In memory of Sharon · In honor of Larry

The Snell Foundation

Carrying the weight so you can grieve.


Sharon & Larry

Sharon Lee Snell and Larry Malcolm Snell met in high school in Memphis, Tennessee. He still remembers what she was wearing the first time he ever saw her. They were married fifty-four years.

Larry was a mechanic. Sharon ran the shop office. Two strong, independent people who grew up in the '50s, '60s, and '70s — and chose each other every single day. That's what a real partnership looks like.

When Sharon passed, Larry's hair went white overnight. His face aged ten years in a day. Nobody catches the caregiver when the caregiving ends.

The Snell Foundation exists because of what came after — the sleepless weeks, the terrible food, planning a funeral while she was still in the ICU, the phone calls to institutions that didn't care, the house that needed putting back together. The weight that lands all at once when your whole world just left.

Three moments. Three kinds of help.

We don't write a check and walk away. We show up at the three moments when elderly spousal caregivers need someone most — and we carry the weight so they don't have to.

The Immediate Crisis

When your person is still in the ICU and the world is already asking you to make decisions.

  • Meal delivery to the family
  • Funeral logistics liaison
  • Shielding from cost conversations at the bedside

The Aftermath

The first weeks after loss. The calls, the paperwork, the house that doesn't feel like home anymore.

  • Notification service — institutions, accounts, paperwork
  • Home deep clean and reset
  • Belongings support with care

The Long Road

Months later, when the casseroles stop coming but the need doesn't.

  • Life-admin help — bills, finances, benefits
  • Companion matching with people who get it
  • Check-ins that don't stop

This work takes a community.

Donate

Every dollar goes directly to supporting a surviving spouse through their hardest days.

Volunteer

Be the steady hands. Help with meals, home resets, paperwork, or just showing up.

Partner

Funeral homes, hospice orgs, senior services — if you see these families, let's work together.

Spread the Word

Share our mission. Most people don't know this gap exists until they fall through it.

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