CHEYENNE — Before Carolyn Teter worked as deputy chief of staff for former Wyoming Gov. Jim Geringer, she knew Jim and his wife, Sherri, as neighbors.
Like Sherri, Teter was a born-and-raised city girl turned farmer. Originally from Denver, she and her husband moved to Wheatland in 1979 and rented a house from the Geringers.
“I knew her as a city girl,” Teter said. “I would go out every Saturday and get fresh milk from the Geringers. And Sherri is the one who actually re-educated this city girl into the ways of rural life, and I loved her.”
Former Wyoming first lady Sherri Geringer died April 5 at age 79.
Teter and Sherri spent Saturday mornings drinking coffee at the kitchen table and sharing stories. They raised their kids together and shared the life of being a mom. Teter’s husband was a trucker, and she was often alone to raise their three children while he was out on the road.
“You knew you could call on her,” Teter said.
Sixteen years later, she and Sherri would share the life of working as a public servant for the state of Wyoming.
“I just feel so connected with the family, and was privileged to know her before she became first lady,” Teter said. “But let me tell you, her character was the same. She treated everyone just the same.”
Teter knew Sherri as “a gracious and real person” both before and after she became first lady in 1995.
“She was honest, she spoke her mind,” Teter said. “You were able to really communicate back and forth with her on good ideas.”
Teter adored Sherri as a sister. She was even there to celebrate Sherri and Jim’s 58th wedding anniversary in March.
“Her support for Jim was amazing, in everything he did,” Teter said. “She supported him, whether she was a farmer’s wife or whether she was the governor’s wife.”
The week before Sherri died, Jim called Teter and told her his wife’s health was failing. He urged her to make a trip down to Cheyenne soon to say her goodbyes. Teter said she planned to come down by the end of that week when she got another call from Jim.
“He said, ‘Carol, don’t come,’” Teter recalled. “‘The nurse said that she’s only got a couple days.’”
Teter was devastated that she wouldn’t have the chance to hug her friend goodbye. Jim texted her Sherri’s last moments, how she took his hand and said, “I’ve got God’s hand now. I’m going to make the journey.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to tell her what she meant to me,” Teter said. “I think, in essence, she knew.”
City girl meets farm boy
Sherri Louise Slentz started out as a city girl, born in 1945 in Wichita, Kansas, before she fell for the Wyoming farm boy. She met her husband while taking an economics course at Kansas State University, according to her obituary.
“(S)he spotted a handsome young man in her summer economics course and convinced her friend to introduce them,” her obituary read. “That young man, Jim Geringer, was wowed not only by Sherri’s Mustang, but by her thousand-watt smile, intellect and warm personality.”
They married March 24, 1967, and had five kids together. Jim and Sherri Geringer celebrated their 58th wedding anniversary two weeks before she died.
“Fifty-eight years is a long time, and you don’t get to that point without having a lot of love, a lot of trust, a lot of communication,” said her son, state Rep. Rob Geringer, R-Cheyenne. “The example that they set for us was incredible.”
Jim, Sherri Geringer wedding
Former Wyoming Gov. Jim Geringer and first lady Sherri Geringer walk down the aisle.
Jim and Sherri talked through every decision together, he said, including Jim’s decision to run for office and decisions about their farm in Wheatland. Rob said his dad wouldn’t have made it as far as he did “without Mom’s full support and guidance and advice.”
Everyone who knew the Geringers deeply admired the loving, strong relationship between Jim and Sherri; that included U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo. In 2018, Sherri suffered a stroke that limited her ability to talk — but Jim remained steadfast by his wife’s side.
“Many people have commented that since her stroke a number of years ago that Gov. Geringer has been her constant companion and very attentive,” Lummis said in an emailed statement to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. “While their relationship dynamics shifted through this health challenge, their partnership only deepened. Together, they continued to work as a team, their bond a testament to enduring commitment through life’s unexpected turns.”
Rob Geringer said one piece of advice from his mother stuck out above all the rest: “Be strong in faith and concentrate on family, because that’s everything.”
