Melody Shearer

Melody Shearer, 67, daughter of the late Gladys Shearer and Frank Wehunt, died Thursday, January 28, 2021 of COVID-19.

She was suffering with severe symptoms but was afraid to go to the hospital and tried to care for herself at home. Melody would not want anyone to get sick gathering in her honor. Once the threat of COVID has subsided, a celebration of life gathering will be held.
 
Most who knew Melody know that she lost her mother to cancer when she was five years old. She carried much sadness through her life due to this deeply profound loss. However, it also engendered in her tremendous empathy for the hurt and pain felt by others. Everyone knew that if they were in trouble, down on their luck, or felt like they had nothing or no-one left in this world, that Melody would open the door for them and offer them a meal, an ear, a place to stay, or anything else they needed. They trusted her to never judge them and she welcomed them with open arms.
 
Melody’s nurturing abilities extended to her animal friends and family as well. Bernie, Roscoe, Charlie, and so many others were family to her. Many a Mama cat and her kittens found shelter and love at Melody’s. Like their human counterparts, they knew they would always find love, warmth, and support at her door.
 
From a young age, Melody was a talented artist, and in her earlier years did a lot of watercolor and sketch work. Her artistic abilities covered the gambit –from handcrafted stunning wreaths, beautiful paintings and pen and ink pieces, to just a simple arrangement of zinnias in a glass jar. She always had a knack for making the ordinary sublime, like her garden just outside her home. An old mis-shaped tree provided her the shade and character to create a place of meditation and joy. Every detail bore significance—seashells in remembrance of an old friend and even a rubber snake dangling from a limb just for fun, and of course the flowers.
 
Melody was a self-employed artist and floral designer. She had worked for Johnson’s nursery crafting gorgeous arrangements. She later continued doing freelance work creating specialty wreaths and decorating homes for the holidays.
 
Nothing though could compare to the spectacle that Melody created at her own house for Christmas every year. As soon as you crossed the threshold, you were in Santa’s workshop; decorated with toys, tiny teapots, and her red wagon filled with stuffed animals. Much of this décor were treasures from her childhood saved and brought out each year to celebrate the season. The presents she gave were equally delightful. Any present received from Melody was so sentimental, so special, and wrapped so beautifully that the packaging alone was a gift. You could always count on her letters and cards – she rarely missed a birthday, Easter, Christmas, or Valentine’s Day, frequently signing off, “Always in my heart, Melody.”

No one could tell a story like Melody. Even if her tales seemed somewhat embellished at times, it hardly mattered because they were hysterically funny. She recently claimed to be working on her memoirs that she was going to call “Dead People Don’t Need Flowers.” It sounds dark, but she couldn’t stop laughing when she talked about it.
 
Quarantine was tough on Melody as it has been for everyone. When she felt herself getting down, she would just dance. Sliding across the hardwood floors to James Brown, Little Richard, and Otis Redding always lifted her spirits. Melody also stayed busy this year painting beautiful murals on her walls and furniture and making her home beautiful.
 
Prior to the COVID lockdown, Melody volunteered at the Mulberry Garden and Kitchens helping to feed the homeless. Her most recent project was helping to get out the vote in Georgia. She worked tirelessly to get people registered to vote and get them to the polls. She was very proud to have been a part of turning Georgia blue.
 
To Melody’s friends, both past and present, she could be challenging sometimes. But she loved all of you so much. You brought so much joy into her life. Please be safe and take care of one another.
 
Melody is survived by her sister, Debbie Salyer of St. Simons Island, Georgia; her niece, Melody Bennett of Los Angeles, California; her aunt, Rosa Bennett of Macon, Georgia; her cousins, Lark Bennett of Miami Beach, Florida, Sheree Applebury of Roberta, Georgia, and Stanley Spillers of Roberta Georgia as well as many other friends and family members. If you wish to honor Melody’s memory, please donate to your local animal shelter.

Please visit www.hartsmort.com to express condolences.

Hart’s on Cherry Street, Hart's Mortuary and Cremation Center, 765 Cherry Street, Macon, GA 31201 has charge of the arrangements.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Melody Shearer, please visit our floral store.