Siebert devotes life to family, salon, Parkside
Staff writer
Anyone spending time with Sharon Siebert can assess that she speaks her mind, is devoted to her family, and enjoys hairstyling.
Sharon was born in Chanute, the oldest of six children. Her father was a mill wright, whose job was to set engines for natural gas.
"We moved all over," Sharon said. "We went as far south as Mississippi, as far north as Idaho, and all the places in between."
The family moved five miles east of Hillsboro to Canada when Sharon was in the eighth grade.
"That was the last year the school was open there," she said.
The family later moved to Hillsboro where Sharon graduated from Hillsboro High School in 1966.
In the summer of July 1966, she married Deran Siebert and moved to his family's home place in rural Marion.
After being married two weeks, Sharon began working for John Vogt at the grocery store and worked there from 1966-67.
Through the urging of her husband, she decided to attend beauty school.
"I used to do my husband's mother's hair on the weekends," she said. "He thought it would be a good idea for me to do and I could still stay home and raise a family."
Sharon attended the Modern School of Cosmetology in Wichita and graduated from cosmetology school after one year.
"Driving to and from school in Wichita each day the price of gas was 24.9 cents per gallon," Sharon said.
For a few months, she worked with Rachel Keaser in a beauty shop in Marion.
In Hillsboro, she worked for Irma Knaak in her beauty shop.
In January 1970, she opened her new shop that her husband built as an addition onto their house in the country.
As a mother of two small children in the beginning, Sharon worked in her salon from Tuesday through Saturday.
"Through the years, my husband's mother, an aunt, and high school girls would help baby-sit my children until they were able to go to school," Sharon said.
Sharon enjoyed having the opportunity to work out of her home.
"I liked being at home because I could be with my kids," Sharon said. "And in between hair appointments, I could do a load of laundry or get supper ready."
Sharon offers, perms, hairstyles, coloring, and haircuts. She said she doesn't advertise because most of her clients she has had for years.
In 1981, she acquired the beauty shop at Parkside Homes in Hillsboro.
"I love working there," Sharon said. "Most of my clients have become close to me, like family."
"I never knew my grandparents and cousins while growing up because we moved around so much," she said.
The late Alice Schultz, a resident at Parkside wrote a poem about Sharon for Parkside's newsletter in April 1999.
"She passed away in October of 2000, not long after she wrote the poem about me," Sharon said.
"It's hard when some of the people at Parkside die." Sharon said. "They were like family to me."
When Sharon turned 50 she decided not to work on Saturdays anymore.
"I told myself I did not have to anymore," she said.
Sharon spends time doing activites with her grandkids.
For the last four years, she and Deran plan day trips and travel through Kansas. They start in the morning and go 'wherever' and spend the day sightseeing.
Sharon's hobbies include reading about strong-minded women, such as Mamie Eisenhower, Mrs. George Washington, and Maya Angelou.
She enjoys light-hearted movies, and also likes to cook but doesn't like to clean up the mess.
She attends cooking classes at Cook's Nook in McPherson.
Sharon and husband Deran have been members of the Hillsboro Mennonite Brethren Church for more than 25 years, where she has taught Sunday school, VBS, and nursery classes.
Because the family moved around so much when she was growing up, her family had no real church affiliation. When she married Deran, they attended the Evangelical United Brethren Church in Marion. They later joined the HMB Church in Hillsboro.
Sharon has several statements that she holds dear and mean a lot to her She expressed her philosophy of life thoughts.
First, she said you must have a relationship with your Heavenly Father.
"I consider myself 'old-fashion' in my ideas of raising a family," Sharon said.
Another statement Sharon believes is "It takes a couple to raise a family."
Finally, she challenges every young person to volunteer some time in the nursing homes.
"They would get a different outlook on how things were run and how an older person feels," she said. "They just need to sit down and listen to them."
Sharon and Deran have three children: Thomas and Twanya Siebert of Hillsboro, Shawna and Todd Vogt of Hillsboro and Jennifer and Jeff Kreutziger of Olathe.
They have four grandchildren, Jordan, Justin, Taylor and Braden.