When Jim was elected as Wyoming governor in 1994, Sherri was worried “that she would not fit the mold of a first lady,” Rob Geringer said.
“While she may not have thought she would fit the mold of a typical first lady, she just created the mold herself,” he said.
One last gift
Just a few months before she died, Jim Geringer granted his wife a gift she’d wanted for years — to host the Women’s Civics League of Cheyenne’s annual Christmas House at their home.
The flurry of decorating, putting up Christmas trees and setting out holiday pastries swirled around Sherri, who sat in the middle of it all, eyes shining with delight. For years, Sherri had wanted to host the annual Christmas House, but many members feared the Geringers’ 9,000-square-foot house was too far out of town.
It would only take one snowstorm to block travelers from attending the special, two-day fundraising event.
“I was so worried about a storm,” said Civic League member Kathryn Van Dell. “But the weather was beautiful. … The good Lord was just shining upon a child of His … and wanted to see this happen for this gracious woman.”
Sherri Geringer died less than five months later, surrounded by family after battling an extended illness, according to Rob.
Civic League President Kristin Riley said she spoke with Jim, who told her the family considered putting off hosting the Christmas House until next year. But something told him they needed to do it in 2024.
“He’s like, ‘I am so grateful that we were able to do this for Sherri,’” Riley said, “‘and that I was able to give her one of her last wishes and provide her that memory.’”
Sherri was granted another gift shortly after the new year began — seeing her son, Rob, on the first day of the 68th Wyoming Legislature’s general session as a first-time state representative. From the floor of the House of Representatives, Rob took a moment to introduce his parents, who beamed down at him from the gallery.
“Being able to look up at my parents and see them there, and see the support and the happiness and just knowing that they were there to support me, yet again, just was a great feeling,” Rob said. “(I) loved being able to have her there and give her a hug.”
Lasting legacy
Lummis served as general counsel for former Gov. Geringer, and she held a close working relationship with the governor and first lady. Lummis said she planned to attend the Cheyenne funeral service for Sherri Geringer April 14 at Cheyenne Hills Church.
“Sherri was a calming influence on her husband and her entire family,” Lummis said in an emailed statement. “Though she was soft spoken, she operated with a quiet confidence. As the consummate hostess, she made everyone feel welcomed in the Governor’s residence.”
Everyone who knew the former first lady spoke of her strength, warm smile and unwavering spirit to serve her community. Long before she became a governor’s wife, Sherri was an active member in the volunteer world, especially when it came to helping victims of domestic abuse.
“I can remember, even as a kid growing up in Wheatland, Mom was involved with (SAFE Project),” Rob said. “Taking care of places for domestic violence victims.”
Sherri was passionate about supporting causes, especially programs that supported victims of domestic abuse. As first lady, she partnered with then-state Attorney General William U. Hill to sponsor Wyoming’s involvement in the Silent Witness Initiative, a nationwide nonprofit that promotes healing in adult relationships to reduce the number of murders due to domestic violence. Rob Geringer said there was never a clear reason why these programs held a special place in his mother’s heart.
Sherri Geringer at Raising Readers at Capitol
Wyoming first lady Sherri Geringer reads to children during a Raising Readers event in the rotunda of the Wyoming State Capitol.
Sherri’s other passion was promoting early childhood education, especially for families who were struggling financially. One of the most successful programs she started as first lady is Raising Readers, a program designed to promote early childhood development that started in 2002. This program provides new books to children in the age range of 2 months to 5 years old.
More than 450,000 books have been distributed across all 23 Wyoming counties since the program began. In 2019, more than 27,600 families benefited from it.
Sherri joined the Women’s Civics League of Cheyenne in 2010, the same year as Van Dell, who joined after her retirement from the Wyoming Education Association. Soon after joining, Sherri followed her passion of early childhood learning and initiated the “Bag of Books” program.
This was a special program for schools on the south side of the railroad tracks, one of Cheyenne’s poorest areas. Children’s books were stuffed into a bag for kids to bring home and read with their parents.
“It was so great because it also helped bond the relationship between mom or dad and the children,” Van Dell said. “I so admired what she did.”