Clara Frances (Crews) Farquharson, age 79, of Cheyenne died peacefully at Davis Hospice Center on May 30, 2017.

Clara was born in Cheyenne on February 10, 1938, the third child of Lloyd W. and Lorella M. (Kennett) Crews. She was raised and educated here, graduating at the top of her class from Cheyenne High School in 1956. She studied nursing at the University of Denver (DU), earning a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in 1960. While at DU, she met and married a classmate, John R. Farquharson, at her parents’ home in 1959. Following their graduation from DU, Clara and John moved as required by his long career with a company now known as Aramark to Ottawa, KS, then to Marengo, IL, and finally in 1976 to Haddonfield, NJ, which was near the company’s headquarters.

Clara’s first nursing position was at an elder care facility near their home in Kansas. But it was later, in Haddonfield, that Clara found her niche as a pediatric nurse practitioner at Kingsway Learning Center, a well-respected private school for children with multiple disabilities. She thrived at meeting the challenging special needs of the students there. To excel as she did in such an environment for over 20 years required an incredible amount of patience, compassion, and fortitude. While still working at Kingsway, Clara attended the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia part-time, eventually earning a Master’s degree in Nursing. During that time, Clara made friends with a fellow graduate student who happened to be blind. This inspired her to learn braille and undertake translation of textbooks into braille in her spare time, which she did for many years. Unfortunately, the onset of Alzheimer’s disease forced Clara to retire from Kingsway in 2008.

Despite her busy career, Clara found time for hobbies such as quilting, fine arts and crafts, music, and genealogical research. She was an accomplished pianist and quite an animal lover, having had dogs, a cat, and two horses. Clara and John traveled widely around the world together, and they spent many happy times with John’s family at their summer home in Lovell, ME, and with her sister Nina Belle Hoy’s family in Cheyenne and Vienna, VA.

Clara never lost her deep affection for Wyoming as “home,” and she transitioned back to Cheyenne in 2011. Her 51-year marriage to John ended that same year. In recent years, Clara had resided at Primrose with her dear childhood friend and caregiver, Marilyn Bishop.

Clara was preceded in death by her parents, her former husband, and both sisters, Ella Marie Hildreth, and Nina Belle Hoy. She is survived by her nephew, Jeffrey C. Hoy, former niece-in-law, M. Elizabeth Willson, and their two children, Christopher L. (Aisling) Hoy and Lauren E. Hoy; another nephew, Kim L. Hildreth; and a niece, Cynthia C. Alcantara and her two children, Eric Alcantara and Michelle Alcantara.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Imagination Fund of the National Federation for the Blind, 200 E Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, MD 21230.

Cremation has taken place under the auspices of Schrader, Aragon and Jacoby Funeral Home. A memorial service will be held at 10:00 AM on Friday June 16, also at Schrader, Aragon and Jacoby Funeral Home. Online condolences may be sent via www.schradercares.com.

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