Obituaries

Sari March (Schnepf) Terry Sari M. Terry passed away Wednesday, May 22, 2002 at Community Memorial Hospital after a lengthy illness. Sari was 46 years old.Born in Riverside March 11, 1956, Sari Schnepf grew up around airplanes with both her mother and father being pilots. As a little girl all Sari ever wanted to do was fly airplanes, and she always talked about wanting to be an airline pilot.Sari started flying lessons at Van Nuys Airport at the age of 14. She soloed at 16, and received her private pilot’s license when she was 17 years old. Sari continued on with her flight training with instrument, commercial, multi-engine, CFI, CFII and ground instructor ratings, and completed her ATP and type rating in her father’s B-25 at the age of 22.She was first hired commercially by Air New England, flying the Twin Otter. Sari then flew for Trans Western Airlines in Logan, Utah. She went on to fly for Imperial Airlines in Southern California and Aspen Airways of Denver, Colorado, flying the Convair 580. In 1981 Sari was hired by PSA in San Diego as their first woman pilot at the age of 29, flying the Boeing 727 and British Aerospace 146. With the merger of PSA and USAir, she went on to fly as first officer on the McDonnell Douglass DC9/MD80 and Boeing 737 until her medical leave in 1993. She met and married Michael Terry in 1997, with Santa Paula Airport as her aviation home these last few years.Sari has courageously been fighting a battle with Lupus since 1993, and will be dearly missed by all who have known and loved her. Sari loved every aspect of life, even during her most difficult times. In the recent months she embraced life, often saying to those around her that there were so many things to be happy for. Sari’s bravery during her battle stands as an inspiration to all who knew her.Sari is survived by her loving husband, Michael Terry; mother Janet Atkinson; father and stepmother Edwin and Anne Schnepf; sisters, Tari Lightbody and Dede Coleman-Landin; and brother Andy and sister-in-law Clarice Schnepf.Memorial services and a celebration of her life will be held at Screaming Eagle Aviation at Santa Paula Airport on Sunday, June 2 at 2 p.m.Any donations can be made in Sari’s name to the Simi Valley Historical Society and Museum, P.O. Box 940461, Simi Valley, CA 93094-0461; the Santa Paula Aviation Museum, P.O. Box 908, Santa Paula, CA 93061-0908; or the Lupus Foundation of America, P.O. Box 79563, Baltimore, MD 21279-0563.Arrangements are under the direction of Ted Mayr Funeral Home in Ventura.Georgia