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Mary Joy Greene Sherlach
February 11, 1956 ~ December 14, 2012
Mary's bell is E4. When E4 rings, we remember a loving wife, mother, and a caring soul who was always there to lend an ear or a shoulder to someone in need.
Mary was widely admired as organized and accomplished, courageous and compassionate, fearless and fun. She had worked as the school psychologist at Sandy Hook Elementary School for 18 years.
"She considered what she was doing God's work," said her husband, Bill Sherlach. "She was all about helping people, and especially the kids. And that's what she liked to focus on: working with the kids, helping them through their problems, getting them through the day. It wasn't something that you would miss. It was just straight out there," he said. "She was a very giving personality, and would take whatever time you needed and just be there for whoever needed her."
Mary Sherlach's caring touch was not limited to her professional life, her husband said. She was "a great mother, unbelievable wife," he said. Mary and Bill enjoyed traveling and spending time at their lake house in the Finger Lakes area in upstate New York. Her hobbies were gardening, reading and the theater. Mary was also a hard-core Miami Dolphins fan, and at her funeral, one speaker held up a No. 13 Dan Marino jersey. When the Dolphins became aware that Mary was an avid fan, a flower arrangement from them was sent in her memory.
Mary's long-time friend, Donna Cassidy, described Mary as "warm and friendly and vivacious. She had a smile that could really light up the world. She just had that natural gift and that natural talent for making people feel at ease. If you were upset about anything or if you were stressed about anything, she would always make you feel good about whatever may be giving you stress in your life."
When the shooting began at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Mary courageously and heroically ran toward the gunfire with an instinct to protect the children, and ultimately sacrificed her life for "her" children.
Mary will always be remembered as a hero for her actions on that tragic day, but what many people don't know is that she was a hero throughout her two decades as a school psychologist, says Bob Lichtenstein, Ph.D., Sherlach's former supervisor at her first psychology job at New Haven, Connecticut public schools. "Every day that I've known her, she has done everything in her power to take care of children, in ways large and small."
Mary will never be forgotten. A bell for Mary will always ring at Christmas.