Sheryl Ann Flanagin

Fort Smith - Sheryl Isom Flanagin, 76, of Fort Smith, died Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, at her home with her daughters. She was born March 29, 1948, in Russellville to James Edwin and Reba Loretta Coontz Isom and grew up in Ola, Arkansas.

She was preceded in death by her parents and a brother, Richard Isom.

She is survived by two daughters and a son-in-law, Kim Vann of Fort Smith and Laura and Tony Carden of Maumelle, Arkansas; a sister, Billye Smith of Kingsville, Texas; a brother and sister-in-law, James Dudley and Sandy Isom of Vilonia, Arkansas; a sister-in-law, Gloria Isom of Fort Worth, Texas; and grandchildren Katie Vann of Fort Smith, Luke and Kailey Carden of Sherwood, Arkansas, Anna, Hope, Jack, Kai, Isaac, and Corey Carden of Maumelle; and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews.

She is also survived by several best friends, card-playing buddies, and members of the Zonta Club of Fort Smith and Zonta International members all over the world.

Sheryl's family and friends will celebrate her life at a lunch on Oct. 12.

Gifts in Sheryl's memory may be made to the Zonta Foundation for Women at Zonta.org or the Sebastian County Democratic Women at P.O. Box 11064, Fort Smith, AR, 72916.

Sheryl was a dogged fighter for social justice wherever and whenever she saw inequity. She was especially fierce when it came to equality for women. She advocated tirelessly for the Equal Rights Amendment and supported Zonta International with her time, talent, and treasure.

She joined Zonta, which works to build a better world for women and girls, in 2001 and served as a club president, area director, district advocacy chair, and District 10 governor. She was inducted as governor at the 2018 international convention in Yokohama, Japan, an event she said was a highlight of her life.

Empress Michiko of Japan attended the convention's closing reception. Afterward, Sheryl would say: "Imagine that! A girl from little Ola grew up to meet the Empress of Japan. Zonta took me so many places."

She was a longtime Democrat, and Arkansas legislators hated to receive her emails and letters. She joked that she was on some powerful blacklists.

She didn't suffer fools and always told the truth, no matter who it hurt. She never minded being the first or the only person in a crusade and had an unshakeable belief in the power of the boycott. If she saw a cause she thought needed support, she would say, "Come on. I feel like carrying a sign."

Sheryl grew up the youngest of four siblings. Her father was the mayor of Ola, where her mother ran the grocery store, and everyone knew her. Her mother drove her to Danville to attend Girl Scouts. She was a scout until she was 18 when she flew by herself to California for a National Girl Scout Convention, a rare opportunity in the early 1960s.

She received bachelor's and master's degrees from Arkansas Tech University, and she taught high school English at Charleston High School for thirty years.

Sheryl loved to travel; some of her favorite places were Mackinac Island, Michigan, and Marginal Way, Maine. If she was within 100 miles of a beach, she was going to the ocean.

Diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumor in September of 2022, she battled the disease for two miraculous years as only she could: on her own terms and with all her might.

Sheryl will always be an inspiration to her family and friends.