Margie Sharpe

Margie Sharpe died peacefully on September 17, 2016. She was born Margaret Elizabeth Benbury on June 28, 1937 in Whittier, CA to Lemuel and Nellie Benbury. She shared her childhood with her younger brother Harris. Following High School, she attended UCSB where she was a member of Delta Sigma Epsilon and where she met her first husband, Don Sharpe, who she married in 1958. Following college Don and Margie moved to Pacific Palisades, where Margie gave birth to four boys: Douglas, Steven, Michael and Peter. The family moved back to Santa Barbara in 1966, and rather than risk giving birth to a fifth boy, they adopted their daughter Cynthia at birth. For a brief time, Margie taught special needs children with the Santa Barbara School District, and also spent many years volunteering for Children’s Home Society. An avid gardener, Margie was a member of the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden’s Master Gardener program as well as the Santa Barbara Horticultural Society, where she produced their newsletter for many years and served as their President for several years. Margie is survived by all five of her children and three of their spouses, her brother and his wife Nancy, and a total of 8 grandchildren, all of whom she loved deeply. The family is grateful to the staff at Heritage House and Assisted Hospice of Santa Barbara for providing exceptional care during the final stages of her life. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden or the Santa Barbara Humane Society.