Portales Mayor Sharon Lora King, 64, passed away peacefully on Thursday, March 1, 2018, in Lubbock, TX, after a 4 ½-year battle with multiple myeloma.

Memorial services will be at 2 p.m. Friday, March 9, 2018, at the First United Methodist Church in Portales, with Dr. Keith Wilks and Gayla Brumfield officiating, assisted by Christa King Vaudrey and Betty Williamson.

Her countless friends will be honorary pallbearers.

Sharon was born on December 23, 1953, in Downey, California, to Bo and Frankye King, joining older brother, Herkie (Clayton). While their little family moved around in her toddler years, they soon settled back into Portales near family.

During her school years, Sharon began her community service work that would eventually become the culmination of her life. She grew up in restaurants that her family managed and owned, including King’s Restaurant, remembered by many locals. Her mother was a longtime Campfire leader, and Sharon was active in all the levels of membership: Bluebirds, Campfire Girls, and Horizon Club.

Sharon graduated from Portales High School in 1971. She worked at Portales General Hospital for several years in medical records, before beginning her work at Eastern New Mexico University in Grants and Contracts. Her responsibilities at Eastern included teaching a freshman orientation class, which gave her a much-appreciated opportunity to work with students, hear their points of view, and be a part of their education.

While working at Eastern, Sharon proudly finished her degree, telling people she was on the “25 year plan.” At the time of her retirement from Eastern, she was executive assistant to the president.

An active community member for her entire life, she was involved in an array of organizations. She enjoyed her membership in Altrusa, and was the past president of Rotary Club, also serving as a counselor for the Rotary Youth Leadership Award Camp. She was a lifelong member and lay leader of First United Methodist Church. With her parents, she played an instrumental role in the annual turkey dinner, which is still attended by most of the community.

Never one to be still for long, after retiring from Eastern, Sharon began her formal work for the city of Portales as the director of the Roosevelt County Chamber of Commerce. She was a tireless cheerleader for downtown Portales and local economic development, and promoted many community functions including the New Mexico Ag Expo, to which she added the quilt show.

In 2010, Sharon was elected as the first female mayor of Portales, and also began a cherished friendship with Clovis’ first female mayor, Gayla Brumfield, the woman who would walk through the next eight years with her.

Sharon loved being mayor of Portales, and worked hard for her city, regularly speaking to schools, organizing employee functions, issuing countless proclamations, studying water issues, and becoming an advocate for the Ute water project.

She was appointed to the Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority as vice chair, and traveled several times to Washington, D.C., to lobby on behalf of the Ute Water project and for Cannon Air Force Base. She was an honorary wing commander at Cannon, and enjoyed telling the story of going up in a CV-22 and spending a day at the Melrose bombing range. Her membership on the board of the New Mexico Municipal League took her frequently to Albuquerque and Santa Fe.

In July 2013, Sharon was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. While she lived with myeloma, it did not define her life. She fought this cancer with grace, determination and never a complaint, Gayla by her side for every step of the medical journey. In a partnership fueled by a shared quick wits and senses of humor, the two were favorites at the cancer clinic in Lubbock, bringing light, fun, and laughter those around them also fighting cancer.

Sharon traveled extensively in Europe and across the United States throughout her life, both for fun and business, including trips to Washington, DC, New York City, and Connecticut, and concerts in Portland, San Diego, Albuquerque and other points in between. She also memorably shared a sky dive with her mother in honor of Frankye’s 80th birthday.

The trip of a lifetime was sailing down the Rhone River on a Viking river cruise after her first stem cell transplant. Sharon and Gayla enjoyed the sights, tours, and the wine, and made lasting friends everywhere they went.

Sharon was preceded in death by her parents, Bo and Frankye King.

She is survived by a brother and sister-in-law, Clayton “Herkie” and Kathy King, of Tecumseh, MO; a niece and husband, Christa and Kris Vaudrey, and their daughters, Iris and Gracie, all of Las Cruces, NM; a nephew and wife, Jarrod and Jennifer King, and their children, Jonah, Julianne, and Jensen, all of Sebring, FL; and many cousins on both sides of her family.

She is loved by countless friends, both new and old, as well as her public service colleagues and her community members.

To honor Sharon, family and friends ask that you consider supporting one of her favorite charities–the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, 383 Main Avenue, #5, Norwalk, CT, 06851-1586, or the Food Bank of Eastern New Mexico, 2217 E. Brady, Clovis, NM 88101—or make a donation to your favorite charity in her name. You are also invited to bring non-perishable food items to Sharon’s memorial service. We ask that you honor Sharon by using your time, energy and finances in her memory in these ways.

The Campfire Girls’ law of the time speaks to the values of Sharon’s life: Seek Beauty, Give Service, Pursue Knowledge, Be Trustworthy, Hold on to Health, Glorify Work, Be Happy.