Shirley Lorraine Snyder 67
Shirley Lorraine (Shalberg) Snyder, age 67, longtime resident of Colorado Springs, Colorado, died Friday, April 9, 2004 after a prolonged battle with cancer. Born March 6, 1937, to Roy and Lucille Shalberg, Shirley grew up on a farm in Sheridan Lake, graduating from high school in 1954. Shirley attended Lamar Community College in Lamar, and completed her education at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley. She moved to Colorado Springs in 1960 and began a tenure at Wasson High School that spanned 40 years and touched the lives of colleagues, thousands of students and hundreds of athletes. Shirley accepted Christ as her personal savior as a teenager and was baptized at the Sheridan Lake Bible Church.
She moved her membership to the First United Methodist Church of Colorado Springs in 1964, where she married her husband, Donald Snyder, in August of 1964.
Shirley's professional coaching accomplishments were many. Recognized as one of the greatest high school gymnastics coaches in state history, her team won the district title the first year Colorado recognized gymnastics as a varsity girls sport in 1972, her first of 10 such titles. Only once did her team not qualify for the state meet. She managed her teams to a 124-7 dual match record and one state title. 1995 brought induction into the Colorado High School Activities Association Hall of Fame. The Colorado High School Coaches Association recognized her stellar career with a Hall of Fame induction in 2001.
Her husband, Donald R Snyder, sister Charlotte and husband William Woelk of Eads, CO, and brother Merle and wife Carol Shalberg of Sheridan Lake, CO, numerous nieces and nephews, other relatives and many friends survive her. Parents Roy and Lucille Shalberg, and brother Roy Verner Shalberg preceded her.
Funeral services for Shirley Snyder were held at the First United Methodist Church, in Colorado Springs, Wednesday, April 14, 2004 at 2:00 p.m. Graveside service were held at the Sheridan Lake Cemetery, in Sheridan Lake, Thursday, April 15, 2004 at 11a.m. In lieu of flowers, a memorial donation to the Sheridan Lake Bible Church building fund in Sheridan Lake, or the Wasson Athletic Department will help continue Shirley's legacy of love for and service to others. Shirley's family deeply appreciates your support and prayers. Brown Funeral Home was in charge of funeral arrangements.