Sonja Kim Ward

Sonja Kim Ward was born on March 4, 1962, in Rockdale, Texas to Jack Calvin and Elizabeth Colwell Ward. She joined her older sister Lila, and two years later, their brother Darrel completed the LSD trio. On a snowy & icy day in February 1967, the family moved to Madisonville to live near Elizabeth’s father. Growing up, Sonja and her siblings enjoyed roaming freely on the family acres, riding horses, fishing, climbing trees, playing in the hay barns and learning to drive in the pastures and on the country roads in the Greenbrier community. She learned to swim at a young age, and it was one of her favorite life-long activities. Living five miles from town, there were no close neighbors, so many times Sonja rode her horse or bicycle to town to visit her friends. Growing up, she enjoyed spending time with her grandmother Mimie, working in the garden, shelling peas, and eating her strawberry cake or berry cobbler. One of her favorite memories, before Interstate 45 was extended, was spending nights at Mimie’s house, lying in bed in her dad’s old bedroom with the windows open and listening to the big trucks drive by all night long.

Sonja joined the First Methodist Church at a young age and was active in the Methodist Youth Fellowship, the children’s choir and the youth choir. Many Sundays, she could be found helping in the nursery during the morning service. During her middle and high school years, Sonja was active in 4-H, girls’ softball & volleyball, FFA, cheerleading, the drama club, the Thespian Society and band, in which she played saxophone for several years. During high school and for two years afterward, Sonja stayed busy, working at Scott’s Drug Store, Knight’s law firm and Farmer’s State Bank. In 1982, she moved to Bryan and began working for an oil company. Over the next two years, she worked at several places in Bryan and College Station, before landing a job at AMS/ARC where she would work for over 20 years, holding several positions, and making many lifelong friends.

In September 1986, she married Danny Loehr and moved to his family home in Caldwell. A few months after she and Danny married, she became an instant full-time mother when his 9-year-old daughter Nickie, and 6-year-old son Cody, came to live with them. In December 1990, she gave birth to her oldest son, Seth, and in June 1994, son, Will completed her family. Her kids were her joy, and she loved Nickie and Cody as her own. When Seth and Will were growing up, Sonja and the boys liked to spend time with Sonja’s sister and nephew; with weeks at the beach, visiting water parks, zoos, amusement parks, educational spots and many other fun things. She taught her boys the value of hard work, but she also showed them that having adventures, enjoying new experiences, and spending time with family was equally important.

In 2005, Sonja started a new chapter in her life. The next few years brought many changes in her personal and professional life. For several years she had a craft business. She was a consultant or distributor for several direct selling companies. She excelled in this business because she never met a stranger. She was such a people person and enjoyed getting to know her customers. She considered each one of them her friend. She found her niche in the last one, which allowed her to excel as a Health & Wellness Coach. For the last eight years, she also served as the secretary for the Greenbrier Cemetery Association.

Sonja’s hobbies included reading, gardening, growing beautiful flowers, and cooking, where she rarely used a recipe. She loved to travel, going to the beach, spending time with friends and family, especially her grandchildren who lovingly called her Nana. She never met a stranger, and from the time she started school, she always had a multitude of friends. She valued her friendships and was a loyal and caring friend to all.

Sonja’s strength, both physically and mentally, was a defining feature of her personality. Even though she was extremely weak and tired from fighting cancer, in October of 2024 Sonja checked a major item off of her bucket list. She took a trip to Belize with her brother, sister-in-law and lifelong friend Lynann Farris.

For the last two years, Sonja fought a hard and brave fight against Ovarian Cancer and vowed to keep dancing as long as she could hear the music. Sadly, the music stopped on May 6, 2025, but she was at peace and ready to move on in her final journey.

She is survived by her sons; Seth Loehr and wife Kindel of Rosharon and Will Loehr and wife Leah of Caldwell. Granddaughters Faith Loehr and Ainsley Loehr of Rosharon, and Emberly Loehr of Caldwell, and grandson Declan Loehr of Caldwell. Father Jack Ward of Centerville, Mother Elizabeth Ward of Madisonville, sister Lila Robertson, brother Darrel Ward and wife Dee all of Madisonville, and nephew Jordan Robertson and his family of Lufkin. She is also survived by her bonus children: Nickie Loehr and her family of College Station, and Cody Loehr and his family of Caldwell, her “girls” (as she loving referred to them) Jennifer Burns Fore, Allyson Scott Glass and Julie Jeter White, as well as cousins, extended family and many, many dear friends.

Sonja was preceded in death by both her maternal and paternal grandparents and brother-in-law Casey Robertson.

A Celebration of Life will be held for Sonja at 2:00 pm on Saturday, June 7, 2025, at Strickland Funeral Home in Caldwell.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the following: Greenbrier Cemetery Association, P.O. Box 245, Madisonville, TX 77864; Rufus Refuge Pet Rescue, P.O. Box 1385, Madisonville, TX 77864, the American Cancer Society or the Make a Wish Foundation.