SLINGERLANDS — Cheryl Lynn Carter, an independent woman who put family first, died at her home in St. Marys, Georgia after a valiant fight against cancer. She was 55.

Mrs. Carter was born on Nov. 8, 1958, in Honesdale, Pennsylvania.  She is the daughter of Jennie Boersma Furbeck, of Slingerlands, and the late Robert G. Furbeck.

“She had a remarkable passion for her family.  She did everything in her power to create the perfect home; every fine detail mattered,” her family wrote in a tribute. “As a Navy wife and mother, she was endlessly supportive and loving over their 27-year naval career.

“She gave her daughters, Jessica and Emily, all of her support, allowing room for their hearts to grow.  She was a passionate home decorator and the world’s best cook that filled the family’s warm home with love and comfort.

“She was a smart, strong, and independent woman that always placed family first.  Even with the challenge of moving every several years as a Navy wife, the Carter house always looked like they had lived there for years.  During the holidays, Cheryl used her talent in house decor to create a winter wonderland or spooky haunted house just in time for her daughters to come home from college.

“She loved the ocean.  It was her life's ambition to retire on a yacht in the mountainous regions of the Pacific Northwest, and to travel around the world with her husband, John.  Although her heart yearned to visit Italy and other countries of Europe, she knew it was more important to stay close to family, especially with her mother, Jennie, living her twilight years.

“She had an extraordinary sense of humor, even in illness, and her laugh could make any room brighter.  Her fighting spirit was inspiring and unbroken, even in her final days.  She continues to fill the hearts of all that knew her — she will never be forgotten.  She is loved and missed dearly.”

Mrs. Carter is survived by her beloved husband, United States Navy Captain John P. Carter; her dear daughters, Jessica Amanda Carter and Emily Ashley Carter, both of St. Marys, Georgia; her mother, Jennie Furbeck of Slingerlands; her sister and her husband, Pam and Arnie Laforty, of Hoosick Falls, New York; her brother, Jeff Furbeck of Slingerlands; and her mother-in-law Margaret Glunt of North Huntingdon, Pennsylvania.

A celebration of Mrs. Carter’s loving life will be held in the New Scotland Presbyterian Church at 2010 New Scotland Road in Slingerlands at 10 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 12 with Mr. Carter’s close friend Navy Captain Mark Steiner presiding.  Interment will follow at 2 p.m. at the Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery in Schuylerville, New York where her father was laid to rest. Arrangements are by Coastal Camden Funeral Home in Kingsland, Georgia and Applebee Funeral Home in Delmar.       

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, 3011 Hampton Ave., Suite 361, Brunswick, Georgia 31520.