Obituary

A memorial service for Sharon Billingsley, 65, of Portales, will be held at a later date.

Sharon Beth Billingsley was born Dec. 12, 1957, in Waurika, OK to the home of Pauline Theresa (Ruffini) and Guy Brannon Luscombe, and died early on the morning of Sept. 9, 2023 in Portales, NM.  In 1962, the family moved to Dora, NM.  As a girl, she was very active in sports, playing on state championship teams in volleyball and basketball, as well as being on the cheerleading squad.  Following her graduation in 1976, Sharon attended ENMU for a year, before taking a break to live life.

For several years she was employed at ENMRSH.  A part of her job was to oversee some of the young people as they worked out in the community at various jobs.  She eventually returned to college, attending first Clovis Community College, and later completing both her Bachelor’s Degree and her Master’s Degree from Eastern New Mexico University.  She began working in education as a Teacher’s Aide in the Texico schools in 1995, while completing her Bachelor’s Degree, and then taking a fulltime position as a teacher when it was completed.  Ms. Billingsley retired in 2020, after finishing a career of 25 years.

On June 4, 1983, in Clovis, she was married to Danny Billingsley.  The couple had two daughters before eventually divorcing.  Sharon loved going to the mountains, and enjoyed many times in Ruidoso.  She was an immaculate housekeeper, having been trained by her mother.  Sharon and her mother enjoyed watching various soap operas on television.  She also liked to watch home improvement shows.

Sharon is survived by two daughters and a son-in-law, Megan Johnson of Lubbock, TX and Amber and Jordan Churchill of Mildenhall AFB, England; two grandchildren, Autumn and Rowen Churchill; four brothers, Steve (Candy) Luscombe of Midland, TX, Mike (Amy) Luscombe of Clovis, Richard (Joann) Luscombe of Texico and Paul (Tawna) Luscombe of Portales; as well as by her former husband, Danny Billingsley of Logan, NM.  She was preceded in death by her parents, Pauline and Guy Luscombe.