April 29, 1920 – January 1, 2017
Polly enjoyed a happy life filled with friends and family for 96 years. She grew up on a farm in rural Alabama, the youngest of seven brothers and sisters. The joke of the family was that little Polly’s feet never touched the ground because someone was always holding her.
Her deep love of the church, appreciation for beauty, and family guided her path through life. Some of her last words were “family sticking together” and “God has been good to me. I love everybody.”
She always said “I was blessed with two wonderful husbands” – her first husband, Rev. Fred Shoenberger, was a minister. She had the opportunity to be a “preacher’s wife” and together they were active in the civil rights movement. After Fred died at the age of 46, she married John Vogel. Together, they traveled the world and “did everything they wanted to,” eventually settling in Peachtree City, Ga. People in this community have been so good to her; she felt very safe and cared for as she aged. She called Peachtree City, “The most beautiful place on earth.”
In her final days, she kept saying “Thank you everybody for everything.” So it feels fitting here to thank her dear neighbors, who watched over her these last few years as she aged at home. Also, she would want to thank her “grief group” that she joined two years ago after John’s death. She was able to laugh and cry together with these wonderful women, and find deep healing and support in their loving connection. There are so many of you she would want to thank – so please hear her calling out as she often did in her last few days, “Amen! Thank you Jesus! Thank you everybody for everything!”
She is survived by her two children, Frederick and Beverly Shoenberger; her step-daughter Verna Plechner; four grandchildren, Rivers and Leaves Cuomo, Sarah Thurman and John Shoenberger; and four step-grandchildren, Debbie, David, Brian Plechner and Jeffery Kim; and eight great-grandchildren, Kylo, Mia, Leo, Kai, Amalia, John David, Grace, and Luke.
On Thursday, three days before she died, she called out “Good night, dear father. . . . Good night, John. . . . . I’ll see you on Sunday.” And she passed on Sunday. . . thankful each step of the way.
We will miss her greatly – her incredible strength, sense of humor, practicality and wisdom. She really knew how to find something to enjoy in life, no matter the situation. We pray that her spirit continues to guide us to find joy in simple things.
A funeral service will be held at 3 p.m., Wednesday, January 4, 2017, at Peachtree City United Methodist Church, 225 Robinson Road, Peachtree City. The family will receive friends from 1-3 p.m. prior to the service at the church.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Doctors without Borders, donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/onetime.cfm.
Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Peachtree City, www.mowellfunerlahome.com
