In Memory Of

Garth Douglas Sharratt

Oct 5, 1953 - Apr 2, 2026

Service

  As per Garth’s wishes, there will be no public memorial.

Notice

Donations made in his name may be gifted to the Friends of the Eastern Slopes Association.

Obituary

Always smiling. One description of Garth that comes up time and again. Known for his quiet, mild demeanour and soft-spoken voice, everyone was met with that warm smile and a kind hello, firm handshake or hug. Garth had a calming way about him that people and animals were always drawn to. He was unassuming, but with a quiet strength and steadiness that all those who knew him loved and appreciated about him. He developed his love of horses on the family farm east of Red Deer, and it was an integral part of who he was. He was a true cowboy.
If you were fortunate enough to really get to know Garth, you knew someone who was always up for a good laugh and adventure. He loved telling stories and jokes, and if you could wait long enough to get to the end of the story, the punchline was always worth it. Many memories were made sitting around he and his wife Kathy’s kitchen table or living room, or around a bonfire in the mountains, listening to all the hilarious stories and adventures the two of them, and later, their kids Ethan and Korinn, had (like knee boarding behind a ski boat at 71 years old). We always said they should’ve written a book, because you just can’t make this stuff up.
Garth and Kathy spent many a vacation (including their honeymoon in May of 1978) camping, and on horseback, and that didn’t change when the kids came along. Many happy memories were made on these family excursions, and it instilled in his kids a love for horses and the mountain wilderness. In 1985 Garth travelled to Texas to attend Farrier training school and began a successful career that would come to be his trademark. He was well known and well respected among the farm and ranch community.
Eventually, their daughter-in-law Erin, their granddaughters Ryean and Madyn (Hayden), and great-granddaughters Scottlyn and Saylor, as well as countless other family members and friends joined the camping and horse riding crew. There seems to be an infinite number of stories connected to Garth and the mountains, horses and people he shared his life with.
Music was a gift Garth loved to share. A talented, natural musician, he often played guitar and he and Kathy and the kids and grandkids would sing all of the good old tunes they knew. One of his favourite ways to spend time was playing guitar and singing with his family and friends and no camping trip was ever undertaken without the guitars.
Another, and he would say most important, element that defined Garth’s life was his faith. His unbreakable faith in his God Jehovah impacted every aspect of his life. He was rarely missing from his congregation and always sharing the Bible’s message with anyone he could. Garth had a completely firm conviction that God’s promise of enjoying life forever on this beautiful earth he loved so much will be fulfilled. In his final days that conviction and faith was never so solid. Garth trusted - completely, that this is only a pause.
Now, we carry that quiet strength in our own hearts; grateful for his example, his love, his gentleness, his humour, his faith. We look ahead to the future with the same confidence he had, that this is only a pause, and that very soon we will all pick up where we left off and keep on making beautiful memories in a life full of family, friends, mountains, horses, adventure, music and faith.
As per Garth’s wishes, there will be no public memorial. Donations made in his name may be gifted to the Friends of the Eastern Slopes Association.

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