Shannon Bullard
Age - 56
December 6, 2023
In the early hours of the morning Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, Shannon Dawn Kuehne Bullard, 56, went upstairs to see the penguins. Shannon was preceded in death by her mother, Dawn Johnston; Paw-paw and Grandma, Clayton and Ruby Sheets; grandmother and grandfather, Rose and Joseph Kuehne; great-aunt, Georgie Bare; great-aunt Kathleen Kilby; and cousin, Michael Bare. She is survived by her husband, Ken Bullard; and her two beloved children, Riley Bullard and Jamie "Avery" Bullard. She is also survived by her father and step-mother, Ed and Paula Kuehne; her half-brothers, Joe Kuehne, Megan, and their children, and Andrew Kuehne, Allison, and their children; aunts, Debbie Koen, and Virginia Fox, and her husband, Phil; uncle, Terry Kuehne; special cousins, Ashley Wolfe, John, and their children, Laura Craft, Andy, and their children, Mary Jane Bare, Allen Bare, Debra, and their children, Melissa McKinney, Art, and their children; great-uncle, Charles Kilby; great-aunt, Jean Foster; father- and mother-in-law, Roger and Carol Bullard; brother-in-law Floyd Bullard and his husband, Rick; and dear friends, Rick Hodge and partner Michael, and Vicki Harrison and husband, James. She is also survived by a host of other relatives, coworkers of past and present who she cared deeply about, and more friends than you can shake a stick at. She is also survived by dogs, Buffy and Zuzu; and cat, Stub. Another cat, Abby, survived, but crossed the rainbow bridge the next day to keep Shannon company. Christmas was Shannon's favorite time of year. She loved decorating, giving gifts, and almost any Christmas music except for that sappy "Christmas Shoes" song. A Christmas themed Celebration of Shannon's life will be held at Bass-Smith Funeral Home in Hickory, Saturday, December 16, 2023, officiated by the Rev. Kessiah Young. Visitation will be from 9 a. m. to 10:30 a. m. Please bring your favorite Christmas treat for all to share. The Celebration will follow at 10:30 a. m. Please wear your ugly Christmas sweaters; funny Christmas T-shirts, sweatshirts, or even your Christmas pajamas. Neckties are forbidden unless they are Christmas themed. Shannon was born Nov. 19, 1967, in Lexington, Ky. Though her parents divorced when she was quite young, she remained close to both sides of the family throughout her life. She met her husband, Ken, via their mutual personals' ads on Yahoo! in 2004. They met in person for a first date in Dec. of 2004, Ken proposed in May of 2005, they married on August 27, 2005, honeymooning in the Pacific Northwest, and had their first child, Riley, in July of 2006. (Go ahead and do the math, you know you want to. ) Jamie arrived in January of 2008, making the family complete. Shannon's love for her family was fierce and limitless. There was nothing she would not do for her children or her husband. Their last family vacation was to Universal Studios in Orlando, where she got so excited about the Harry Potter experience her family became concerned that she actually thought it was real. Shannon's human resources career carried her from the Asheville Citizen Times, to the Hickory Daily Record, Advance Auto Parts Distribution Center, SunBelt Trucking, Sattler Corp. , and finally to JPS Composite Materials in Statesville, from which she had hoped to retire. She maintained friendships with people from all of these places. In her younger days, Shannon loved school, sports, horses and boys (though not necessarily in that order). She graduated from West Wilkes High School, and continued to earn both Bachelor's and Master's degrees at Appalachian State University. When App State was playing football, you likely heard some of her screams at the television if you lived within a 25-mile radius of her home. She was passionate about justice and equality for the LGBT+ community, people of color, and women. Shannon loved collecting manatees, Santa figures, and canned food. She could watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and Harry Potter movies endlessly, and tried never to miss "The Bold and the Beautiful. " She drank Cherry Dr. Pepper all day long and would laugh at a fart as much as any third grader. Her favorite music was Queen, Dolly Parton, Ed Sheeran, and for some inexplicable reason, disco. She loved everything about Christmas and always dressed up for Halloween. Shannon became seriously ill in November of 2023, and her condition deteriorated rapidly. Her last two weeks were spent at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem. The family would like to express their deepest gratitude for the kindness and compassion that Shannon and her family were shown, not only by the doctors, nurses, and CNAs; but also by patient transport, food services, housekeeping and more; with a special thank you to nurse, Cameron, who cared for Shannon several days; and ICU housekeeper, Laverne, who kept Ken afloat on the worst day of his life. These two ladies were angels sent by God. Shannon was in some degree of delirium most of her time at the hospital. The last complete coherent sentence she said to her husband was, "I want to go upstairs to see the penguins. " A few days later, she did. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Riley and Jamie's college education funds. Please go to https://gofund. me/27422114 to make a memorial donation.Show more
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