Sharon Ellen McCullough

Celebration of Life of Sharon Randolph McCullough

      On Tuesday, February 2, 2021, the angels came to the home of our beloved Sharon Randolph McCullough.  It was God’s will that she must go.  Her time had come, and the assurance of a better home was made possible through the word of God and she was taken to a place of eternal rest.  

     Sharon was born two minutes before her twin sister, Karen, on October 30, 1949 in Glen Ridge, New Jersey.  She is the daughter of the late James W. Randolph and Hope Robinson Randolph.  She was predeceased by her only brother, James W. Randolph in December 2020.  She loved him dearly and considered him her “HERO.”   

     Sharon was a single, devoted, and loving mother to her three children.  They enjoyed holiday dinners and celebrating birthdays at their favorite restaurants.   Sharon was a very upbeat, inspiring, and loving woman.  Always a loyal friend, and an extremely giving person.  A lover of animals who considered her dogs and cat a part of her family. 

      As a child she attended Sunday School at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Montclair.  Sharon accepted Christ at an early age and followed in her parents’ footsteps and became an active member of the St. Paul Baptist Church.  Her ministries included the Adult and Women’s Choir, she assisted in the Youth Choir.  She was an active member of the 3 Fish and 5 Loaves Food Ministry, delivering food to the seniors of the church, and volunteered wherever needed.  She enjoyed attending Bible Study and Sunday School. 

     Sharon was educated in the Montclair public school system.  While attending Montclair High school she excelled scholastically, as well as in extracurricular activities to include twirling and as a member of the Jr. League.  In 1964, she performed with the twirling squad at the New York World’s Fair in Flushing Meadow Park, N.Y.  Upon graduation in 1967, she briefly attended Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland.  She later transferred and graduated from Kean University in Irvington, New Jersey in 1972, with a B.A. Degree in Education.  She pledged off-line and was a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

     Sharon was a Special Education school teacher for over 30 years and had taught in various schools in Essex County; including Montclair and Newark, N.J., respectively.  Sharon began teaching in the Newark Public School system in November 1988.  During her tenure at Barringer High School she coached and assisted in the marching band performances at games and local parades.  Sharon was an extremely devoted special education teacher.  Where many teachers became burnt out and leaving that discipline, Sharon stayed because she wanted to contribute to the betterment of her student’s lives and future.  She retired in 2014.  Sharon enjoyed traveling and socializing with friends and family, and had shown a recent interest in politics, and considered running for City Council in Orange, N.J.  She will be remembered for her outgoing personality and beautiful smile.  She was a stylish dresser and loved wearing hats.  

     Sharon was married to Jessie McCullough.  And of this union her youngest daughter, Jessica Michelle, was born (Orange, N.J.).  In addition, she leaves to mourn her oldest daughter, Chelsea D. Randolph (West Orange, N.J.), her son, Justin C. Randolph (West Orange, N.J.) and one granddaughter, Chanelle Denny (West Orange, N.J., Chelsea’s daughter), whom she loved and adored.  Two sisters, Diane R. Lyle (St. Petersburg, FL); her twin sister, Karen R. Stephenson (Laurel, MD); one sister-in-law, Ann S. Randolph (Guilford, CT); seven nieces and nephews, twelve grand nieces and nephews, and a host of cousins, and life-long and devoted friends (too numerous to name). 

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