Obituary for Laura Beth Somerlot

"I knew Laura in high school at Naperville Central and she always flew above the fray in a kind and gentle way. She may have been introverted, but I knew the rivers ran deep despite high school not being the easiest time for any of us (just the normal stresses of being a teenager). I know she had great taste in music, was a "creative" and I can only imagine how much she loved her family and children just based on the person she was in 1990. My condolences to her family and friends. I saw this post shortly after learning of Laura's passing and I thought it was appropriate. "Solitude isn't loneliness. It is a subtly wild revival. A caress of the primal self. It's when the entire universe rains music, surrounding you like a hand, returning you to song." -written by Victoria Erickson, poet. God bless."

"I am so very sorry to read of Laura's passing. Please know that all my thoughts, love, and prayers are headed your way. Although I never got to know her the fact that she was a Somerlot was all that I needed to love her. Please let me know if there's anything at all that I can do to help!"

"My sympathies to Laura's family. Laura was my puzzle buddy here at Fermilab. I will miss her friendship and her smile."

"Laura and I had the unique relationship of being both work colleagues and McDole/PTO Moms. We would talk about our kids, McDole, our PTO work, and our day-to-day jobs pretty much in that order!
I told her how great it was that Daniel won the school spelling bee, and she was beaming with pride! She talked about how fast her kids were growing and her sentiment that Daniel was the last one at McDole.
I would see her every other week in a meeting at my building and we'd often have these mini-chats after. The conference room is past my office, so I wouldn't go until I saw Laura walk by. She always lightened the mood with her humorous quips. Our next meeting is Tuesday. That one is going to be rough. She still owes my boss a Coke from Wilson Hall!
I happened to open our PTO Facebook page after I heard the news on Monday morning, and Laura's last post was at the top of the page from February. It turned out that someone made a cute comment on it on Saturday not knowing she was already gone. Then, someone liked the post, and I put a heart on it, and those things kept that post at the forefront of the page for the majority of the day, before anyone else knew. It was bittersweet, because it was a cute post about her Box Tops program.
I was on the PTO Board and her program was one of the subcommittees assigned to me to overlook. However, I had nothing to do, because Laura had it under control. Her efforts raised hundreds of dollars for our school. It just goes to show what one person can do, and how our actions touch so many.
The sheer amount of us that are saddened and shocked by her passing is a true testament to a life well lived. They say the best life is one where people are smiling when you are born and crying when you are gone - so, I say she's done good!
Although, if she were to walk into the room, I just know her face would turn at least 5 shades of red as she would NOT want all this attention!
I will always remember her fondly.
She will be missed."

"We, of course, are devastated about Laura's passing. Though we didn't see her but once or twice a year, usually with crochet needle in hand, she was always a joy to be with. You are all in our thoughts and prayers at this difficult time."

"Laura was one of my childhood friends who brought me a smile when she moved to my neighborhood and almost daily for years after. I will always cherish these memories. Her family is in my thoughts at this very difficult time."