Sharon Ann Garland

Sharon Ann Garland nee Douglas, 81, of Maryville, Tennessee, passed peacefully on January 26, 2024, following recent ill health. She was predeceased by John Kenneth Garland, her husband of 41 years, parents Raymond and Matilda Douglas, brothers Daniel and Michael Douglas, brothers-in-law Phillip Swain and Michael Howard, and her beloved dogs Buddy, Max, and Sam. She leaves behind her only child Heather Witte Metzger (Geoff), three grandchildren: Silas Metzger of VA, Jillian Tatalias (Jim) and their two children Lucy and Dorothy of VA; and Chelsea Teodoro (Paul) and their five children Tucker, Hazel, Bowen, Angus, and Clara of West VA. She is also survived by sisters Rosemary Trobaugh (Jim) of TN and Mona Swain Howard of MS, sister-in-law Sharon Douglas of TN, and many nephews, nieces, and cousins in the Mid-South and across the U.S.

Sharon passed away in her and Ken’s second home located in a cul-de-sac they had considered a little piece of paradise since moving there in the mid-1990s. With either a back patio- or front porch-view of their beloved Smoky Mountains, Sharon and Ken were at peace with the world. It’s Blount County, TN. The loving and gracious community where Kenny as he was known locally had grown up and where he was deeply rooted—a community with a first family of Cades Cove heritage that in the late 1970s took in Sharon, a native of Memphis, when Kenny introduced his new love and her young daughter Heather to his family. And again almost two decades later when Sharon and Ken returned to the area for his new reporting job with the Knoxville News-Sentinel newspaper, they were welcomed home.

Upon arriving to Blount County in 1990, Sharon took some off before working outside the home. In Memphis, she’d worked for the Coca-Cola Bottling Company in different administrative positions for almost 25 years. As empty-nesters, it was time to build a new life together in Maryville, a gateway city to the peaceful side of the Smokies. This included the things Sharon most enjoyed in life: reading the newspaper, visiting open houses, assessing needs vs wants, weighing finance options, closing the deal, and eventually shopping and decorating for their new home. Sharon did land a job with First Tennessee Bank’s Operation Center where she enjoyed working with the Federal Reserve Bank account until retiring in 2006.

In her personal world, Sharon was a nester and organizer who loved a comfortable, cozy home where you can easily relax, read, and work crossword puzzles, plus to welcome guests to do the same or to use what many guests have called her Country Living-style home as a base for enjoying the surrounding scenic, historic areas.

Sharon was a true homebody. And so it is apt and such a blessing that her prayers to pass at home were answered. Her memory is a blessing.

Please join the family to remember Sharon Ann Garland at one of two memorial services and receptions in March. EAST TN: Saturday, March 9 at 1 pm ET at the pavilion of Grandview Cemetery on Tuckaleechee Pike in Maryville, TN. Reception to follow at Garland home in the county. For details and to RSVP, text or phone Heather Metzger, 240-441-3134. WEST TN: Saturday, March 16 at 3 pm CT at Appling Oaks Clubhouse, Cordova, TN. For details and to RSVP, text or phone Rosie Trobaugh, 901-289-3435.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Sharon’s hometown of Memphis, TN. Visit www.stjude.org/donate/donate-to-st-jude.html