Cheryl Naslund

Cheryl Terrass Naslund, 60, of Vestal, NY, our beloved wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend passed away on Tuesday, October 13th after a sudden and unanticipated cerebral hemorrhage. She is survived by her husband of 36 years, Richard Naslund; her father, Terry Terrass; her children, Cambria, Kalindi, Neelam, Skye, and Sterling Naslund, and Melanie Zioze and husband Dean; her grandchildren, Alexis, Kate, and Jack Zioze; her sisters, Leigh and Adrienne; many nieces and nephews; her exchange daughters, Carola and Gabriela; and a multitude of friends around the world. She was predeceased by her mother, Jackie Terrass, and by her infant son, Nicholas. Cheryl and Richard moved to the Binghamton area in 1987 and soon became integrated into the community. Cheryl was the librarian at UE high school, a driving force in the University Women’s group, a member of the Indian Cultural Center, a volunteer ski instructor for the Greek Peak Adaptive Ski Program, a member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, a part-time PhD student in the School of Education at BU, a mother of six who took numerous additional foreign students under wing, and a founding member of the Red Poodle Society. She was an avid traveler and adventurer, scuba diver, photographer, art walker, museum goer, a gourmet cook specializing in world cuisines, a generous and frequent host, an unparalleled copy editor, frequent rail trail walker (with her love Tamarind the Red), passionate learner, English, Spanish, and French speaker, internet guru for many local organizations and desperate students in her library, and social chairman for her husband and for half of the Binghamton area as well. She was particularly proud (as were we) when she received her Professional Ski Instructors of America certification to help with her volunteer work. She was selected as Volunteer of the Year at Greek Peak Adaptive Ski Program in 2009, was given the UEHS Tiger Pride Awesomeness Award in 2012, and was awarded the Broome County Woman of Achievement Award in 2007. She learned to ski on one leg in her fifties in order to better teach amputees to ski. She was a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara (BA), and the University of Michigan (MLS).

Visitation hours will be held on Sunday, October 18th at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Binghamton (183 Riverside Drive, Binghamton) from 2:00pm to 5:00pm. A funeral service will be held on Monday, October 19th at Our Lady of Sorrows Church (801 Main Street, Vestal) from 6:30pm to 7:30pm. The family will greet friends from 5:00pm and a reception will follow the service. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Cheryl’s name to Broome-Tioga Special Olympics (checks to BTSO, c/o John Crosby, 9 Londonderry Lane, Owego, NY 13827) or to Greek Peak Adaptive Snowsports (checks to Greek Peak Adaptive Snowsports, 9 Eland Dr., Apalachin, NY 13732; www.gpadaptive.org).