Sharen Gorter

Sharen Marie Gorter (Pike), age 80, passed away on September 5, 2026 at the end of a life well-lived, surrounded by people who loved her.

She was born May 3, 1946 to Margarette and Max Pike and attended Rockford High School. There she met the man who would go on to become her husband, Bernie Gorter. Though he attended Union High School, Bernie would drop by Rockford to flirt with Sharen and shoo away all the boys trying to ask her to the school dance. The two married after graduation, and were together for 61 wonderful years.

Sharen and Bernie’s home was always open to friends and family, always filled with kids, grandkids, and granddogs. Their kitchen saw several decades’ worth of Thanksgiving dinners, Christmas mornings, and fierce games of LCR. The ultimate hostess, Sharen loved a party; there was no occasion too small to decorate the house and get dressed up for, and she always had an elegant hat or crazy costume for anyone who came without.

She was a world traveler, journeying everywhere from Alaska to Ireland, from Canada to Italy, from Florida (where she and her husband enjoyed whiling away the winter) to the Netherlands (where Bernie was born). That said, some of her most cherished trips were right here in the Midwest. She enjoyed going to Chicago for outrageous girls’ trips, heading up to Mackinac Island for ice cream and sunsets, camping in Grand Haven, and boating all over the Great Lakes.

Sharen retired from RE/MAX in 2016 after 30 years in the business as the most tenacious and savvy realtor in the Grand Rapids area. She then turned her attention to other passions, like attending shows downtown, learning to tap-dance, trying her hand at pickleball, and going shopping. Sharen was a prolific shopper. During back-to-school shopping trips to the mall, which she tackled with the intensity of an Olympic athlete, her granddaughters usually had to tap out long before she did. Her talent for finding a cute top at a great discount was nothing short of legendary.

She will be remembered for her love of adventure, her infamous pranks, her fabulous sense of style, her generosity, and her capacity for love. The world was better with her in it, and won’t be nearly as much fun without her.

Sharen was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her husband, Bernie; siblings Phyllis (the late Steve) Johnson, Jackie (Bob) Mallory, and Max (Diane) Pike; children Jay (Julie) Gorter, Andy Gorter, and Heather (Jeff) Pietrowski; grandchildren Courtney (Brittany) Gorter, Caiden (Sophia) Pietrowski, Jake (Myia) Gorter, Olivia (Jake) Pietrowski, and Drew Gorter; and many nieces, nephews, and friends.

A Memorial Service will be held Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 12pm at Heritage Life Story Funeral Home, Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel, 2120 Lake Michigan Drive NW. Friends may visit with her family beginning at 11am and are encouraged to join the family for an extended Celebration of Life Gathering from 1-3pm, following the service.