Nellie Mae Sheriff,​ 97, was profoundly surprised to find that she died on April 9, 2020. Up until that moment, she had always thought of herself as a lively person. Initial attempts to contact Nellie were unsuccessful, due to the fact that she had left her body. In her defense, family members stated that Nellie had a pretty good run starting way back on October 11, 1922, when she was born to John Ernest and Nellie Davis Elrod. Those were tough times and she had lived through the great depression and World War II by the time she had graduated from college and received her teaching certificate. She only got that certificate because her Dad insisted. She really wanted to go into business, but her dad thought women in business were basically "Jezebels". She tried teaching and hated it and wound up working in various factories. She did, however, like socializing, and when she met this cool guy named Ralph Sheriff, who had just returned from fighting with the Army Air Force in France and Belgium, they were soon married.

It wasn't long and they had four kids. Then, both being the adventurous type, they moved to Georgia, then to Florida, and finally, California, which was their favorite place. Nellie was involved with scouting, camping, and fishing on the weekends as well as raising her kids and their horses. Then, the most profound thing in their lives happened, and they both accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Things really changed around the Sheriff house. They both found something they felt had been missing their whole lives and it cultivated into a passion and relationship with Christ that would last their lifetimes. After another child and feeling led by the spirit to move to Hawaii, they did and lived in Haleiwa on Oahu. Once again, they had some great experiences and Nellie perfected decorating cakes and making puka shell necklaces.

They moved to Idaho when Ralph got a job working on the Teton Dam after reading about Idaho in outdoor magazines. That didn't work out in a very big way, but they stayed and they lived in Ashton with Nellie working at The Lamplighter restaurant as a hostess until Ralph passed in 1993. Nellie continued to live there for a while, but the winters were a nuisance, and she moved with her son, Jerome, who lived just outside Moses Lake, Washington. Once in Washington, Nellie lived large attending and hosting Red Hat parties, all-night card games, and traveling all over the state with her friends, jamming to Marty Robbins and taking advantage of the senior discounts. Nellie was very healthy most of her life and, unfortunately, she outlived most of her friends. Nellie always found ways to keep busy reading the Word, cultivating a garden, drinking coffee at Spuds, or driving all over the state checking out the hot thrift stores. Finally, in her mid 90's, she decided it was time to stop driving. Actually, the State of Washington thought she should stop driving and she agreed, for the most part, anyway. She continued to be interested in cooking and had quite the collection of cookbooks and recipes.

Nellie is survived by her daughter Andy (Andrea) [John] Caroll who lives in Julieta, Idaho, and their children Michael, Joseph, David, and Jael; her daughter Nikki [John] Batson who lives in Worland, Wyoming, and their children Charro Madden, Ely Madden, Josiah Batson, Jessica Ariel, Jenifer Simmons, and Susan Diaz; her son, Jerome [Laurie] Sheriff of Moses Lake, Washington, along with their children Kazar Sheriff, Kyrone Sheriff, and Kearsta Dunleavy; her son, Shawn [Kristi] Sheriff of Chubbuck, Idaho, and Shawn's children Mercedes Sheriff, Jaid Welker, Isaac Sheriff, and Elijah Sheriff. Nellie's middle daughter, Michelle Truelove, passed in December 2019, and her children LaDale Fink, Lawton Crough, and Lason Crough are mourning their grandmother and mother.

Nellie was preceded in death by Parents, John Ernest Elrod and Nellie Davis Elrod, of the Shiloh Community in Seneca, SC. Also preceded in death by brothers and sister; Ernest Davis Elrod of Seneca SC, Allan Lawton Elrod of Seneca, SC, Shelor Jerome Elrod of West Union, SC, and Annie Leize Elrod Richardson of Seneca, SC; her daughter Michelle Truelove of Boise, ID, and her granddaughter, Jordan Sheriff of St. Anthony, ID.

The family is honoring their mom's wishes and is going to put her ashes to rest near Shawn's daughter, Jordan Moriah Mae Sheriff, on May 8th, 2020, at 1:00 PM at the Teton Newdale Cemetery in a graveside service. Condolences can be sent to the Baxter Funeral home in Ashton, Idaho.