Tracy Kugler Sharpe

Tracy Kugler Sharpe, 65, of Levelland, TX, entered into the presence of the Lord on September 14th, 2023 after a hard-fought battle with gallbladder cancer.  A Memorial Service will be held at 2:00 pm on Thursday, September 28, 2023, at First Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

Tracy was born in Champaign, IL, to Kenneth Dean and Dorothy Jean (Arnold) Kugler. As a military brat, everywhere and nowhere was home. In 1980. Tracy graduated from the University of Oklahoma, where she was a member of the Navy ROTC unit and served as the first female battalion commander during her last year. After graduation, Tracy was commissioned as an Ensign in the US Navy and began training as a Naval Flight Officer. She served in the Navy from 1980 until 1992 then served an additional year in the Naval Reserves, rising to the rank of Commander (O-5). Tracy continued her connection to the Navy after her term of service through her loving husband, Jonathan William Sharpe, a Surface Warfare Officer. After his retirement from the Navy, Tracy wholeheartedly supported Jon’s decision to go to seminary to become a Presbyterian minister.

Tracy’s accomplishments include three academic degrees -- Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the University of Oklahoma; Master of Science in Systems Engineering from Naval Postgraduate School; Master of Science in Molecular and Microbiology from the University of Central Florida. While at the University of Central Florida, Tracy was a student research assistant at the Walt Disney Memorial Cancer Institute, where she conducted experiments on laser transfection of genes. As a parent, her proudest accomplishment was successfully homeschooling her three children, one of whom has a promising career in a law firm and two of whom have gone on to academic success at Oklahoma Christian University. There is nothing in her life, however, to top her relationship with the Lord, which only deepened through her battle with cancer.

Tracy is survived by her husband of 37 years, Jonathan William Sharpe, pastor of First Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Levelland; her three children, Paul Benjamin Sharpe and his wife, Camille Carroll Sharpe of Jackson, MS, Surafel James Sharpe of Levelland, TX, and Karin “Elle” Sharpe of Levelland, TX; her parents, Kenneth Dean and Dorothy Jean Kugler of Norman, OK; and her sister, Katherine Grace Kugler of Norman, OK.

Memorial donations may be made to the Voice of the Martyrs of Bartlesville, OK, or the Colson Center of Colorado Springs, CO.

Arrangements are under the direction and personal care of the professionals at Krestridge Funeral Home.  (806) 897-1111