Sheila Malone Waller

Sheila Malone Waller died unexpectedly at her home Monday morning, April 6, 2026, with her husband of 59 years at her side.

Sheila was born at Watts Hospital in Durham, NC, on August 17, 1947 to Faylene Jones Malone and Dr Thomas Patrick Malone. She is survived by her husband, Richard, her two children, Lisa and Kelly, and Lisa’s husband Tony (Thomas Anthony Greco), her siblings, Dr David Malone (Sarah Mansfield), Stephen Malone (Nina Malone) and Kareen Malone (Pam Tatum), her nieces, Addison Malone (Dr Kunal Patel), Shannon Malone (Jim Roof), Maggie Malone (Matt Shakman and daughter Maisie Shakman), Delaney Waller; Sheila’s nephews, Tom Malone (Nathalie Malone and their children, Tristan Scott, Travis Scott, Trisha Scott and Kyan Malone ), Sam Tatum, and Bryan Waller (Jessi Waller, and sons Evan, Tate and Andrew). Sheila was preceded in death by her brothers Michael Malone and Dr Patrick Malone.

Sheila lived with her mother and siblings in Durham through graduation from Durham High School in 1965. During that time she began dating her future husband, Ric, who was then attending Duke University. After graduation, she attended University of Wisconsin at Madison and UNC Chapel Hill. On July 1, 1967, Sheila and Ric were married at St Martin in the Fields, near Atlanta. During their time in Atlanta, she attended Georgia State University. In September, 1969, Sheila, Ric and their new daughter, Lisa, moved to Poughkeepsie, NY, where Ric had accepted a position at IBM. While in Poughkeepsie, their second daughter, Kelly was born in October of 1970. The family moved to Raleigh in 1971 and to their current home in Chapel Hill in 1972.

For the next 54 years Sheila nurtured her family. Her eagerness and optimism was the force that shepherded the family through a memorable two years residence in France and many travel adventures in Europe.

Active in all facets of her daughters’ schooling, she volunteered for years at the Chapel Hill Public Schools at both Frank Porter Graham Elementary and Chapel Hill High School, and helped grow the Career Information Center at Chapel Hill High School in the 1980s. Students who worked with her there benefited from her kindness and encouragement. They would remember her many years later and always say, “Hello, Mrs. Waller,” and stop for a chat whenever they’d run into her in Chapel Hill.

Always creative, quirky and unapologetic Sheila filled her life with eclectic choices. She loved, in no particular order, whimsy, gardenias, travel, history---especially the Tudors, with Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I being her favorites---small electric fans, Disney films, Colonial Williamsburg, and going to the beach. She loved music by artists like Dave Brubeck, John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters, and was one of those rare creatures who genuinely loved both Carolina and Duke Basketball. She also had an affinity for keychains and tiny flashlights to give as gifts. Her favorite film was Frank Capra’s You

Can’t Take It With You, and she instilled a love of 1930s and 40s era film (especially) in her daughters.

But family was most important to Sheila. She was an inveterate gift-giver, and it was her genuine pleasure to keep and celebrate every birth, anniversary and holiday no matter the time or distance involved. She always noticed wild violets, her mother Faylene’s favorite, and bluebirds. Faylene had told her shortly before her own passing that whenever Sheila saw a bluebird, she would know it was her mother watching over her. All of her families: the Malones, the Wallers, the Whitfields, the Joneses, the Tatums, the Hills, the Mansfields, the Quilligans and the Browns were always in her thoughts.

And she was proudly Irish and loved celebrating her Irish heritage. Her color was the Green. Her gem was the emerald. Her stone was jade, and St Patrick’s Day was important.

Sheila exemplified what love and kindness are. Everyone she touched experienced her unlimited capacity for love and generosity. Always thoughtful and inclusive, she had an open optimism about life and people and an unshakable belief in equality and fairness, fully embodying her family nickname, “Sunshine”. As her brother Michael put it, her life was a “rush for joy.” Our love for Sheila will live on in our memories of her.

To give a gift in celebration of Sheila’s life, consider donating to one of her favorite charities: a local APS, the ACLU, Amnesty International, PBS, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, or the Southern Poverty Law Center. A celebration of life will be held at a future date.