active in the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and she and Don served on the Madison Veterans Council.

Sherry's Frontotemporal Dementia developed gradually, and Don was able to care for her at home until 2012. After a career of caring for others, Sherry gave Maplewood and Agrace HospiceCare the privilege of caring for her.

Sherry is survived by her husband, Don; younger brother, Dr. Donald Bean of San Diego, Calif.; and other relatives and friends.

Services will be held at ST. LUKE’S LUTHERAN CHURCH, 7337 Hubbard Ave., Middleton, at 11 a.m. on Friday, April 22, 2022, with Pastor Carrie Greenquist-Petersen presiding. Visitation will be held at the church from 10:15 a.m. until the start of the service on Friday. Burial will be held at Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Union Grove, Wis., at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, Sherry Ann had hoped all memorials be directed to Agrace HospiceCare, 5395 E. Cheryl Parkway, Fitchburg, WI 53711. Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson West

Funeral & Cremation Care

7435 University Ave.

(608) 831-6761

Sherry Ann Schaefer

December 16, 1935 - April 15, 2022

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