Sherrilyn P. Malaby

Sherrilyn P. Malaby, 85, of McPherson, KS and formerly of Bartlesville, OK, peacefully passed away on Friday, October 23, 2026, surrounded by family at Hospice House, Hutchinson. 

Our Mom, Sherrilyn (Colclasure) Malaby, was born January 11, 1941, in an oilfield camp in Salem, Illinois. Her parents, I.E. (Bud) and Helen (Crow) Colclasure, were young, charismatic and devoutly religious. Mom was their first of three children. Doing things the right way mattered in their family. Honesty, integrity and godliness were expected. Love was present but was not always articulated. From what we understand, Mom grew up craving love but often did not feel that she had done enough to earn love from the people around her.

Her high school experiences reflected this dynamic. Mom was smart, tall, and beautiful. She was a cheerleader and near the top of her class academically. She had lots of friends and a clunky old car named “Shasta” to drive them around in. She went to parties and dances and games but remembered it as a time when she never really fit in.

Mom adored her grandparents and soon after graduation, Mom moved to Dewey, Oklahoma to be near them. She began working in the secretarial pool at Phillips Petroleum Company, which was headquartered in nearby Bartlesville.

It was here she met our Dad, Robert (Bob) Malaby, fresh out of the Marines and college, who had been hired as one of Phillips first computer programmers. They were both funny, beautiful and wicked smart. They clicked immediately and were married in 1961. Dad began rocketing up the corporate ladder at Phillips while Mom stayed home and raised us when we came along in 1962 and 1966. Mom always described this as the happiest time of her life.

As it frequently seemed to happen in the 1970s, Mom and Dad divorced. She admitted she struggled with romantic relationships, but she excelled in other ways. In 1982, she founded the oilfield company Downhole Data and became one of the first female owner/executives in the oilfield service industry. In her 40’s she sold the company and went back to college to become a teacher, which was her true calling. She majored in Special Education, focusing on children with severe and profound disabilities, and was brilliant in interacting with these children. She got kids to talk who had never talked. She got kids to walk who had never walked. Using her business experience, she raised vast amounts of grant money for her perennially underfunded students. When her district administrators told her that there was no money to pay for her kids to attend the Special Olympics, Mom raised the money. When she was told even if she raised the money to attend there were no buses available to take the kids, she raised even more money and bought a school bus. She then consulted a lawyer and “donated” the bus to her District’s Special Education Department. Her kids attended the Special Olympics for many years.

Mom was a true and loyal friend, best illustrated by her relationship with her best friend Julia Crow, who she met in her early 20’s. They remained friends and confidants, each giving the other support, laughs and love through good times and bad until Julia’s death almost 50 years later. She also loved her friend group in Bartlesville, and never felt as alive as when catching up with her friends.

After retiring from her position as Welfare to Work Program Coordinator at Tri-County Technology Center, Mom moved to McPherson, Kansas to be closer to her youngest kids and grandkids. While McPherson can sometimes be a difficult town in which to make friends for non-natives, Mom was quickly adopted by an amazing group of local women collectively known as “the tribe”. At first, Mom struggled to believe that they really wanted her as a friend, but as time passed and their love and kindness never wavered, she embraced them as long-lost sisters.

Another area that blessed Mom after her move to McPherson was her little church, St. Anne’s Episcopal. Mom was a regular attendee at the church and contributed in any way she could for the benefit of the church and its mission.

One area where Mom never struggled was as a grandparent. First with Michael and Michelle’s children, Wes and Claire, in Bartlesville and then with Mark and Gail’s children, Christopher and Audrey, in McPherson, Nana was a steadfast supporter and attendee at sporting events, school plays, dance recitals and anything else that might be happening. She rarely settled for their names when talking to them or about them, choosing instead to start their names with “My Darling” or “My Beautiful”. Thus, Claire became “My Darling Claire” and Christopher “My Beautiful Christopher”. She changed these nicknames around regularly so no one felt stereotyped. She also leaves behind great-grandchildren Jaxon and Taryn, Julian and Ray.

In short, Mom was a person who as a young person struggled to believe in herself but as she matured, she found the ambition to be an entrepreneur, the courage to go back to college and change careers mid-life, and the compassion to teach and fiercely advocate for special needs children and young people struggling to make their own way in the world. Through it all, she loved and cared for her family, friends and community. She was a good person and we miss her terribly. We would like to thank all of you who brought love and happiness into her life.

A memorial service will be held at 10:30 AM, Friday, November 6, 2026, at St. Anne's Episcopal Church, McPherson.

If you like, instead of flowers, please honor her lifelong commitment to the Special Olympics by donating there. 

Donations to The McPherson Special Olympics - https://macsolympics.wixsite.com/special-olympics