Sharon Loughlin Bollinger passed away peacefully at the age of 87 on Friday, November 28, 2025. She was preceded in death by her husband, Jim Nichols, and her parents, Edward and Helen Loughlin. She is lovingly remembered by her children, Michael (wife Nong), Lori, Beth and Rebecca (husband Matthew); her five grandchildren, Steven, Jacque, Nicola, Joshua and Jacob; her great grandchildren Christopher and Michael; her brother Tom, and nieces Cathy (wife Claire) and Kelli and great niece Zoey. A Celebration of Life will be held on January 24, 2026, at 11am at Bring Broadway Chapel at 6910 East Broadway Blvd, Tucson Arizona, 85710. This announcement will be updated with a Zoom link for the services a week prior to the Celebration. In lieu of flowers please send memorial contributions to the Center of Concern, either online at https://centerofconcern.org/make-a-donation/ or directly to the Center of Concern, 1665 Elk Boulevard, Des Plaines, Illinois 60016.

Sharon was born on March 15, 1938, in Chicago Illinois to Edward and Helen (Huff) Loughlin. She grew up in 1940s Chicago with her younger brother Tom, their first cousins, and her beloved maternal Grandma Estelle and Grandpa Bob. Sharon loved to tell how during her childhood the family often took trolley trips to the famous Roosevelt Fountain, with Sharon and Tom in their pajamas, to cool off on hot Chicago summer nights. She grew up with a love for music and was a talented pianist. When Sharon was in high school the family moved to Burlington Wisconsin. She graduated from the small Burlington High School in 1955 and was a loyal alumna, attending many reunions throughout her life. Sharon, known as “Corky” to her high school friends, was very active in academics and extracurricular activities. Her senior year, she won the Wisconsin State Debating Championship; however, the judges told Sharon and her parents they were awarding first place to the boy she beat, because he would have a career and family to support. Fighting for equal opportunity for women and others would define Sharon for the rest of her life.

After high school, Sharon enrolled at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where she met Jerry “the fast talker from Mondovi” Bollinger. They married and had four children: Michael, Lori, Beth, and Rebecca. Sharon said that her greatest accomplishment in life was raising her four children to be “honest, honorable, and hard-working American citizens. During this time, she became a life-long Packers and Wisconsin fan. Sharon loved to tell the story of attending the first Super Bowl where the Packers won, and how she and her second husband Jim Nichols got to meet Bart Starr in person many years later.

The Bollinger family moved to southern California in the 1960s and settled in Poway California. She was active in helping the new community develop resources including schools for the new school district. After noticing there were no organized sports for girls, Sharon helped establish the Poway girls' softball league, so that her daughters and other girls could play sports, too - and got local businesses to sponsor them as well!

While in Poway Sharon went back to school and completed several degrees, culminating in a PhD (ABD) from Arizona State University. While in Tempe as a graduate student, Sharon went to purchase her first home. The local bank declined her loan application because she was a divorced, single woman. Sharon argued this was illegal, using her newfound knowledge from studying at ASU about the 1971 Supreme Court case, argued by Ruth Bader Ginsberg, which extended the protections of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to women. A few hours after she left the bank the bank manager called and asked her to come back, and Sharon was granted her first solo mortgage.  

After graduating from ASU, Sharon entered the workforce, becoming a highly respected professional historian. Her first employment as a historian was at the University of Wyoming. She then transitioned to work for the State of Wyoming, overseeing historic preservation for the State. Sharon enjoyed telling the story of how during the summer she and her youngest daughter would travel the State together to check on State historic sites – such as South Pass City, an old Wyoming mining town – while stopping at various ranches along the way, a fond memory for both.

In Cheyenne she also began teaching community college part time, which became her second full time career upon retiring from the State of Wyoming after 15 years. Sharon was a very kind person and had a gift for seeing the best in everyone. This made her a wonderful teacher, mentor and advocate. She moved from Cheyenne to take a full-time job at El Paso Community College, obtaining tenured professor status and teaching there until her retirement in 2012.

While in Cheyenne, Sharon met Jim Nichols. They fell in love and married in 2000. When Sharon met Jim, she met her best friend. They went cruising and traveled the world, but some of their favorite times were sitting on the back porch in their home in El Paso, feeding the birds and reading the paper, talking about their days. They made each other laugh, which is perhaps the best gift of all. Through Jim, Sharon also informally adopted his son David and family (wife Tracy, and daughters Annaleta and Emily) and his daughter Katie. She considered them her children and grandchildren, loving and enjoying them as she did her own, including after Jim’s passing in 2010.

Throughout her life Sharon was politically active and followed current events, a passion and civic duty she believed in and taught her children and grandchildren. She volunteered for political campaigns at the local, state and national levels spanning all parties from presidential candidates Richard Nixon (R) to Bruce Babbit (D). She  was also a loyal member and volunteer of the Daughters of the American Revolution all through her life, following in the footsteps of her mother, Helen. She was a person of faith, with a commitment to doing good in the world.

After retiring, Sharon moved near her youngest daughter to enjoy her two youngest grandchildren, who were still at home, and focused on her passion for volunteering and writing. In Park Ridge Illinois she volunteered as an ESL teacher and at the Center of Concern, where one year she was honored as Volunteer of the Year. She also served on the Park Ridge Mayor's Historic Preservation Advisory Board. Whether formally or informally, she was always ready to talk about history. Sharon was also very creative, with a focus on writing essays about observations of life. A crowd favorite was her essay, "Grandma Goes to a Rock Concert." She self-published a collection of those essays, entitled "The Life and Times of a Rebel." Even in her final days, she kept a box of notes of ideas for essays she hoped to write in the future.

Sharon’s life was a testament to service, marked by her dedication to her family, love of teaching, and as a long-time volunteer. Her family misses her every day.