Cheryl MacDonald
November 25, 1964 - November 1, 2019
Cheryl Elizabeth Derrick MacDonald passed away peacefully in her Kauai home Friday, Nov. 1 (with her husband Kevin, sister Lynn and cousin Ike by her side) after a long battle with cancer.
She was born in Grangeville, Idaho, Nov. 25, 1964, to Robert and Joan (Birchmeier) Derrick. The family lived in several places in Idaho and finally settled in Alaska where Cheryl graduated from North Pole High School and earned an associate degree as an airplane and power plant mechanic from Hutchison Career Center in 1983.
She worked as a mechanic on small aircraft at Frontier Flying Service until she landed her dream job as a mechanic working for Alyeska Pipeline in March of 1994 as a pipeline technician at PS07. In 2000, she took a temporary special assignment as a senior maintenance planner scheduler at PS01, then transferred to a technician level 6 position. She worked at PS01 for 16 years. In 2016, she moved to PS09 and worked there until she left Alyeska in March of 2019. On Feb. 7, 2017, she married Kevin Ewing where she helped manage the Clearwater Lodge in Delta Junction with him.
Cheryl was a lover of music, basically teaching herself how to play the guitar at age 10. She bought her first guitar from her savings, which included counting $10 worth of pennies on the counter of the music store in Grangeville, Idaho. Cheryl eventually learned how to play the clarinet, saxophone and oboe, (her favorite) playing in the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra.
Horses were her passion, she ran an ad for free in the Lewiston tribune at age 14 and found a job cleaning stables for Mrs. DeAtley, later owning her own horses, Lita and Harley. They were her children.
Cheryl built her own home, loved the outdoors, art and travel, visiting Southeast Asia, Central America, Austria and many domestic destinations in the process of becoming a million miles flyer with Alaska Airlines. Cheryl fell in love with Kauai, buying a home there in Eleele in 2014.
Cheryl was preceded in death by her mother, Joan Birchmeier; grandfather, William Birchmeier; and grandmother, Mary Birchmeier. Cheryl is survived by her husband, Kevin Ewing; grandfather, Harold Derrick; grandmother, Christel Huff Derrick; father, Robert Derrick; sister, Lee Derrick Zello (Nick), and sister, Lynn Derrick; step-son, Lowen Ewing; step-daughter, Tressa Helkenn, many cousins, nephews and nieces and more friends than any one person could ever hope for.
A celebration of life will be held at the Clearwater Lodge in Delta this spring, date to be announced later.
Published in Daily News-Miner on Dec. 7, 2019
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Alyeska Corporate Communications - 11/05/2019
We are sad to announce that Cheryl MacDonald passed away... Cheryl came to Alyeska Pipeline in March of 1994 as a pipeline technician at PS07. In 2000 she took a temporary special assignment as a Sr. Maintenance Planner Scheduler at PS01, then transferred to a Technician Level 6 position. She worked at PS01 for 16 years. In 2016 she moved to PS09 and worked there until she left Alyeska in March of this year.
We will provide further information about services as we receive it.